Bushfire recovery on Kangaroo Island will take another significant step forward when construction begins soon on the new Flinders Chase National Park visitor centre.
Now located at the entrance to the world-renowned Flinders Chase National Park and the Ravine des Casoars Wilderness Protection Area, new concept images have been revealed for the first time of what the $14.6 million rebuild will look like.
The visitor centre is proposed to be an accessible, environmentally connecting exemplar of Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD), making good use of despoiled areas of the former KI Wilderness Retreat site.
It will generate and store its own power, including providing stations for electric vehicle charging.
Solar passive design will optimise the centre’s climatic response across the seasons, with only low energy heating and cooling systems, zoned to respond to the use patterns of the facility’s diverse components.
Concept images of the $14.6 million Flinders Chase National Park visitor centre rebuild from the Department of Environment website.
Solar panel covered walkways and shelters will enhance the centre’s rainwater collection capability, which will also be supported by wetland filtered waste and storm water.
Operational systems will include for high level waste minimisation and management.
The centre’s architecture will be generally concrete-free, and primarily framed from sustainably sourced bushfire-resistant Australian timbers.
Rammed earth walls will be built from material on and adjacent to the site, and, alongside laterite gravels from existing nearby pits, limestone and charred eucalypt from bushfire clearance along park fire tracks will add very local texture.
The work of local trades, artisans and artists will also be woven into the architectural fabric and interpretive design detail.
Internationally recognised architects Troppo have designed the new precinct to be a world-class, easily accessible facility that enhances the visitor experience on Kangaroo Island’s western end.
Minister for Environment and Water, David Speirs said the rebuild was part of the state government’s $52 million investment in rebuilding essential parks infrastructure to support and rejuvenate Kangaroo Island’s visitor economy.
“In June last year the (government) announced up to $52 million of works to rebuild and reimagine Kangaroo Island’s nature-based tourism economy and the Flinders Chase National Park visitor centre is very much in keeping with this objective,” Mr Speirs said.
The visitor centre has been prioritised for delivery, with construction expected to be complete by April 2023.
