Living City Project: $17 million Devonport riverside precinct to be completed by spring 2021

Construction of an almost $17 million waterfront park precinct will get underway next week.

Devonport Living City is the biggest urban renewal project ever undertaken in regional Tasmania.

VOS CONSTRUCTION has won the almost $17 million contract to build Devonport’s waterfront park precinct — the centrepiece of the North-West city’s bold $250 million Living City Project.

Living City is the biggest urban renewal project ever undertaken in regional Tasmania.

On Monday night the Devonport City Council approved the contract to build the waterfront precinct. It will include a privately-developed hotel.

Four contractors were accepted after an expression of interest process to the second and final phase of the tender process in June.

Work is scheduled to being next week and the waterfront precinct should be complete in spring, 2021.

Devonport City Mayor Annette Rockliff said the contract would see another construction boom in the city. She said the project was fully-funded with the Federal Government chipping in $10 million and no council borrowing would be needed.

Devonport Mayor Annette Rockliff after the official opening of the paranaple centre at Devonport. PICTURE CHRIS KIDD

The park will increase, by five times, the number of plants and trees in the CBD and link Rooke St to the edge of the Mersey River with promenades — one elevated over the railway lines.

Stage one of the project included the construction of the building which now includes Devonport Library, paranaple centre, Service Tasmania, Online Access Centre, 800-seat convention centre, Providore Place and arts centre.

The process has not been without controversy, with the auditor general last week raising shortcomings in relation to the original lease agreement for Providore Place.

The council last week acknowledged attempts to make the lease a non-traditional co-operative shared arrangement had proved ineffectual and created a significant amount of angst between the parties.

“Just as stage one has certainly enhanced the city, I have no doubt this stage will also have a positive impact on the community as well as attracting visitors to Devonport,” Mayor Rockliff said.

“It will offer a range of new features — such as the elevated walkway, geo-garden and amphitheatre — and most importantly build on the long-held desire to open the CBD to the Mersey River.”