Collective Works’ Post

Siri Zanelli and Joe Scragg will be presenting our recent Deep Retrofit: Mid Terrace Dream, at the Architects’ Journal #RetrofitLive conference this week as part of their Live Judging for the Retrofit Awards. Mid Terrace Dream is a very typical Victorian Terrace in North London. When our client bought it, it was rundown, draughty and inefficient. While our client didn’t come to us asking for a deep retrofit, they did ask for a home that is prepared for the future, has clean, filtered air - as asthma runs in their families – and a home that reflects their heritage and personalities. Alongside submitting it to this award, we ran the numbers - the U values, the airtightness, the operational energy, we looked at a years worth of bills, and calculated the embodied carbon - and we were very happy with the results, which are significantly better than building regulations and RIBA guidelines. However, this project shouldn't be remarkable. It should tell the story of the retrofit of thousands of home that are being upgraded across the country. It uses technologies that are tried and tested, alongside reuse and natural materials. Its very normality is what gives us hope, that this kind of deep domestic retrofit could also become very commonplace, upgrading the nations homes, making them more comfortable to live in, and reducing their impact on our environment. If you are Retrofit Live, do come and listen.

"The future of senior living is innovative, inclusive, and designed for connection." BCT Design Group's Principal/Director of Housing, Janet Meyer, AIA, had the honor of moderating a dynamic panel at this year’s Interface Senior Housing Northeast conference. The conversation explored key trends shaping senior housing, including: - Larger units and repositioning/renovation to meet evolving demands. - A strong focus on wellness and incredible amenity packages. - Educational offerings and socialization areas catering to the Boomer generation. - Creative solutions like office-to-residential conversions. Thank you to the panelists: Shannon Remaley,NCIDQ, EDAC, WELL AP, LEED Green Associate, Principal, Meyer Steve Ruiz, Principal, Moseley Architects Bud Grove, VP of Senior Living, Wohlsen Construction Alejandro Giraldo, Principal, Perkins Eastman #SeniorLivingDesign #InterfaceNortheast #WellnessLiving #HousingTrends #BoomerGeneration

Tell us what you think about our draft Broadmead Neighbourhood Design Code Supplementary Planning Document: 

The council has launched a consultation to gather feedback on the Broadmead Neighbourhood Design Code Supplementary Planning Document (SPD). The SPD has been prepared to shape and steer the transformation of the city centre into a high quality, liveable, urban neighbourhood. The SPD outlines the principles and best practice examples to guide development in the area and details five priorities placing liveability at the heart of all design processes. We are looking to hear from all professionals involved in the planning, design and delivery of new buildings and spaces within Broadmead. Find out more and share your views: https://orlo.uk/RYhBe

It is great to see the Broadmead Neighbourhood Design Code Supplementary Planning Document prioritising young people, especially teenage girls, as well as children, older people, and those with disabilities! It's fantastic that the document specifically mentions the need to design streets and public spaces with teenage girls in mind. This is a crucial step towards creating more inclusive and welcoming urban environments. #makespaceforgirls #inclusivedesign

Thank you to Sydney Build who invited me to speak in a panel discussion at their annual expo regarding “Designing Australia’s Cities to Last: Balancing the Old and the New’. I took the stage with Apeksha Wimalaweera of Gray Puksand , Nicholas Rouggos of CBRE and Michael Wiener of Mirvac - a great diversity of speakers with experience ranging from urban planning, to infrastructure, to re-purposing commercial buildings, to myself with low and medium rise residential, which made for a lively discussion with lots of great questions from the audience! From my perspective, working with single and multi-residential projects, in the heritage and contemporary fields, this comes at a crucial time, during the Minn's NSW Government proposals to increase housing density for affordability via their: " Changes to create Low and Medium Density Housing", and "Transport Oriented Development Proposal". Both documents propose substantially increasing housing density in zones up to 1200 metres from certain train stations and town centres. These areas include Heritage Items and Heritage Conservation Areas, and there was initially some uncertainty as to whether the proposal allowed demolition of buildings in these areas. Two days before the talk, an update was issued clarifying heritage areas would be required to go through the Development Application process, rather than the accelerated process, which is good news. In my opinion heritage is important, for our culture and identity. Heritage isn’t always a single property of value, it could be a group of buildings which together form a precinct. It would have been a great shame to lose these buildings in the designated areas. On the other hand, increased housing density is necessary for housing affordability. There may be some buildings and areas with lesser merit, where there is an opportunity to develop and increase density? However, how will this be managed? Its a balance between the old and the new. A merit based approach allows a professional panel to decide on a case by case basis for each individual Development Application. Existing Heritage Items and Conservation Areas could be re-assessed by the Councils affected to retain the items of higher value. Also, any new higher density buildings need to incorporate excellent design, construction and environmental standards. In any case, architects and heritage professionals need to be a part of this process to ensure quality of the built environment is first and foremost. #SydneyBuildExpo #SustainableArchitecture #HeritageArchitecture #MediumDensityHousing #DualOccupancy #TOD #BuildingConnections #Construction #Networking #ArchitectureSydney

