“An impressive icon of urban design that has added much to the urban architecture, setting new benchmarks in central urban design and positively effecting and directing social fabric of the community. The wonderful urban renewal possibilities inherent in this site have been successfully realised. The unique qualities of the existing built form and fabric of the place have been reimagined, reinvented and redefined into an exemplary city park.” – Good Design Awards Jury 2019
JAAA TURF: It was in 2007 when Jeppe Aagaard Andersen and Turf Design Studio were commissioned by Frasers Property to reimagine the public domain of the Carlton United Brewery site. Within the context of highly collaborative design workshops in Sydney, London and Paris, JAAA TURF conceived an expanded and interconnected network of new places – streets, lanes, parks and plazas; each unique yet forming a whole greater than the sum of its parts. The site offered immense possibilities; at the heart was the former C&U Brewery, surrounded by a built fabric of some of Sydney’s oldest workers’ cottages, terraces and warehouses. As landscape architects and urbanists, how could we reimagine and build on the site’s unique story and make a new Sydney place? Our first task was to work with Foster + Partners, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, Johnson Pilton Walker, Tonkin Zulaikha Greer and Tzannes Associates to review and refine the original masterplan inherited with purchase of the site.
Central Park’s public domain exemplifies how a well-considered and legible public domain framework can both unite a site and restitch a city. At the heart of the site is Chippendale Green; a north-facing park of terraced, sun drenched lawns tucked away from the frenetic pace of the city. A large public park was always central to the masterplan intent. Orientating the park’s long axis with the frontage of existing Chippendale terraces proved vital in creating a place of meaning and connectedness for the community. The park is set back from Broadway – creating an intimacy rarely achieved by a park of this size within a CBD.
A new city precinct was conceived, delivered via an expanded and interconnected network of new places; streets, lanes, parks and plazas – breathing new life and vitality into inner city Chippendale. Central Park’s public domain design meets the challenge of forging a robust and intelligent public domain that serves the local community and the city as a whole. Since opening in 2012, Central Park has quickly become a much-loved new addition to city life. From the everyday dog walk or yoga class, to hosting bi-monthly markets and numerous annual major events, Central Park has been embraced by the community at all levels. At the heart of the site, a precious family heirloom, the state heritage listed C&U Brewery building will soon be completed; transformed into a bustling mix of market, community and creative work places.
There are many projects that begin with an objective for excellence that grow weary with time and produce outcomes that are a mere shadow of the initial intent. Central Park has stayed true to its original vision; to be an urban precinct the world looks to for inspiration. In its detailing, the Carlton & United Brewery’s sandstone and bricks feature in the terraced lawns and flow into the shared laneways. The old is celebrated and juxtaposed with new architectural forms, exuding a relaxed yet richly connected sense of place. Through-site links connect Broadway and the city to Central Park and onto the laneways of Chippendale once blocked by the Brewery operations.
Sustainability is at the core of the Central Park mission, including minimum Five Green Star Certification and the achievement of carbon and water neutrality over the life of the project. It was critical that every stage of the development process embraced these sustainability principles, striving for innovation and measurable achievement in sustainability. Furthermore, the size of the development provided a rare opportunity to explore a variety of initiatives and innovations for a truly world-class sustainability outcome, moving the development towards a 6 Green Star rating.
Twelve years on JAAA TURF has played a formative role in the creation of an entirely new city precinct delivered via 12 major public domain and building projects including: Stages 1 & 2 Infrastructure Works, eight new streets, Chippendale Green, Chippendale Walk, Park Lane, seven thru-site pedestrian links, One Central Park, The Steps on Abercrombie and the Kensington Street precinct. Now almost complete, the mix of 4200 residents and 1200 workers, supermarkets and cafes makes for a vibrant new urban village breathing new life into what was a baron and desolate stretch of Broadway, while adding to the energy and vitality of inner-city Chippendale.
CENTRAL PARK PUBLIC DOMAIN DESIGN WON AUSTRALIA’S COVETED GOOD DESIGN AWARD 2019 FOR DESIGN EXCELLENCE IN URBAN DESIGN.
Landscape Architecture: TURF and Jeppe Aagaard Andersen
Other designers involved in the design of landscape:
Collaborating Architects: Foster + Partners, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, Johnson Pilton Walker, Tzannes Associates, Tonkin Zulaikha Greer
Client: Frasers Property Australia and Sekisui House Australia
Project Location: Central Park Sydney, 20-102 Broadway Sydney
Design year: 2002 – 2012
Staging – across 8-10 years
Chippendale Green – opened 17 DEC 2012
One Central Park completed in 2013
Park Lane is completed early 2013
The Mark completed early 2014
Kensington Lane Precinct completed 2014
Year Built: 2012
