Irongum Terrace Reserve

Site Image has transformed a steep, inaccessible hillside into a local reserve for residents of Sekisui House Australia’s Asora Norwest development, delivered in partnership with The Hills Shire Council.

Set in Sydney’s rapidly growing Hills District in the city’s northwest, the park delivers early-access open space with generous shade, supporting daily use well before the surrounding neighbourhood is fully built out.

Turning a Constraint into a Community Asset

The site began as a grassed hillside with pockets of native planting, with significant drainage, stormwater detention and water-reuse requirements, and offered little functional access – rendering it effectively unusable as public open space.

Rather than reshaping the land, Site Image’s design responds to the natural slope. Terracing creates a sequence of spaces that support both active and passive use, including a playground, picnic areas, walking paths and open lawns.

“We worked hard to provide public amenities within the limitations of the site, while retaining more than 30 native trees. Taking a holistic approach allowed us to address all of the constraints – it was a small but complex project,” says Lewis Hutcheon, Landscape Architect with Site Image.

Creating Shade

There wasn’t a lot of usable natural canopy on site, so we couldn’t rely on existing trees. We wanted something that represented a natural canopy – the circular shelters with perforated roofs create a dappled light effect and feel more organic.

Lewis Hutcheon, Landscape Architect with Site Image

With limited existing shade across the seating areas, the specifiers selected ChillOUT Trees with integrated Aria Settings to create comfortable, shaded places for residents to eat, work and relax together.

Furniture as a Cue for Use

Street Furniture Australia’s Linea and Aria ranges were selected not just for durability, but to subtly signal how different areas of the park may be used. “Different seating styles indicate areas of active and passive use,” says Hutcheon.

Linea Seats positioned around the playground allow parents to comfortably supervise children, while Aria Settings anchor the picnic areas beneath the ChillOUT Trees – each ‘trunk’ positioned through the centre of a table, maximising shade coverage without cluttering the space.

“We like the aesthetics of Aria, and the ability to customise the tables to work with the ChillOUT Trees,” Hutcheon says. “They function together really well.”

The furniture palette of low-maintenance yet warm and welcoming aluminium Spotted Gum, paired with Textura Jasper frames, is a sophisticated complement to the native grasses and Sydney sandstone terraces.

A Park That Feels Established from Day One

For Lewis and the Site Image team, the success of Irongum Terrace Reserve lies in how quickly it has become part of daily life for locals – even before the broader development is complete.

“We were pleased we could transform an area that was borderline unusable and provide public amenity early,” he says. “Taking a holistic approach – keeping the trees, responding to the site, integrating shade and seating – made all the difference.”