Architecture

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

The City of Sydney is inviting public feedback on a future vision for Victoria Barracks in Paddington, noting that the 15-hectare site could provide opportunities for housing, cultural activities or other community use.
Located on Oxford Street, Victoria Barracks remains an active military site, with many of its original buildings still in use. The barracks were designed by lieutenant colonel George Barney to replace the original military facilities in George Street, which had become unsuitable due to Sydney’s growing population and increasing commercial activity. Barney’s original design combined British military architecture with local materials, such as sandstone. Construction began on the South Head Road (now Oxford Street) site in 1841; however, more buildings were added over time in response to changing operational needs.
In 2023, the council stated that the federal government conducted an audit of Australian Defence Force (ADF) land – including the Victoria Barracks – to assess whether military-owned sites still met defence needs. However, according to the council, the audit’s recommendations were not made public.
“We’re developing guiding principles for how the Victoria Barracks site could be used if divested by the ADF,” said the council. “If adopted by council, these principles will guide our efforts to ensure any future redevelopment of Victoria Barracks meets community needs and aligns with City of Sydney goals.
“We invite you to tell us what you’d like to see and do at Victoria Barracks,” they said.

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The council has confirmed that the vision and principles will reflect the site’s significant heritage value and will be shaped by community priorities. They noted that a key consideration in feedback should be how to fund the ongoing maintenance of the site’s historic buildings and landscape, whether through government investment or compatible commercial uses.
According to the council, the site “could offer new opportunities for housing, improved access to green space, cultural activities, and other uses.”
To have your say, visit the City of Sydney website. The draft vision and principles will be reported to the City of Sydney in late 2025. More

Adelaide Airport is set to undergo major upgrades to meet growing passenger demand, including an expansion of the international and domestic terminal.
The airport serves as South Australia’s principal passenger airport, accommodating both domestic and international travel from a single terminal. A series of upgrades aimed at increasing the airport’s capacity, improving spatial functionality and delivering a more efficient travel experience have commenced as part of an overarching $600 million development called Project Flight.
Managing director of Adelaide Airport Brenton Cox said, “Passenger numbers are at record levels, and we are planning for that airline connectivity to continue to grow – so we are also continuing to deliver the infrastructure required to accommodate that growth.”
As part of the program of works, the northern end of the terminal will be expanded by 10,000 square metres, the southern end of the terminal by more than 5,500 square metres and the check-in hall by more than 1,500 square metres.

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The overarching design team encompasses Baukultur, Populous, Woods Bagot, Aurecon and TCL. Baukultur and Populous are responsible for the design of the check-in hall, as well as the terminal expansion. Woods Bagot is leading the design of the passenger experience enhancement projects, including new gate lounges, family dining and play spaces, and a sensory room. Aurecon is appointed as lead design consultant on all three apron expansion projects, while TCL is responsible for landscape and playground design.
According to Hayley Packer, a senior associate at Woods Bagot, the project team drew on passenger profile data for the passenger experience enhancement projects. “From the gate lounges to the sensory room, the design has considered a spectrum of user needs, catering for moments of intrigue and delight through to highly functional operational requirements.”   

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Construction on the check-in expansion has commenced. The expansion to the northern end of the terminal is scheduled to begin in early 2026 while the southern-end terminal works are planned for early 2027. Project Flight is anticipated to be complete in mid-2028.  More

