Evelyn Reynolds

When done well, competitions can be powerful vehicles for innovation and the creation of exceptional architecture. However, many architects find themselves grappling with opaque processes, disingenuous briefs, limited budgets, onerous deliverables, and little protection against intellectual theft – all for projects that may never be realised.
In this episode of Design Speaks Weekly, director of architectural studio Durbach Block Jaggers Camilla Block tackles the state of architecture competitions in Australia, and asks: are they still working as intended? Reflecting on their history, their evolution and their impact on the profession, Camilla considers what an ideal future for the architectural competition system might entail.

Camilla will be addressing the issue at ArchitectureAu Asks in Canberra on Friday 7 November 2025, where she’ll ask a group of industry leaders, including John Wardle, Kerry Clare and Sue Dugdale, to respond to the provocation: “The competition system is under scrutiny – how could it be better?”
Design Speaks Weekly is presented in partnership with the Australian Institute of Architects and with support from Lysaght. A fresh episode will be delivered every Tuesday. You can listen to it on major podcast apps, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and Pocket Casts.
To find out more about the upcoming ArchitectureAu Asks event, visit the Design Speaks website. More

The outcomes of the federal government’s recent Economic Reform Roundtable, which aims to tackle Australia’s slump in economic productivity, have been announced by treasurer Jim Chalmers at a press conference in Canberra on Thursday.
Of the ten reform directions agreed at the roundtable, Chalmers noted, “The third one was better regulation and how we cut the clutter when it comes to reg[ulation]. The fourth one was speeding up approvals in national priority areas. The fifth one was building more homes, more quickly.”
Within these focus areas, Chalmers highlighted the opportunity for the government to act with urgency to boost housing – “to see where we can reduce complexity and red tape in the National Construction Code (NCC) – to do that in a balanced way which takes into consideration some of the concerns which were raised [from state regulators],” he said.
The federal government has since taken action on this issue by making the decision to pause residential updates to the NCC, following this year’s scheduled changes, until mid-2029. The next round of code amendments were previously due in 2028.
A joint press release from Minister for Housing, Homelessness and Cities Claire O’Neill and Minister for the Environment and Water Murray Watt noted that the pause “excludes essential safety and quality changes,” and ensures the NCC “maintains the strong residential standards adopted in 2022, including 7-star energy efficiency.”
While the pause is underway, the government is looking to streamline the useability of the NCC through AI, remove barriers to the uptake of modern methods of construction, improve how code provisions are developed by the Australian Building Codes Board (ABCB) and explore an “appropriate” cycle for future NCC amendments.
O’Neill said, “We’re pausing changes to the construction code and speeding up housing approvals – without cutting corners on standards.”
In the leadup to the roundtable, the Australian Institute of Architects warned that pausing the NCC updates would harm, rather than help, construction productivity. Their media release stated:

“The Institute strongly rejects claims that building standards create unnecessary red tape. Evidence shows that robust codes enhance rather than hinder genuine productivity by:
• Preventing costly rectification work
• Reducing insurance claims and legal disputes
• Ensuring buildings perform as designed
• Maintaining Australia’s reputation for quality construction
• Delivering quality homes for our community.”

Institute national president Adam Haddow added, “Building upgrades cost significantly less when the code is updated more frequently. A pause creates costly backlogs of quality and safety improvements that ultimately burden the industry and society.”
In addition, Haddow emphasised that the triennial NCC review is necessary to ensure that buildings meet evolving expectations around health, wellbeing, inclusivity and accessibility.
“Ignoring expert evidence in the built environment is akin to knowing what causes cancer but doing nothing about it,” he said. “Changes to the NCC improve people’s lives – they are essential to delivering better homes for people.”
On the topic of modern methods of construction, Haddow and Chalmers agreed that new and evolving building technologies and methods promised improved efficiency in construction, with Chalmers noting that there’s “a lot of appetite in the room for prefab homes as a way of being more productive in housing and construction and also dealing with costs.”
However, Haddow argued that the NCC’s three-year review cycle ensures a clear framework for the private sector to invest in planned changes, and that “pausing the NCC undermines productivity by creating investment uncertainty and reducing business confidence.”
“A pause in the NCC will not keep up with innovations that help us build better and quicker,” he said. “We’ll be left behind the international market.”
Regarding regulatory approvals, Chalmers pointed out that more work with the states and territories was needed to speed up decisions, “including how we best make use of pre‑approval, conditional pre‑approval, and the planning in advance part of seeing more housing and other kinds of projects underway quicker,” he said.
Chalmers will meet with state and territory treasurers on 5 September. More

