Grimshaw's Aquatic Center in Parramatta, Australia

The Grimshaw company, now based in Paris, is offering a 40,000 m² water park on the traditional lands of the Taruk people for the client city of Parramatta (Australia), a suburb of Sydney, in 2023. Cost: n/a press release

The new Parramatta Aquatic Center (PAC) is located on Mace Hill, on the traditional lands of the Parramattagal, an indigenous group of Taruk people. The center is located within Parramatta Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is part of a unique landscape design that recognizes the site's historic purpose as a gathering place.

The swimming pool recreates the traditional typology of aquatic centers, creating a new space where the quality of the outdoor landscape and recreation space defines the experience. It is a new community center centered around swimming in a park. The park is minimally disturbed by placing the building footprint in the landscape – retaining and celebrating the ancient landscape and views.

Aiming to highlight the collective and sporting joys of swimming in a public park environment, the Aquatic Center offers Parramatta residents a new passion. It's been almost six years since the city had a municipal swimming pool, when the old one was razed to make way for a new one.

Today, Parramatta boasts a 50-metre outdoor pool and 10 swimming lanes, a solarium, a 25-metre indoor leisure pool, an indoor pool dedicated to learning to swim, a playground with aquatic facilities, a hammam, a spa and sauna, several multi-purpose rooms, as well as a modern gymnasium. , a health and fitness center with meeting rooms and a café. Most facilities are located on one level for ease of access and use.

The rooftop, which includes in-ground pools, meets the open space requirements of the neighborhood master plan, maintaining community access and heritage views of the former Government House. The link is designed to reduce traffic impacts in the area and effectively link existing public transport. Parking is integrated into the landscape of the park.

The facility includes 360 solar panels on the roof that power a 193 kW solar system. Automatic natural ventilation is used in the fitness center instead of air conditioning to maximize energy savings. By filtering harmful UV rays, maintaining temperature and absorbing sound, skylights provide soft natural light to interior spaces.

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