Creative Placemaking Design for the redevelopment of Mooloolaba Foreshore
The Mooloolaba Foreshore Revitalisation presented a complex challenge: how to deliver a modern, world-class waterfront that remained authentically connected to its nostalgic roots. The Sunshine Coast Council led masterplan mandated “immersion” as a key design principle. The site required more than off-the-shelf furniture; it needed a suite of bespoke interventions that could withstand the harsh coastal environment while narrating the specific history of the site, from its pre-colonial ecology to its 1970s caravan park era.
POMO was engaged to provide the “fine grain” layer of interpretive design, working in close alignment with the lead design team at AECOM. Our role was to bridge the gap between the high-level landscape master plan and the tactile human experience. We conducted a deep analysis of local reference points including the iconic “tinny” fishing culture, the local indigenous “Wallum” heathland, and the historic caravan parks to inform a rigorous creative placemaking design and documentation process.
Our focus was on translating narrative themes into certified, constructible assets. We moved beyond “artistic vision” to define the specific materiality and fabrication methodologies required for public infrastructure.
The schematic design package POMO created provided the Council with a “kit of parts” that turned standard infrastructure into storytelling devices. Council then was able to decide if they wanted to included these outcomes in the final construction package or not. By embedding the region’s DNA such as the “Caravan Culture” retaining walls featuring retro lightning-bolt handrails into the built form, the project ensures that the revitalisation retains a distinct “Mooloolaba” character. This approach validates that creative placemaking can be delivered as robust, maintainable capital works rather than ephemeral decoration.
Ready to turn your local stories into built reality?
Contact us to discuss how our creative placemaking methodology can bring local place identity and culture to life.
More projects
Southport Broadwater Play Attraction: Delivering Place-Based Creative Play Infrastructure
Southport Broadwater Play Attraction: Delivering Place-Based Creative Play Infrastructure
Destination playgrounds are increasingly vital for urban activation, but they often rely on off-the-shelf equipment that lacks connection to place. For the Southport Broadwater Parklands, the City of Gold Coast required an iconic play attraction that was not only fun but deeply rooted in the ecological narrative of the Broadwater Estuary.
Palmwoods Town Square: Delivering Community Identity through Creative Placemaking - Bespoke Urban Infrastructure
Palmwoods Town Square: Delivering Community Identity through Creative Placemaking - Bespoke Urban Infrastructure
For decades, the physical centre of Palmwoods was defined by a sloping asphalt car park that offered utility but no community connection. The Sunshine Coast Council identified the need to transform this functional void into a genuine town square.
The challenge was not simply to build a modern park, but to deliver a “civic heart” that felt established and authentic. The community did not want a generic urban upgrade; they demanded a space that reflected the town’s timber-getting history and agricultural heritage. The mandate was to create new infrastructure that felt like it had been there for a century and fit with the historical buildings that surrounded it.
Winter Street: Creating Community Connection through Placemaking and Data
Winter Street: Creating Community Connection through Placemaking and Data
Malvern’s Winter Street “pocket park” presented a classic urban design failure: a residual green space strategically located between a toy library, a childcare centre, and a supermarket, yet completely underutilised. The site offered zero amenity, two lonely benches meant local workers ate lunch on the ground and families transited through without pausing. The City of Stonnington required a rapid, evidence-based intervention to test the site’s potential before committing to significant capital works.
