rmit university a’beckett urban square2014*in collaboration with tcl

the george hicks buildinginternational houseuniversity of melbourne2015

school for performing arts & creative educationgeelong grammar school2015

m80 ring road upgradevicroads2013

A’Beckett Urban Square is a temporary ‘pop-up’ recreational space that has become an instant magnet for students and young urban dwellers. Located behind the Swanston Academic Building the site had been used by RMIT University for many years as an open air car park. While the site awaits redevelopment, RMIT has generously turned this underutilised and derelict space into a publically-accessible ‘pop-up’ park incorporating multi-use sports courts with spectator seating, table tennis, BBQ facilities, bike parking, Wi-Fi, plants in tubs and places to sit, relax and watch people.

A’Beckett Urban Square was conceived as a piece of urban theatre carved out of the surrounding city. There is almost nowhere in the city to play casual sport so it is hardly surprising that the new facility has become so popular.

A specially commissioned large-scale artwork by Melbourne artist Ash Keating, wraps the site on two sides and adds an energetic backdrop. A’Beckett Urban Square adds a new venue to connect the University with the city and its people.

The George Hicks Building adds a significant new type of graduate student accommodation to the International House college community. The building is located at the southern end of the campus as a bookend to the central student common. The building has a lyrical curving form to take advantage of the extraordinary landscape setting with extensive views over Royal Park, Royal Parade and the college campus. It is a very collegiate and welcoming building with a student cafe, tutorial and conference facilities on the ground floor. There are three residential levels above the student common containing 57 self-contained units. The arrival point on each floor is focused around student lounge spaces which link to the lift and stair circulation system to encourage social interaction.

The M80 upgrade is a $2.25 billion project to widen and improve the 38km Western & Metropolitan Ring Roads. The M80 is a key transport corridor and the upgrade will improve safety, ease congestion, reduce travel times and improve reliability for all road users, especially during peak periods.

This practice has been appointed urban designers for the M80 which commenced with the development of an Urban Design Strategy to guide the upgrade works. Upgrading an existing busy freeway is a complex and demanding task. Good freeway urban design and landscape adds significantly to public amenity as has been demonstrated by a number of recent prominent road projects around Melbourne.

The urban design components include the design of noise walls, retaining walls, and other road furniture as well as assisting with bridges, piers, gantries, land forming and integrating landscape. Some special aspects involve a 500m long serpentine solar wall and a 500m long plant trellis frame to provide better amenity for road users and the local community. A major feature of the upgrade will be the use of strong colour at a number of locations along the freeway corridor

The School for Performing Arts & Creative Education is a new home for the performing arts, music, drama, assemblies and events celebrating the cultural life of the school. The S.P.A.C.E is a 3,200m2 building located on a prominent site in the heart of the campus. It houses two major performance spaces. The Bracebridge Wilson Studio seats 250 people and provides a flexible flat floor venue for small scale drama and music productions. The David Darling Play House seats 800 people and provides a flexible flat floor venue for school assemblies and selective large scale musical and theatrical productions. Both venues have retractable seating systems to allow various staging and performance formats. The two venues are served by shared facilities including foyer, toilets, change rooms, store rooms, as well as accommodation for the Drama Department including, multi-purpose studio, drama classrooms, rehearsal and green room spaces.

carlton baths & community centre for the city of melbourne2013

The Carlton Baths and Family Resource Centre is a well established local sporting community facility located in Rathdowne Street Carlton. This popular facility was designed by this practice (1986-1990) and has undergone a major refurbishment and extension.The complex was in need of a number of improvements including ESD provisions, disability access, BCA compliance and cyclical maintenance. The facility which has expanded from 2,350m2 to 3,300m2, includes a health club, community rooms, change rooms, basketball stadiums with gymnasium facilities, reception, administration, maternal, child health and playgroup rooms along with various ancillary spaces. The existing outdoor swimming pools, plant room and the associated landscape will be refurbished in a separate future stage.

selected projectspeter elliott architecture + urban design

barwon heads pedestrian bridge2011

building one rmit university2011

rmit university lawn precinct2012

trinity collegetheological school2010

selected projects

Building 1 as the number suggests is RMIT’s oldest building. It was built between 1886 and 1892 and named after Francis Ormond, founder and benefactor of the original Working Men’s College. This is a landmark building of great stature and historic significanceThe former Magistrate’s Court (Building 20) and the Francis Ormond Building have been linked together to become the administrative headquarters for the university. Given its grand and voluminous interior spaces, the building has become a distinguished venue for welcoming and receiving visitors and members of the RMIT community, as well as provide executive office accommodation.The concept for the interior was to open up and reveal a series of original grand spaces. In particular the top floor offers a spectacular trussed volume some nine metres high. Perhaps the most significant change to the building is the creation of a new north facing courtyard and café.This is an adaptive re-use which retains the best of the original building but brings it clearly into the twenty first century.

