by Carla Caruso

Another renewal project is underway in your Park Lands. And this one has been a long time coming.

The lake at Rymill Park / Murlawirrapurka (Park 14) is closed until April while it undergoes improvements.

The $6 million upgrade has been co-funded by the City of Adelaide and the state government through the Open Space Grant program. SA building and landscaping company CATCON has been named as the contractor.

While the lake’s usually a feature of outdoor venue hub Gluttony during the Fringe in February and March – as a scenic backdrop and performance space – it’ll be out of action for next year’s festival. Same goes for Harvest Rock and the Adelaide 500.

However, it’ll be opened up again in time for the Adelaide Equestrian Festival in April; an important Olympic qualifying event for Paris 2024.

The artificial lake opened in 1960 and now needs renewal to address structural decline, a leaking base, and ongoing poor water quality and amenity. Regular outbreaks of toxic green algae have often rendered it unsuitable for the public to use, such as with rowboats and remote-controlled boats.

Consultation on a draft master plan for major works in the park – namely, the lake – first took place in 2019. After going through the Park Lands Authority in 2021, the final version of the plan was approved by the council in July 2022.

One of the major questions during the process was whether to maintain the lake as purely ornamental or convert it into a vegetated wetland.

A compromise was reached with the council deciding to keep the lake primarily ornamental but supplementing the poor waterflow from Botanic Creek with an alternative, sustainable water source.

Now, instead of the lake being topped up with water from the Glenelg to Adelaide Pipeline, it’ll be replenished with stormwater from Victoria Park / Pakapakanthi (Park 16), with a new self-cleaning rain garden filtration system to naturally treat the water with native water plants.

Along with the self-cleaning rain garden filtration system, other key features of the renewal include:

• An upgraded lake base and retaining walls

• New weirs to help with isolating the water in the lake for future maintenance and events

• A new lake walk and commuter paths around the lake, and a new boat launch in front of the Rymill Park Kiosk

• New lighting around the lake, plus

• Installation of underground tanks for water storage.

Meanwhile, a number of other key actions in the park’s master plan have already been delivered, such as the Quentin Kenihan Inclusive Playspace, an events infrastructure project, and a shared perimeter path along Dequetteville Terrace.

The Place of Reflection – a memorial to the Stolen Generations – is also nearing completion in the park’s south-west corner, near Pirie Street.

During the lake renewal project, access to the playspace and the Adelaide Bowling Club will be maintained, with primary access via the Dequetteville Terrace car park. (More information here.)