The City of Port Phillip near Melbourne is taking bold measures to enhance the vibrant atmosphere and livability of their city through a variety of urban renewal projects. Promoting a four part community plan of working together to take action, neighborhood development, community leadership, and monitoring progress, and fifteen priorities for action, the city's commitment to environmentally and socially conscious design and policy alongside a strong support for the arts has resulted in a number of noteworthy projects, attracting designers such as Simon Oxenham of Convic, Gregory Burgess Architects, and Paul Morgan Architects to take part.
Read on after the break to see three videos featuring the award winning projects, created by our friends at Traces Films.
Consisting of a variety of urban villages close to Melbourne's popular beaches, the City of Port Phillip is marked by a rich heritage and cultural diversity. Accordingly, the Council's Arts and Culture policy "acknowledges the social, health and wellbeing and economic benefits of fostering a diverse, culturally engaged and active community." The Plan includes goals of sustainable growth and urban development, the shaping of the physical environment to better connect people and foster a sense of community, support of disadvantaged and low-income residents, and improvement of transportation.
The Skatepark at Marina Reserve, designed by Convic, is evocative of the undulating sand dunes of the surrounding landscape, drawing the local community into the park and activating a formerly unused plot of land. It was awarded the Mayor's Award for energizing and engaging diverse community members and beautifying a public space.
Gregory Burgess Architects won the Architectural Excellence in Public Convenience Building award for the Toilet Block project. Because public facilities, typically hidden away, are negatively reputed as unsafe areas for loitering and engaging in unsavory behavior, the City has taken an active stance towards promoting safe, clean, socially inviting public amenities. The Toilet Block project makes a simple and poetic connection with the site and creates a dynamic mediating space.
The Market Roof project, by Paul Morgan Architects, is a larger scale sustainability and heritage project. Redesigning the rooftop carpark of the bustling South Melbourne Market, the architects drew inspiration from the industrial tradition of sawtooth roofs in south Melbourne to emphasize historic precedent and an iconic improved facility.
