All posts by Events Team
Music Room

Alexander Symes Architect

Music-Room is located in the Toxteth Conservation Area in Glebe on Gadigal Land. The home is sited next to the “Sze Yup Temple” where burning of ink printed pray papers creates an unpleasant and unhealthy air quality. The project sits between the intersection of; fitting into this conservation zone; managing the air quality of its neighbour; managing acoustics of music production; being adaptable to be a multigenerational household; a place to “age-in-place”; and also be robust towards future climate scenarios. A large part of the solution to this is targeting “Enerphit Certification” which is the adaptive re-use and renovation methodology of the Passive House Standard. Within these confines ASA proposed to retain the front double brick portion of the building and deconstruct the poorly built single brick extension to the rear and add a 2 story cross laminated timber box.

Photography by Barton Taylor
ReGeneration House

Alexander Symes Architect

Re-Generation house is a collaboration between ASA, Second Edition & artist Jane Theau. The home explores and celebrates the Re-Generation of the Australian Bush decimated in the 2020 bushfires, creates a home for future Generations, and embraces the circular economy by ReGenerating pre-existing materials. The home is sited on Yuin Country in a sleepy coastal hamlet town on the NSW south coast. The clients love the quiet of the town and its humble cottages on lawn clearings surrounded by bush.

A low-impact intervention to the site, Re-Generation House retains the site’s existing cottage and provides an additional gabled pavilion, intentionally small in both scale and environmental impact.

The existing discrete cottage had two bedrooms, a kitchen, dining room, deck, lounge room and laundry. The brief was to be able to host the clients, their four children and future generations. The existing dwelling was kept intact except for a renovation of the bathroom and moving the laundry into the new services and storage room. The project’s aim was to explore how to provide the most amenity with the least environmental and physical impact.

The dwelling is all-electric and provisions for future incorporation of EV chargers, batteries, PV and water tanks have been incorporated into the design.

Photography by Barton Taylor
Ferrars & York

HIP V. HYPE with Six Degrees Architects and built by Ironside

Enabled by HIP V. HYPE, designed in collaboration with Six Degrees Architects and built by Ironside. Ferrars & York in South Melbourne presents best practice in climate resilient design and construction and is one of the most sustainable apartment buildings in Australia. Ferrars & York comprises twenty-two 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom apartments with an average energy rating of 8.6-stars and the highest performing apartment achieving 9.3-stars (out of 10). At ground level, a retail space is jointly occupied by HIP V. HYPE’s Ferrars & York Collective; a workshare space for sustainably minded businesses and Bike Gallery; a specialty bike store. Across its six levels, Ferrars & York fosters a vertical community. Open walkways create an active skyline and a visual connection to the wider community, whilst a communal roof yard with BBQ, fireplace and landscaped arbour provides a space for residents to enjoy views across the city and South Melbourne Market.

In an established suburb where families are increasingly priced out of standalone dwellings and supply is considerably short of demand, Ferrars & York provides families with housing choice. With proximity to amenity, services and employment critical for families of all ages, Ferrars & York supports the necessary future of urban living.

Ferrars & York provides a proof point that all-electric, carbon neutral living can be more than just a pipe dream but a reality.

Photography by Tess Kelly

Dissection:
Furniture: Great Dane Furniture, Tait Lighting: Artefact Industries, Archier Fittings & Fixtures: Binq, V-ZUG, Brodware, Robert Gordon, Be Floored, Novas, Nordic Blinds, Shades Project Team
LIV Munro

Mirvac with Bates Smart and Six Degrees

Almost 1 in 3 Australians rent and that number is on the rise. Whether renting or owning, there is a basic emotional need for security and safety in housing. Australians now have the opportunity to explore a third way – Build-To-Rent (BTR). Mirvac is leading the way with two BTR properties – LIV Indigo in Sydney and now LIV Munro in Melbourne – offering a new way. It provides the security of long-term leasing, ability to personalise apartments, bring pets and move to a new location with all energy-efficient white goods supplied. LIV Munro has been designed to connect people with each other. Located on the doorstep to the Queen Victoria Market in Melbourne, Mirvac’s 490-apartment build to rent development welcomed its first residents in November 2022.

LIV Munro has been designed to attract renters keen to experience a new way of living. With a wide demographic mix of residents it ranges from first-time out-of-homers to workers across all career stages, downsizers and international relocations. Apartments range from studios, 1 bedroom, 2 bedroom to 3-bedrooms with a high level of interest from single and 2-person households. Making life easy for residents with services and an on-site team 7 days a week gives residents the opportunity to spend more time on what they love doing, rather than their personal admin. For LIV Munro, and the new way of living, the appeal is not just in the walls and flooring, but in how residents can come together and will attract those who want to build a community with like-minded people and willing to live and rent in a new way.

LIV Munro was designed and purpose-built to ensure sustainability was at the core from the start. Critical to this was the ability for residents to live sustainably which is not available in many rental offerings.