The winners of the Australian Institute of Architects’ annual Super Studio student design competition have been revealed today, with a Tasmanian team claiming the overarching national award.
United under the team name “Effort,” Luke Pendergast, Zachary Tregenza and Jacob Tripp were named as the national Super Studio winners for their project False Idols, which envisions architecture as both a product and shaper of collective belief in response to the competition’s theme, “Where nothing moves, everything begins.”
The team claimed the prize following their presentation to the jury, alongside the other state winners, earlier today, following the conceptual design competition which was held over the course of a week earlier this month. This year, the competition theme was shaped by Joel Alcorn and Chloe Middleton from Brisbane-based architecture practice Alcorn Middleton, alongside SONA vice president Senlina Mayer.
According to the creative directors, “The brief this year challenged participants to design for a future where seven black monoliths have appeared – one on each continent. In their presence, new economies, rituals, political systems and psychological behaviours begin to form. These silent masses have irrevocably disrupted the idea of public space. Students must now consider: what new types of civic rituals, services or responses could emerge?”
In the eyes of the jury, the national-award-winning scheme, False Idols, “delivers a dystopically original take on the monolith condition, [and] draws us into its world with immediate clarity and conviction. Its concept is imaginative yet grounded, exploring every aspect of the monolith’s spatial and systemic influence across both Sydney and Hobart. This proposal positions architecture not merely as a product of culture, but as an active participant in shaping it.”
Adopting a dual-city design approach, the project speculates on how divergent cultural and spatial behaviours might arise in response to the monolith’s presence. “Thoughtfully considered across scales, it challenges us to see the monolith not just as an object, but as a catalyst for transformation, narrative and critical reflection within diverse urban contexts,” the jury noted.
The Super Studio competition is run by the Institute’s student body, the Student Organised Network for Architecture (SONA), and is open to SONA members from all year levels across Australia.
The state winners were:
Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory
Fear and Intuition by Barton Taylor – a network of underground labs known as “Hives,” designed around systems of fear, curiosity and intuition.
New South Wales
Eucalyptus Phenomenon by Kien Bui, Edwina Tu and Yen Nhi Nguyen (team name: Radical Frugal) – a public space designed around collective sanctuary for grieving, praying and remembering.
Queensland
Anchored In Time by Michelle Weir, Lujaine Hussain and Reis Azlan (team name: Kinetic) – a response that reimagines the brief, prompting societies to confront and reinterpret their histories in a way that reveals how each culture’s relationship with the past shapes its future.
South Australia
Urbs Aeterna – The Eternal City by Chuyao (Talia) Liu (team name: Arabesque) – a concept that explores the inevitability of societal collapse, framing Rome’s fall as a metaphor for humanity’s cyclical return from constructed order to primordial chaos.
Victoria
Beneath the Weight of Progress by Adalina Galliamova, Pryde Sciascia and Sarah Chen – a reimagining of Manila Bay as a vertical city grown through improvised, parasitic architecture, transforming from a symbol of untapped power into a dense, chaotic and communal structure.
Western Australia
The New Swan River Colony by Bec Mangano – a scheme that uses the monolith’s arrival in Perth as an allegory for colonisation, subverting settler permanence attached to the city’s heritage Federation homes by reimagining them as spaces of collective, improvised living.
For more information visit the Australian Institute of Architects’ website. More

Tom Skeehan of Skeehan Studio has been named the inaugural recipient of the 2025 Australian Design Commission — a new three-year initiative that invites Australian designers to create a prototype of a product that embodies the future of the Australian home.
An initiative launched by Powerhouse and David Jones in 2025, the commission awards $50,000 and a nine-month creative development program to an Australian designer each year.
The Canberra-based designer’s winning concept, What We Keep, features a sculptural glass cabinet that is designed to display its contents from all angles. The cabinet features textured glass, created in collaboration with Canberra Glassworks and local makers, and a wrapped timber frame.
Functioning as both artwork and furniture, the cabinet is a place to showcase meaningful items and reflect on their significance, Powerhouse commented in its winner announcement.

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Powerhouse chief executive Lisa Havilah said, “We are delighted to award Tom Skeehan this prestigious commission. His work exemplifies Australian contemporary design, and Powerhouse and David Jones together are thrilled to support the next generation of Australian designers.”
Reflecting on the design, Skeehan said, “The glass softens what’s inside, creating a sense of quiet and care. Inside, hidden compartments and moving parts invite people to interact with it – some sections slide, pivot or unfold – turning the cabinet into a discovery box. What We Keep is not simply a cabinet. It is a meditation on how we live, what we hold onto and the emotional utility of objects in the home.”
The culmination of the commission will be the creation of a prototype, set to be unveiled in 2026 at David Jones’ Elizabeth Street store in Sydney. The designer will collaborate closely with the retailer on a special window display, offering a public debut of their new creation.
For more stories on Skeehan Studio, check out a profile of the studio here. More

Global design firm HDR has announced the opening of its new Melbourne workplace in the city’s CBD. According to the practice’s communique, the office brings together architecture, engineering and transportation teams in a single space designed to foster cross-disciplinary collaboration and deliver integrated solutions that position the practice for growth in Victoria’s expanding infrastructure and design sectors.
“This move marks a significant milestone for HDR in Melbourne,” said Clive Baker, director of planning, design and transport at HDR. “After three years of laying a strong foundation, we’re ready to accelerate our growth and deepen our presence in this dynamic city.”
“Co-locating our architecture and engineering teams is not only breaking down traditional silos between disciplines but transforming HDR’s project delivery across Melbourne,” Baker added.

