Laurie Ferguson Water Playground
Two custom, highly durable prefabricated toilet amenities bring essential public facilities and vibrant design together for Cumberland City Council's new flagship Laurie Ferguson Water Playground in Merrylands, NSW. The buildings replace existing ageing facilities at Granville Park as part of a redevelopment that transforms the site into one of Sydney's largest free water-play destinations.
Balancing Durability and Design
The challenge was to deliver public toilet amenities with the functionality and durability to endure the heavy daily use of a high-traffic open space, while meeting the park's water treatment requirements and without compromising the vibrant design vision of the architect, Context Landscape Architecture.
Collaborative Engineering Meets Modular Design
Context engaged Modus early through one of our Design Consultations, and our engineers worked directly with Context to translate their architectural vision into council-grade prefabricated modular buildings that integrated seamlessly with the broader playground design.
Together, we developed a solution comprising a custom Yarra 3 public toilet building with three cubicles (including a universal access suite with baby change facilities) plus a custom Yarra 2 building combining two standard toilets, two family change rooms and two outdoor beach showers. For the water treatment requirements of the splash park, we scoped an integrated pump and maintenance room with chemical drum storage.
Vertical powdercoated aluminium fascia planking, aluminium ventilation louvres, hot-dip galvanised structural steel, anti-vandal hardware and external CCTV deliver the durability and security a high-traffic public open space demands. The buildings were finished in Colorbond Dover White with Dulux Sunshine Gloss yellow accents on doors, perforated privacy screens and bench seating, picking up the playground's vibrant palette.
Seamless Integration and Streamlined Installation
Head contractor CA-I took delivery of all the prefabricated modules and completed the installation with minimal site disruption. The result is a pair of attractive yet high-durability public toilet amenities that integrate with Context's design vision rather than looking like out-of-place, off-the-shelf boxes.