Photography by James Horan, LIV Munro

Dissections:
Furniture: Ajar, All Table Sports, Aspect, Cosh Living, Cult, Design Nation, District, Ownworld, Schiavello, Something Beginning With (SBW), Tait Furniture, Zusterer Lighting:
Davis Lighting, DGA, Domus, ELWA, Filix, Gentech, Haneco, Havit, IBL, ISM Objects, Living Edge / Flos, LPA, Luxfx, Modular, Mondolux, Mosular, SAL, Space Furniture / Foscarini, Tom Dixon, Unilamp, Vibe Finishes: AdvancedSpiritoLibero, Alternative Surfaces, Brickworks, Briggs, Caeserstone, CDKStone, Classic Ceramics, Dulux, EarpBros, Elton Group, Embelton, FGS, Gibbon Group, Haymes, Instyle, Linkstone, Modwood, Polytec, Qantum Quartz, RC&D Carpets, Regupol, Rimex, VicCarpet, Volare, Woven Image Fittings & Fixtures: Abbey, Caroma, Clark, Fisher & Paykel, Franke, Methven, Omvivo, Opal
Nightingale Village

Architecture architecture, Austin Maynard Architects, Breathe, Clare Cousins Architects, Hayball and Kennedy Nolan

Landmark collaborative project Nightingale Village is a zero-gas residential precinct comprising six distinctive buildings, each designed by a leading architecture firm: -Nightingale ParkLife – Austin Maynard Architects -Urban Coup – Breathe with Architecture architecture -Nightingale Skye House – Breathe -Nightingale Evergreen – Clare Cousins Architects -Nightingale CRT+YRD – Hayball -Nightingale Leftfield – Kennedy Nolan When the architecture practices came together through Nightingale Housing to acquire the Nightingale Village site in Brunswick in 2017, their vision was to create a fossil fuel-free precinct in a central location, providing long-term homes for a diverse community.

Nightingale Village comprises 203 homes across six buildings, with eight commercial tenancies at street level. Every building was designed according to the social, environmental and financial sustainability principles of Nightingale Housing: building homes for people, not profit. While the trend in medium- to high-density development is towards poor-quality apartments aimed at generating profits for investors, Nightingale Village would create healthy, livable spaces where people would settle and create community. To make quality housing more accessible, 27 of the 203 homes were allocated to community housing providers ahead of public sales.

Following the success of its prototype Brunswick project The Commons (2013) and the launch of its first official development Nightingale 1 (2017), Nightingale Housing had amassed a list of thousands of interested purchasers who resonated with the organisation’s mission to create environmentally, socially and financially sustainable housing.

Photography by Tom Ross
Nightingale Bowden

Breathe Architecture

Nightingale Bowden is about a paradigm shift. It’s about urban renewal, housing equity and sustainable communities. Breathe worked closely with Housing Choices Australia, the South Australian Housing Authority, Renewal SA and Nightingale Housing to make the impossible possible, a true mixed tenure Housing Model (50% social and affordable and 50% first home buyer).

The brief was to create a building designed to support a genuinely diverse cross-section of Adelaide society. Nightingale Bowden is the first of its kind in South Australia. The building comprises 34 one and two bedroom homes and two commercial spaces. The design approach needed to be one of reductionism, to create an honest building with design elements that pay homage to Bowden’s industrial past. The communal rooftop and circulation spaces needed to encourage organic interactions that strengthen the community. Nightingale Bowden is designed to achieve housing affordability, world leading sustainability and to foster a strong sense of community.

The project adopts a design and material strategy of sustainability through reductionism.

Photography by Anthony Basheer
Copa Came In From The Cold

Envirotecture

Copa Came In From The Cold is an example of the possibilities for the renovation of poor performing Australian homes, part of a developing series of deep retrofits from Envirotecture. Celebrating the dramatic form of the original design was a key strategy, not only to control costs but also to limit waste.

The clients are a couple seeking their forever home on the fringe of Sydney. A blended family which can swell when all the grandkids arrive, the home needs to flex over time and still work for two. As keen environmentalists they spend much of their time focusing on the garden and its food production.

The existing home had a very strong, consistent design aesthetic which needed to be respected while also resolving the poor planning issues of the original design.

Photography by Jonathan Cohen, Jonathan Cohen Photography
Binowee Hemphaus

Gruen Architecture with Gruen Eco Design

Binowee Hemphaus by Gruen Architecture serves as a pioneering example of sustainable living in Viewbank, Melbourne’s northern suburbs. This remarkable home, cascading gracefully down the site, is a testament to the unwavering dedication of its owners to eco-conscious living.

From the outside, Binowee Hemphaus exudes a humble charm, blending seamlessly with its surroundings. However, beneath its unassuming exterior lies a cutting-edge marvel of sustainable architecture. Constructed using 300mm carbon-hungry hempcrete walls, this home is not only wonderfully ventilated, but also maintains a stable internal temperature throughout the year. The structurally insulated roof panels with highlight windows ensure ample natural light and energy efficiency.

The client’s vision for their home was clear: a sunny and inviting sanctuary for their young family, embracing a modern and fresh interior aesthetic. The result is a four-bedroom abode with two spacious living areas, challenging preconceived notions about hempcrete homes being rustic.

This home goes beyond industry standards, setting new benchmarks for healthy, energy-efficient living. A heat recovery ventilation system maintains pristine indoor air quality within an airtight envelope, crucial for achieving passive house certification. The landscape design seamlessly integrates sustainability and native biodiversity, showcasing predominantly native, drought-tolerant plants that reduce water consumption and support local wildlife. Recycled materials, including old bridge beams and 80 percent recycled plastics, underline a firm commitment to sustainability and resource conservation.

Moreover, Binowee Hemphaus represents a commitment to sustainability at every stage of the project. Despite facing challenges such as labour shortages during the pandemic, the project team’s collaborative spirit and dedication prevailed. The home boasts triple-glazed windows, EcoPact concrete, wood fibre insulation, and reclaimed materials, all contributing to its impressive 8.3-star NatHERS rating.

