Eats Heritage for Lunch

These buildings, however, occupy less than 10 percent of the site area, with the majority of the project dedicated to open space. Grassy areas and shady trees create a welcoming respite for the retail-inspired activity across the site. Careful urban and landscape design provides visitors with a direct link from the river’s edge and into the city.

Nearby cliffs and the lack of a direct pathway to the surrounding community previously created accessibility hurdles. In response, new lifts were integrated at each end of the site to improve access without interfering with the natural environment and existing built forms. The lifts have glass sides for optimal visibility for safety as well as views to the adjacent city and corten steel sides to reflect the industrial heritage of the site

An additional challenge was the task of rebuilding Howard’s Hall, the largest exhibition and events space in the precinct and make it function for the modern-day. Designers achieved this delicate balance by echoing the same simplicity of the nearby wharf structures with a similar sawtooth-shaped roof. The Hall’s exterior is a fully glazed exposed steel frame topped with a shed-like sawtooth roof. Refurbished timber found on the site has been used for its riverfront decks and retractable floor-to-ceiling windows provide a connection back to nature.