Yagan Square

Case Studies

Yagan Square

Design Feature

Type of project

Infrastructure, Placemaking

State

Western Australia

Location

Urban

Yagan Square is the new heart of Perth, providing a unique place to meet, play, eat and shop; to celebrate Aboriginal culture; and enjoy Western Australia’s best produce.

A placemaking destination

Named after a prominent Aboriginal Noongar leader, Yagan Square is located in the arms of the historic William Street Horseshoe Bridge. For millennia Aboriginal people gathered here, meeting and collecting food from the former lakes. Today it is at the heart of Perth’s public transport network, with Yagan Square sitting above the sunken rail line, reconnecting the CBD with Northbridge.
Yagan Square continues the tradition of being a meeting place and food hub. Opened in March 2018, it brings together cultural, recreational and retail activities around a series of public spaces to provide an active, lively place of culture and character that is accessible to all.

The unique design of Yagan Square comes from a collaboration between the Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority (now known as DevelopmentWA) and the Whadjuk people – the traditional owners and custodians of the land. The outcome is a distinctive and welcoming place of cultural authenticity.
Healthy Active by Design principles are infused throughout Yagan Square:

Destination attraction: a focal point for Western Australian culture and produce, designed to attract visitors and locals and give them a reason to stay.
Community facility intensity: includes a Market Hall with local produce, bars and restaurants, a rooftop play space, water features, open space, amphitheatre, event spaces and a Digital Tower and Canopies that serves as a marker and cultural resource - all in a 1.1 hectare site.

Movement facilitation: interconnected paths encourage pedestrian movement from adjacent bus/rail hubs and the city’s pedestrian/cycle network into, and around, the square. Universal access achieved in this multi-level place through ramped walkways and accessible lifts.
Public open spaces: a variety of spaces to accommodate groups of all sizes – from major events to intimate gatherings and personal visits. Includes lawn terraces, broad paved zones, small laneways, meeting place, play areas and viewing decks. Seating and shade encourages visitors to meet, stay and yarn.

Sense of place: input from the local community, particularly the Whadjuk people, is infused throughout and in the events schedule that showcases Aboriginal culture and Western Australian flora and produce. Landscape design, architectural design, public art and heritage interpretation are highly integrated, creating a unique identity with a strong sense of place.
Buildings: Bespoke design celebrates the landscape and materials of Western Australia. Buildings overlook public spaces, have activated frontages and many pedestrian connections.

Project team

DevelopmentWA on behalf of the Western Australian Government.
Design consultants: Lyons Architecture with Iredale Pedersen Hook, Aspect Studio and a team of artists and design specialists.

Project Cost

$73.5 million

Health Value

Physical:

Re-establishes an important pedestrian link through the city of Perth, encouraging pedestrian movement between Northbridge and the CBD and Swan River.
Provides direct and equitable access to bus and rail networks, promoting public transport use.
Offers an active social and recreational experience in the heart of the city.
Encourages walking via inter-connected universally accessible pathways on multiple levels that link to neighbouring infrastructure and amenities. A wide gently sloped ramp – ‘The Track’ – connects key spaces.
Supports active play for children with a play space on the upper level and a series of interesting water features that extend across the site.

Mental/spiritual:

Open 24/7, the Yagan Square public space provides a place for the community, visitors and tourists to meet, interact and enjoy.
Encourages social interaction via design of inviting spaces with strategically placed seats, stairs, trees, a large-scale shade canopy and other shading elements.
Immersive experience offered via wildflower plantings and tactile qualities of urban spaces.
Enhances visitor understanding and appreciation of WA’s culture and past, with the Digital Tower, Canopy and public artworks showcasing Aboriginal culture.

Nutritional:

Healthy eating supported via the Market Hall that showcases fresh Western Australian produce, with healthy food options included in the retail mix.
Fresh local produce and WA cuisine promoted via food demonstration events and festivals.

Economic value

Generation of around 225 construction jobs, including 80 sub-contractors who supplied services and materials during construction.
Small business opportunities for 22 local traders and flow-on job opportunities for service staff.
Supporting the creative arts sector via Yagan Square’s public art program and digital lighting and screen initiatives.
Tourism and events job creation through the program of activities and events being delivered at Yagan Square.
Major tourism drawcard as the only public space of its kind in Australia to showcase Aboriginal culture and local produce at this scale.
The landmark Digital Tower providing an engaging public art form and community and cultural resource, as well as economic stream from commercial content to offset operational costs

Environmental Value

Creation of a ‘green space’ in the centre of the city, with more than 60 native trees planted, native shrubs and lawn areas. Wildflowers provide a seasonal flourish of colour and a tourist attraction.
Water-wise species used in all garden beds to minimise water consumption; bio-retention pits to improve storm water quality. Permeable paving surfaces incorporated to maximise water infiltration to trees.
Waste reduced through consideration during planning phase, not generating excessive waste in the first place and by optimising re-use and recycling of materials. Waste and recyclables bins are located in public spaces. Green waste from landscaping is mulched off-site.
Food waste separated by businesses and the public and composted in a dry waste disposal system – the first time this system has been used in a public space in Perth.
The intensification of activity in this area maximises existing infrastructure and services and supports public transport use.

Social value

As the first significant public precinct in any Australian city to recognise an Aboriginal person (the Noongar warrior leader Yagan), Yagan Square has elevated visitors’ knowledge, interest and experience of Aboriginal culture.
Yagan Square provides a strong sense of Western Australian identity and place – through a design that recognises and celebrates the State’s heritage, produce, environment and culture.
Community input through the ‘City Square Ideas’ online tool, and an intensive consultation process with the Whadjuk people from the early design stages. The direct working relationship with the Whadjuk people enriched the design of Yagan Square and enabled Aboriginal cultural narratives to be recognised and expressed in the built outcome.
The creation of new opportunities for social engagement through an extensive events program as well as the square’s strategically designed public spaces and communal seating areas that support social interaction.
Iconic local materials used in the public spaces and buildings reflect the State’s unique geology. The use of natural timbers, granites and limestone contribute to the strong sense of place at Yagan Square.
Public artworks, heritage interpretation, architecture and landscape design all contribute to the unique sense of place at Yagan Square.
Free public facilities, such as the play space, gathering spaces and wildflower garden, provide an equitable and highly accessible visitor experience.
Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles are embedded throughout the design, with buildings positioned to maximise casual surveillance, promenades connecting to open spaces, lighting well considered, and CCTV in place throughout the area.
Yagan Square is accessible for all, with ramped pathways linking upper and lower levels and accessible lifts and toilet facilities integrated with the general amenities, This includes an accredited Changing Places toilet and changing facility for people with profound disabilities to help them visit and enjoy the square.

Use value

Yagan Square has improved the safety of a previously dormant area of the city known for its social disturbances. The public are now returning to the area – to stay and enjoy the destination.
The multi-level design addresses previous natural surveillance issues, with the 24/7 activity and improved CCTV and security and lighting greatly improving the safety and usage of this area.
Seven dedicated and flexible event spaces, supported by a calendar of events developed in consultation with the Whadjuk people, ensures the space is lively and active all year round.
Yagan Square is providing a social and eating destination to support a growing residential and worker population in the area. The Square is the eastern anchor of the $5billion Perth City Link project, which is one of Australia’s most significant transit-oriented developments.
Perth City Link will create 1,650 new apartments and 244,000 square metres of office/ retail space and grow the area’s population to 3,000 residents and 13,500 workers over time, and Yagan Square is critical to supporting that population growth.

References

Yagan Square project information

Yagan Square event information

Yagan Square fact sheet

Perth City Link fact sheet