The METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project has swept the stage at the recently announced Australian Institute of Architects Western Australian Architecture Awards, taking home four accolades.
METRONET was awarded Western Australia’s highest architectural honour, the George Temple Poole Award.
The project was also the recipient of the Wallace Greenham Award for Sustainable Architecture, the Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture, and the Public Architecture Award.
Designed by Woods Bagot with Taylor Robinson Chaney Broderick (TRCB), TCL and UDLA, the project delivers five new stations and precincts at Morley, Noranda, Ballajura, Whiteman Park and Ellenbrook.
The stations along the Morley-Ellenbrook line make an outstanding contribution to the social and public infrastructure of a rapidly growing area of Perth, noted the jury.
The jury praised the project for setting “an impressive new sustainability benchmark for government infrastructure in Australia, and for being an exemplar of public transport and community facilities, with the end-user experience at the forefront of the design.”
Ruah Centre for Women and Children by Architectus
The Ruah Centre for Women and Children in Northbridge has won the Jeffrey Howlett Award for Public Architecture and the Brian Kidd Enabling Architecture Prize.
Designed by Architectus, the Ruah Centre is Australia’s first state-of-the-art healing and recovery centre dedicated to supporting women and children affected by family and domestic violence.
The seven-storey building provides medical, counselling and legal services, and accommodation for families.
Architectus closely collaborated with staff and women with lived experience, carefully balancing dignity, privacy and empowerment.
The jury applauded the project as “an elegant, well-planned and beautifully detailed building” that gives “broken lives a chance to rebuild”.
Hale Memorial Hall and Stow Precinct by KHA
Hale Memorial Hall and Stow Precinct has won the Hillson Beasley Award for Educational Architecture and the Heritage Award.
Designed by KHA, the Hale Memorial Hall was first constructed in 1961 to commemorate the former students of Hale School who died in the World Wars.
The jury commended KHA’s “ingenious refurbishment of a nationally significant modernist memorial hall that enriches the ceremonial life and heart of the school.”
The project “expands the capacity of the main auditorium and elegantly maintains the integrity and beauty of the original building,” said the jury.
Murdoch Square by Hassell
Murdoch Square has won the Ross Chisholm and Gil Nicol Award for Commercial Architecture and the John Septimus Roe Award for Urban Design.
Designed by Hassell, Murdoch Square reimagines a health precinct as a thriving and inclusive community hub.
Five separate buildings integrate public and private healthcare, commercial offices, aged care and short and long-stay accommodation facilities.
The jury hailed the project for “setting an innovative global benchmark for urban design.”
“Murdoch Square combines a complex health services brief and a busy street front into a welcoming, urban place,” said the jury.
All awarded and commended projects from the region are now in the running for the Australian Institute of Architects National Architecture Awards, set to be announced later in the year.
A word from WA Chapter President Ross donaldson
Architecture is a complex business
Knowledge
Over the years I have become increasingly in awe of the vast knowledge held within our profession. When you think about all the intelligence and knowledge we bring to the realisation of a project, it’s significant. Across the whole profession its – well – incomprehensible. This design intelligence delivers extraordinary value to the communities we serve.
I think it’s reasonable to say, though, that we feel its not fully appreciated across the community.
Some are pretty good at communicating their value to clients. But we are not good at conveying this value more broadly, to the community.
We are going to embark on a strategy to specifically address this, commencing next month.
We are asking all Award winners tonight to present their projects in a series of sector-based forums. From the material gathered in these forums we will analyse the current and emerging drivers of design trends to share more broadly across a series of stakeholder and public forums through the year ahead.
Challenging delivery frameworks
Yes, architecture is a complex business. We operate in an extremely challenging environment for delivering our projects.
Of all professional services, we operate within a framework which is the most adversarial, sometimes extremely adversarial – and quite unnecessarily so. This can be exacerbated by the unwise advice given to clients regarding procurement processes and contractual conditions.
Sometimes this advice brings a most protracted procurement process and unnecessarily onerous contractual conditions, the intension being to better safeguard their clients’ interests.
They don’t.
Any uninsurable contractual conditions such as unlimited liability and consequential loss are not in a client’s interest – precisely because they are uninsurable. Architects are not known for their strong balance sheets.
Productivity
This is a productivity issue.
The current practices of procurement and commissioning lower the productivity of our industry. We know productivity is an issue for the construction industry and these practices exacerbate the problem.
It can also impact on the business of architecture, lowering our productivity too. There are many Architectural businesses who tell you that it impacts their productivity and commercial outcomes.
We will be reinvigorating the practice forums within the Institute to gather the evidence, analysing it to help commissioning bodies better understand the productivity impacts and work together to elevate the performance of design and construction.
A complex business, yes.
But what a professional life we share! What an amazing career within which to bring your creative instincts to life.
Tonight, we acknowledge and celebrate the best of those endeavours and also the clients who have enabled their architects to be at their best. You have drawn upon all of your resources of knowledge and talent and overcome all the hurdles which would have otherwise constrained and diminished the value of the design you have given to your clients.
Congratulations to all tonight’s winners!
I’ll be coming around after and harassing you about contributing to the presentation forums.
