Weston Park Conservation Management Plan
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Weston Park Conservation Management Plan Report prepared for ACT Government Department of Territory and Municipal Services (TAMS) July 2011 Report Register The following report register documents the development and issue of the report entitled Weston Park— Conservation Management Plan (CMP), undertaken by Godden Mackay Logan Pty Ltd in accordance with its quality management system. Godden Mackay Logan operates under a quality management system which has been certified as complying with the Australian/New Zealand Standard for quality management systems AS/NZS ISO 9001:2008. Job No. Issue No. Notes/Description Issue Date 09-6482 1 CMP Draft Report November 2010 09-6482 2 CMP Final Draft Report February 2011 09-6482 3 CMP Final Draft Report March 2011 09-6482 4 CMP Final Draft Report to ACT Heritage April 2011 09-6482 5 CMP Final Report July 2011 Copyright Historical sources and reference material used in the preparation of this report are acknowledged and referenced at the end of each section and/or in figure captions. Reasonable effort has been made to identify, contact, acknowledge and obtain permission to use material from the relevant copyright owners. Unless otherwise specified or agreed, copyright in this report vests in Godden Mackay Logan Pty Ltd (‘GML’) and in the owners of any pre-existing historic source or reference material. Moral Rights GML asserts its Moral Rights in this work, unless otherwise acknowledged, in accordance with the (Commonwealth) Copyright (Moral Rights) Amendment Act 2000. GML’s moral rights include the attribution of authorship, the right not to have the work falsely attributed and the right to integrity of authorship. Right to Use GML grants to the client for this project (and the client’s successors in title) an irrevocable royalty-free right to reproduce or use the material from this report, except where such use infringes the copyright and/or Moral Rights of GML or third parties. Contents Page Executive Summary ......................................................................................................................................... i 1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background to the Project ...................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Project Aims and Heritage Status.......................................................................................................... 1 1.3 Using Precincts in the CMP ................................................................................................................... 2 1.4 Consultation for the CMP ....................................................................................................................... 2 1.5 Previous Reports .................................................................................................................................... 3 1.6 Authorship ............................................................................................................................................... 3 1.7 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................ 3 1.8 Limitations ............................................................................................................................................... 4 2.0 Understanding the Place: Historical Context ...................................................................................... 7 2.1 Land Use Prior to the Development of Canberra ................................................................................. 7 2.1.1 Indigenous Land Use....................................................................................................................... 7 2.1.2 Pastoral Land Use ........................................................................................................................... 7 2.2 Implementing the Garden City Concept of Canberra ........................................................................... 7 2.2.1 Canberra: The Need for Afforestation ............................................................................................ 7 2.2.2 The Griffin Plan for Canberra—1913–1920 ................................................................................... 8 2.3 Canberra’s Government Nursery .......................................................................................................... 9 2.3.1 First Government Nursery—Acton 1911 ........................................................................................ 9 2.3.2 Second Government Nursery—Yarralumla 1915 ......................................................................... 9 2.3.3 Nursery Plants for Canberrans ..................................................................................................... 11 2.4 Weston Park—TCG Weston 1912–1926 ........................................................................................... 12 2.5 Alexander Bruce 1927–1937 ............................................................................................................... 15 2.6 John Peace Hobday 1937–1944 ......................................................................................................... 16 2.7 Percy Moore, Jack Moore, Tom Sharp 1920–1950s ......................................................................... 16 2.8 Lindsay Pryor 1944–1958 .................................................................................................................... 17 2.9 NCDC Lakeside Parkland/Lakeshore 1960s–Present ...................................................................... 18 2.9.1 Lakeside Parkland ......................................................................................................................... 18 2.9.2 Development of the Landscape Aesthetic and the Role of the NCDC ...................................... 18 2.9.3 Development of the English Garden, Kurrajong Point and Aquatics ......................................... 19 2.9.4 Recreational Facilities.................................................................................................................... 19 2.9.5 SIEV X Memorial............................................................................................................................ 21 2.10 Yarralumla Nursery as a Workplace 1950s/1960s–Present ........................................................... 22 2.10.1 Postwar to Modern Times ........................................................................................................... 22 2.10.2 Yarralumla Nursery since the 1960s .......................................................................................... 22 2.10.3 Yarralumla Nursery in the Twenty-First Century ....................................................................... 22 2.11 Endnotes ............................................................................................................................................. 23 3.0 Understanding the Place: Historic & Physical Analysis ................................................................. 35 3.1 Historic Phases of Development ......................................................................................................... 35 3.1.1 Background .................................................................................................................................... 35 3.1.2 Phase 1: Up to and including the TCG Weston Period............................................................... 35 3.1.3 Phase 2: Post TCG Weston (1927–1958) ................................................................................... 37 Weston Park—Conservation Management Plan, July 2011 3.1.4 Phase 3: Post Pryor, the NCDC Period (1958–1960s) .............................................................. 37 3.1.5 Phase 4: 1970s–Present .............................................................................................................. 38 3.2 Overview Description of Weston Park Today .................................................................................... 44 3.2.1 Climate and Topography .............................................................................................................. 44 3.2.2 Landform and Micro-Climate ........................................................................................................ 44 3.2.3 Existing Vegetation ....................................................................................................................... 44 3.2.4 Landscape Condition .................................................................................................................... 45 3.2.5 Movement through the Park ......................................................................................................... 47 3.2.6 View Analysis ................................................................................................................................ 47 3.2.7 Natural Values Analysis ................................................................................................................ 48 3.3 Contemporary Amenity of the Park .................................................................................................... 53 3.3.1 Precinct 1: Sub-Precinct—Entry Zone ........................................................................................