This home is a true testament to the synergy between sustainable design and comfortable living. It not only fulfils the clients’ eco-friendly aspirations but also paves the way for a more environmentally conscious future.

Photography by Marnie Hawson
Booyong

The Sociable Weaver

Booyong, crafted by The Sociable Weaver, stands as a beacon of sustainable living on the land of the Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. With a 7.3-star efficiency rating, this home is a symphony of design and nature.

Upon entering, a private courtyard invites residents and guests to pause, connect with nature, and leave the outside world behind. The home’s layout is a dance of interconnected spaces and courtyards, each capturing northern light to infuse tranquillity and warmth. Nature guides the flow, with the main circulation weaving around a central courtyard, bringing the outdoors into the heart of the home.

Nestled in an urban residential context, the dwelling ensures privacy and protection with a protective brick and timber facade. The use of recycled bricks and charred timber cladding adds a unique touch, setting it apart from its neighbours while harmonising with the surroundings.

Sustainability is at the core of Booyong’s design. It harnesses passive solar heating, cross-ventilation, and thermal mass insulation to maintain a comfortable temperature. Recycled materials, sustainable timber, and low VOC paint contribute to its eco-friendly credentials. Rainwater harvesting, water-efficient fixtures, and a solar PV array make it self-sufficient and eco-conscious.

Photography by Marnie Hawson

Dissections:
Furniture: Johnston Design, King Furniture, Vorsen, Bevmarks Lighting: Edison Lights, Illume Skylights, Buster + Punch, Fans – Aeratron and Fanco Finishes: Shou Sugi Ban Cladding – Eco Timber Group, Cladding – Colorbond, Double glazed windows: Baseline Windows and Doors, Tiento Tiles, G-Lux Tiles, Laminex, Stainless Steel: Leongatha Kitchens and Bathrooms, Timber Veneer – Timber Wood Panels Fittings & Fixtures: Tapware: Faucet Strommen, Brodware, ABI Interiors, Wood Melbourne, Partaps. Heated towel rails: Thermogroup. Throne smart toilet & Caroma toilet. Vanity – ARCT, Rangehood Quasair, Solar G-Store, grate drains Aquabocci, Flyscreens Clearshield
Celilo Springs

Andrew T Boyne Architect with Western Architecture Studio

Thoughtfully crafted by Western Architecture Studio, Celio Springs redefines sustainable living in the heart of Western Australia. As the world grapples with the climate crisis, this architectural marvel stands as a beacon of change, focusing not only on technical sustainability, but also on fostering a deep connection with its surroundings.

Nestled within the banksia woodland, Celio Springs transcends conventional architecture. It’s not just about lowering carbon emissions; it’s about immersion in place. The house is a bridge between nature and human habitation, where every detail is meticulously designed to dissolve the boundaries between the interior and the environment.

For the architect and his family, this home is a testament to commitment. Originally configured as a single flexible living space, it reflects a conscious decision to build only what was necessary. When a baby boy arrived, a second bedroom seamlessly integrated into the structure, demonstrating flexibility and sustainability.

The challenges of the site, including steep terrain and perennial springs, were met with innovative solutions like clay-lined creeks and soak wells, transforming potential issues into sustainable features.

With an array of sustainable products, passive design elements, and low energy consumption systems, Celio Springs achieves remarkable environmental performance. It not only reduces embodied carbon but also maintains an operational energy surplus. The garden, rich with indigenous Western Australian species, covers 81 percent of the site, contributing to ecosystem restoration.

In learning from Celio Springs, the project team has recognized the importance of challenging cultural expectations and addressing the psychological barriers that hinder sustainable choices. Additionally, they’ve harnessed the power of displacement cooling through an indirect evaporative cooler, achieving extraordinary results.

Photography by Peter Bennetts

Dissections:
Furniture: Vitra Lighting: Unios and CORSA Lighting Finishes: Ceilings: Mitsubishi Alpolic FR. Walls: Bluescope Redcor Steel. Roof. Colorbond Zincalume Fittings & Fixtures: Door and cabinetry handles: Madinoz. Appliances: Bosch Air-con: Seeley Climate Wizard CW-3 HW: 170L Heat Pump by MIDEA. Solar: 3kW photovoltaic from SUNPOWER and FRONIUS inverter. Caroma Profile 5 cistern.
Farrier Lane House

MDC Architects

Farrier Lane House, designed by MDC Architects, stands as a remarkable testament to sustainable living in White Gum Valley, Western Australia. Architect Matt Delroy-Carr embarked on this project to explore sustainable design solutions accessible to young couples and families.

This environmentally advanced home achieved true net zero status in construction. Carefully chosen materials, such as carbon-neutral bricks, sustainable timber cladding, and cork flooring, minimise its environmental impact.

The design maximises the northern orientation, using passive solar principles to harness the sun’s warmth during winter while staying cool in summer. Open spaces, generous gardens, and connections to surrounding mature trees create an eco-conscious living environment.

This home exceeds State planning requirements, offering 70 percent open space, most of which is dedicated to gardens. It achieves a 7.3 NatHERS rating and remarkable eTool Gold rating, showcasing significant energy savings.

With minimal applied finishes and a strong focus on sustainable materials, this home is a statement of sustainable living for young families, inspiring change in the housing market towards more accessible and eco-conscious homes.

