Nan Tien Institute (NTI) will hold a ‘Piling & Blessing Ceremony’ to bless the start of construction of the Illawarra’s newest Tertiary education campus and Cultural Centre and Art Gallery, on Sunday, November 18, 2012.
“A Piling Ceremony is a tradition in many countries,”
explained Venerable Miao You, NTI’s Board Secretary.
“It is held to bless the project and mark the start of
construction. This project has been in the design and
pre-construction phase for a number of years and we
are very excited to see building commence.”
“We are looking forward to creating this education and cultural centre in the heart of the Illawarra to serve the community, national and international students, lecturers, researchers, visiting academics, tourists, businesses and artists.”
Wollongong City Council donated the 15 hectare parcel of land – located at Wollongong’s suburb of Berkeley, near the Nan Tien Temple – in 2001. The last 11 years has seen the evolution of a Master Development Plan for the project that will create an architecturally unique and innovative education, community and art facility, designed by architects Woods Bagot.
Stage One of the development will commence this
year and is scheduled for completion in 2014. It will cater
for 300 students, and will expand to cater for 3000
students, offering a comprehensive range of undergraduate
and postgraduate educational programs.
The new custom-designed NTI Art Gallery will provide a home to significant artifacts, artworks, and local and international exhibitions.