RMIT University has been progressively rebuilding its main city campus as part of a sustained transformation of both its building stock and its open spaces. The project is another stage of the Urban Spaces Project (1997 – 2008 +) with the completion of a major external stairway linking Alumni Court to the main campus and a new glazed stair & lift addition to Building 15.As a place, University lawn is a quiet haven within the bustling city, a protected and defined space with a sunny northern exposure. It is a pivotal project as it dramatically opens up, repairs, and then adds a new urban venue which unites several pathways crossing the campus. A significant aspect of the remaking of University lawn was the rebuilding of new fronts onto the backs of all the adjoining buildings. A series of new facades, entry lobbies, lifts, terraces and stairways connect with the public space they face. This not only improves urban amenity and legibility, it brings new energy and activity to University Lawn.

Barwon Heads is a picturesque coastal town located at the mouth of the Barwon River on the Bellarine Peninsula. Its much loved Barwon Heads Bridge has been reconstructed with a replacement timber bridge along with a new contemporary pedestrian and cycling bridge known as the William Buckley Bridge.The new William Buckley Bridge is clearly differentiated from the road bridge as a contemporary structure. The design intent was to construct a pair of parallel causeway bridges as companion structures, parallel for their full length with the same underside clearance for boating. The bridge expresses the beautiful tactile and aesthetic qualities of timber in an extraordinary coastal setting. The bridge’s primary structure is concrete which is fully clad in timber with a boat hull-like cross section. The underside of the bridge has a complex warping geometry where the timber battens rake and interlock to create visual interest and shadowing detail.In addition, a new entry plaza has been created to integrate the bridges with the Barwon Heads township and the Barwon River foreshore.

Trinity College is one of the foundation residential colleges at the University of Melbourne. It has an eclectic collection of nineteenth and twentieth century buildings set within a beautiful landscape. The Theological School occupies the former Wardens Lodge in the south west corner of the campus facing Royal Parade. The project involved the refurbishment of the existing building plus a new pavilion extension. The original residence was designed by McGlashan Everist Architects in 1960 and has adapted well to the new educational use. It is a single storey courtyard house with generous rooms and simple modern aesthetic. The new pavilion has been designed as a flexible teaching space which spills out into the surrounding landscape. The pavilion is separated but linked to the existing building via a compact glazed entry foyer. It has two large roof lanterns which provide controlled daylight and natural ventilation as well as a voluminous spatial interior.

north terrace redevelopment city of adelaide2011*in collaboration with tcl

North Terrace is Adelaide’s premier civic street. It is 2.5 kilometres long and is lined with an extraordinary array of cultural, civic, educational, health, recreation and commercial institutions unique in Australia. Whilst the Terrace still functioned as a civic place of importance by the late 1990’s it had become tired and overgrown and was in need of a major over-haul. The project commenced in 2000 with the preparation of a Development Framework Plan, followed by concept designs and staged implementation. This was an intensely collaborative project with Peter Elliott, Taylor Cullity Lethlean and Paul Carter as cultural interpreter. What distinguishes the Terrace from other civic boulevards is the unusual asymmetric alignment of street and spacious northern linear garden served by inner and outer paths thus creating a grand terrace walk. The northern edge of the Terrace is rich public terrain for each institution that lines it provides a different form of civic forecourt that over-locks the garden walk.

deer park by-passvicroads2009

visual arts centrelatrobe university2005

victoria law schoolvictoria university2003

memorial hallmelbourne grammar school2005

observatory gatemelbourne royal botanic gardens1999

selected projects

The 9.3km Deer Park Bypass is a new four lane freeway which connects the Western Highway at Caroline Springs to the Western Ring Road at Sunshine West. The project was delivered as a design construct contract with VicRoads and Leighton Contractors establishing a ‘one team’ collaborative working relationship. The Bypass, now known as the M8 Western Freeway is located on the sparse flat volcanic plains of western Melbourne. This is a rapidly changing landscape of new residential and industrial estates which is transforming the ever expanding fringe of Melbourne.A fundamental aim of the design has been to create a distinct visual identity for the Bypass that integrates freeway architecture into the local landscape – a marking of the land. Noise walls have been designed as sculptural elements of ambiguous scale embedded into the landform. The walls have strong shadowed reptilian forms which stretch along road edge.

