North Coast Botanic Garden Ready for New Glasshouse Complex

A new glasshouse building is sure to become a visitor attraction in its own right at the North Coast Botanic Garden in Coffs Harbour.

“Due to take shape next year it is going to be, not just a striking building, but a valuable addition to the Botanic Garden showcasing a fantastic collection of shade and tropical plants in a fully accessible and attractive venue,” said Mick Raby, Council’s Director Sustainable Infrastructure.

The new North Coast Regional Botanic Garden Glasshouse complex will have three interconnected areas:

A Foyer offering a covered space for educational display boards, an informal meeting point and workshops; A Shade House designed to offer secure housing for shade-loving plants such as Bromeliads and Orchids. The Shade House will offer display shelving and planted feature beds with accessible pathways and seating; and A climate-controlled Tropical House. Interconnected with the Shade House and Foyer, the Tropical House will offer accessible pathways, seating, display shelving and planted feature beds. The Tropical House will showcase plants that are not normally grown within the Coffs region, for conservation, research, display and education.

The steel and glass design of the building will reflect its surrounding landscape with tree trunks that reach up and branch out to support opaque and transparent panels, filtering the light like leaves. The modular design will also allow for future expansion.

“Council and The Friends of the Botanic Gardens hope that the new glasshouse will inspire visitors to discover and appreciate unique plant collections that they might otherwise seldom see,” added Mr Raby.

A tender for construction of the new building is currently out for bids. It is hoped that the tender will be awarded in January 2021 with work beginning in early February and being completed by the middle of the year.

In May 2020, the Australian Government announced a new $500m Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program (LRCI Program) to support local councils nationally to deliver priority local road and community infrastructure projects to help stimulate local economies and communities bounce back from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The North Coast Regional Botanic Garden Glasshouse Project received funds of $782,096 towards its construction from the Program.