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The firm’s newly appointed design principal Alison Potter said the new Melbourne office embodies the firm’s design philosophy around “creating spaces that inspire creativity, enable integrated thinking and support meaningful design dialogue.”
Managing principal of Architecture at HDR, Huai Lim, added, “This new space reflects our ambition – to lead with design that is collaborative, purposeful and deeply responsive.”
With offices in Sydney, Brisbane and now Melbourne, HDR’s presence across Australia now encompasses 235 staff. More

Stage one of the Sydney Children’s Hospital and Minderoo Children’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre project in Randwick has reached construction completion.
Completed works include a new 12-storey, $658 million structure known as the Randwick building. Shaped by consultation with more than 1,000 stakeholders, the building is a key component of the Randwick Health and Innovation Precinct – a medical hub that integrates clinical treatment, research and education facilities.
Billard Leece Partnership (BLP) designed the new facility, which was developed in collaboration with Health Infrastructure, the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network and the Children’s Cancer Institute. Aspect Studios was appointed for the landscape design of the project.
The new building will house a paediatric cancer centre that brings together both clinical care and translational research.
A communique from the architect notes that the design has been guided by a biophilic design approach. The form of the new building wraps around a central courtyard, providing access to daylight and fresh air. Landscaped terraces, rooftop gardens and outdoor spaces feature throughout the building, intended to promote connection to nature and wellbeing for both patients and staff.
Managing director and health lead at BLP Tara Veldman said the project has involved years of planning and co-design. “Children heal in hospitals that have been purpose-designed for them, especially when their full spectrum of needs, including clinical, emotional and social, are met,” said Veldman.
External works, fitout and operational commissioning is ongoing, with the building set to open to patients in late 2025. More

Powerhouse has unveiled the program for Sydney Design Week 2025, set to run from 12–24 September across the city. Now in its 29th year, the design festival returns with the theme ‘Community Design’, spotlighting how design can foster connection, resilience and cultural identity in a changing world.
This year’s program places people at the heart of design, bringing together renowned national and international architects, artists and creative leaders through a dynamic lineup of talks, tours and industry workshops. The festival also deepens its engagement with Western Sydney, working with community leaders and local practitioners to shape a program that reflects the region’s distinct contemporary culture.
The festival will open with a public conversation featuring Pritzker Prize-winning architect Francis Kéré, co-director of Incidental Architecture Daina Cunningham, and Western Sydney high school students. Together, they’ll explore how sustainable design can transform schools into inclusive and culturally resonant environments. Kéré’s work, celebrated for responding to heat, climate, and community, sets the tone for a festival deeply rooted in public and environmental design.
Other major highlights include a keynote by Open Architecture, the Beijing-based studio led by Li Hu and Huang Wenjing, known for their ecologically sensitive approach to public space. Their keynote at the UTS Great Hall will examine how architecture can reconnect people with nature and one another.
Acclaimed Dutch architectural photographer Iwan Baan – renowned for capturing the interplay between built environments and daily life – will also speak, offering rare insights into a practice that has documented projects by both Kéré and Open.
Other speakers include Thai landscape architect Kotchakorn Voraakhom, professor Elizabeth Mossop of Living Lab Northern Rivers, Phillip Birtles from Sydney Water, and CHROFI director John Choi, drawing on case studies from Bangkok, New Orleans and Sydney.
Powerhouse chief executive Lisa Havilah said, “Sydney Design Week 2025 celebrates the power of design to bring people together. This year’s program highlights the role communities play in shaping public spaces, and how design can respond to place, climate and culture in meaningful ways.” More