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The second instalment of the annual ArchitectureAu Asks symposium, to be held at the Shine Dome in Canberra on Friday 7 November, features a provocation on the future of design competitions from Sydney architect and director of Durbach Block Jaggers Camilla Block.
Block’s provocation asks leading practitioners from across Australia to consider the current state of the architectural competition system, noting that while competitions can be powerful vehicles for experimentation and the creation of exceptional architecture, many architects today find themselves grappling with opaque processes, disingenuous briefs, limited budgets, onerous deliverables and little protection against intellectual theft – all for projects that may never be realised.
Respondents will explore what needs to change to ensure fairness, transparency and value in the competition process, and what an ideal future for architectural competitions might look like.
Speakers to offer their insight include Australian Institute of Architects Gold Medallists John Wardle of Wardle (Melbourne), Kerry Clare of Clare Design (Gold Coast) and Phil Harris of Troppo Architects (Adelaide), alongside Bradley Mapiva Brown of Bagariin Ngunnawal Cultural Consulting (Canberra), Felicity Stewart of Stewart Architecture (Canberra and Sydney), Kevin Lloyd of Hassell (Sydney), Patrick Kosky of Kerry Hill Architects (Perth), and Sue Dugdale of Susan Dugdale and Associates (Alice Springs).
The ArchitectureAu Asks symposium is presented alongside a series of significant events that showcase excellence and innovation in Australian architecture. These include the Institute’s National Architecture Awards ceremony at the National Gallery of Australia on the evening of Thursday 6 November, and the free-to-attend 2025 Griffin Lecture, presented by Gold Medallist Gregory Burgess and moderated by Shaneen Fantin, held immediately after the ArchitectureAu Asks symposium.
Concurrent with these events, the Canberra Museum and Gallery is hosting a series of talks and tours related to the Taglietti: Life In Design exhibition, which explores the work of architect and Gold Medallist Enrico Taglietti.
ArchitectureAu Asks attendees can earn 3.5 formal CPD points. To find out more about the event and opportunity to purchase a ticket bundle with the National Architecture Awards, visit here.
ArchitectureAu Asks is a Design Speaks program organised by Architecture Media and supported by premium partners Bondor Metecno and Planned Cover, and hotel partner Ovolo Nishi. More

An award-winning townhouse by the late Sydney architect Ken Woolley is under consideration for listing on the New South Wales State Heritage Register. Known as Woolley Townhouse or Paddington House, the 1980 home at 8A Cooper St, Paddington, served as the home of Ken Woolley and his wife Virginia Braden Woolley for seven years.
According to the Heritage Council of NSW, the townhouse is the last of three residences Woolley designed for himself, and “is an early demonstration of his capacity to combine postmodern characteristics with Sydney School design.”
In a Revisited article of the house for Houses magazine in 2020, Peter Salhani described the project as a testing ground for Woolley’s new ideas around urban living, and also a homage to Virginia’s love of music due to its grand-piano-shaped form. At the time it was built, the building was recognised as the best new house in NSW, winning the Wilkinson Award for Residential Architecture in 1983.

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Along with alterations from a previous custodian, Milenko Mijuskovic of Studio Redux, the home has seen recent alterations and additions, including a basement-level bar and an outdoor terrace designed by Casey Brown Architecture, though the Heritage Council of NSW notes that “much of this work is in line with the original design intent of Ken Woolley.”
The matter of the home’s state heritage significance has been ongoing since 2021, when the building was nominated by Woollahra Municipal Council after being identified as a potential item of state significance in a 2005 heritage study by Clive Lucas, Stapleton and Partners. The dwelling was first identified by the council as an item of high local significance within the Paddington Heritage Conservation Area in 2004.

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In a summary paper last year, the Heritage Council of NSW recommended to Minister for Heritage Penny Sharpe that the Woolley Townhouse be considered for state heritage listing. The state’s independent planning commission has been tasked with reviewing the proposal and receiving public submissions before the minister makes a final decision on the listing.
Further details on the listing and process for public submissions, which are open until Wednesday 10 September 2025, can be found online. More

A development application has been lodged for a major $1 billion mixed-use precinct on a mostly vacant site adjacent to the Toowong Village shopping centre and the suburb’s train station, four kilometres south-west of Brisbane’s CBD. Named “Toowong Central,” the tri-tower proposal includes a retail podium and series of ground floor plazas.
Working in partnership with Cottee Parker Architects and PWP Landscape Architecture, Kerry Hill Architects (KHA) has led the architectural design of the project since winning an international design competition for their concept against competitors United Network Studio (UN Studio) and Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) in 2024.
According to a report from planning consultant Urbis, KHA’s competition “concept design presented an activated and connected ground plane with generous public realm that crafted a vision for living, working and enjoying at the site … [and] has since been developed further, in response to further feedback from both council and the community.”

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The proposed scheme comprises three slender residential towers ranging 49 to 58 storeys in height – the tallest reaching 225 metres above ground level – comprising 1,031 apartments, 92 of which are designated as short-stay serviced units. These are arranged around a central plaza, which forms the heart of a network of public spaces and walkways that lead through and around retail and commercial tenancies within the mixed-use podium.
“A specific focus in the design is unlocking and maximising the ground plane for public open space, while co-locating much-needed housing supply with lifestyle amenities to support the growing inner-city population,” Urbis’s report notes.

