As the Botanic Gardens Riverwalk extension nears completion, the Brisbane City Council has released new designs for the Eagle Street waterfront. Designed to complement the rapidly-expanding Howard Smith Wharves and existing (and future) projects along the waterfront, the new plans highlight how the area is set to become a multi-purpose hub.
Designed to emulate the best parts of 22 ‘benchmark waterfront’ precincts around the world, the designs for the new Eagle Street waterfront area pulls features from all over to make a space that is intended to be ‘generous, connected, engaging, consistent and comfortable’, according to the press release. And there are some rather cool features included in the new plans. This includes a proposed lap pool outside Stamford Plaza, public art areas and inclusions, new CityCat terminals, better lighting on walkways and enhanced pedestrian access to the Brisbane River, and a multitude of new green spaces. With two new proposed towers along with range of new riverfront dining and retail options, the redesign of the area is expected to revitalise the entire eagle Street precinct which has been substantially unchanged now for over 20 years.
Whilst still a while away yet — the final master plan will not be released until 2020 and the project is not set to be complete until 2026 — the potential redesigns for the area are being well-received by the public. With the precinct set to be traffic-free, it will be incredibly pedestrian friendly, and a widened and updated Riverwalk will significantly help with this. 1.5 hectares of open public areas in the design will be welcome by both Brisbane CBD residents and workers as sufficient available public green space is a weakness of the Brisbane CBD at present.
Combined with other new projects in the Brisbane CBD, including the Kangaroo Point Bridge and Queen’s Wharf, the new Eagle Street waterfront area will continue the ongoing redesign of the Brisbane CBD to improve overall engagement with the Brisbane River.
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