The Footscray Park Memorial Garden is a new space created within the heritage listed Footscray Park to house over 200 avenue of honour plaques. The plaques commemorate those who served in both of the world wars, but have been damaged, removed and buried over time as the original road upon which they were located has been modified and widened. The new garden space provides them a more stable and sympathetic setting at the northern end of the original avenue of honour.

The relocated plaques are set upon shaped concrete plinths that interlock together to form low walls. The walls created align exactly with the alignment of the original avenue of honour (including replicating the kink in the alignment of the road). The shape of the plinths that allows them to interlock evokes the idea behind the avenue of honour – that the sacrifices represented by the individual plaques together create a strong and lasting legacy.

The underlying basalt bedrock that lies beneath the surface of the Footscray area can be seen exposed in close proximity to the plaques, allowing a visual connection between the solid bedrock upon with the community is physically built and the sacrifices made by the citizens of the area.

Landezine