Stamford Park open space makeover to feature ‘urban beach’ and man-made lake

IT IS more than 20km from the ocean, but a $125m housing development in Rowville will feature an “urban beach” and man-made lake.

AN “urban beach” and man-made lake will form part of a $13 million makeover of Stamford Park’s open space.

The project to transform 40ha of parkland in Rowville, alongside the new $125 million housing estate, includes a $1.75 million adventure play area, a $600,000 lake playground and $328,000 of public art.

It also includes a $1 million refurbishment of the 19th-century Stamford Park homestead, which will be converted into a restaurant.

Work begins on Stamford Park Rowville housing estate

Race on to run Stamford Park Homestead restaurant

Knox Council city development director Angelo Kourambas said confidential talks regarding an operator continued but the plan was to have a cafe/restaurant with the potential for functions including weddings.

The parklands masterplan was approved by the council recently, with work expected to start in 2018 and be finished by late 2019.

The council will manage the parklands but the cost will be covered by money that developer Stockland paid them for the land.

The Stamford Park public parkland will feature a man-made lake with lakeside kiosk and boardwalk, as well as ponds and an “urban beach” for yabbying.

Artists’ impressions of the parklands show plans for a man-made lake, with lakeside kiosk and boardwalk, as well as ponds and an “urban beach” for yabbying.

Knox mayor Darren Pearce said the park would be “spectacular”.

“I’m very impressed with the plans,” he said.

“It’s Knox’s equivalent of Jells Park (in Wheelers Hill). It’s not going to be exactly the same but it will be our marquee project.”

A historical photo of the Stamford Park Homestead in Rowville.

Cr Nicole Seymour, who chairs the Stamford Park Project Steering Committee, went one step further and said it would be better than Jells Park.

“There’s going to be nothing like this in the outer east,” she said.

She said it will be a “place of escape” and somewhere to “connect with yourself in the middle of suburbia”.

Cr Pearce said it would draw a large number of visitors and $696,000 had been allocated to car parks.

Stamford Park Homestead in Rowville is being transformed.

“There is a great lack of public transport in Knox and so we’ve had to cater for that,” he said.

Stockland senior development manager Anthony Scafidi said while the council was in charge of designing the public parkland they had worked with them “to ensure their design and the design of Stockland project integrate seamlessly”.

The first of the 190 properties in the housing estate will go on sale later this year, Mr Scafidi said.