Case Studies
The Commons

Design Feature

Type of project
Infrastructure
State
Victoria
Location
Urban
The Commons is about sustainable urbanisation - a replicable triple bottom line development. Apartments are spacious, affordable, sustainable and add value to the community. At its core, The Commons is about people. Its architecture serves as catalyst to unite people of similar values and build a community.
A new standard in urban development
The Commons is an urban development that was designed with the intention of it being replicable which prioritises community, sustainability and affordability. The design strategy for the Commons was to build more with less to give space and height, light and air. 
The building was designed to prioritise social and emotional wellbeing, as well as environmental sustainability, and as such the development involved omitting car parks, air conditioning, second bathrooms, individual laundries, plasterboard ceilings, bathroom tiling and chrome plating. 
Preference was instead given to features that maximise space, height, thermal efficiency and double-glazing. The development additionally features generous decks, a shared laundry and rooftop gardens, solar hot water, solar P.V., hydronic heating, and modest utility bills. The Commons has brought together like-minded people from all walks of life and built a community.
Project team
  • Breathe Architecture
  • Small Giants
  • Land Projects
  • Landspace

Project Cost
Approximately $10 Million
Health Value
  • At its core, The Commons is about people and bringing together those like-minded to build a community. Its residents are subsequently happier, healthier and more engaged.
  • Furthermore, by removing cars and providing parking for 72 bikes instead, The Commons encourages its residents to walk or ride their bikes when travelling locally.

Economic Value
  • The Commons is a simple building, assembled with beautiful, natural, materials. Made up of a series of small, but delightful architectural moments. Each of these were created with a social, sustainable and economic mandate in mind.
  • Sustainability and affordability were approached through reduction. The dematerialisation of The Commons was a key strategic decision made not only from a sustainability position but also a financial one.

Environmental Value
  • Sustainability and affordability were approached via reduction:
  • No cars
  • No air-conditioning
  • No second bathrooms
  • No individual laundries / individual washing machines
  • No plasterboard ceilings
  • No chrome
  • No tiles
  • No toxic finishes
  • No imported timbers.
  • The Commons provides:
  • Average of 7.5 stars
  • Parking for 72 bikes and a pool share car for community use
  • Rooftop gardens and a shared rooftop laundry
  • Natural light and ventilation to all bedrooms, cross ventilation to all apartments
  • Shared 5KW PV array
  • Shared hydronic heating boiler and solar hot water system
  • 2900mm ceiling heights
  • Recycled timber floors (hard floor wax finish)
  • Exposed concrete structure & ceilings (exposed thermal mass)
  • Timber framing
  • Class 1 durable Australian cladding
  • Form ply joinery
  • Concrete benchtops and copper sinks
  • Locally manufactured raw brass tapware & door hardware
  • Double glazed thermally broken windows and timber doors
  • Mild steel light fittings.

Social Value
  • The biggest impact The Commons has had on residents is to improving their social and cultural wellbeing. The design of the project generates a sense of place, and subsequently builds social capital via the cultivation of a community oriented space. This strong sense of community and camaraderie is enhanced by the many social gatherings, garage sales, holidays, as well as the large communal spaces such as the rooftop garden, laundry and barbeque spaces, which allow its residents to come together and facilitates opportunities for social interaction.
  • The Commons has been occupied by a close group of owner-occupiers from all walks of life, from all age demographics and provides residents with a safe and inclusive environment in which to reside.

Use Value
  • In addition to the provision of an extensive range of shared household services, The Commons demonstrates generosity to the wider community. The ground floor has been set back to widen the compressed, frequently trafficked bike path. Similarly, the western light court and the rear courtyard are both returned to the public domain as pocket parks. These green areas provide public open spaces that offer relief to the concrete and asphalt hard urban landscape of Brunswick. Apartments are additionally punctured with internal and boundary light wells, adapted by occupants as intensive roof gardens, spaces for external day beds and interaction.

References

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