Lakelands AFL facility named best in Australia
Peet’s Lakelands Estate is set to become a breeding ground for the next generation of AFL all-stars, with the Lakelands Park Sporting Complex taking home the prestigious award for National Project of the Year.
The $7.9 million facility was announced as the winner of the AFL’s Ken Gannon Community Football Facilities Awards, with the honour awarded to the City of Mandurah to recognise the region as home to the best community football facility development in Australia. Spanning 10 hectares, Lakelands Park Sporting Complex includes three ovals, competition-standard lighting, AFL goal posts and a district level sports facility.
The awards assess the impact of community projects, in line with the AFL’s aim of providing fit-for-purpose football facilities, which support the game’s growth. The Lakelands Park Sporting Complex benefits the North Mandurah Junior and Senior Football Clubs and puts Mandurah on the map for homebuyers and AFL recruiters alike.
This is not the first time the area has been recognised for its contribution to AFL, with the Peel region producing more than a dozen AFL players.
The City of Mandurah Mayor Rhys Williams was proud of the integrated approach towards the project, with the award recognising the development’s contribution to community sport.
“With 10 hectares of playing spaces and state of the art club rooms, Lakelands Park is an absolute hub of community activity and I am very proud to see it recognised on a national stage,” Mayor Rhys Williams said.
“This was a visionary and complex project to deliver in what was then and still is today one of the fastest growing parts of Western Australia, and highlights the importance of good strategic planning and making provision for community spaces.”
“I'm really proud of the City of Mandurah team, the community members, local leaders and funding partners for making this project a reality - this national recognition is well deserved, and a testament to a lot of hard work, determination and perseverance.”
Peet Managing Director and CEO Brendan Gore said the communities new title as home to the best community football facility development in Australia, was a testament to the collaboration involved in bringing the project to life.
“When we designed Lakelands, the Lakelands Park Sporting Complex project was not part of the plan. The City of Mandurah approached us about their desire to create a community football facility and we knew the project fit perfectly with our plans to bring the community together in shared outdoor spaces,” Mr Gore said.
“We partnered with the City to reshuffle the site’s original school plan, accommodate the drainage and help develop district level sporting fields. Now Lakelands Park Sporting Complex is a key part of our community.
“The recognition of the project as Australia’s best community football facility development further confirms how important the complex is to support the growth of our community and the region’s favourite sport,” he said.
The Lakelands Park Sporting Complex project is part of the award-winning masterplanned Lakelands community developed by Peet, one of Australia’s leading residential developers. Lakelands plays a vital role in supporting the region’s growing population, which is projected to increase from around 90,000 in 2022 to 119,000 by 2036.
For more information about Lakelands, visit here.