Commonwealth Place is located on the southern shore of Lake Burley Griffin, Canberra. It lies along the ‘water axis’ running along the lake from Black Mountain. Commonwealth Place is the location of the Gallery of Australian Design, Reconciliation Place, a restaurant and Speakers Square. Walter Burley Griffin, the architect who designed Canberra, envisaged that the area would be the site of a "water gate" which would have a terrace above it, providing a "forum for the people".