The new $9.9 million George BrownDarwin Botanic Gardens Visitor and Event Centre is now complete.
It is part ofthe Territory Labor Governments Turbocharging Tourism investment to breathenew life into the Gardens, attract visitors, stimulate the economy and createjobs.
Today the Chief Minister opened Darwins newest all-seasons Visitor and Event Centre,which provides a hub for visitors to learn about the Gardens history, buylocally crafted goods from the retail store and immerse themselves in the newmultimedia room, with its wet and dry season experience.
The Centre includes an internalair-conditioned event space with folding glass doors that open to the Gardensand a new terraced Mini Amphitheatre. It is available to hire for smallconferences, weddings and community events.
The visitor experience is furtherenhanced with the launch of a new mobile app featuring two self-guided walks -the multimedia - Our Tree Walk Every Tree Has a Story to Tell andthe educational Matboerrma Walk Larrakia Stories.
The Matboerrma Walk showcases 12trees and their traditional Aboriginal uses with stories told by Larrakiapeople. The app is available from the Apple and Google Play stores, andvisitors can download it via the Event Centres free Wi-Fi.
The Friends of the Darwin BotanicGardens have also produced a booklet titled Darwins Botanic Gardens, whichwill be available in the retail store.
A free community event will be heldthis Friday from 5pm to 9pm for the public to explore the Visitor and EventCentre while enjoying the pop-up Malak Marketplace, childrens activities andmore.
Quotesfrom the Chief Minister, Michael Gunner:
Our Government hasdelivered 45 jobs through this important $9.9 million Turbocharging Tourismproject, and we will continue to see the flow-on effects through the deliveryof events and programs at the Gardens.
Creating new tourismproducts and investing in our facilities is crucial to ensuring the Territorymeets the needs of todays visitors, in a globally competitive tourism market.
Thats why we invested inTurbocharging Tourism, to create jobs and deliver more money into the pocketsof Territorians.
As stated by Minister for Tourism, Sport and Culture,Lauren Moss:
With our investment inTurbocharging Tourism, the development of the stunning $9.9 million Visitor andEvent Centre will enhance the visitor experience and offer a new venue withinthe George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens.
The investment brings thefacilities at the Gardens in line with offerings from other botanical gardensin Australia and we are extremely pleased to see this project come to fruitionboth for the workforce and for our visitors.
