Milson Island Indoor Sports StadiumMilson Island Indoor Sports Stadium by Allan, Jack + Cottier

The idyllic Milson Island, with its quintessentially Australian eucalyptcovered landscape, is home to a small community on the Hawkesbury River. It is exactly the kind of community that Sydney based architecture firm Allen Jack+Cottier are interested in serving; the kind of place where a great, multifunctional and cleverly designed building is really going to make a difference to the quality of life of its inhabitants.

Hired by Sport and Recreation, Communities NSW, for whom AJ+C have designed a number of award-winning sports and recreation facilities, the brief was to design a “robust multi-purpose recreation hall for young children to have fun in while on residential campus.” AJ+C fulfilled the brief admirably well. The building is indeed a great place for sport, recreation and other community activity. It is large, powerful and sturdy. The materials chosen for the hall’s interior are designed to be resilient, provide good acoustics, provide warmth and minimise injury.

Recreation aside, Milson Island Indoor Sport Centre is exemplary in its implementation of ecologically sustainable energy efficient design.

Twelve wind turbines and a series of floor-mounted louvres protect the building from scorching heat in summer. These close in winter, when a heat-plume acts as an insulator for the building. The shape of the building, inspired by an Arnhem Land canoe, was chosen for the purpose of shedding leaves whilst allowing rain water to fall freely from the building into an oversized rock garden, where the water is filtered and collected for future use. This same shape, along with an acoustic ply ceiling, also allows the 38-metre building to withstand prevailing Hawkesbury winds without having to build a heavier structure.

Overall, Milson Island Indoor Sports Centre ticks all the boxes for a cleverly designed, contemporary sports and recreation centre that is sure to be indispensable to the Milson Island community and its visitors. A simple analysis of the ways in which the AJ+C have created a functionally useful hall simply does not do justice to the loveliness of the building that they have created. Stepping out of the hall, back from its function and purpose, and seeing it in its physical, environmental and social context, we begin to see the artistic and cultural sophistication with which this hall was designed.

Set amongst a patch of Eucalypts, the hall really does have the appearance of a giant upturned Arnhem Land canoe. There is something almost inexplicably Australian about the hall’s appearance. Whether this is due to its organic form, beautiful surroundings, the promise of a lot of sport played inside or a combination of all three, the effect is impressive. Emerging from thermodynamic analysis, the shape of the hall reduces its windload by 30%. This is just one example of the way in which AJ+C have blended visual and practical considerations in the design process.

Its curved wing also acts as a proscenium arch to define the place for the campfire. The whole idea of the campfire was actually a key consideration for the architects when designing the building. Whether inside the hall, gazing beyond to the outdoor fire, or outside the hall sitting around it, the sports centre is designed to enhance the experience. The architects describe this picturesque scene in captivating detail: “when the campfire is lit at night, and the hall interior is illuminated only by a strip of lights, the building seems to magically float in the surrounding bushland.”

The Milson Island Indoor Sports Stadium captures the essence of the Hawkesbury. From its wide, welcoming doorway to its organic form and aesthetic, it is obvious that AJ+C paid attention to the environmental and cultural context of the building. Yet the architects did not only draw inspiration from the natural environment of Milson Island in order to create a building that would mimic the beauty of the area. Rather, the sports stadium adds something to the natural environment. It functions seamlessly as an extension of its surroundings, a mere shelter from the bordering bushlands. Indoor and outdoor spaces are of equal importance, and the one is intended to be a continuation of the other. Clear visibility allows for easy correspondence between the interior of the hall and the world outside. This kind of building is exactly the kind of place that the small community of Milson Island needs, with its stream of enthusiastic adventurers and its energetic, youthful allure. AJ+C pride themselves on their strong communication with their clients and truly value the ongoing exchange of needs, ideas and insights that is vital to their creative process. The Milson Island Indoor Sports Stadium is clear evidence of how effective this approach can be in creating buildings that truly transform the lives of individuals and communities. +

PHOTOGRAPHY Nic Bailey 

1. MILSON ISLAND PLAYS HOST TO MANY RECREATIONAL RETREATS The stadium is lit from within at night by a strip of lights for the enjoyment of campers and bonfire aficionados.

2. & 3. Safety and comfort were key considerations when considering the design and materials for the stadium’s interior.

4. Architects were able to create the stadium’s unique wind-resistant shape by using flexible plywood.

5. Outside the stadium, a campfire ring and rockstrewn garden create an effective interface between the building and its natural environment.