City Renewal Authority plans a temporary and permanent park planned for Acton waterfront

The City Renewal Authority has lodged works approval plans for a temporary and permanent park at west basin.

The ACT government agency has said a temporary park will be built to be the "settlement ground" for the reclaimed land on the water front.

Specific details of what the park will depend on what the contractor chosen to design the park will propose. This will be selected following works approval.

The City Renewal Authority has said the permanent park will include play spaces, gardens, toilets, pavilions and event spaces.

No timelines have been given for the development of the temporary or permanent park.

The agency also wanted to embed Ngunnawal artworks and nature play throughout the parks.

The ACT government has planned to spend $35 million on the Acton waterfront over the next six years, as announced in the territory budget.

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The works approval has been lodged with the National Capital Authority and consultation will run for three weeks until September 22.

"The National Capital Authority's public consultation builds on our close engagement with the Canberra community and will ensure the quality of the proposed temporary park and permanent park, including communal amenities and aesthetic values, are met in line with the National Capital Plan," a City Renewal Authority spokesperson said.

"We've already seen locals and visitors embrace Henry Rolland Park and we look forward to expanding the popular lakeside destination."

The parks are the next stage in the redevelopment of west basin, following the build of a boardwalk and land reclamation which was granted works approval in September 2020.

The redevelopment of the waterfront has faced scrutiny following an Auditor-General's report, released last year, which found a tender for work at the waterfront was poorly designed and costs of the work had blown out by more than 70 per cent.

The audit into procurement and contracting for the Acton waterfront project, which formed part of the high-profile City to the Lake plan, found the government's management between 2014 and 2020 was ineffective and the initial 2014 tender was poorly designed.

The audit recommended the City Renewal Authority make more information public about the procurement process and contracts for the project.

The ACT government made a deal with the National Capital Authority in 2020 to take ownership of the land in exchange for the Curtin horse paddocks. The Curtin land will be used for embassies.

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