Y Suites, Canberra | ANTONIADES ARCHITECTS

Y Suites is a 733 bed Student accommodation development located in the heart of Canberra Civic and close to ANU. The development is offering students the opportunity to have off campus living with exceptional level of facilities and amenities. The island site offered the unique opportunity by allowing the development to play an important role in activating the precinct and facilitating a holistic architectural response that has contextual fit and presence within the Civic. Extensive common area facilities are allocated within the podium levels, whilst break out spaces are also included on every level above the podium to enhance the social dynamic and interaction of the students across the building.

Youth 2 Independence (Y2I) Campbell Street | LIMINAL Architecture

The Youth 2 Independence Campbell Street project (Y2I) reimagines social housing for young adults. At its core, it provides accommodation for youths interwoven with Community Hub support, social activities and life–long learning opportunities.

Rising five stories above an underused concrete podium covering two levels of carparking, Y2I reclaims wasted urban space and transforms it into a vibrant, activated contribution to the city. Embraced by the warmth of the custom LIMINAL–orange perforated screening, the housing hub presents a city ‘marker’ within the greater urban context.

From rooftop social areas and edible gardens, to an elevated 3–point basketball court encouraging fun, fitness and cohesion, Y2I fosters a sense of belonging and empowers residents to form sustainable independence to build their own brighter futures.
Together with Homes Tasmania and Anglicare, LIMINAL sees the development as an opportunity to demonstrate a progressive approach to affordable housing models.

Yukeembruk ANU | Bates Smart

Yukeembruk is ANU’s newest student village, a collection of six buildings that sit respectfully in their bushland surrounds. It is a residential hub for 700 undergraduate and postgraduate students, connecting the southwest corner of ANU to Kambri, its campus heart.

Anchored by Black Mountain, Sullivans Creek and the mature Eucalypts, the architecture is composed of a restrained materiality; brick, concrete, glass and timber accents, to avoid competing with the landscape.

Two undergraduate halls and two smaller postgraduate halls are organised around a central pedestrian spine, complete with bike storage facilities, a basketball half–court and a community green. Indoor and outdoor communal spaces are mostly located at ground; large common areas, masterchef–style kitchens and dining areas, BBQ courtyards, study spaces and music/project rooms. At the site’s centre is a one–storey pavilion that functions as a community hall, with a long–span dining room and flexible space for lectures and student gatherings.

Wilam Ngarrang Retrofit | Kennedy Nolan with Finding Infinity

Wilam Ngarrang is a minimal–intervention retrofit of a 1970s apartment block in Fitzroy, it is Australia’s first plus energy retrofit of an apartment block. The purpose of transforming this building was to create an example for the city. A financially replicable model of low environmental impact retrofit concentrating on improving thermal performance, extending the life–span of the building and increasing amenity for tenants. Importantly, there is also an emphasis on creating a sense of domestic comfort, on making places for people which are warm, welcoming and beautiful, in their own modest way. The design of the project was a partnership between Kennedy Nolan and Finding Infinity, regular collaborators on a diverse range of projects.

Victoria House | MJA Studio and FINESPUN Architecture and PLACE Laboratory with Palassis

This project at Victoria House involves significant Restoration, Alteration and Addition to a State Heritage asset designed by AE Clare in order to adapt it into a true mixed–use development with a long future ahead.
Originally constructed in 1938, Victoria House carries the heritage legacy for the Shenton Park Rehabilitation Hospital site and has been designed as the centrepiece of the Montario Quarter redevelopment. The retention of Victoria House enables the public to engage with the building with modern adaptations providing for hospitality and health uses.
Careful study of the materiality of Victoria House directed the Project team to develop a material palette for the new buildings that was sympathetic and a built form which is referential so that they can exist comfortably in polite conversation.
Victoria House is a clear example of the benefit of collaborators and clients working with shared vision, principles and passion towards an exemplary outcome.

Thyne House Extension Project | Xsquared Architects with Robert Carroll & Associates

The Thyne House Extension Project provides a place for disadvantaged young people at risk of homelessness to thrive as they navigate a path to a productive and sustainable future within the local community and integrates learning and life skills opportunities with supported accommodation.

The project is also a contemporary homage to the 150-year history of Launceston brick construction, and to the industrial buildings that originally occupied the site.

Because of the building’s strong social agenda, it is important that it is a well-designed example of its typology, and we are proud that an exemplary housing solution has been delivered within a standard budget.

A strong physical presence and a respect for the heritage of the site respond to the cultural contexts of the site and the city in which it is located. Delivering a compelling design at a reasonable price supports the case for government investment in social housing.

The Nursery on Brunswick | Clare Cousins Architects

Previously home to the Fitzroy Nursery for over 40 years, locals have come to know and love this place as a verdant and open–air respite within the tough urban fabric of the high street. The Nursery on Brunswick is a mixed–used building with retail, commercial and residential tenancies that all benefit from the red brick, north facing atrium–like garden at the centre of site.

Countering more typical yield–focused developments in the area, the atrium prioritises quality of amenity over maximum density, providing light, greenery, garden views and amenity to both tenants and the public realm.

The Parks – Red Hill | Stewart Architecture

The Parks Red Hill is a residential development of six buildings bounding Lady Nelson Park. The challenging topography and geometry of the site leads to each building as unique but sharing common architectural design and detailing. Sensitive streetscape character, elegant façades and intriguing roofscape incorporating attic apartments with dormer windows and recessed terraces characterise the development.

Residents engage with their surrounding environment including the park, the local shops, and surrounding streets. The interface with the public realm is achieved through generous setback courtyards, greenery to soften the edges, permeable fencing, wide footpaths with planting, and architectural articulation on the facades.

Generous internal layouts have been carefully designed to provide high quality living space. Quality materials and with no applied finish to allow the façades to age gracefully and with minimal maintenance. Useable recessed balconies, extensive natural ventilation and deep soil planting contribute to a sustainable development.

The Rox Apartments | Core Collective Architects

The Rox Apartments makes a positive contribution to Hobart’s urban realm whilst respectfully restoring and reinvigorating the surrounding heritage buildings. This project was spearheaded by a long–term owner of the heritage–listed property with a passion for its rich history. The development comprises a new apartment building with 15 apartments and ground floor commercial space, as well as the careful restoration of Scotch College (c.1880) at the rear of heritage listed Roxburgh House (c.1870).

The development is cited by the Tasmanian Heritage Council as a case study project, describing the conversion of the former Scotch College building into apartments as “inspiring”. The Rox demonstrates the potential for new housing in the centre of the city to increase density while responding to its heritage context with sensitivity, activating the ground plane and improving the quality of the urban realm.

The Surry | Candalepas Associates

Fronting a major arterial road in Surry Hills & on the fringe of the city, this medium density development of 24 new apartments makes a strong & considered contribution to the streetscape.

It is appropriate in scale to its surrounding urban context & exhibits a limited palette of materials. These considerations contributed to the rare decision made by authorities to remove the two heritage (contributory) buildings to make way for this exciting project.

Designed in close collaboration with clients Camilla and Oscar Done this thoughtfully detailed and well–planned project provides consistent & uncompromised amenity throughout. It successfully answers design challenges, whilst prioritising principles of environmentally sustainable building design. Creative solutions have been sought to address noise & sun, shielding and protecting its inhabitants whilst offering light and efficient ventilation.

The glittering tapestry of turquoise & tangerine coloured ceramic tiles animates the distinctive Elizabeth Street façade, refreshing & re–energising a once neglected part of our city.