Architecture students at the University of Newcastle have reimagined the historic Wangi Wangi Power Station site, with a giant gin distillery, a nightclub and a dive centre among eccentric ideas for its future.
Lake Macquarie City Manager Arts, Culture and Tourism Jacqui Hemsley said the Wangi Power Station Reimagined exhibition explored some unconventional approaches for the building’s redevelopment.
“The brief was simple – design new ideas for the power station to make it an exciting place for our community,” she said.
One design showcased in the exhibition uses the power station’s main building to house an amphitheatre-style circus, while another sees it sealed and filled with water for unique scuba-diving experiences.
A different submission envisages a multi-level indoor baths, while another suggested converting the structure into a nightclub.
“Sealing the building up and turning it into a water tank for scuba diving is unlikely to ever happen, but seeing these concepts does help the imagination run wild about this site’s future,” Hemsley said.
“Designs presented by the students are in turn novel, thought-provoking and fascinating, and who knows – one day maybe we will see all or part of one of these ideas realised.”
Once a major supplier of electricity to NSW, the Wangi Power Station site operated between 1956 and 1986 and was once the largest power station in the state.
While it has since been abandoned, the site has avoided demolition after receiving state heritage status in 1999.
Since then, the site has been subject to proposals for redevelopment into residential and retail properties, with an EOI listing by its private owner in mid-2021 attracting renewed interest in its future.
University of Newcastle Head of Architecture Associate Professor Sam Spurr said the exhibition is a “great example of how design projects can fire the public imagination and hopefully mobilise saving such an important site from dereliction”.
“It also shows the important role universities play in the community, and how students can participate in what’s happening in our region.”
The 12,000 square metre building is a rare example of industrial architecture, stretching 230m long with three 75m tall concrete stacks visible from around the lake.
The site has both R3 Medium Residential zoning and Zone B4 Mixed Use, meaning eventual development has potential to encompass a substantial residential, retail, commercial or even tourism premises.
The student works covering the redevelopment possibilities are currently on exhibition at Wangi Library Creative Hub, and will remain until March 31.
More information including exhibition opening hours can be found on the Lake Macquarie Library website.
Maia O’Connor
Information source: Lake Macquarie City