Enjoy the evening!
see the full list of winners for the 2025 wa architecture awards!
| George Temple Poole Award | METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project | Woods Bagot with Taylor Robinson Chaney Broderick (TRCB), TCL and UDLA |
| Emerging Architect Prize | Emily Duncan | N/A |
| The Jeffrey Howlett Award – Public Architecture | Ruah Centre for Women and Children | Architectus |
| The Hillson Beasley Award – Educational Architecture | Hale Memorial Hall and Stow Precinct | KHA |
| The Marshall Clifton Award – Residential Architecture – Houses (New) | Deepwater House | AHA Studio |
| The Peter Overman Award – Residential Architecture – Houses (Alterations and Additions) | Shadow House | Grotto Studio |
| The Harold Krantz Award – Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing | Forbes Residences | WOHA + MJA studio |
| The Ross Chisholm and Gil Nicol Award – Commercial Architecture | Murdoch Square | Hassell |
| Margaret Pitt Morison Award – Heritage | Curtin Heritage Living Cottesloe Redevelopment | Griffiths Architects with GKA and Hames Sharley |
| The Julius Elischer Award – Interior Architecture | Arup Workplace, Perth/Boorloo | Hames Sharley with Arup and Peter Farmer Designs |
| The John Septimus Roe Award – Urban Design | Murdoch Square | Hassell |
| The Iwan Iwanoff Award – Small Project Architecture | Perth Airport Terminal 1 Sensory Room | Plus Architecture |
| The Wallace Greenham Award – Sustainable Architecture | METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project | Woods Bagot with TRCB, TCL and UDLA |
| The Richard Roach Jewell Award – Enduring Architecture | CRA Advanced Technology Building (now Brodie Hall Building) Bentley | Forbes and Fitzhardinge |
| The Brian Kidd Enabling Architecture Prize | Ruah Centre for Women and Children | Architectus |
| Colorbond Award for Steel Architecture | METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project | Woods Bagot with TRCB, TCL and UDLA |
| Award – Public Architecture | METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project | Woods Bagot with TRCB, TCL and UDLA |
| Award – Educational Architecture | Scarborough Primary School – New Teaching Block | SITE Architecture Studio |
| Award – Educational Architecture | Mother Teresa Catholic College – Secondary School | Parry and Rosenthal Architects |
| Award – Residential Architecture – Houses (New) | Parnell Avenue | Matthews McDonald Architects |
| Award – Residential Architecture – Houses (New) | Henville Street House | Philip Stejskal Architecture |
| Award for Residential Architecture – Houses (Alterations and Additions) | Mitchell Street Residence | Klopper & Davis Architects |
| Award – Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing | Montreal Commons | Hillam Architects |
| Award – Heritage | Hale Memorial Hall and Stow Precinct | KHA |
| Award – Interior Architecture | Vitality House + Works | Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects |
| Award – Interior Architecture | Onda | State of Kin |
| Award – Interior Architecture | Gibney Cottesloe | Rezen |
| Award – Urban Design | Curtin Heritage Living Cottesloe Redevelopment | Hames Sharley and GKA with SPH |
| Award – Sustainable Architecture | Montreal Commons | Hillam Architects |
| Mondoluce Lighting Award | Gibney Cottesloe | Rezen |
| Mondoluce Lighting Award | Vitality House + Works | Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects |
| The EmAGN Project Award | Altum Living | GHD Design |
| Commendation – Public Architecture | Shire of Dardanup’s Library, Administration and Community Building | Peter Hobbs Architects with Intensive Fields and Advanced Timber Concepts |
| Commendation – Educational Architecture | Karratha Senior High School Technologies Learning Area | Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects |
| Commendation – Residential Architecture – Houses (New) | Sheridan House | Steelehouse Architecture |
| Commendation – Residential Architecture – Houses (New) | Injidup Springs House | Whispering Smith |
| Commendation – Residential Architecture – Houses (New) | Broome Street House | Philip Stejskal Architecture |
| Commendation – Residential Architecture – Houses (Alterations and Additions) | South Perth House | Simon Pendal Architect |
| Commendation – Residential Architecture – Houses (Alterations and Additions) | Alexandra Residence | Cast Studio |
| Commendation – Residential Architecture – Multiple Housing | The Grove Residences | MJA studio |
| Commendation – Commercial Architecture | Vitality House + Works | Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects |
| Commendation – Commercial Architecture | Exchange Hotel | Hunt Architects |
| Commendation – Heritage | Exchange Hotel | Hunt Architects |
| Commendation – Interior Architecture | BHP Perth Office Fitout | Woods Bagot |
| Commendation – Sustainable Architecture | Rapid Close House | Philip Stejskal Architecture |
| Commendation – Sustainable Architecture | Arup Workplace, Perth/Boorloo | Hames Sharley with Arup and Peter Farmer Designs |
| Commendation – Colorbond Award -for Steel Architecture | Karratha Senior High School Technologies Learning Area | Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects |
| Commendation – Enabling Architecture | Brightwater Huntington’s Disease Campus | KPA Architects |
| People’s Choice Award Winner | Altum Living | GHD Design |
