New parkland shows what $30m buys

Children have a ball at the water play area. Photo: Griffith Thomas / The Satellite IS290511ROBELLE3

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Official opening Robelle Domain parklands

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NEW York has Central Park, London has Hyde Park and now Ipswich has its own glorious park to be proud of.

After eight years of planning, the multi-million dollar Robelle Domain at Springfield Central had its grand opening on Sunday, where hundreds of locals got their first look of the impressive parklands.

The 24ha recreational space came with a hefty price tag, but local Councillor David Morrison said it was worth every cent of the $30 million.

“Every great city has a great park and this is a fantastic park the whole Western Corridor can enjoy,” he said.

Jointly funded by Ipswich City Council, the Springfield Land Corporation, and the State and Federal governments, Robelle Domain features Australia's first online interactive playground hardware, kiosk, playgrounds, water park play area, amphitheatre, walking trails and seven light towers, which produce stunning light shows when the sun goes down.

Deputy Prime Minister Wayne Swan and Premier Anna Bligh helped officially open Robelle Domain, which is situated in the heart of Springfield's Central Business District, linking Education City to Orion Springfield Town Centre.

Cr Morrison said the beauty of the park, which is the showpiece of the 400ha Springfield Central Parklands, was it provided many beautiful spaces for families to enjoy.

“After eight years of being part of the planning, it's magnificent to see it living and active today,” he said.

Springfield Lakes resident Karl Bird gave Robelle Domain a big thumbs up, and said families are fortunate to have such a fantastic park at their doorstep.

“It's awesome,” he enthused.

“We're really lucky to have something so brilliant.”