Shopping centre of the future crowned winner of Brickworks Living Building Challenge
A shopping centre of the future design has won the Brickworks Living Building Challenge by using a 'screwed not glued' approach than enables it to be rebuilt elsewhere in the future.
The Brickworks Living Building Challenge design competition, run by the Living Future Institute of Australia with principal partner Frasers Property Australia, aims to explore the boundaries of sustainable design within the retail environment and redefine ‘best practice’ for the sector.
The shopping centre project, titled 'The Difference is Living', is the result of a collaboration between DWP Suters, Aurecon, CJ Arms, Reedbed Technology, Eco Harvest, Biomimicry Australia, Future Food and Watpac, featured a vision for the shopping centre of the future by comprehensively and creatively addressing key design principles, said Living Future Institute of Australia (LFIA) Vice- Chair Stephen Choi.
He said the way the modular design came together in a functional, well-conceived way, to potentially be re- purposed elsewhere at the end of the centre’s life cycle, significantly reduces construction waste compared to a standard retail centre, and is not an approach normally considered to this extent.
“Additionally, the winning design recognises and celebrates the innate connection between human beings and the natural elements that surround us, through its 'Bush Tucker' interpretive green walls and approximately 3900sqm of billabong plantings, including over 2000sqm of vine growing structures along site boundaries," he said.
“The billabong idea is very strong. Billabongs are usually formed when the path of a creek or river changes, leaving the former branch with a dead end. Billabongs, reflecting the arid Australian climate in which these "dead rivers" are found, fill with water seasonally and are dry for a greater part of the year.
“We were inundated with thought-provoking, progressive submissions that highlight the breadth of sustainability expertise that the competition tapped into, resulting in a diverse range of thinking underscored by a shared passion to re-imagine the retail sector."
Peri Macdonald, general manager of retail, Frasers Property Australia, said the design competition was an important initiative to progress the sustainable possibilities for retail not only in Australia, but internationally.
“This competition opens the industry’s eyes to new possibilities when it comes to the design, creation and operation of shopping centres. It provides us all with food for thought when we begin to conceptualise a new retail centre for any given site,” he said.
The official awards ceremony for the Brickworks Living Building Challenge design competition was held at the Melbourne School of Design. The competition was coordinated by the LFIA, the local arm of the International Living Future Institute. Frasers Property Australia was the Principal Partner and the company’s Brickworks shopping centre site in Melbourne was the subject of the competition.
A full list of winners and commendations is included below.
Professional winner: The Red Williams Award
The Brickworks - The Difference is Living
DWP Suters, Aurecon, CJ Arms, Reedbed Technology, Eco Harvest, Biomimicry Australia, Future Food, Watpac
The winning design comprehensively and creatively addresses the principles of the Living Building Challenge, with its modular construction a great initiative in a well thought out and functional design. The design’s market roof concept was interesting, with links to heritage, a striking roof structure and beautiful finishes.
Professional runner-up: The Power for Life Award
For the Common Good - A Restart to Retailing
Buchan Group, Grün Consulting, Inhabit, Rushwright Associates
A beautiful design and functional retail space, with an interesting digital communication and education concept, where the centre becomes a community gathering space instead of just a shopping centre. This design challenges traditional thinking and approaches by starting with sustainability and working backwards to make retail fit.
Professional commendation: The Manna Gum Award
The Gathering
KPA Architects, Link Engineering Consultants, Ionic Design Australia, REALMstudios, Sustainability House
The visually striking design comprises an interesting basement garden and grand entrance, with good construction methodology detail. A central garden connects two levels of a building that behaves like a flower, with inwardly embracing elements that stretch outwards.
People’s Choice Award
For the Common Good - A Restart to Retailing
Buchan Group, Grün Consulting, Inhabit, Rushwright Associates
Special commendation
Living Retail
NH Architecture, Ark Resources, ASPECT Studios, E2Designlab, CERES, Mott MacDonald
A visually impressive 'long life loose fit' design which utilises natural ventilation and the venturi effect, and includes high density residential. Interesting features include a mobile batching plant on site for construction waste, and a user (tenant) pays for power system to incentivise battery storage.
Volunteering champion: The Shiny Wallaby Award for Volunteering
The BioVale
DesignInc Melbourne, WSP|Parsons Brinckerhoff, Outlines Landscape Architecture, Mend
The team behind this design has contributed in a volunteer and pro bono capacity to a number of not-for-profit community and environmental groups over the duration of the design competition.
The Primary School Challenge Award
Sustainability for the Future!
Olivia Murley, Antonio Park Primary School
Olivia’s drawing clearly represents some key ideas of what is relevant for sustainability in shopping centres. The design has a human scale, with a focus on pedestrians and cyclists. It’s a community space with lots of plants, public seating and a community garden. Practical ways to reduce energy include solar panels, natural light and external shading devices for the windows. Water is captured with cleverly placed funnels to filter down through the vertical gardens.
Olivia wins a solar panel system for her school to be supplied and installed by competition sponsor Solgen Energy Group.
Student winner: The Candlebark Award
Burwood Life Centre
Team 42: Bhargav Sridhar, Monica Sutisna
A plan with clever aspects like power generation and the inclusion of bees for pollination and regeneration. The incorporation of the Brickworks history and heritage connection is powerful, and a point of difference is the commercial catchment. An amazing rammed earth visual feature uses excavated materials on site. The design also included a research lab and library.
Student commendations: The Red Box Award
Brickworks Green by CE Arch (Elise Fancourt, Claire Murray)
Farmulous: Urban Agriculture Education Centre by Dan Parker and Hui Li Yeoh
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