Renewal Project: Term 4 2023

The building works on the Summer Hill site have continued to progress. The Stage 1 works, which includes the newly landscaped Chapel Way, the new Maintenance and Deliveries facility on Seaview St, and the link between Carpark 2 and the Junior School, have now been handed over to the School. The Junior School link, in particular has been a complex and challenging component of our construction programme, seeking to create an accessible and clear path through existing buildings. I have no doubt that the members of the Junior School will appreciate the ease of access from their building to both Carpark 2 and to Oval 2.

Pedestrian access through the Jubilee Drive gates on Victoria St will also be opened up shortly. This will enable pedestrians to turn either left or right when departing the campus on foot without disrupting the flow of traffic into and out of the carparks. The new plaza created between Ovals 2 and 3 also ties together the western side of the campus in a way that is both visually appealing and functional.

We do not anticipate Carpark 3 becoming operational until the second half of Term 4, but it will be very welcome when it does come online. It will significantly increase the amount of parking available onsite, and also create more than four hundred metres of offroad traffic queuing, including a much expanded kiss and drop zone. More information about the operation of Carpark 3 and modifications for the operation of Carpark 2 will be forthcoming in due course.

The turf on Oval 3 will be laid in the near future, although the Oval will not be used for recreational or sporting purposes until next year, in order to allow time for the turf roots to be established.

As these pieces of work are completed, some additional classroom capacity will be added to the School in the form of two clusters of demountable classrooms. Three classrooms will established on the land between the Junior School and the new Maintenance building on Seaview St, and a larger complex will be installed on the new podium between Ovals 1 and 3.

Whilst the School has delayed commencing the second major phase of construction work, we will be continuing to improve the built environment of the School, with the School of Science having air-conditioning installed during the summer break. There will also be some further refurbishment in the School of Science over the summer, with more scheduled to take place over the next couple of years.