Trifecta of awards for Sydney's lookouts
Proving they are not just a hit with visitors, spectacular sight-seeing precincts in Sydney region national parks have now scooped a trifecta of awards, with the new North Head lookouts, Burragula and Yiningma, taking out the highest award for architecture in New South Wales.
The lookouts at North Head in Sydney Harbour National Park and West Head in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park were recently redeveloped by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) to improve safety and accessibility and the results are reaping rewards.
The North Head lookouts, designed by local architecture firm Chrofi and connecting with Country designers Bangawarra, took out the Robert Woodward Award in the Small Projects category and NSW Architecture Medallion at the 2024 NSW Architecture Awards on Friday night.
This completes a trifecta for the improvement projects in Sydney national parks, which have now won prestigious awards for heritage conservation, landscape architecture and architecture.
The other awards include:
- Award of Excellence in the Tourism category at the AILA 2024 Landscape Architecture Awards (held on 27 June 2024) – West Head lookout (Bruce Mackenzie and OCULUS with NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service)
- 2024 Heritage Award in the landscape category – West Head Lookout
Quote attributable to Atticus Fleming Head NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service:
'These outstanding visitor precincts are examples of what can be achieved by tying together all of the important elements of improving durability and functionality but also connecting to Country when upgrading our facilities.
'What we have achieved at North Head is a spectacular transformation of tired 40-year-old viewing platforms, to an immersive experience aligned with their iconic settings.
'With over 40 million people visiting national parks in New South Wales each year, they are a key driver of the economy.
'By improving accessibility more visitors can enjoy and appreciate the wonders of Sydney's national parks whether it is whale-watching in winter, learning about Country or just enjoying Sydney's spectacular coastal scenery and skyline.'