The Latrobe University Visual Arts Centre is located in the View Street Arts Precinct directly opposite the Bendigo Art Gallery and the Capital Theatre. The project will give the university an off campus presence within central Bendigo for the promotion of its visual arts program. This includes a small public gallery and lecture theatre as well as postgraduate artist studios, a print workshop and an artist-in-residence apartment. The venue will showcase the visual arts through lectures, displays and workshops as well as joint programs with the Bendigo Art Gallery.

The Memorial Hall has been extensively refurbished and extended to provide facilities for Music and the Performing Arts, as well as general School use. New accommodation includes a significantly expanded basement for storage, back-of-house under stage areas, a Music Studio and rehearsal space as well as improved stage size and drama performance facilities. Given severe site and heritage constraints, most of the new space has been provided underground, except for a modest addition to extend the stage and wings. The development of the western extension has allowed the opportunity to relocate the Bromby Street driveway to align axially with the Witherby Tower and South Quadrangle and so improve the vista and entrance from the south. roviding a fully integrated music and drama complex. The refurbished main Hall will seat the whole School of 780 students and staff in a range of flexible formats.

Victoria University acquired the former Public Records Office in Queen Street Melbourne in late 2000, to become the headquarters for the Victoria Law School. The site is located in the heart of the Law Precinct, which includes all of the city’s major Court buildings. The former Records Office was built in 1900-1904 by the Public Works Department and is a late example of the flamboyant French Second Empire Style. It is listed on the Heritage Victoria Register and remains a significant public building. The refurbished building provides accommodation for the School of Law and the Sir Zelman Cowen Centre for Continuing Legal Education. The project involves the conversion of the main 4 storey Records Office together with a single storey rear Strong Room into general academic facilities, seminar rooms, Moot Courts, and lecture theatres. Above the Strong Room there is a 2 storey extension containing the Law Library. The new Law School is an ideal adaptation for this fine early twentieth century building.

Observatory Gate is a dramatic new gateway to the Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne. Located in Birdwood Avenue opposite the Shrine of Remembrance, it incorporates the former Melbourne Observatory and Latrobe‘s Triangle sites.The inclusion of the Observatory site into the Gardens provides an important new venue for visitors, both as a destination in its own right, as well as the front door to the Gardens. The site is rich in scientific history and includes a significant collection of restored nineteenth century astronomical buildings now open to the public.The focus of the development is a new public plaza and Visitor Centre building, which contains a Cafe, the Gardens shop, and visitor reception and orientation spaces. Set among the existing Observatory buildings, the new Visitor Centre forms a backdrop to the plaza. As a public place, Observatory Gate has many qualities, for it is a natural gathering space set in beautiful surroundings.

the rocks refresha public realm study2014*in collaboration with tcl

northbank promenade study2003

melbourne arts precinctblueprint architectural framework2013

development opportunities linked along the Sturt Street Art Spine

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kaerial view looking north

Sturt Street Art SpineSt Kilda Rd Civic Spine

Strategic Project Arts Precinct gatewayStrategic Project

1 City road

Strategic Project 77 Southbank Blvd

Strategic Project Urban Park

Strategic Project Southern Gateway

Strategic Project Arts Education Campus

university of melbourneurban design framework2014*in collaboration with tcl

arts centre gatewayconcept master plan study2014

selected studies

Peter Elliott Pty LtdArchitecture + Urban Design

Taylor Cullitty LethleanDSEBuilt Environment Urban Design

Northbank PromenadeMay 2005

T FOR CONSULTALTALTION

TATIONTA

THE VISION

The Victorian Arts Centre Precinct contains Victoria’s most prestigious arts venues; including Hamer Hall, the Theatres Building, The National Gallery of Victoria and the Australian Ballet Building. This report summarises an investigation into an urban solution that both unlocks and realises the potential of the Southbank Arts Precinct while cohesively connecting the arts buildings at the precincts gateway.

The expanding city

the City Context

Melbourne’s transformation continues as a work-in-progress as it expands along and across the river, into Docklands, Jolimont, Carlton and Southbank. This expansion brings new challenges and opportunities to the form of urban fabric and the public realm outside the central city grid. The mixed use activity of the city has jumped the river expanding the possibilities for Southbank as a more diverse and vibrant precinct.