Photography by Dion Robeson

Dissections:
Furniture: LaForma – Bloc 3 seater with chaise – Green Corduroy, Eva Timber Bed Frames – FSC certified Birch Plywood Lighting: BOSS Illumination Finishes: Face Brickwork: Brickworks ‘Jamison’ – Certified ‘carbon neutral’, Timber Cladding: WorldWide Timber Traders ‘Iron Ash’, External Metal Cladding: Lysaght ‘Custom Orb’ – galvanised finish, Timber Veneers: WorldWide Timber Traders ‘Plantation Oak’ Fittings & Fixtures: Kitchen Mixer: A2F Tapware, Bathroom Fixtures: Phoenix Tapware, Appliances (Fisher & Paykel): 60cm Built-In Pyrolytic Ovens, Integrated Dish-Drawer, Integrated Refrigerator, 83cm Induction Cooktop, Washing Machine, Heat Pump Condensing Dryer
GOODHOUSE 57

GOODHOUSE Architecture

GOODHOUSE Architecture’s GOODHOUSE 57 stands proudly in Mt Barker, a growing city nestled in the Adelaide Hills. This 210 sqm three-bedroom, two-bathroom plus study home has risen from the ashes of the clientele’s former home, destroyed in a tragic fire.

Cathy and David, an ’empty nester’ couple with a passion for sustainable living, sought to create a regenerative design. Their brief centred on several key elements: celebrating and expanding the existing garden, ensuring accessibility for future ageing in place, crafting a healthy and energy-efficient home, and achieving a positive energy balance.

The project faced minimal challenges due to GOODHOUSE’s standardised system, but meticulous construction detailing was essential for the ply raked ceiling to meet air changes per hour (ACH) requirements.

Sustainability is ingrained in GH57’s DNA, from waffle pod slab construction to rammed earth walls, UPVC double-glazed windows, and a comprehensive rainwater collection system. It surpasses NatHERS rating requirements and boasts a self-sustaining solar and battery system.

GH57’s design is timeless, adapting to the present, future, and even future custodians. Lessons learned from this project, especially regarding the harmonious connection to the garden, will enhance the sustainability of all future GOODHOUSE designs.

Photography by Andy Rasheed – EYEFOOD
Huff’n’Puff Haus

Envirotecture with Talina Edwards Architecture and Shared Space Architecture (Passivhaus Consulting)

Huff’n’Puff Haus, crafted by Envirotecture, epitomises regenerative design in the tranquil setting of Ruffy, Victoria. Beyond its aesthetic appeal, this home’s inner beauty lies in its genuine commitment to ethical responsibility, nurturing both people and planet.

The visionary clients sought an off-grid, self-sustaining haven, initially as a weekend retreat, which later became their permanent abode. They aspired to establish a hobby farm with goats, chickens, and bountiful gardens, embracing a self-sufficient lifestyle.

The project encountered multiple challenges, from optimising orientation in a region blessed with breathtaking 360-degree vistas to harmonising biophilic design with Passivhaus principles. The aim was to achieve off-grid status while ensuring comfort, sustainability, and resilience.

Sustainability is ingrained throughout this home. With strawbale construction, natural materials, and passive solar design, it generates more energy than it consumes through solar power, maintains a comfortable indoor environment, and minimises heating and cooling requirements.

Photography by Marnie Hawson
Local House

Zen Architects

Local House, a creation by Zen Architects, stands as a testament to modern sustainable living. Nestled within the serene enclave of Victoria’s Mount Eagle Estate, Zen sought to reinterpret the historic surroundings within a contemporary context, while blending the dwelling with the landscaped environment.

The house, designed for a family with a deep appreciation for art, travel, and design, seeks to provide a welcoming haven for their children and grandchildren. The clients, who had previously lived on the site for nearly three decades, desired a dwelling that would not only embrace sustainability but also cater to their evolving needs, including accessibility for ageing in place.

Meeting stringent heritage, landscape, and vegetation protection overlays of Mount Eagle Estate, the house incorporates a carefully planned layout that distinguishes private, public, and guest spaces. This thoughtful design allows the house to expand and contract as family members visit. The tactile and robust material palette, primarily sourced from Victoria, connects the building to its surroundings and ensures longevity with minimal maintenance.

Local House, with its impeccable orientation, thermal mass, and highly insulated structure, offers an 8.3 Star NatHERS rating, showcasing its energy-efficient design. Solar panels, rainwater harvesting, and locally sourced materials underscore its commitment to sustainability. Deep soil landscaping and a managed beehive on-site further enhance its eco-conscious profile.

Photography Derek Swalwell

Dissection:
Furniture: Indoor furniture – Great Dane Furniture. Outdoor furniture – Tait. Lighting: Richmond Lighting Fittings & Fixtures: Sussex Taps
Pocket Passiv

Anderson Architecture

Pocket Passiv, a project by Anderson Architecture, embodies the essence of sustainable living within the tight confines of urban Sydney. This small infill residential studio, nestled in the heart of Glebe, redefines the possibilities of eco-conscious urban living.

With a footprint of just 27 sqm, Pocket Passiv is a testament to efficient use of space. Situated in a historically significant Victorian terrace house enclave, this studio was designed to meet stringent environmental, social, and economic objectives. It proudly adheres to the esteemed Passivhaus Plus Standard, signifying its capability to generate as much energy as it consumes, resulting in net-zero energy usage.

The studio’s distinctive asymmetrical pitched roof not only allows for concealed solar panels but also creates a contemporary and urban presence. Clad in enduring timber shingles, Pocket Passiv gracefully ages over time, becoming a part of Glebe’s rich architectural tapestry.

