Royal Park is a successful celebration of the Australian landscape. It has been a space for learning and evolving our knowledge of native landscapes in an urban context. Royal Park was the first site of proactive planning to connect with Australian flora and fauna, without the rigours of English design that defines other large parks in the City of Melbourne.

This celebration and evolution have been guided by two master plans that created a simple and compelling framework. The original was produced in 1984 (with subsequent accompanying Landscape Development and Management Plans) as the winning response to a design competition and refreshed in 1997. These plans are well recognised, particularly in the wider landscape architecture profession, for establishing a new design approach for urban landscapes. The approach valued ‘editing’ or ‘clarifying’ the landscape to achieve the landscape strategies, rather than constantly adding new elements.

Works in the park have been based on this approach over many years and have led to the distinctive park we know today. The simple framework has allowed the park to be managed and to evolve into a rich and diverse grassy woodland, with an impressive growth of tree canopy from 24.8 per cent in 2012 to 30.9 per cent in 2022. Royal Park contains 32 per cent of the trees in Melbourne's urban forest, 19 per cent of our public realm canopy cover, yet retains the expansive grassland areas that allow views to the horizon and sky.

In addition to the principles evoking landscape characters and the approach to park development, previous master plans directed that Royal Park is for people and that its primary purpose is to provide for the activities which are of importance to the community. This is reflected in the 30% of Council’s outdoor community recreation facilities and activities occurring in Royal Park.

The master plan principles underpinning the design for Royal Park are recognised as being aesthetically significant at the state level as contributing to the heritage significance of Royal Park. Our draft Conservation Management Plan recommends that the principles of the past master plans be continued and that future principles should also be responsive to Aboriginal cultural values.

While many actions from the current master plan have been realised, some have not. Some have been found not to be viable, others are out-dated or don’t reflect best practice.

We have reviewed the status of the actions from the current master plan and have made suggestions for the actions that we feel are appropriate to carry through and those that may be discontinued.