Gibbons Street is a mixed-use development of social and affordable living units, achieving an average NATHERS Rating of 8 stars.
Gibbons Street is a mixed-use development of 160 social and affordable living units in a tower form with retail and commercial space. The project achieves an average 8-star NatHERS Rating with the design drawing from prevailing elements of the surrounding Redfern streetscapes including delineation and varied heights in podiums.
The design varies in materiality and footprint with vertical clefts introduced to break down the massing of the block into slender compartments, creating a visually inviting facade and an appropriate overall proportion. Classic brickwork in the podium grounds the lighter concrete tower with darker concrete indents to create strong definition and contrast.
Communal spaces on levels 3 and 17 aim to provide facilities for families and children living within the complex. A community room opens out onto a BBQ space and adjacent children’s play space with artificial turf covered mounds and tunnel, tipi, storytelling circle and balance beams. The elements proffer a wide range of social activities both physical and spiritual.
In response to historical and cultural context, the design includes aboriginal heritage items and materials that are significant in the streetscape of the area. Artworks by Aboriginal Artist Joe Hurst has been integrated into the ground floor lobby, with terrazzo paving design for the building’s forecourt, linking the tower to place. The feature ceiling on the level 3 double height podium also features Artwork from Joe Hurst, as well as integrated artwork to the ground level brick façade.
Gibbons Street aims to be a vibrant development that activates the street and welcomes the public to the park directly to the north of the site.
YEAR
2020
STATUS
Completed
CLIENTS
GCH
LOCATION
Redfern, AUS
SCALE
1,578m2
DWELLINGS
160
DISCIPLINE
Multi Residential
EXPERTISE
Architecture Interior Design
Photographer: Martin Siegner
DKO is a multi-disciplinary, award-winning design practice centred on creating ingenious spaces that are driven by the needs of the user, site opportunities and the dynamic process of translating design intent into built outcomes. Founded in 2000 by Principal Koos de Keijzer, its operations have expanded from Melbourne to studios in Sydney, Perth, Auckland, Ho Chi Minh City, and Brisbane. DKO has remained committed to the same underlying principles since day one. Its multiple teams spread across the Asia-Pacific region are solidly united behind the same grounded and humble approach taken to each project, big or small.
Keeping minds open to any possibility, DKO always focuses on finding the best idea, regardless of where it came from. By encouraging the personal growth of each individual within the organisation, DKO plans to become a globally oriented entity, consistently forging ahead in both business and creative objectives. DKO embraces the role of architecture in shaping a more sustainable future. As a practice, it never loses sight of the most fundamental quality that connects all great design – people. Through human understanding and nurture, DKO seeks to continually maximise its potential and deliver architecture at its utmost excellence.