Alexander Clark Park, Loganholme QLD

Problem

Logan City Council identified Alexander Clark Park as a key site within a multi-stage upgrade program for a major riverside precinct bordered by the Logan River.

Council sought to transform the park into a large-scale destination that could support a wide range of play, recreation and community gathering, while establishing a strong, place-led identity for the site.

The park’s design direction was informed by the local environment, including established gum trees along the nearby river corridor and the area’s known koala population. These ecological and landscape references were to become central to the park’s identity and expressed through play elements, landscape treatments and built form across the site.

With the koala play tower and native wildlife elements setting this direction, shelters and park furniture needed to carry the project’s nature-led story through the built environment — not just the playground. Infrastructure was required to perform at scale, integrate with this narrative and contribute to a distinctive sense of place, creating cohesion across gathering areas, BBQ zones and seating rather than reading as standard additions.

This called for a solution that could integrate signature, place-based detailing across multiple product types, while also introducing a standout shelter form that supported large shade coverage with a cleaner footprint and a distinctive presence suitable for a flagship park.

Solution

Working collaboratively with the Council, a purpose-driven solution was developed that embedded the park’s nature-led narrative into the built form.

A semi-custom approach enabled signature laser-cut gum leaf detailing to be applied consistently across multiple product types, including playground shade elements, park seat end plates and bin enclosure panels. This created a cohesive visual language that extends beyond the playground and into gathering spaces, park BBQ zones and circulation areas, ensuring the park’s identity is carried throughout the precinct.

The laser-cut detailing also adds another dimension to the park experience. As sunlight moves across the site, the gum leaf patterns cast shifting shadows onto the ground plane beneath shelters, reinforcing the connection to the surrounding landscape through light and movement.

GX Outdoors semi-custom park solutions bridge the gap between standard products and fully bespoke designs. 

To support confident decision-making, detailed CAD drawings and 3D renders were developed and reviewed with Council, allowing the design intent, detailing and product integration to be clearly visualised before manufacturing and installation commenced.

Following these concepts, a complete park solution was delivered, including modular park furniture, commercial BBQs, bin enclosures, lounge seating, park seating and shade shelters, ensuring a consistent, integrated approach across the precinct.

A key outcome of the collaboration was the development of the Acacia Shelter. Designed specifically for Alexander Clark Park, the shelter features a distinctive single central post and a clean, flat roof form that maximises usable shaded area while maintaining a minimal visual footprint. The success of the design has since seen the Acacia Shelter incorporated into the standard GX Outdoors shelter range, allowing other projects to specify a solution born from this site-specific brief. 

The versatility of the design has also been embraced by other clients — including Global Food Markets in Woodridge, Qld where the Acacia Shelter canopy was customised with integrated support wires to allow a living green canopy to grow overhead, adding both shade and ecological value.

See the Global Food Markets project details.