"Not like any other city in the world": The continuing resonance of the archives of town planning in community dialogue about the design of Australia's national capital

Abstract

Canberra, Australia's national capital, had its genesis in ideals of the Australian landscape. The choice of the site in 1909, the Griffin winning design in the 1911 international competition, and subsequent development have focused on the concept of the city in the landscape. Symbolically fundamental to the city's image is its overall landscape setting and how the surrounding landscape flows into the city to create a green skeleton which articulates the city's form. It is the city's landscape setting, from the surrounding hills through the open space system of the city right down to the tree plantings in individual street that form a tangible physical framework.But it is a framework that has distinctive intangible values where culture and nature meet. The paper outlines the history of ideas and events through time that have created this unique city in the landscape, with special reference to the richness of public records available.