A public housing block of 12 apartments will be built in Braybrook, western Melbourne, as part of the Victorian government’s Future Homes pilot program.
The apartments will be designed by Melbourne-based architecture firms Lian in association with Kerstin Thompson Architects.
Lian (working with Finding Infinity and Openwork) was one of four winners in the Future Homes competition, which sought exemplary apartment designs that could easily be replicated across Melbourne’s suburbs.
Titled “Freespace,” Lian’s winning design proposes a modular system of volumetric blocks that that can arranged in various ways to suit different houshold types. The design suggests that each dwelling will be made up of a double-height living area, with a 25 square metre outdoor space attached, and bedroom and bathroom blocks to suit.
The modular design was chosen to be built as a demonstration project through a competitive tender process run by Homes Victoria, which included the four competition finalists. A spokesperson for the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning told ArchitectureAU the tenders were assessed against price, value for money and the experience and capability of the firm.
“In the end Lian were selected as on balance they best met all of the assessment criteria.”
The winning proposal by Lian (with Finding Infinity and Openwork).
A spokesperson for Lian said they had approached Kerstin Thompson Architects to collaborate with on the project because of its focus on the public agenda and research and that KTA been a “role model and inspiration” for Lian’s own work.
The 12 new homes will be a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, with some of the ground-level apartments designed for full wheel-chair accessibility.
The government said the homes will be “light filled, have access to green space and be environmentally sustainable, providing thermal comfort for residents.”
All four winning design teams of the Future Homes competition will work with the planning department and the Office of the Victorian Government Architect to refine their entries into design models to be incorporated into the Victorian planning scheme.
“The Future Homes competition contributed such incredible new design concepts and this is an exciting first opportunity to bring these designs to life,” said housing minister Richard Wynne.
“These new designs will set new benchmarks in sustainability and liveability – helping create a new generation of apartment living that’s better, smarter, safer and healthier for the whole community.”
Source: Architecture - architectureau
