MONTH IN REVIEW
The station roof has been designed to fit in with
the surrounding landscape, and to optimise natural
daylight using an integrated, efficient structural
form and rainwater management system.’’
Kim Quazi, lead architect at Arup
LANDSCAPE PROJECTS AWARDS
GUSTAFSON PORTER
AND BOWMAN’S
FIRST PHASE
OF VALENCIA
PARQUE CENTRAL
APPROACHES
COMPLETION GRANT ASSOCIATES
PART OF WINNING
DESIGN TEAM FOR
AUSTRALIA’S TALLEST
BUILDING
Gustafson Porter and Bowman’s
Valencia Parque Central project
is approaching completion,
with the first phase of the 23ha
development due to open in early
2019.
The project is one of the city’s
most significant redevelopments
to date and will create a new
contemporary public park
which “celebrates the culture of
the region” and which aims to
become the social heart of the
city, uniting eastern and western
neighbourhoods that were
previously divided by a railway.
Eventually it will also connect
other areas of the city to a
43-hectare redeveloped southern
zone.
The project aims to distil
the “historical, cultural and
geographical uniqueness” of
Valencia in a contemporary park
and responds to a challenge
to build a sustainable urban
public space. References to the
local tradition of ceramics are
expressed through the design
of ‘bowls’, which provide a
unifying gesture with water as its
overarching theme. The bowl-
like spaces are created through
sculpted landforms, and when
completed will create spaces for
art, programmed activities, the
community, history and cultural
events.
10
Landscape Insight | November 2018
Landscape architect Grant Associates
was part of the winning team, led by
UNStudio and Cox Architecture,
which designed a AUS$2bn mixed use
development in Melbourne, Australia.
Known as Green Spine, the scheme
will, subject to planning approval, see
the construction of two twisting ‘green’
skyscrapers with the highest standing
at 356.2 metres, making it Australia’s
tallest building.
The skyscraper will be topped by
a publicly accessible garden space,
while extended planted terraces will
characterise the facing facades of the
two towers as they twist towards each
other.
Dutch architecture practice
UNStudio teamed with Australian
firm Cox Architecture, along with
British firms Grant Associates,
environmental design consultant
Atelier Ten and engineer Arup, to win
an international design competition to
create the landmark development for
Beulah International.
The scheme’s design concept centres
on the planted facades and outdoor
spaces that will create a ‘green spine’
that connects with the public realm
and stretches from the street to the top
of both towers.
MASTERPLANS
BARTON WILLMORE
SUBMITS PLANS
FOR SUSTAINABLE
COMMUNITY IN
BISHOP’S STORTFORD
Barton Willmore has submitted
a Hybrid Planning Application
for a sustainable new community
in Bishop’s Stortford South on
behalf of developer Countryside
Properties.
The proposals have been
drawn up following an extensive
collaborative process with
stakeholders and successful public
consultation events.
The new mixed-use
development, which is currently
known as Bishop’s Stortford
South, will consist of 750 new
homes, along with employment,
retail, community space and a care
home. The proposals also include
a new primary and secondary
school. A network of pedestrian
footpaths and cycleways alongside
a new bus corridor, which will
accommodate an improved local
bus service, will provide the new
and surrounding community with
efficient and sustainable modes of
transport.
Phase 1 of the development
will consist of 142 new homes,
consisting of a range of house
types from apartments to five-bed
homes, with 40% of the homes
affordable.