15 October 2020
Australia’s Best Urban Design Projects Announced
Earlier tonight at an online ceremony, five projects and concepts received Australia’s highest accolade for urban design as part of the 2020 Australian Urban Design Awards (AUDA).
The AUDA are co-convened by the 海角社区 (海角社区), the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) and the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA).
Reflecting on this year’s nominations, CEO of the City Renewal Authority in Canberra and AUDA Jury Chair, Malcolm Snow said “it was excellent to see integration of green infrastructure, climate change awareness, the importance of public space together with creative collaboration between professions and the infusion of First Nation’s culture featuring prominently in this year’s entries”.
The first award of the night ‘Built Projects: City and Regional Scale’ was presented to the ‘Metro North West’ project by Hassell, in collaboration with Turpin Crawford Studio and McGregor Westlake Architecture. This huge project was responsible for the design of eight new stations and five refurbished stations connected along a 36km train route in Sydney’s north west region.
In their citation, the judges said, “the result [of this project] is a line wide integrated design outcome incorporating art, engineering, green infrastructure and architecture to create beautiful town centre stations and plazas and a context sensitive piece of rail infrastructure”.
Another NSW project ‘Darling Square’ by ASPECT Studios with Kengo Kuma and Associates took out the ‘Built Projects: Local & Neighbourhood Scale‘ award which serves to recognise projects that are smaller in scale but certainly no less impressive. Through the new design, the revitalised Darling Square in Sydney represents the indigenous culture and language of the Gadigal people, adds to the city’s urban forest through new canopy trees and creates “a ‘backyard’ where daily life can extend into the public realm and where public life can unfurl”.
The next project awarded is a framework that the many who traverse the trails of Melbourne’s eastern suburbs would be thankful for, the ‘Eastern Region Trails Strategy’ by Fitzgerald Frisby Landscape Architecture Pty Ltd.
The project, which judges described as an “exemplar of cooperation and coordination across 7 municipalities, 22 trails and a multitude of landowners and managers to achieve a major improvement to the integration of off-road trails throughout the eastern region of Melbourne” took out the ‘Leadership Advocacy and Research: City and Regional Scale’ award.
Finally, the last category of the program ‘Leadership Advocacy and Research: Local & Neighbourhood Scale’ saw joint Awards presented.
The first award in this category went to the ‘ANU Acton Campus Master Plan and Design Guide’, by Arup in collaboration with Urban Enquiry, Lovell Chen, Mantra Studios, Karen Wright Projects, John Wardle Architects & Turnberry Consulting "a plan to turn the university campus into a city centre precinct that reinstates one of the Griffins’ original ambitions in their national capital plan”.
The other recipient of the award was ‘Transforming Southbank Boulevard’ by City of Melbourne – City Design Studio a plan that outlines a vision for creating great public spaces for people in Southbank, Melbourne’s most densely populated suburb.
ENDS
ALL WINNERS AND COMMENDATIONS
BUILT PROJECTS: CITY & REGIONAL SCALE
AWARD: Metro North West (NSW) by Hassell, in collaboration with Turpin Crawford Studio and McGregor Westlake Architecture.
COMMENDATION: CBD & South East Light Rail (NSW) by Grimshaw and ASPECT Studios in collaboration with the City of Sydney on behalf of Transport for NSW supported by Randwick City Council
BUILT PROJECTS: LOCAL & NEIGHBOURHOOD SCALE
AWARD: Darling Square (NSW) by ASPECT Studios with Kengo Kuma and Associates
COMMENDATION: Mindeerup Piazza and Mends Street (WA) by PLACE Laboratory with City of South Perth, Iredale Pedersen Hook, ETC, Stantec and NS Projects and Artists.
COMMENDATION: The Rocks Laneway (WA) by Taylor Robinson Chaney Broderick with UDLA.
LEADERSHIP ADVOCACY AND RESEARCH: CITY AND REGIONAL SCALE
AWARD: Eastern Region Trails Strategy (VIC) by Fitzgerald Frisby Landscape Architecture Pty Ltd
COMMENDATION: Reimagining Campbelltown City Centre Master Plan (NSW) by Campbelltown City Council in partnership with Urbis, AECOM, Arcadis and Astrolabe
COMMENDATION: Sydney Science Park Master Plans (NSW) by ASPECT Studios with Matthew Pullinger Architect
COMMENDATION: Wianamatta – South Creek Urban Typologies & Stormwater Management (NSW) by Bligh Tanner, Architectus and Sydney Water
COMMENDATION: Yarra River – Birrarung Strategy (VIC) by City of Melbourne – City Design Studio
LEADERSHIP ADVOCACY AND RESEARCH: LOCAL & NEIGHBOURHOOD SCALE
AWARD: ANU Acton Campus Master Plan and Design Guide (ACT) by Arup in collaboration with Urban Enquiry, Lovell Chen, Mantra Studios, Karen Wright Projects, John Wardle Architects & Turnberry Consulting
AWARD: Transforming Southbank Boulevard (VIC) by City of Melbourne – City Design Studio