Despite its compact size, the studio is bathed in natural light, thanks to well-considered architectural elements. It offers a warm and inviting living space with a cosy bedroom and a double-height dramatic bathroom. The studio’s passive solar design, coupled with high insulation levels, ensures year-round comfort while minimising energy consumption.

Photography by Tom Fergusson
Yellow Rock Passivhaus

Blue Eco Homes with Villar Architect

Yellow Rock Passivhaus, crafted by Blue Eco Homes, stands as a testament to sustainable living and design innovation. This three-story, semi off-grid, multigenerational home not only exceeds Passivhaus Plus standards but also champions occupant health and inclusivity.

Nestled in a picturesque setting, the house maximises natural sunlight, offering serene bush views. It achieves gold liveability standards, ensuring accessibility and safety for all, including ageing in place. This commitment to inclusivity enhances the home’s long-term usability.

Yellow Rock Passivhaus adheres to healthy house certification standards, prioritising physical and mental wellbeing. It incorporates innovative technologies and materials to enhance indoor air quality, temperature control, and carbon dioxide monitoring.

Sustainability is at the core of its design, reducing the carbon footprint while preserving the natural environment. Recycling, repurposing, and reusing materials demonstrate a commitment to waste minimization.

The home goes beyond functionality, seamlessly integrating into its surroundings, showcasing respect for the environment while exuding architectural beauty and sustainable principles.

Photography by Open2view, Bose Creative

Dissection:
Furniture: Blue Eco Homes, Southern Cabinetry by Design, Molmic, Natural Bedding Company, Lighting: Designer Chandeliers, Harvey Norman Lighting Finishes Polytec, Alsa Manufacturing Fittings & Fixtures: Parisi, millenium, forme
Chris Nunn

AMP Capital

Chris is a sustainability expert with 20 years’ experience.

Chris is the Head of Sustainability at AMP Capital Real Estate. AMP Capital has a Real Estate portfolio valued at approximately $28 billion, mainly in Australia and NZ, consisting of approximately 100 shopping centre, office and industrial assets.

Chris has experience in: corporate social responsibility; green buildings; renewable energy; operational performance improvement; environmental management systems; environmental law; sustainability reporting; sustainability communication, education and training.

Chris worked for 5 years as an Environmental Lawyer for MinterEllison, followed by the Environmental Defender’s Office in Sydney, then was awarded a Chevening Scholarship to study a Masters of Sustainability at the London School of Economics. Chris then spent 5 years working in London as Associate Director of Sustainability for Atkins. In 2011, Chris moved back to Sydney as Sustainability Leader at Norman Disney & Young, then worked as Sustainability Director for JLL, joining AMP Capital in September 2015.

Photography by totalfacilities.com.au
Quay Quarter Tower

3XN in collaboration with BVN

The 50-storey Quay Quarter Tower (QQT) commercial development forms the centrepiece of the wider Quay Quarter precinct. In 2015 AMP Capital planned to repurpose the existing 186 metre tall 1976 building by extending its design life by 50 years with minimal intervention. It was achieved by grafting 45,000 square metres of new office space to the reused part of the structure to create a 216 metre tall hybrid. Architects 3XN (Danish) and BVN (Australian), Structural Engineers BG&E and ADG, MEP/Facade Engineers Arup and Multiplex Construction collaborated in a unique design and construction process to deliver AMP Capital’s vision.
The project is an adaptive reuse of two-thirds of a 45-year-old tower as the backbone of the new building, approximately twice the original size and conserved 12,116 tons of embodied carbon with a carbon footprint estimated at 239 Kg CO2/M2 gross internal area. The building presents the latest commercial office technology, upgraded services and a high-performance façade,
Two fundamental objectives for the upgrade were conserving carbon content in the existing building aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and targeting to achieve a low operational carbon content with 6-star Greenstar and 5.5 Nabers ratings.

Photography by Adam Mork, Ethan Rolhoff, 3XN, Martin Seigner
Glenroy Community Hub

DesignInc Melbourne

Glenroy Community Hub provides the City of Moreland community with a welcoming, nature-inspired environment to learn, grow, celebrate and heal. The Hub’s centrepiece is a new contemporary library. Other facilities include Glenroy Memorial Kindergarten, Maternal Child Health centre, a community health provider, neighbourhood learning facilities and childcare co-located with the library.
Framing the Hub as a ‘social connector’ is a key strategy to increase community awareness of the range of Council offerings. DesignInc envisaged the project as an opportunity to imagine what a new model community building might be and do. Connecting the community through a garden experience, biophilic design principles are utilised to create meaningful, restorative and uplifting connections with nature.
The new library will serve as a gateway to knowledge, creativity and leisure; This prompted a key decision to frame the library as an access and connection portal to all the services in the Hub, with spaces designed to foster social connections. Maternal and child health services will nurture infants and their parents as will the integrated long day care and kindergarten. Parents will encounter their community at the health centre, neighbourhood learning activities on site and in the community garden.
The landscaped forecourt arbour provides public activity space, identity and transition from the Bridget Shortell Reserve to the Community Hub. The transition continues into the building with internal landscaping, natural light and views and access to nature and garden experiences.
In a first for community building in Australia, the Hub is Passive House certified, while also built to achieve Living Building Challenge Petal Certification and Zero Energy Certification.

