City Hill, Canberra
35°16′55″S 149°7′43″E / 35.28194°S 149.12861°E / -35.28194; 149.12861
City Hill is a park located in Canberra, Australia, on one of the points of the Parliamentary Triangle, a feature of Walter Burley Griffin's plan for the city. The park is surrounded by Vernon Circle, at the south end of Northbourne Avenue, but beyond Vernon Circle it is further surrounded by the concentric London Circuit, and the area between Vernon Circle and London Circuit (which is partly built up) can also be seen as part of the hill. City Hill is an integral part of the city centre design. To the south of the hill Northbourne Avenue becomes Commonwealth Avenue, and further along is Commonwealth Avenue bridge.
The hill was planted in 1921. The design, supervised by Charles Weston, Canberra's first Superintendent of Parks and Gardens, was to emphasise the vistas along the six avenues radiating from the hill and reinforce the focus that Griffin placed on the hill as forming part of the Parliamentary triangle. At the centre of the hill is a flagpole flying the ACT flag since 1989 when the territory became self-governing. Immediately surrounding the flagpole are double staggered rows of closely spaced Roman cypresses (Cupressus sempervirens Stricta). Radiating outwards are twelve oval shaped groups of Roman cypresses and six groups of Monterey pines (Pinus radiata) reinforcing the symmetrical nature of the design. In 2014, the Canberra Centenary Column was added to the park, to commemorate Canberra's centenary.
The park is centrally located and well-known, but it is underutilised as it is away from shops and public areas and is difficult to access because it is surrounded by a major road. The prominent flagpole at the centre of Vernon Circle is not actually at the highest point of City Hill. The highest point of City Hill is to the south east, overlooking Lake Burley Griffin. Unusually for the centre of a large city and as a result of the relative isolation of City Hill, a small variety of mushrooms can be found growing under the pine trees. The City Hill area also has a large population of rabbits.[1]
References
- "Territory and Municipal Services - City Hill". www.tams.act.gov.au. Archived from the original on 22 July 2008. Retrieved 20 April 2008.
- ^ Samaras, Julie (19 November 2021). "City Hill: Canberra's 'bellybutton of shame'". Canberra Daily. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
External links
- ACT Planning & Land Authority: City Hill …a concept for the future
- v
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and structures
- ACT Heritage Library
- ACT Memorial
- All Saints Church
- Australian Army Memorial
- Australia Forum
- Australian Merchant Navy Memorial
- Australian War Memorial
- Australian–American Memorial
- Basser Library
- Big Coins
- Black Mountain Tower
- Captain James Cook Memorial
- Centenary House
- Edmund Barton Building
- Gus's
- High Court of Australia Building
- Hotel Canberra
- Hotel Kurrajong
- Korean War Memorial
- Legislative Assembly Building
- The Lodge
- Lovett Tower
- Mercure Hotel
- Mount Stromlo Observatory
- National Carillon
- National Gallery of Australia Research Library
- Old Parliament House
- Owl sculpture
- Parliament House
- QT Canberra
- Royal Australian Mint
- St John the Baptist Church
- Scrivener Dam
- Supreme Court
- Tilley's
- Yarralumla
- Yarralumla brickworks
- John Gorton Building
open spaces
- Australian National Botanic Gardens
- Black Mountain Peninsula
- Canberra Nature Park
- Canberra Peace Park
- City Hill
- Cockington Green Gardens
- Commonwealth Park
- Commonwealth Place
- Constitution Place
- Corroboree Park
- Glebe Park
- Haig Park
- Kings Park
- Lennox Gardens
- Lindsay Pryor National Arboretum
- Magna Carta Place
- Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve
- National Arboretum Canberra
- National Rose Garden
- Telopea Park
- Weston Park
- Yarramundi Reach
institutions
- Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies
- Australian Institute of Anatomy
- Australian National University Classics Museum
- Blundells Cottage
- Cameron Offices, Belconnen
- Canberra Glassworks
- Canberra Museum and Gallery
- Canberra Railway Museum
- National Archives of Australia
- National Film & Sound Archive
- National Gallery of Australia
- National Library of Australia
- National Museum of Australia
- National Portrait Gallery
- Questacon
- AIS Arena
- Australian Institute of Sport
- Canberra International Sports & Aquatic Centre
- Canberra Stadium
- Canberra Yacht Club
- Deakin Stadium
- Gungahlin Enclosed Oval
- Manuka Oval
- McKellar Park
- Narrabundah Ballpark
- National Hockey Centre
- Phillip Ice Skating Centre
- Phillip Oval
- Royal Canberra Golf Club
- Southern Cross Stadium
- Viking Park
- Woden Park
and islands
- Lake Burley Griffin
- Queen Elizabeth II Island
- Spinnaker Island
- Springbank Island