Queensland Sites and Projects
Viridian Noosa
introduction / overview / images / location / Qld-Projects
Landscape Architect: EDAW and Chenoweth EPLA
Location: Noosa, Queensland
Noosa Hill forms a green backdrop to Hastings Street, framed by the forested hills of Noosa Heads National Park, although the prominent hillside below Laguna Lookout is a former banana plantation. By the 1990s, this hillside had become a weed-infested goat paddock, awaiting planning resolution of its development potential.
A joint venture application by Leighton Properties and Ariadne for an integrated tourism and residential development on part of the site was approved, following a lengthy Planning and Environment Court Appeal. Planning of the ‘Viridian Noosa’ development was based on site constraints and opportunities investigated over several years, including the existing flora and fauna, watercourses and the visual sensitivity of the landform.
The Viridian Noosa development comprises four phases:
- Preliminary Stage, revegetation and rehabilitation enhancement stage to restore the ecological footprint to the site;
- Stage One, comprising six private homes on Angler Street and Bayview Road;
- Stage Two, comprising 23 Morwong Villas, including the public boardwalk from Alma Way up to Noosa Lookout, which was also completed and handed over to Noosa Council; and
- Stage Three, which is yet to be developed.
Land management of the Viridian Noosa site was managed in a partnership between EDAW and Chenoweth Environmental Planning & Landscape Architecture (Chenoweth EPLA).
Chenoweth EPLA was responsible for the overall site revegetation and rehabilitation enhancement stage, including land management of the Viridian Noosa riparian zone and Noosa Hill parcel, which was donated back to Noosa Council on completion. The riparian zone rehabilitation plan and long term monitoring program was prepared to the requirements of Noosa Council and its consultants, including an independent peer review by rainforest regeneration expert Robert Kooyman. The program was based on the scientific principles of restoration ecology and best-practice rehabilitation techniques with clear end-point objectives, rather than a ‘quick fix’ approach.
EDAW was responsible for Viridian Stages One and Two, which comprised the landscape management plan, concept design, design documentation and contract administration. Specific land management tasks performed by EDAW included: overall site analysis; tree retention coordination; and retaining wall and swale locations, sympathetic to site contours and able to convey water to the landscape through overland flow paths, ultimately determining the final hard and soft site design for Stages One and Two.
All elements of the project were designed to high standards of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD), which were incorporated into approval conditions. Integral to the on-site ESD balance was extensive rehabilitation of the 14-hectare hillside to extend the National Park habitat and fauna corridors, community parklands and a public walkway connecting Noosa Lookout to Hastings Street. In the first year, the focus was on weed control and plant propagation, sprayed and mulched, with more than 36,000 trees and shrubs (and over 100 local species) planted between 2002 and 2006. Regular monitoring of the contractor’s performance against the requirements of the rehabilitation plan ensured the rehabilitation work was on track and provided an opportunity to adjust prescribed techniques where necessary. The progress of vegetation toward ‘target’ communities was assessed by monitoring fixed transect points
The restoration work has been a successful joint venture between Chenoweth EPLA and EDAW. The mixture of species has proven sufficiently robust to meet the objectives of self-sustaining communities, progressing towards pre-European ecosystems characteristic of Noosa Hill. Areas once dominated by rank exotic grasses now support dense stands of trees up to 5 metres in height and there has been excellent natural recruitment of native species, indicating that ecological function is being restored. The landscape development associated with this stage of Viridian Noosa integrates the buildings within the natural setting, providing an intimacy and character in keeping with the special nature of the site and respecting the sensitivity of the environmental setting.
introduction / overview / images / location / Qld-Projects
2008