Photography by Dianna Snape

Dissections
Furniture: Modern Teaching Aids, Bellbird Furniture, Redline Interiors, Man Made Creations, Preschool Equipment, Plus Workspace, Zenith, Reaco, The Shelving Shop, Dexion, Resource Furniture, BCA Commercial interiors. Lighting: Versalux. Finishes: Interface, James Hardie, ASG International, Surface Squared, Laminex, Dulux, Lysaght, Croma Coatings Vic, Bona, Forbo, GB Masonry, Corian, De Fazio, METZ, Australian Sustainable Hardwoods, Easy Craft, Gunnersens, Parmate, Boral, Leto Bamboo, Egger. Fittings & Fixtures: Metlam, RBA Group, Bobrick, Winc, Advanced Display Systems, Caroma, T & P Preschool Equipment, Hideaway, Blum, Humanscale, Bilton, Oe Elsafe, Vision Chart, Madinoz, Laminex Waterloo, Vertilux, GWA, Franke, Corian, Roger Seller, Phoenix, Britex.
Phoenix House

Harley Graham Architects

Phoenix house project is located within the heritage precinct, in the oldest part of Byron and is a 1900s Queenslander that was relocated from Brisbane. The site sits across from the local sports fields and beyond, on the north, is native vegetation followed by the bay.

The house was stripped back and reconfigured to accommodate a family of three. It was raised 1600 millimetres off the ground to allow for storage of bikes, surfboards, and all services (water tanks, solar batteries, heat pumps etc). The unusual height from the ground and the large staggered timber steps allow the front deck to become a ‘stage’ to the park. The veranda acts as an interface between the park and the dwelling, creating a strong connection to ‘community’

The spatial initiatives include a ‘hero’ northern skylight over the living space that defines the lounge area and a large three by three metre sliding door pulls back to reveal a framed view of the park. The project is a refined piece of joinery with a carefully curated material palette. A monolithic blockwork pool, and a series of planters spill with native vegetation, anchoring the lightweight house to the site. Adjacent to the house is a small one-bed studio which is a prototype for a series of future ‘tiny homes’. It is 40 square metres and 2.8 metres wide internally, but feels deceptively big with nearly four metre high ceilings.

Phoenix house bridges the nexus between the old and new ‘Byron Lifestyle’. It reflects on the past while also providing cues on how we can build sensitively into the future The interface with the park has been a great result. The house has become a very social space with ‘old school’ scenarios of people popping in while they ride or skate past. Phoenix house is about people and their interactions. The architecture provides the stage.

Photography by Andy Macpherson

Dissections
Fittings & Fixtures: Astra Walker
Kris Spann

Bin Bypass

Kris Spann is co-founder of Bin Bypass and previously People Parkers. A graduate of Queensland University of Technology’s Business School, Kris was President of a local Chamber of Commerce for five years where he refined his understanding of main street activations, regeneration projects and tactical urbanism. In this role Kris spearheaded a project to install the City of Sydney’s first parklet in 2015 and used the learnings from this project to partner with local architects to create a suite of four specially designed relocatable parklet products.

His proficiency with bringing innovative products to market stems largely from his time running some of Sydney’s premier shared creative workspaces. In particular, as Managing Director of MakerSpace & Company, Kris oversaw a multi-department design incubator providing space, facilities and education to Sydney’s maker community. In his time at this facility, Kris worked with architects, industrial designers and fabricators to prototype products and iteratively improve designs. His commitment to sustainability saw Kris launch a recycled plastics department at MakerSpace & Co and keep product stewardship, use of recyclable/recycled materials and reusability at the core of his design decision making.

Kris’ current endeavour is a patented docking station that attaches to bins or poles in the public domain where there are no container recycling options available to allow the public to simply leave their recyclable containers for others to collect for financial reward. The Bin Bypass, as it is called, has been industrially designed to be injection moulded with recycled plastics to create a completely closed loop design solution that utilises the materials it helps recycle in its own product fabrication process.

Photography by People Parkers
Marni Reti

Kaunitz Yeung Architecture

Marni Reti is a proud Palawa and Ngātiwai woman, born and raised on Gadigal land. She graduated from the Masters of Architecture at the University of Technology, Sydney, where she was one of the first recipients of the inaugural Droga Indigenous Architecture Scholarship, a prestigious scholarship aimed at fostering new Indigenous talent in the world of architecture.
Marni also holds a specially-created position for an Indigenous architecture student at award-winning firm, Kaunitz Yeung Architecture. She has dedicated her professional and academic career to engaging Indigenous knowledge keeping into architectural practice and design.

Photography by Kaunitz Yeung Architecture
Home Southbank

Bates Smart

Home Southbank, designed by Bates Smart, is everything hoped for in an inaugural build-to-rent development in a major city. The project is informed by Manhattan’s High Line and Meat Packing districts with an aesthetic described by the practice as laid back Australian luxury.

Built for Homefund, featuring 403 one, two and three bedroom apartments across 59 levels, the development is underpinned by community, sustainability and amenity. The building’s exterior façade celebrates its industrial heritage within a slender, contemporary glass tower, offering sweeping views of the city no matter the viewpoint.

The design language mirrors that of Southbank, with reclaimed brick, heavy steel, and warehouse glazing. Luxury furniture pieces curated by Welsby and Home’s in-house design team creates an atmosphere of contemporary sophistication.

As a build to rent project, among the key priorities will be to ensure the apartment product is durable with resilient finishes and incorporate systems and features which help reduce operational life cycle costs.

