Weddell is a future satellite city of Darwin, Northern Territory Australia. The city will be situated on a greenfield site adjacent to the Elizabeth River, approximately 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) south of Palmerston. Planning of Weddell commenced in 2010 and it is expected land will be available for development by 2014. The design will allow for a population of approximately 50,000.[1] The city will be named after Robert Hunter Weddell (1882-1951), a veteran of the Gallipoli landings in World War I and Administrator of the Northern Territory from 1936-37.[2]
Conference and Design Forum edit
From 27 September - 1 October 2010, a conference and public forum was held at the Darwin Convention Centre seeking input from technical experts in urban planning and design and the wider community on the directions which should shape the planning of Weddell.
Design Competitions edit
Following the Weddell Conference and Design Forum, the Northern Territory Government announced simultaneous design competitions in 2011:
Weddell New-Town Urban Design Competition entries were to be based around five districts and incorporate:[3]
- two low-density outer suburbs of 650 dwellings
- two inner suburban neighbourhoods of 1000 dwellings
- a Central Activity District or regional township with about 500 dwellings
- a Community Centre or meeting place including library, child care centre, facilities for weekend markets and a one-stop shop Territory Government information service or centre.
- appropriate public transport links to existing facilities
- an urban centre providing an appropriate level of community services
- a public feature, such as a water feature
- appropriate social infrastructure to meet identified needs
- connectivity to the north while maximising the use of existing road infrastructure
Weddell Tropical Housing Competition Design Competition would include five different house designs:[3]
- two-storey, three-bedroom house with a target construction cost of $410 000
- a single-storey, three-bedroom house with a target construction cost of $310 000
- a two-storey, two-bedroom terrace house with a target construction cost of $260 000
- a three-storey, three-bedroom townhouse with a target construction cost of $660 000
- an open criteria with a block width of up to 18 metres.