Now in its twentieth year, the Sustainability Awards recognise projects across twelve different categories. Central Station, by Woods Bagot with John McAslan + Partners in collaboration, and METRONET Morley Ellenbrook Line, by Woods Bagot with TRCB, TCL and UDLA, have been shortlisted for the Public Buildings category. Younghusband Woolstore by Woods Bagot has been shortlisted for the Adaptive Reuse (Alteration/Addition) category.

Central Station – Public Buildings

Sydney Metro is Australia’s biggest public transport project, building, operating and maintaining a network of four metro lines, 46 stations and 113km of new metro rail. Servicing 96 percent of Sydney’s train services, Central Station forms the backbone of the entire rail network.

The transformation of Central Station to accommodate a state-of-the-art metro interchange required the design of spatially and structurally efficient operational segments and sophisticated, multilevel passenger flow strategies.

The design vision and approach place the customer experience at the centre of the transformation. The creation of more open spaces such as the new Northern Concourse at key decision-making points significantly improves circulation and station legibility, with enhanced accessibility, permeability, and connectivity across the station precinct, resulting in an intuitive and easily used station environment for all customers.

The new metro and concourse insertions are designed to be purposeful, functional, sculpturally rich and synthesised with the historic qualities of the original station. This materiality establishes the proposals into their local context and provides a civic quality to the new station works.

As well as making commuting a more efficient and pleasant, customer focused experience, the station upgrade is already generating opportunities for wider civic and commercial renewal. The introduction of the new Sydney Metro station has added an average of 24,400 passenger boardings on a typical weekday to existing customer numbers.

View the full shortlist for Public Buildings. 

METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project – Public Buildings

The METRONET Morley-Ellenbrook Line Project is a transformational project delivering 5 new stations and precincts in Perth, Western Australia. Valued at $1.65 billion (AUD), the project spans 21 kilometres of new rail through the city’s growing northeast suburbs. Inherently public in nature, the five stations have a cohesive line-wide identity representing a thoughtful integration of civic architecture within Perth’s suburban landscape.

With a 120-year design life, the stations provide resilient infrastructure that will support the communities in this region for generations. The project sets new sustainability benchmarks for rail infrastructure globally and supports masterplans that will enable growth and densification.

The breadth of the project provided a unique opportunity for the design team to create a line-wide identity and cohesive architectural narrative across the line. Inherently public in nature, the Ellenbrook Line represents a thoughtful integration of civic architecture within Perth’s suburban landscape. The design plays with scale, balancing civic grandeur with domestic scaled environments.

The design narrative draws inspiration from its suburban context, with stations that embrace the qualities, aspiration and sensibilities of Australian suburbia to create human-centred spaces that are safe and easy to navigate, with a sense of familiarity. The project sets new sustainability benchmarks for rail infrastructure in Western Australia.

View the full shortlist for Public Buildings. 

Younghusband Woolstore – Adaptive Reuse

The Younghusband Woolstore Redevelopment is one of Australia’s most ambitious adaptive reuse projects, setting new benchmarks in sustainable development and decarbonisation. In a prime example of urban regeneration in practice, the architects have reimagined over 17,000 square metres of underutilised former industrial landscape, transforming it into a thriving urban village.

Woods Bagot retained and restored much of the existing heritage, while new insertions are contemporary yet complementary, resulting in a highly functional built form that is rich with personality and patina.

The reuse of existing materials on Younghusband has dramatically reduced construction waste and new material requirements, resulting in an 84 percent reduction in embodied carbons when compared to similar reference buildings (equivalent to 11,335,000kg of carbon savings). Younghusband is fitted with a 330kW rooftop solar array and battery storage, which will supplement the building’s electrical requirements, and the precinct is entirely carbon neutral. A 50kL rainwater collection tank services landscape irrigation and WC flushing, reducing water use by 25 percent.

Younghusband celebrates diversity of tenants – from retail, fashion, wellness, F&B, startups, arts and culture, and temporal events – creating a self-sustaining urban ecosystem, with transport connections to greater Melbourne.

Returning valuable city-fringe space back to the public, the Younghusband Woolstore is a prime example of developments giving back to the community.

View the full shortlist for Adaptive Reuse. 

The Sustainability Awards by Indesign Media Asia Pacific are Australia’s longest-running and most prestigious awards program dedicated to acknowledging and celebrating excellence in sustainable design and architecture. Winners will be announced at the Sustainability Awards Gala Evening on 19 November at Sydney Town Hall.

View the full shortlist on the Sustainability Awards website.

Media enquiries
Adrien Moffatt
Content and Communications Specialist (Australia)