ST MARY’S REFURBISHMENT – Swan Hill

This was a concept scheme commissioned by the Catholic Parish of St. Mary’s, Swan Hill. The design needed to respond to the underlying importance of reintroducing the existing church building (circa 1963) to the contemporary social, liturgical and urban demands of the local community. In physical terms, the project was conceived in stages to enable the parish to fund each component of the facility according to budgeting strategies and priority assessments of congregational needs. An initial site analysis was conducted to research the church, its immediate surrounds and congregational trends including its particular relationship to the urban context of Swan Hill and the Riverina landscape beyond. Research was also conducted in relation to budgeting constraints, possible staging options over a six year time frame, and incorporation of the church/communities functional priorities over that period. Consideration was given to the issues of climate control and intelligent landscape design to enable the new facility to sensibly respond to prevailing winds whilst developing a contemporary approach to the landscaping of existing garden areas within the site.