Kensington Gardens Reserve Project

** UPDATE 19 JULY 2022 **

New satellite imagery shows the construction of the site - before and after.  

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The Kensington Gardens Reserve Project located in Kensington Wama was officially opened by Premier Steven Marshall on 17 January 2022.

Find out more in KGR news below.

The wetland

While the wetland is open, planting will continue throughout January 2022 and in autumn and winter season. It will take 2-3 years for the plants in and around the wetland to fully establish. For that reason, there will be temporary fencing in place to protect the plantings as they mature.

The seating on the round deck that is located over the wetland, will be completed in early 2022.

Kensington Wama Mukangka / nature play space

This space has been designed for children aged 3 to 7 years. It complements the existing Adventure Playground in the north western corner of the Reserve, which is suited to children aged 5 to 12 years.

Natural play spaces encourage creative and imaginative play, allowing children to engage and explore all senses and increasing their ability to think critically. Nature play is intended to be challenging unstructured outdoor play and is not designed to be risk free. This play space has been designed to provide children with an opportunity to take measured and age‐appropriate risks, while gaining an appreciation for the environment and cultural heritage through sculpture and play items inspired by Kaurna Traditional Owners.

The stepping stones through the creek and wetland are intended to provide children and their carers with an ‘immersion experience’.

The slide in the nature play space will open in early 2022 after a soft-fall mound is installed.

The rope play elements will be completed in early 2022.

Children should be supervised at all times while using the nature play space and stepping stones.

Paths

In early 2022 final work on some of the paths and the installation of rubber soft-fall material at the fitness stations will be completed.

Tennis courts and clubrooms

The upgrade of the tennis clubrooms will also continue throughout January/February 2022. This is part of a separate project that will provide new public amenities in the south east corner of the reserve - men’s, women’s and disabled access bathroom with parents room facilities.

A new acrylic surface will be installed on the community/club tennis courts in mid January 2022.

The construction compound that is located in the south east corner will remain in place until the early 2022 works are completed.

Art installation

'Figures in the Bush' is a new art installation that will be completed in mid-January.

OTHER INFORMATION

New co-name

The community and Council have supported the suggested name for the reserve, Kensington Wama/ Kensington Gardens Reserve . The proposed name for the nature play space that will be created as part of the Kensington Gardens Reserve Project, Kensington Wama Mukangka, was also supported.

Kaurna place of reflection

Kaurna Traditional Owners have developed concept designs for a place of reflection that will feature carvings of fauna that are associated with this location. The carvings are created from trees that were removed to allow for the construction of the new wetland.

Path lighting

New fitness stations will be installed in the northern and southern parts of the reserve. They will be linked by a shared use path that can be used as a walking or running circuit.

To extend the hours that during which the shared use path and fitness stations can be used, the path will be lit with solar path lights. The lights will be mounted on 6 m high poles and installed at approximately 35-40 m spacings alongside the path.

The lighting will operate on a ‘lights out’ curfew. On days with low light conditions, such as cloudy days in winter, the lights may turn off earlier due to the reduced charge of the solar batteries.

The solar lights that will be installed are similar to those currently in use at the Conyngham Street Dog Park, Glenunga.

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BACKGROUND

The Kensington Gardens Reserve Project will deliver significant environmental and recreational benefits to the reserve and the surrounding creek ecosystem.

The overall project will include an extensive revegetation program with more than 40 trees, 1,450 shrubs and 4,300 groundcovers to be planted in the area surrounding a new wetland.

The Kensington Gardens Reserve Project, Project Steering Committee recently awarded the construction contract for the project to Camco SA.

Camco is a South Australian civil construction company with proven track record in delivering significant projects.

Camco will be partnering with Consolidated Landscape Services for this project and construction works began onsite on Monday 4 January 2021.

What is happening?

ABOUT TREE REMOVALS

Tree removals are commencing

An independent arborist and fauna expert will work alongside Camco in the removal of trees and vegetation as part of this project.

All trees removed will be reused, where possible, for habitat features, biozone edging, Kaurna sculptures and mulch.

Along with some exotic pest species and shrubs growing in the location of the future wetland, tree removals will include seven regulated mature trees and ten non-regulated mature trees – some that have been assessed by an independent arborist as having poor health, or are dead, and requiring replacement. A plan of the trees to be removed as part of this project can be seen in the diagram below.

Three of the regulated mature trees are to be removed to accommodate the new wetland. The size and location of the wetland is necessary to adequately treat the polluted water entering the reserve from the Wattle Park catchment before it is discharged into the downstream Stonyfell Creek system.

The site will be revegetated with more than 40 trees, 1,450 shrubs and 4,300 groundcovers to be planted in the area surrounding a new wetland.

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ABOUT THE PROJECT

The Kensington Gardens Reserve project will deliver significant environmental and recreational benefits to the reserve and the surrounding creek ecosystem.

The overall project will include an extensive revegetation program with more than 40 trees, 1,450 shrubs and 4,300 groundcovers to be planted in the area surrounding a new wetland.

A dedicated ‘biozone’ area will feature 2,400m2 of plantings across three distinct areas that will complement the remnant SA Blue Gum ecosystem at the reserve.

Native species will be used exclusively for all new plantings, 4,800 new ‘biozone’ plantings will be locally sourced and indigenous to the reserve.

The wetland will benefit existing trees by removing the existing lake walls and feature over 10,000 new plants that will improve the quality of stormwater that enters Stonyfell Creek.

Revitalisation work includes:

• replacing the unsafe artificial lake with a functional wetland to treat urban water pollution entering Stonyfell Creek.
• visual, recreational and environmental improvements to Stonyfell Creek and the surrounding environment.
• eight reconfigured tournament standard tennis courts with lighting available for club and public use.
• nature play features and biodiversity education elements.
• northern and southern fitness stations and a running circuit around the reserve via a shared-use path.
• new bridges over the creek, viewing decks and a boardwalk over the wetland.

 Above: Artists' impression of the new nature play space.

Find out more about the project in the Project Brochure in the document library above. You can also find the concept design in the document library as well.