Warrenheip Recreation Reserve

The Warrenheip Recreation Reserve had become a largely unused asset that .  inwas an underutilised, neglected and overgrown paddock when the DEECA Committee of Management took over in early 2023. The project has been driven by the passion, knowledge and enthusiasm of the Committee 4 Warrenheip and the community right from the start.

The masterplan is an ambitious vision for a community hub which includes a half court, pump track, playground, picnic shelter and BBQ area, native bush foods and sensory garden, extensive path network and indigenous revegetation planting.

A low-lying swampy area at the northern end of the reserve is known to be habitat for Latham’s Snipe. The birds are migratory, breeding in Japan and then heading to Australia for the warmer months. We worked with Roger Thomas, a local naturalist, and Dr Brigita Hansen, a researcher at Fed Uni specialising in Latham’s Snipe, to understand the needs of the birds. During the design process we also discovered a rare and threatened plant species in the reserve. 

Our design balances the needs of the Snipe and the needs of the community. We were able to achieve the recommended offset of 70m of active and passive recreation from the wetland to ensure the birds remain undisturbed. Key recommendations of our masterplan include maintaining and improving the wetland habitat for the Latham's Snipe with shallow wetlands with areas of bare wet mud and mixed heights of low vegetation. 

The masterplan will be used as a benchmark in the Bunanyung Landscape Alliance guidelines, and as an example in Melbourne Water’s Snipe habitat guidelines.