Photography by James Greer
The Phillip

Green Homes Australia

The Phillip is a fully automated smart home by Green Homes Australia. The design focuses on maximum and efficient use of floor space on small lots. The smaller ground floor allows better use of external areas within the lot and the windows have been positioned to maximise the winter sun while using Thermal mass internally to mediate the comfort.

This home is the highest Nathers rated new home in the North Western Sydney area. The home also has a Tesla power wall solar battery storage system enabling a net zero capacity. The home features an EV Car charging port, water recycling and is smart wired for mobile device control.
The home has a Passhous leakage standard of one per cent.

The Lot is South facing and the design was altered to enable the correct ratio of passive design ability for the climate. Neighbouring properties are also two-storey, preventing ‘some’ access to winter sun. The design was altered to accommodate and maximise the solar passive aspects.
This project demonstrates the ability to build an affordable, sustainable, healthily home that meets the planning approvals in high density areas as well and showcase new products. The project has been a benchmark in the area.

Photography by Sciberras Group

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Furniture: Allure Property Styling. Lighting: LED, smart controlled via Zimi Powermesh system Finishes: Cavalier Bremworth, Haymes, Trend, Fletcher, CSR.
Ballina House 6848

BluKube Architecture

Located in Northern New South Wales, Australia, near the Richmond River in Ballina, a certified ‘classic’ passive house home has been built. This location is considered sub-tropical locally (warm temperate to PHI) where the midges and mosquitoes are required to be kept out of buildings with fly screens and termites kept away through construction methods and materials.

The site environs, aspect and typology fused together with a detailed client’s brief contributed to the final home design. With aging in place and accessibility a high priority, spaces and ideas developed into functional elements that have proven to work well post construction.

The home has been recently La Niña stress tested due to the flooding in West Ballina. Surviving any negative impacts to the dwelling from flood waters. The additional humidity has seen the dehumidifier run for an additional month to keep the interior comfortable

Photography by Dallas Nock

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Lighting: Space Lighting.
Balmy Palmy House

CplusC Architectural Workshop

Balmy Palmy House celebrates the pleasures of modesty and the simple life. Firmly planted on a steep and rocky slope, this intimate and compact home is based in Sydney’s Pittwater and is suspended in a bushland canopy. Immersed in sunshine, trees, breezes, and birdlife, the relaxed feel invites you to recharge.

Balmy Palmy House uses design strategies to ensure optimal thermal comfort while minimising its environmental footprint. Cross-ventilation is promoted through the open-air design, with large sliding doors and highlight louvres on both sides of the home. The house is north-west facing. Careful orientation brings sunlight inside year-round, with high-performance glass helping to control indoor temperatures. Shading of the outdoor areas is provided by the tree canopies and the large roof overhang that provides covered access in inclement weather. A Tesla car charger supports electric vehicles. A rainwater tank captures water for bathrooms and irrigation systems. Although rooftop solar panels were considered, the site is heavily shaded year-round by the beautiful mature canopies, so they were ruled out. Moreover, the house is designed with no internal hallways with outdoor deck used for circulation from bedrooms to bathroom and living spaces which in turn significantly reduced the building footprint.

Photography by Murray Fredericks, Renata Dominik, Michael Lassman

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Furniture: Vampt Vintage Design. Lighting: D2E (Electrical), Light Project (fittings). Finishes: Spotted gum Bona Traffic, Spotted gum plywood Bona Traffic, Fielders Z600 HDG Corrugated Iron, FRP,316 stainless steel Jakob netting, Blackbutt Cutek clear, 6mm mill finish 316 Stainless Steel, WRC Cutek clear, 2 Pac Polyuretahne, Rectifield Tiles. Fittings & Fixtures: Winning Appliances – Bora, Fisher & Paykel, Harvey Norman Commercial – Electrolux, Miele, Oliveri, Clark, Franke, Caroma, Reece – Mizu Windoor – 152 Breezway Altair Clear Anodised gallery, Big Ass Fan – I Series.
Cascade House

Core Collective Architects

Cascade House is a cosy and robust family home, built for the architects own family on a unique vacant internal lot close to inner city Hobart. The property is located on a sunny north-facing slope and surrounded by established trees. The modest-sized living spaces have generous distant views balanced with a partly walled enclosure for comfort and privacy. The entry area and courtyard walls are made from local sandstone: Buckland stone for the entry columns; and local convict-picked blocks that were salvaged from the site.

The house is thermally efficient, constructed from insulated lightweight masonry, triple-glazed timber windows and slender steel-framed double-glazed windows. Further insulation is provided by a green roof that – along with underground water tanks – reduces the impact on the council stormwater infrastructure, providing an on-site buffer. The green roof will provide a bird and insect habitat as the native plants grow over the coming years.

The project demonstrates a holistic approach to sustainability, from urban response to material selection. The siting on an infill site and small footprint set an excellent precedent in developing small-lot housing near the centre of the city, while the house exhibits excellent thermal performance, harvests rainwater for irrigation and firefighting and uses low maintenance, long-life materials. The house and landscape utilise a range of natural and recycled material selections, with care also taken through construction to minimise waste and environmental impact. It is a house that is at once innovative, environmentally sensitive and beautiful.

Cascade House also presents an excellent example of a sensitive and considered infill housing on a challenging lot, demonstrating a sustainable approach to densification and housing strategy in the inner-city.

