Montrose Bay High School
Landscape Architects: Inspiring Place
Contributors: Inspiring Place (Jerry de Gryse, Rebecca Doblo, Miriam Shevland), BYA Architects (Rebecca Fullerton, Drew Edwards, Patrick Yeung), Gandy and Roberts (structural engineering), Futago (graphic design), Tim Whitely (public artist)
Client: Department of Education
Project Location: Montrose Bay, City of Glenorchy on the foreshore of the Derwent River with Mt Wellington and the Wellington Range as a backdrop.
Project Brief: Create external courtyard spaces for a vibrant new ‘big picture’ school to meet a range of pedagogical and social agendas in support of the school’s mission to provide a caring, supportive and stimulating educational environment.
Project Summary: Award winning Landscape Architecture should respond to the nature and activity of a site and add value to the landscape. This is the case with the landscape architecture of Montrose Bay High School, where Inspiring Place was appointed to the team late in the piece, yet with a number of bold strokes they were able to substantially affect how the client and the Architects saw the site. Then, in time, through careful resolution of detail and close attention to the construction process they brought their vision to life.
In the arrival area, a tight turning circle with limited parking as proposed by others was re-envisioned to be a clear arrival sequence, assisting visitor orientation, borrowing spectacular views to the broad landscape and creating a ceremonial promenade to the school’s core at ‘Courtyard 3’. The client response to the Landscape Architect’s pen stroke was instantaneous – “we want that” and a $1M variation to the contract was enacted to enable it.
Courtyard 3 picks up its design cues from internal joinery to drive a sinuous pattern on the ground plane that provides visual delight and interest. Socialisation is encouraged by the shape and placement of seating areas whilst generous gathering spaces are provided at the entries to surrounding buildings including the Performing Arts Centre.
Courtyard 4 creates universal access across a topographically challenged and heavily used area of the site for which no one had an answer they liked.
Using a ‘split-zed’ ramp form, Inspiring Place proposed pedestrian passage, viewing areas, amphitheatre steps and gathering spaces that allow for spontaneous and planned events as well as necessary all-abilities access. Again the client was inspired by the concept to find additional funds ($0.25M) to create ‘a space’ rather than a ‘ramp’ as they had initially imagined.
Simple but robust materials, recycled where possible, have been used across all areas with artistic effect. Water sensitive design is a feature with rainfall directed to bio-swales, garden beds and lawns where it serves to passively irrigate plantings and grass, infiltrates to groundwater or flows clean to downstream areas. Invasive species were removed along Islet Rivulet and riparian plantings reinforced to slow and cleanse water. Heavy site soils were re-conditioned and reused negating the need for importation of soil from off-site.
more on this project (PDF)
