Paarl Arboretum is a 2,5km long sliver of land located on the eastern bank of the Berg River in Paarl, Western Cape.
Over many years it has been developed as an arboretum, a collection trees of different species. What makes it unique is that the trees, most of which are common to areas with a Mediterranean climate, have been clustered into various ‘Continental’ areas, principally Europe, Africa, South America, Asia, North America, and Australasia.
This gives the arboretum a unique character as well as considerable research and educational value. For many years the arboretum has defined the eastern edge of the town. However, land to the east has now been defined as being within the urban edge, place renewed emphasis on retaining and integrating the arboretum within the future development area.
The design brief called for a urban design and landscape framework to clarify the future nature and role of the site, being a desktop study informed by the local Spatial Development Framework, for the Drakenstein Municipality.
The study was completed and submitted in 2015.