In 2007, a meeting took place to discuss the creation of a small rotunda on a bend of Native Hut Creek in Teesdale, Victoria. Stewart Seaton, a Scottish architect with a business in Portugal and a home in Teesdale, was asked if he could make any suggestions regarding the idea as the need for a meeting place had been identified during a community meeting a year earlier. The result of the discussion was to become a catalyst for an extraordinary project that would stretch out over 2 years involve several artists, countless community groups, dozens of volunteers and hundreds of Teesdale residents. Stephen Murphy, a passionate environmentalist, had suggested that the building could, in some way, reflect the environment in which it stood. With that idea in mind and having admired the work of Spanish architect, Antonio Gaudi, Stewart created drawings that took their inspiration from a local inhabitant of Native Hut Creek, the eastern long-necked turtle. The reaction to the drawings took everyone by surprise. Local mayor, David Cotsell, later described the many ambushes that took place as the drawings appeared throughout the Shire. The level of enthusiasm was contagious and within a few short months the foundations had been laid for the creation of a physical heart for the community, providing an inspiring meeting and performance space, an iconic landmark and a sense of identity and pride for the local residents. ‘Turtle Bend’ had been born.