AWARD FOR INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE
BELCONNEN POLICE STATION
BVN ARCHITECTURE IN ASSOCIATION WITH FMSA
CATEGORY: INTERIOR ARCHITECTURE
This new police station is co-located with ACT Police Headquarters in the Belconnen town centre. From the street, the expressive materiality of the building represents solidity and permanence, yet at the same time through a transparent entry forecourt the building invites community engagement.
Consistently balancing sensitive and complex operational functions against fostering public openness, the building successfully organises its functions from public to private domain, from general to more specialised work zones and from low to high security in a tight and rational linear arrangement. Operational areas are located along the external perimeter walls. The social spaces of staff kitchen and secure courtyard are embedded in the heart of the building, effectively operating to provide sanctuary from the stressful challenges of police work. Circulation skilfully manipulates spatial diversity along its path by linking working areas to the courtyard and beyond.
Upper floors are strategically separated from the building façade. This provides internal transparency across all levels of police hierarchy and promotes esprit de corps within a shared volume. In turn this arrangement also allows natural light penetration and cross ventilation through the building, and a range of integrated ESD principles demonstrate a commitment to sustainability and community values.
To cope with the rigours of a 24/7 facility and issues of equity across all users, material and colour selections have been kept simple and consistent throughout, from building structure to interior spatial expression and from front to back of house. Steel framing and building services are exposed and convey a raw aesthetic quality. This is contrasted with the warm natural tones of timber in flooring, decking and plywood, resulting in a series of finely orchestrated and robust interiors.
PROJECT TEAM
Architect/Practice: BVN Architecture in association with FMSA
Practice Team: Matthew Blair (Project Principal), David Flannery (Project Director), Wayne Henkel (Project Architect), Peter Clarke (Project Team), Alexandra Chaston (Project Team), Melanie Dodd (Project Team), James Rendina (Project Team), Simone Schade (Project Team), Jovan Van Kampen (Project Team), Xiaolei Yu (Project Team),
Consultant Team: TTW (Structural/ Civil Consultant), WSP (Electrical/ Mechanical Consultant), THCS (Hydraulic Consultant), Scenic Landscape Architecture (Landscape Consultant), Vision Design (Lighting Consultant), WSP Built Ecology (Environmental Consultant), Defire (Fire Safety Consultant), BCA Certifiers (Certifier), Eric Martin and Associates (Access Consultants), FMSA (Architects in Association)
Construction Team: St Hilliers (Construction Manager)
Photographer: Steve Brown
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BELCONNEN POLICE STATION
BVN ARCHITECTURE IN ASSOCIATION WITH FMSA
CATERGORY: PUBLIC ARCHITECTURE
Police stations are key elements of our urban infrastructure and community fabric, representing stability, security and safety. Critically, the design addresses the inherent challenge between being public and civic, whilst maintaining operational and physical security. The design creates a workplace that allows interaction, intelligence sharing, development of morale, and satisfies the complex operational and functional requirements.
The Station is wrapped around two courtyards, one private and the other for public use. The curved brick forms highlight the entry with the internal upper floor level being separated from the building facade to allow natural light penetration and a shared internal space. The private courtyard is a sanctuary and, along with the kitchen, forms the heart of the Station. It is a building of mass, with large areas of translucent glazing maintaining privacy whilst allowing natural light penetration with the white sunscreens on the eastern and southern facades creating a layered facade. Internally, the steel structure and building services are revealed, with spatial connections and tactile materials. The building includes exposed thermal mass, rainwater harvesting, photovoltaic solar cells and solar hot water systems, sunscreens, light harvesting, low-energy chilled beams, central energy plant, low VOC materials and high indoor air quality.
PROJECT TEAM
Architect/Practice: BVN Architecture in association with FMSA
Practice Team: Matthew Blair (Project Principal), David Flannery (Project Director), Wayne Henkel (Project Architect), Peter Clarke (Project Team), Alexandra Chaston (Project Team), Melanie Dodd (Project Team), James Rendina (Project Team), Simone Schade (Project Team), Jovan Van Kampen (Project Team), Xiaolei Yu (Project Team),
Consultant Team: TTW (Structural/ Civil Consultant), WSP (Electrical/ Mechanical Consultant), THCS (Hydraulic Consultant), Scenic Landscape Architecture (Landscape Consultant), Vision Design (Lighting Consultant), WSP Built Ecology (Environmental Consultant), Defire (Fire Safety Consultant), BCA Certifiers (Certifier), Eric Martin and Associates (Access Consultants), FMSA (Architects in Association)
Construction Team: St Hilliers (Construction Manager)
Photographer: Steve Brown
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