Regatta Park Precinct

Regatta Park transforms Penrith’s Nepean River foreshore into the principal outdoor destination for Western Sydney, realising Penrith City Council’s ambitions for a liveable, connected, and ecologically engaged riverfront. McGregor Coxall was commissioned to deliver the landscape architecture across the precinct, addressing accessibility, recreation, waterfront activation, amenity, and biodiversity.

The park accommodates a broad range of programmed and informal uses, including a fully-fenced adventure playspace, nature playground with wheelchair-accessible carousel, water play area, junior cricket oval, multi-use lawn, shaded picnic and BBQ areas, and outdoor fitness equipment. A 112-metre pavilion anchors the central precinct, housing public toilets, a kiosk, and water play facilities. The historic Police Cottage has been restored as a café and restaurant with riverside dining.

A central staircase and shared path connect the upper park to the river foreshore, where a 10-metre cantilevered over-water viewing platform, kayak launch areas, and timber riverfront decks activate the water’s edge. A dedicated shared path extends the connection from Regatta Park to the Bridge-to-Bridge loop, integrating the precinct within the broader regional active transport and recreation network.

Four hundred native and exotic trees have been planted across the precinct to build canopy cover, reduce urban heat, and establish long-term biodiversity value. Water management is addressed through raingardens and treatment systems integrated with a riparian vegetation scheme along the river edge, improving stormwater quality and ecological function.

A hierarchical wayfinding strategy connects the park’s key nodes from the upper lawn through the central pavilion to the riverfront decks below. ‘The Penroglyph’, a public artwork developed with Dharug custodians by Archibald Prize-winning artist Blak Douglas, is embedded within the precinct.