The Commons, Australia

The Commons is a sustainable urban development that is focused on maximising the environmental, social and economic performance of the building it’s located in. The project occupies the site of an old industrial building in the heart of Brunswick, an inner urban area of Melbourne. The Development and project team aim to demonstrate, through the project, that best practice sustainability outcomes can be delivered on relatively ‘small and challenging’ sites.

The Commons will set a high bar for the rest of the development industry, especially for small to medium scale development projects. This benchmark is achieved by incorporating a range of social initiatives, for residents and the surrounding community, alongside the environmental sustainability outcomes set for the project.

The development of The Commons features key initiatives, such as a zero car policy for residents and high levels of social connectivity, as well as an integrated package of measures that paid close attention to reducing the impacts of energy, water, materials and waste. It will become an exemplar demonstration site for the industry, with the team at Small Giants continuing their involvement with the building once construction has been completed, giving us an opportunity to view the new community as they go about their lives.

The Commons is a fantastic opportunity to create an exemplar residential/mixed-use development (or urban ecovillage), which has the capacity to act as a demonstration project, showcasing how sustainable communities can be delivered, both now and in the future. Its location in the municipality of Moreland, within the Greater Metropolitan region of Melbourne, gives it every opportunity of meeting the One Planet Communities – Common International Targets by 2020.

The project is located at 7-9 Florence Street, Brunswick, about 6km from Melbourne’s CBD. The new mixed-use apartment building is positioned in the rapidly emerging transport corridor between the Upfield Railway Line and Sydney Road, and is less than 50m from Anstey Railway Station.

The striking building sits on approximately 700m2 of old-industrial land and is home to 24 residential apartments, two retail spaces, three artist studios and a café.  The design / project team were involved in assisting Moreland Council complete a land-use planning zoning amendment, which will see the industrial district, between the railway line and main road, become part of a new residential district promoting connectivity to local area.

For more information, please contact Ed Cotter, BioRegional Australia