The Waterfront at Albany is moving full steam ahead, with the completion of Stage 1 civil works and the recent opening of the pedestrian bridge and landscaped plaza.
Watch this space for further updates as the town's premier foreshore development takes shape.
As a major regional centre equivalent to Bunbury, Mandurah and Geraldton, Albany is considered by some to have inferior maritime facilities and a main foreshore area lacking in facilities. The Waterfront at Albany development provides a major opportunity for the State Government and the City of Albany to drive the redevelopment and promotion of Albany as a destination of choice and provide significant environmental, community and economic benefits. It also provides the opportunity to reconnect the town centre with the Princess Royal Harbour foreshore.
The State Government has committed $27.8 million to the redevelopment of the Albany Waterfront and a further $46.3m on construction of the Albany Entertainment Centre.
It is estimated the Anzac Peace Park will cost approximately $2.45 million, to be funded by the City of Albany with grant assistance from State and Federal Government sources.
Renewal of Albany's waterfront district will deliver significant environmental, community and economic benefits to the region. Specific benefits to the local community include:
• Connect the Albany CBD to the Princess Royal Harbour foreshore;
• Create a vibrant mixed-use waterfront focus for the city;
• Increase access to the waterfront through the pedestrian bridge and ample parking;
• Attract visitors, businesses and entertainers to the area;
• Reinvigorate the adjoining lower York Street tourism precinct;
• Improved facilities and protected harbour for the charter and fishing industries, and recreational vessels;
• Provide improved community facilities at the Princess Royal Harbour foreshore and link to the Anzac Peace Park; and
• Long-term employment and business opportunities.
Below outlines the timeline for the development of The Waterfront at Albany:
• First section of pedestrian bridge opened to the public – July 2007
• Civil works Stage 1 (remediation and subdivision of land) – September 2007
• Construction of Entertainment Centre commences – mid-2008
• Commencement of Stage 2 civil works – beginning of 2008
• Developer announced for hotel site – Late 2008
• Stage 1 harbour pens constructed and available for public use – February 2009
• Completion of Entertainment Centre – 2010
• Completion of hotel site – 2010/2011
The Albany Entertainment Centre is to be constructed by the Department of Housing and Works, in partnership with the City of Albany and the Great Southern Development Commission.
The Department of Housing and Works appointed architects Cox Howlett and Bailey Woodland in December 2006. Construction of the 620-seat centre is expected to commence in May 2008 and be complete in 2010. 130 car bays are included for the centre as part of a total 700 car bays throughout the development.
A new waterfront hotel with conference and function facilities will complement the Entertainment Centre and attract visitors to the region.
The four or five star hotel will be five storeys high and include 125 rooms. Adjacent to the hotel, 50 short stay serviced apartments will provide rooms for visitors and business travellers to wind down while enjoying the prime views of Princess Royal Harbour. 130 car bays are included as part of this site.
The boat harbour at the Albany Waterfront project will:
• Provide new, deeper-water maritime pens and berths to supplement existing shallower moorings at Emu Point;
• Provide a protected area for vessels - currently vessels operate from the unprotected Town Jetty which is subject to strong waves during storms; and
• Cater for larger fishing industry vessels, existing tourism-charter vessels, recreational craft, fuelling facilities, and land-based maintenance and support industries.
In addition to providing a safer, deeper harbour for Albany's recreational and commercial fishing industry, land-based facilities will be upgraded. The boat harbour will cater for larger fishing vessels, existing tourism charter vessels, recreational craft with fuelling and sullage facilities. Opportunities will be created for marine maintenance and support industries within the adjoining tourism/commercial zone.
The boat harbour will be managed by the Department for Planning and Infrastructure.
Development of The Waterfront at Albany will be undertaken in accordance with the Department of Environment and Conservation guidelines. A detailed site investigation of the soil and groundwater quality within the site has been undertaken.
LandCorp will manage and oversee remediation of the site. This work will be carried out by a contractor in compliance with the Department of Environment and Conservation requirements.
Ongoing environmental monitoring will be undertaken throughout project development in compliance with the Department of Environment and Conservation requirements.
Environmental consultants working on the project are currently preparing an Environmental Protection Statement (EPS) on the boat harbour proposal for the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).
The EPS is currently undergoing agency review.
The key environmental factors being addressed in the EPS are:
• Water quality - during both construction and operation
• Marine ecosystem effects - seagrass loss and transplantation offsets
• Coastal processes - potential effects on sediment accretion/erosion
Other issues that will be covered include the use of dredge material in reclamation, odour, dust, noise, heritage and traffic.
Access to the Port of Albany is an important issue, both during construction of The Waterfront at Albany and once all the facilities are operational. It is vital that commodities can move freely to and from the Port. At the same time community safety remains a priority.
Port traffic is spread over 24 hours with up to 200 road trains and seven trains passing the development during any 24-hour period. Dedicated port traffic lanes will be developed along Princess Royal Drive and intersection modification (York Street), pedestrian bridge, noise attenuation in buildings, footpaths and access control fencing will all be utilised as part of the development's design.
The pedestrian bridge linking the site to the CBD has been built with additional clearance so as not to impede access to the Port by large loads. A removable section of the bridge is also included to allow for exceptionally high loads.