This was a fun event to bring to life and some great insights were shared from the panelists working in this space. Mid-rise and missing middle housing typologies are incredibly important in delivering on our housing targets but are not a common typology in Victoria. As an outer suburb Local Government, we often get the "that's not feasible" or "markets not there" response when asking for these typologies in our established suburbs and greenfield areas. Some of the key insights from the panelists for me were: - Mid-rise housing is very effective in delivering a lot of housing in a short timeframe (i.e. can deliver 70 dwellings in 14 months construction timeframe) - Great design, close to services/shops, open space and integration of trees is even more important for these typologies to attract buyers and avoid stigma that poorly designed apartments have created in the past - We need more great precedents and mix of missing middle typologies in outer suburbs to set the bar and reframe community's poor perception of denser living - Lack of lot consolidation policy/incentives and inflexible carparking minimums are some of the key barriers to these typologies being feasible and delivered right now - Local, State and Federal Government have a big role to play in setting standards, policy and delivering these typologies and setting the bar for good, liveable design

Hello everyone! This week, we’re excited to bring you daily posts focusing on three important aspects: saving you money, being better for you, and being better for the planet. Today, we’re highlighting the concept of small and beautiful homes. In this post, we showcase four smaller homes, each with 2 or 3 bedrooms. See our Instagram Stories to see more images of each home: Dalefield Guest House, Sleepout, Steel House, and Mt Pisa. These homes are not only compact and cost-effective, but they also offer numerous benefits. Why is it better for you? Well, a smaller building is easier and cheaper to heat, making it more energy-efficient. Additionally, it’s easier and cheaper to clean, saving you time and effort. Who doesn’t love that? But it’s not just about personal benefits. Smaller homes are also better for the planet. By using fewer materials during construction and requiring less energy to run, these homes have a lower carbon footprint, both in terms of embodied and operational carbon. So, by choosing a smaller home, you’re making a positive impact on the environment! Stay tuned for our live webinar on Saturday, where we’ll dive deeper into these topics! #smallandbeautifulhomes #sustainableliving #costeffective #environmentallyfriendly #teamgreenarchitects

With the Government pushing hard for new #housing, including affordable and social, what will create the quality, along with the quantity, that we urgently need to see? Speaking at this year’s Landscape Institute #JellicoeLecture, LDA Design Chair, Frazer Osment, will argue that there is a need for strong and creative landscape-led spatial planning to underpin growth and delivery of the Government’s housing agenda. Get this right and it could also accelerate delivery.   The call to action is to put #wellbeing at the heart of all future housing plans. In this, the roles of landscape architect, urban designer and planner have never been more important. Together, they have the expertise to lead the charge for change, and their collaboration is key to creating better places. All three need to be visionary in their approach and focussed on the widest positive outcomes. But what are the challenges to success and what are the practical steps to overcoming them?   Frazer is involved in #planning for growth and #masterplanning at scale and has been involved in the design and delivery of some of the largest new settlements and urban extensions in the UK, including Welborne Garden Village. He is an advisor to Homes England on strategic growth, including between Oxford and Cambridge.   The Jellicoe Lecture, a highlight of the Landscape Institute's calendar, will be well worth joining. Alongside Frazer will be Carolin Göhler FLI President of the Landscape Institute; Tim Slaney, Interim CEO, South Downs National Park Authority; and Harriet Bourne Director BBUK Studio. A Q&A will be chaired by Noel Farrer of Farrer Huxley Associates. Register now. https://lnkd.in/e5paw5gZ #masterplanning #planning #urbandesigner #landscapearchitecture #landscapearchitects #agentsofchange #talklandscape #betterplacemaking #newhomes #development #bettercities #goodgrowth #socialvalue #netzero #lowcarbonplaces #spatialplanning #landscapeled #healthandwellbeing #wellbeing

This was an outstanding review and reappraisal of early, great examples of “low-rise, high-density” urban housing. I have too much to say and not enough time, but - briefly: Some architects - particularly in Northern Europe - kept working on this idea even after a change in politics made mega-projects impossible. I’d point especially to Jan Gehl. We also mustn’t forget Louis Sauer in the US, whose productive period was contemporary with these projects. But most of the rest of us forgot about the potential inherent in designing “cozy”, walkable urban environments where public and private spaces fit neatly together at a human scale. As a result, it remains to be seen what can be done to improve upon this model - allowing for modularity, flexibility, personalization and human-scaled detail, while employing less carbon-intensive materials. Appreciation for close urban spaces having a defined gradient of public-to-private is one important key to both affordable and sustainable housing/lifestyles. The more of us who understand and implement these methods, the sooner we will return to a modern life that works for everyone. https://lnkd.in/ghjraFmt