THE Cockburn ARC has taken out the Institute of Public Administration Australia (WA) Gold achievement award, beating a bunch of nominees, including Optus Stadium.
The City of Cockburn was joint winner of the Gold Award for Best Practice in the Collaboration Between Government and Non-Government Organisations category of the 2018 Achievement Awards, sharing the honour with Fremantle Football Club and Curtin University.
It is the second award in two weeks for the ARC, which also won the Parks and Leisure Australia (WA) Community Facility of the Year Award, and will now represent WA nationally with winners announced in Melbourne on October 16.
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READ NOWThe City, the football club and the university developed the $109m Cockburn ARC facility in a collaborative partnership.
This enabled the partnership to leverage funding support from the WA and Commonwealth governments to create an industry first, cutting edge, integrated aquatic, recreation, education and elite athlete training facility for the community.
City of Cockburn Mayor Logan Howlett said the Cockburn ARC continued to fulfil its mission to make more people, more active, more often, improving the health and wellbeing outcomes for Cockburn’s rapidly growing local population.
Curtin University Vice-Chancellor Professor Deborah Terry said the Curtin exercise program at Cockburn ARC provided a community service while educating third-year Bachelor of Exercise Science students within an industry setting.
“The program aims to give clients the knowledge and confidence they need to engage in physical activity and develop life-long habits that will improve their health, and I am delighted that this important partnership has been recognised with this award,” Prof Terry said.
Fremantle Football Club chief executive Steve Rosich said the Fremantle Dockers were delighted to be part of the award-winning project.
“It was the strong partnership with the City of Cockburn and Curtin University that enabled the delivery of this world class facility and we are thrilled to be recognised alongside them,” he said.
Cockburn ARC was also a finalist in the 2018 WA Australian Architecture Awards in the Public Architecture category announced on 29 June, and is in the running for a State Government Sport and Recreation Industries Award due to be announced on August 8.