Bay Pavilions wins national design award

The facility won first place in the sport and leisure design category after being entered by architects NBRS.

The award is for innovative and sustainable designs which create an environment where more people are active.

NBRS principal architect Andrew Tripet, who partnered with Donovan Payne Architects on the building design, said the award was credit to Eurobodalla Shire Council for an "innovative brief".

"Interestingly, so much of the discussion at the National Sports Convention in Melbourne this year was around how we can make new facilities more inclusive and attractive to a broader section of the community," he said.

"I think Eurobodalla Council should be congratulated for having created such a unique project that many other councils will now be looking to as an example of how to build contemporary and sustainable facilities for their communities."

Lindsay Usher, the council's director of planning and sustainability, said the council wanted a "landmark building".

"Right from the start, we wanted a building that provided opportunity for people of all ages and abilities, and a building that enabled our community to come together and grow," he said.

"This award is recognition of that vision, and of the hard work of so many people in our community who contributed to the design process."

Mr Usher said the award was "gratifying", but said the community's feedback was what he liked best.

"After all we've been through over the past few years, the positive vibe and feeling this building has created within our community is so important," he said.

"The smiles on faces, that's the reward."