North Wright Compact Housing Project:
The North Wright Compact housing project team conducted the next round of workshops for the project on 21 and 22 February 2023. The face-to-face workshops were held with the Stakeholder Advisory Group (21 Feb) at the Denman Village Community Centre and with a number of staff from the Suburban Land Agency (22 Feb) at the Dickson ACT Government Office building (480 Northbourne Avenue).
The workshops aimed to:
• provide an update on project status / work in progress
• seek feedback on design work to date
• understand sustainability versus low-cost housing trade-offs for stage 1
• gain insight into specification/construction approaches to best achieve aspirations for stage 1
• seek input into the most valued future sustainability approaches
• seek input into top priorities for stage 1 architecture in the context of identified themes related to sustainability, low-cost housing, and amenity.
All members of the Advisory Group were invited to attend the workshop on 21 February. Seven members were able to attend on the day. Three members provided their input to the team after the workshop, by completing an online survey.
Ten SLA staff members (in addition to the project team) attended the session on 22 February. Attendees included staff from the Built Form, Housing Choices, Place Management, Marketing, Sales, Greenfields, Development Delivery and Sustainability Teams. The workshop was also attended by a staff member from the Environment Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate (EPSDD).
Participants were shown the project video and provided with an update on project intent and progress, noting in particular:
• Since the last workshop, the project team has continued to refine the precinct masterplan/landscape design and the housing typologies for Stage 1.
• The project delivers on the Parliamentary and Governing Agreement of delivering at least one showcase sustainable development each year.
• Participant feedback on the design work as part of the workshops is important as an opportunity to inform the future details and specifications for Stage 1 homes in the project.
• The project is about challenging ‘business as usual’ with regard to housing diversity and sustainable built form, and on a precinct level, it is prioritizing the delivery of really great places where communities can thrive.
Participants were given an overview of the key outcomes informing the development of the landscape concept plan for the precinct:
• Four key themes informing the precinct design: Play and Discovery, Country, Wellbeing and Safety and Community.
• Some identified ‘hardware’ elements might include: water and nature play, a toy/ book library, activity nodes, moveable furniture, a bike repair station, a timber deck and picnic table, and gravel pathways (refer to presentation slides in Appendix 4)
An update was also provided on the relevant demographics for the precinct and contemporary expectations related to the value of sustainability considerations and inclusive design in new developments. That market understanding has provided a good sense of who the occupants of the houses will be, and the challenges to design in such a way that the houses can be compact and flexible and allow people to actually age in place if they choose to, or for a family to grow in place.
The presentation then offered an overview of the meaning of ‘business as usual’ and how this project is challenging it – thinking about what is normally done and then how the team can go beyond and achieve something different (noting the opportunities particular to each of the Stages 1 and 2 for the project).
The group then heard a brief presentation on the SLA’s approach to sustainability and opportunities for regenerative design, not just for Stage 1 but also for Stage 2:
• Potential for reuse of recycled materials from government projects.
• Opportunities to consider prefabricated materials in the design and construction of stage 2 and collaboration between design and builder teams to improve the final outcome.
• Process will be informed by a sustainability framework that is being developed.
• Considered different and innovative ways to deliver sustainability aspirations – moving away from business as usual.