Photography by Adam Gibson

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Furniture: Custom green couch by Nicholls Design; Vintage / salvaged furniture including Thonet Melnikov chairs and Coogans Hardwood Table. Lighting: Unios lighting, Casa Monde; vintage light fitting , Angelucci; LED strips and difusers, Rexel. Finishes: Render: Unitex, Rockcote, Dulux; Timber lining boards: Woodley and Co, Timber Wholesales, Britton Timbers; Concrete sealer: Build Tech; Tiles and Benchtops: Bamstone. Fittings & Fixtures: Tapware: Faucet Strommen; Appliances: Fisher & Paykel, Elite; Elec fittings: Hagar; Joinery fittings, hinges & pivot mechanisms: Hafele; Brass fixtures and fittings: Custom brass by Core Collective and Air-Con Industries; Windows: Outline DK.
Collins Arch and Market Street Park

OCULUS with WSP Sustainability

The Market Street Park saw the modification of an inner-city road into the first new public park in Melbourne’s CBD since the 1980s.

The project delivered added value, targeting specific strategies and features identified by local government as priorities for new developments. These cumulative actions result in greater value than site-based actions alone and contribute to a deliberate city-wide ecological enhancement approach. A biophilia plan was developed incorporating Nature’s patterns throughout the design, as well as lush and diverse planting, giving sufficient opportunities for human-nature interactions. Our approach enabled enhanced ecological value to be awarded Green Star points to a site constrained in terms of available landscaped area, but still offered significant potential to enhance ecology through features which tie into surrounding ecosystems and local ecological priorities.

If this same approach were to be adopted across several urban sites, it would provide significant ecological enhancement via targeted use of ecological features to enhance the local ecology, and would provide significant ecological improvement to urban landscaping, and would also improve knowledge and awareness regarding ecological value and local ecology within the industry.

Photography by Trevor Mein and OCULUS
Pavilions Residences by Mirvac

Mirvac

The 4,500sqm courtyard at the heart of Pavilions is surrounded on four sides by four residential towers of varying heights, from nine to 35 storeys, scaled to ensure sunlight is able to penetrate into the interior and create a welcoming place for residents of the 696 apartments. Built on a podium level between the buildings, the courtyard required plantings that were drought resistant and able to flourish in high wind conditions.

Native species identified as robust and easy to maintain, particularly during drier months, were selected by Mirvac and the landscape architect, 360 Degrees. The plant selection has proven itself in the 18 months since planting, with trees and shrubs flourishing and providing year-round colour and interest.

The use of irrigation connected to the Sydney Olympic Park Authority Water Reclamation and Management Scheme (WRAMS) made it feasible to incorporate extensive landscaping into the design of Pavilions, fulfilling the aspiration to create buildings within the landscape. This approach reverses the traditional model of designing the built form around to which the landscape must accommodate.

The vision to create buildings within the landscape, the design ethos has been nature first, built form second. Therefore, residents are immersed in nature on their journey to and from home, providing on-going mental health benefits that may be hard to measure but no less real. The courtyard garden is used by residents in multiple ways; for gatherings of friends and family, community events, walking the dog, active play and the simple joy of being in nature.

Photography by Murray Fredericks
The Hütt 01 Passivhaus

Melbourne Design Studios (MDS)

The Hütt 01 Passivhaus is inspiring contemporary architecture that sets a positive example for regenerative urban densification, reconnecting a forgotten piece of land with its environment. Regenerative design, Passivhaus & biophilic design are core values of this project, together with being energy-efficient, carbon-neutral/negative and an easily maintainable near-net-zero-energy approach.

The house combines functional playfulness & attention to detail with highly sustainable construction techniques and materials. The resulting home showcases new technologies like CLT with low VOC finishes, natural wood-fibre insulation, thermal-bridge-free high-performance windows, heat-recovery ventilation, a super-airtight building envelope, green walls and planters, and aquaponics. It obtains “Passivhaus Premium” certification (the highest possible category), utilising high-efficiency appliances with heat pump technology, solar photovoltaic and battery, integrated active shading, and recycled and/or natural materials throughout. A green roof and a raingarden assist with stormwater retention as part of the WSUD concept, that calculates to keep and use over 90% of stormwater on site. Showcasing prefabricated structural CLT panels with finished interior surfaces not only provides carbon footprint reduction and time & cost savings, but also a reduction/removal of additional finishing trades and materials like plastering.

Timber is featured in raw and finished forms, as well as natural stone and clay render. In addition to E0 boards and low VOC finishes, the built-in planters and green wall further cleanse the internal air from remaining (low-level) emissions. Product selections are based on sustainability, longevity and embodied energy, e.g. recycled bricks (carbon-zero), natural wood fibre and mass-timber structure (carbon-negative), recyclable timber floors with natural oil finishes and cradle to grave/cradle certification.

Passive House design just works. Once you’ve done it, and once you’ve lived in one, you can’t go back and tell people to not build a passive house. It makes a huge difference, it is easy to manage and maintain if designed correctly, and it is just comfortable and healthy all year around. This is how we can achieve carbon zero and zero energy homes on a large scale easily.

Photography by Marnie Hawson, Maitreya Chandorka, Immanuel Bosse

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Furniture: Jensen & Row, Ethnicraft, Trit House, Armadillo. Lighting: Mint Lighting, Artefact Melbourne & Lightcore Brisbane. Finishes: Woca, Bauwerk Paint, Osmo Polywax. Fittings & Fixtures: Blum, Billi, V-Zug, Rogerseller.



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