Residents are discovering some hidden heritage and the joys of walking to Ku-ring-gai’s newest historic park.
Curtilage Park at 1536 Pacific Highway Wahroonga was upgraded by the Council at a cost of around $300,000 earlier this year.
According to signage installed at the entrance, the park has an interesting history.
The park takes its name from the term ‘curtilage’, which refers to an area of land surrounding heritage items. The park is situated between two grand homes– Mahrattaand Yaamba – which form part of the Mahratta Heritage Conservation Area.
Yaamba was built in 1897 by a pastoralist and lies to the north of the park. In 1902 the land on which Yaamba stands was sub-divided and a new home built called Heverlee. This home was eventually demolished in 1939 by another prominent pastoralist Thomas Field and Mahratta was built in 1941. Mahratta was heritage listed in 1999.
A further sub-division in the 1990s saw nearly 2000 sqm of the land where Mahratta stands given to the Council. The land remained undeveloped until it was made into a park earlier this year.
The upgrade of the park includes a new playground in an open lawn with surrounding gardens, accessible pathways, plus a drinking fountain, seats and fencing.
A feature of the park is its emphasis on access by pedestrians rather than vehicles, with very limited parking in the area. Curtilage Park can be reached on foot via the Pacific Highway or from Gilda and Myall Avenues in Wahroonga.
