Bowen Place
Bowen Place
Location
Kings Avenue, Canberra ACT, Australia
For
National Capital Authority
Design Team
Jane Irwin Landscape Architecture
McGregor Westlake Architecture
Lindy Lee
Competitions
In 2011 the NCA invited five interdisciplinary design teams to participate in a five week design competition for the development of a pedestrian and cycle crossing at Bowen Place, between Kings Avenue and the National Gallery of Australia precinct. The brief stipulated that the crossing take the form of an underpass.
In this proposal, the underpass is embedded into a long linear wall which establishes a strong organisational presence. This confident intervention is in keeping with the broader physical and visual geometries of the Parliamentary Zone.
The crossing is considered at a range of scales, from central Canberra to local:
– creates missing link in pedestrian cycle network, resolving the local condition and improving general inner ring circulation
– provides a model for the replacement of the lakefront clover leaf ramps by pedestrian and cycle infrastructure, in so doing significantly opening up the lake frontages for active and passive uses (consistent with long term planning objectives)
– creates more generous area and considered frontage for the NGA in the future
Shortlisted: Bowen Place Design Competition 2011
