Namarag: before and after

Namarag Molonglo Special Purpose reserve open for consultation in 2019 and 14 people completed the survey. The plans were available to download at that time. Here is the vision of what it should become.

Molonglo Special Purpose Reserve

Information for the Molonglo Special Purpose Reserve (Namarag) can be found in the Development Application (Application Number: 201936012). The Development Application proposes access points between Namarag and Whitlam but with few details. The Development Application does not mention active travel, bikes or cycling.

The priorities of the planners are quite different.

This landscape Development Application report presents the landscape design for the Molonglo Special Purpose Reserve (Namarag) located within the Molonglo River Reserve (MRR). …

Namarag is a 40 hectare site located within the Molonglo River Reserve, Canberra’s newest Nature Reserve comprising 1,400 hectares along the Molonglo River.

The reserve forms an important habitat connection corridor for wildlife in the region, including supporting species of national ecological significance.

Namarag is identified as a vital restoration, recreational and cultural hub for the emerging communities of the Molonglo Valley, including Whitlam to the east and Denman Prospect to the west. These residential estates will provide open space amenities such as parks and playgrounds, irrigated playing fields and picnic facilities.

CONCEPTPLAN-201936012-CONCEPT_INTRODUCTION-01:

Namarag is not to be an urban open space. “Instead, the design of the reserve aims to reinstate natural reserve values with high quality, innovative and best practice landscape, restoration, and preservation techniques.”

The Molonglo Special Purpose Reserve plans demonstrate it also.

The “cycle trail” is a dirt management trail and a dead end. It will have no value for commuting. There is NO cycle trail to Butters Bridge but only a pedestrian trail.

The Vision

Moving dirt

Because the area is so damage, quite a bit work needs to be done to remediate it. That means moving lots of 80,000 cubic metres dirt.