Evelyn Reynolds

The Association of Consulting Architects (ACA) has released its national salary report and analysis for 2022, finding the gender pay gap is still a pertinent issue across the profession, and some architectural students are still paid below the award rate.
The perennial study of workplace conditions gathers data on 31 different roles within the architecture profession. The ACA said in 2022 it received its highest participation rate yet, with 235 practices reporting 2,907 staff.
Pay ranges within role categories varied greatly, with the highest paid architects earning on average 4.5 times more than the lowest paid architectural staff.
In a concerning revelation, 7.8 percent of practices are currently paying their students below the award rate. However, only 36 percent of practices revealed their data concerning students, meaning this figure was pulled from only 77 reports.
The gender pay gap for architects still persists, with men paid more on average in all but two of the nine different level categories.
At the new associate level and registered architect up to three years, men and women are paid the same, and for new director/principal level, pays were demonstrably similar.
However, for the remaining six categories, men’s salaries were found do be significantly higher on average, with the disparity widening at the experienced director/principal level.
The gender breakdown across all staff in the industry revealed a split of 39 percent women and 61 percent men. This divide was less prominent at junior levels, while moving up the hierarchy, men in senior roles increases dramatically with four times as many men at director/principal level than women.
The survey found that of the respondent practices, more than 29 percent reported that they had offering a salary increase between 3 and 5 percent, which was marginally less than the 2019 survey.
The proportion of practices who reported that they had increased salaries by the CPI or less decreased from 53 percent in 2019 to 43 percent in 2022.
The highest reported increase was within the 6 to 10 percent category, with 23 percent of respondent practices offering this salary increase compared to just 9 per cent in 2019. The 11 to 20 percent category increased by almost double the number reported in 2019.
The survey found that in 2022, larger practices had higher pay rates, particularly for employees in senior and director or principal roles.
The survey also found the percentage of practices offering staff bonus benefits had dropped dramatically this year, with almost 60 percent of practices offering no bonuses compared to 40 percent in 2019.
The full 2022 National Salary Survey report is available to ACA members. More

The Victorian government has appointed Eplus Architecture to design the $23 million revitalization of the Wilsons Promontory visitors precinct and accommodation hub. Wilsons Prom – the southernmost point of mainland Australia – is a national park in an Aboriginal cultural landscape, and a popular visitors’ destination for its rugged coastal scenery, its native wildlife, and […] More

Cox Architecture has designed a tower in Adelaide’s city centre set to become the world’s tallest timber hotel. To be located at 187 Victoria Square, the proposed tower will sit behind and on top of the existing building also known as Beacon House, which has been described as Adelaide’s first post-war skyscraper. Covering 31 storeys […] More

The 2022 Vivid Design Awards were held at Decoration and Design on 14 July, celebrating the achievements of emerging and early-career designers of furniture, lighting and objects. As Australia’s longest-running competition for emerging designers, the Vivid Awards have helped to bolster the careers of many designers, including Nicole Monks, Edward Linacre, Adam Markowitz and Dale […] More

Available to any member practice with no more than ten full-time staff, the 2022 Architeam Awards are now open for entries as of 25 July, celebrating the best of Australia’s small, medium and emerging practices that might otherwise be overlooked in larger awards programs. The awards recognize Architeam members’ contribution to the Australian design community […] More

The disused rail yards in Sydney’s Redfern is set to be transformed into a new mixed-use precinct under plans developed by Transport for New South Wales (TfNSW).
On 26 July, TfNSW released a rezoning proposal to provide 110,000 square metres of residential and commercial space and in it the acreage for technology and innovation industries as well as new public space and social housing.
The land, owned by the Transport Asset Holding Entity, has inaccessible public for around a century and presents an opportunity to create a new multi-use precinct.
An urban design framework for the Redfern-North Eveleigh Precinct, developed with Bates Smart and Turf Design Studio, reveal a vision to create a residential, entertainment and technology hub on the edge of the CBD.
The draft masterplan targets the “Paint Shop” area, one of three sub-precincts within the Redfern-North Eveleigh Precinct, named after the 135-year-old red brick workshop where trains were overhauled until 1988.
TfNSW envisions the Paint Shop precinct will act as a gateway to Sydney’s emerging tech precinct within Haymarket and Central Station.

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Concept designs for the Paint Shop precinct in the Redfern-North Eveleigh Precinct. Image:

Bates Smart

The plan involves the adaptive reuse heritage workshop buildings, like the eponymous 6,000-square-metre “Paint Shop” building, to create 450 new affordable and diverse homes in buildings up to 28 storeys.
The state government has set a target of 30 per cent diverse housing, half of which must be social and affordable housing, which Minister for Cities Rob Stokes said is “triple the Greater Cities Commission’s baseline target”.
“The Redfern-North Eveleigh precinct is a ten-hectare parcel of inner city public land that has been off limits to the public for more than a century and provides the perfect place for a new city-shaping precinct,” Minister Stokes said.
“We’re transforming the old rail yards by restoring and protecting their heritage value, building new homes and offices while creating more than 14,000 square metres of public space, including a new town square and public parkland.”
The revitalisation will follow the upgrades to Redfern station, which will help to create a connected centre and mixed-use development for living and working.
The rezoning proposal is on exhibition for public comment until Thursday 25 August 2022. Detailed planning on the Paint Shop precinct cannot be completed until the rezoning process has been carried out. More

Construction has begun on the refurbishment of Arts Centre Melbourne’s Theatres Building, part of the Victorian government’s $1.7 billion transformation of Melbourne Arts Precinct.
The Theatres Building, originally designed Roy Grounds, is home to the State Theatre, Playhouse and Fairfax Studio, renowned for its illuminated spire.
NH Architecture and Snøhetta has designed the refurbishment of the arts spaces, adding new scenery lifts, a loading dock, green room, stage door, studio and function space, and a new western entrance to 18,000 square metres of added public parkland.

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Reimagining of the Theatres Building. Image:

NH Architecture

Arts Centre Melbourne Reimagining project director Chris King said the Theatres Building has “great bones” but deteriorating assets that no longer reflect the requirements of its users.
Respecting the original heritage architecture of Roy Grounds and interiors by John Truscott, the design will retain the heritage-listed design features while improving lighting, acoustics, accessibility, circulation and digital streaming technology.
The State Theatre will have dedicated wheelchair positions for the first time in the theatre’s history, serviced by two DDA-compliant lifts for greater accessibility. There will also be 68 new enhanced amenity seats with wider row and seat options.
Chair of the Arts Centre Melbourne Andrew Myer said that reimagining the Arts Centre is a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity. The transformation will be carried out in phases, with works on the Theatres Building expected to be completed by early 2023, preparing for major works to deliver the broader Melbourne Arts Precinct transformation.
The Melbourne Arts Precinct Transformation is the largest cultural infrastructure project undertaken in the country, and will also include a new contemporary art gallery for the National Gallery of Victoria.
The State Theatre will close for auditorium and stage house refurbishment in 2024 and reopen in December 2026. More

The draft plans for Hornsby Town Centre, in the Upper North Shore Sydney region, are now on public exhibition, designed to address future housing shortages and reduce urban sprawl. Prepared by Cox Architecture, the masterplan reveals a proposed revitalization of the town centre to make it greener, more liveable, and more accessible for the community. […] More