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At the centre of the precinct, the circular plaza is envisaged as a flexible space for interactive water play, informal gathering and night markets. In addition, the scheme addresses each of the site’s three frontages with smaller public forecourts, along with integration of the former Carver and Co. building – a local heritage place – as part of the project’s retail offering.
Drawing inspiration from the leafy suburban surrounds, each of the three towers is vertically articulated with elevated subtropical sky gardens. The emphasis on urban greening extends to the landscaped podium, which includes a series of pools, wellness facilities and multifunctional spaces.

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In respect of the proposal’s scale, Urbis’s report notes that the design responds directly to the existing and future site context, along with its proximity to the CBD and Brisbane River.
“The concept design process was driven by a bold vision of revitalising and reawakening the heart of Toowong through the creation of an iconic and memorable precinct on the site to enhance the area’s appeal and serve as a catalyst for planned improvements in the surrounds,” the report reads.
With the height of the proposal being more than double what’s permitted under the neighbourhood plan – and exceeds previous 25-storey approvals, such as Nettleton Tribe’s design for The Aviary – the application is impact assessable and open to public submissions.
The proposal can be viewed online. More

Parlour has launched the second edition of its Guides to Equitable Practice, updating the first edition from 2015 to further address pay inequities in architecture.
Parlour co-founder and director Justine Clark today joined host Georgia Birks on episode three of the Design Speaks Weekly podcast to explore the significance of the updated guides and the role of data in driving accountability and transparency across the profession.

In 2015, 11 guides were released, addressing a range of common issues in the architecture profession and outlining strategies for creating more equitable workplaces. The topics included pay equity, leadership, long hours, part-time work, recruitment, mentoring, career progression, negotiation, career breaks and registration.
Updated versions of these guides are now being gradually re-released. The first, Pay Equity and Pay Gaps, provides a comprehensive overview of gender pay gaps, pay equity, and practical recommendations for addressing both in the workplace.
Design Speaks Weekly is presented in partnership with the Australian Institute of Architects and with support from Lysaght. A fresh episode will be delivered every Tuesday. You can listen to it on major podcast apps, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and Pocket Casts.
To access the Parlour Guides to Equitable Practice, visit the Parlour website. More

Federal heritage approval has been granted to Gurrowa Place – a major new mixed-use housing development sited at the southern edge of the Queen Victoria Market (QVM), which will be delivered by the City of Melbourne in partnership with Lendlease and Scape.
The latest federal approval for the project is in addition to planning approvals from state and local government, as well as state heritage support, received in early 2024. Concept designs from the project’s design team – comprising NH Architecture, Kerstin Thompson Architects, 3XN Australia, Searle x Waldron Architecture, Openwork, McGregor Coxall, Lovell Chen and Urbis – were first unveiled in 2023.
The $1.7 billion Gurrowa Place project involves the construction of two new apartment towers, a student accommodation tower and a low-rise civic building across a 3.2-hectare site bordered by Franklin, Queen and Peel streets, just north of Melbourne’s CBD.
According to a media release from Lendlease, the project is slated to deliver approximately 1,150 student residences by Scape and 622 build-to-rent apartments with 79 affordable homes across two of the site’s residential buildings. As part of the federal heritage approval, Lendlease has proposed an amendment to the third building within the project’s approved masterplan, which would enable approximately 507 build-to-rent apartments and 55 affordable homes.
“In total, this could see more than 2,200 new build-to-rent apartments and student accommodation beds delivered, including more than 130 affordable homes, located close to public transport connections and Melbourne’s medical, education and research precincts,” the communique from Lendlease states.
Minister for Housing Clare O’Neil welcomed the announcement, adding, “We have too many regulations standing in the path of builders that is serving no purpose other than to delay and create more expensive housing. If we’re going to build more homes, which is exactly what our government is trying to do, then that’s going to have to change.”
Plans for the precinct also include a 1.8-hectare public park called Market Square on the site of the historic Old Melbourne Cemetery – now used as the market’s open-air car park. The proposal features new basement car parking with 220 spaces for visitors and traders, along with the restoration and conversion of the heritage-listed Franklin Street stores into hospitality and retail outlets facing north to the park.
Minister for the Environment and Water Murray Watt said that conditions attached to the development consent are designed to preserve the heritage of the QVM while delivering more homes for Victorians.
“Through thoughtful design, this project will provide new and much-needed housing while ensuring this Melbourne icon can be enjoyed for many years to come,” Watt said. “This project will offer modern facilities to make the market more accessible and appealing to traders, customers and tourists alike.”

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Lord Mayor of Melbourne Nick Reece commented that Gurrowa Place is the biggest mixed-use development in the city’s history.
“This development will also make a major dent in the housing crisis – delivering new homes, including affordable housing which the city desperately needs,” he noted. “Lendlease and the City of Melbourne can now confidently move forward with groundbreaking plans to transform the precinct.”
According to the council, the project’s heritage consent allows it to progress to construction following relevant authority and permit approvals. Site works are expected to commence next year with the project to be completed in several stages. More