Carlton

Hoddle GridDocklands

SouthbankYa

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a River Jolimont

circa 1970s view of Southbank prior to the Arts Centre and other urban renewal projects

Melbourne Arts Precinct Architectural Framework10

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Carlton

Hoddle GridDocklands

SouthbankYa

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a River Jolimont

ST KILDA ROAD LEVEL

Gateway Plaza creates a public space that will foreground a new entry to the Arts Centre and mark the gateway into the wider arts precinct. The improved ground levels facilitate pedestrian movement throughout the site.

A network of public event spaces provide new settings for public performances and festival events.

By opening up the Theatres building and providing improved access to public spaces the precinct promotes the active use of the public realm.

An enhanced experience of the Arts Precinct is created by providing spaces for may different activities; meeting places for everyday activities, public event space for street performers and arts festivals and an activated retail ground plane that connects the spaces.

The Arts Centre Foyer provides an enclosed common area and a prominent address to the Australian Performing Arts Gallery as well as central ticketing and box of ce.

Sturt Street Plaza

Sturt Street Promenade

Arts House Food & Beverage

Arts Hotel Lobby & Bar

Arts Centre Foyer Building

Ballet Building Retail

Theatres Building Extended Foyer / Food & Beverage

Theatres Building Public Connection

The Rocks is located on the western side of Sydney Cove, where European settlers first stepped ashore in 1788. It became the birthplace of modern Sydney. The Rocks today is characterised by intimate walkways, heritage architecture, and curious places to stop and explore. The Rocks has a distinct identity as a village like haven nestled into a rocky promontory surrounded by the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Cahill Expressway. It has seen many changes over the decades and is now in need of a refresh with an emphasis on the public realm experience. The intent of the study is to provide a compelling vision for the future public spaces of the Rocks as well as guidance on the process of progressive transformation. The study commenced with a detailed precinct mapping of The Rocks which then informed a series of themes and public realm strategies, concluding with several illustrated catalyst projects.

Northbank Promenade is a shared pedestrian and cycling pathway connecting Birrarung Marr to Docklands with numerous links back into the city. The promenade has been progressively upgraded as part of a larger urban plan to improve the north bank of the River Yarra. Since the late 1970’s Melbourne has vigorously sought to embrace the Yarra River as the cultural heart of the city. With projects like Birrarung Marr and Federation Square parts of north bank have been transformed more in line with the very successful south bank of the river. The study proposed a series of new interventions and activation projects to enliven and upgrade the promenade and its support networks.

The intent of the Urban Design Framework is to provide a compelling vision for the future public spaces of the Parkville campus as well as guidance on the process of progressive transformation. The UDF is built upon a foundation of propositional ideas that tries to anticipate and imagine the future Parkville campus. The Framework also reflects a set of values that underpin the University and its place within the broader community. The UDF is an evolution of the Parkville Campus Master Plan 2008 and projects forward another decade to 2025. Through Growing Esteem, the University has restated its commitment to the on-campus experience and the Parkville campus as a principal place of learning, teaching, social interaction, engagement and celebration. The Framework re-imagines and transforms the identity of the University and its place in the city. This is captured in three core ideas that underpin the future development of the campus: a central campus green + a network of connected walkways + a cluster of academic villages.

The “Blueprint” is an overarching vision and co-ordinated approach to the future development of the Melbourne Arts Precinct, Southbank. The study has been co-ordinated by a Secretariat and Working Group made up of the key arts stakeholders, the City of Melbourne, Arts Victoria and the State Government. The Southbank Arts Precinct contains an impressive collection of major arts institutions and related organisations. Whilst each individual organisation has its own plans for the future, the Blueprint considers the precinct primarily as a piece of the city in which numerous arts venues are located. A vibrant Southbank precinct will contain a rich diversity of mixed use activities but with a strong arts focus and identity. The idea is to better connect the precinct to the city bring with it some of its vibrant street activity an energy.

The Victorian Arts Centre Precinct contains Victoria’s most prestigious arts venues: including Hamer Hall, the Theatres Building, The National Gallery of Victoria and the Australian Ballet Building. The Arts Centre Gateway concept master plan builds upon the 2013 Melbourne Arts Precinct Blueprint which proposes a series of urban strategies to unlock Southbank and connect it to the city. The focus of the study was on five key objectives; a new home for the Australian Gallery of Performing Arts, a new front door to Hamer Hall and the Theatres Building, a dramatic gateway to the arts centre precinct, a landmark development on the Y site and an enhanced public realm and activated Sturt Street.