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'Iconic' and 'unique' are the major themes emerging from Urban Taskforce’s 2015 Development Excellence Awards which were won by mixed-use buildings.

The program featured three awards, ‘The Development of the Year’, ‘The Innovative Development Award’ and ‘The High Density Development Award’, and attracted projects designed by prominent architects such as ARM Architecture, Turner and MHNDU.

The Development of the Year 2015 was given to Turner architects’ East Village, Victoria Park which was developed by Payce Consolidated Limited. Urban Taskforce says the project, which features an iconic 32,540sqm aerial garden and a dramatic flowing timber ceiling designed by Koichi Takada, is a model for urban centres.

“The building is a model for many urban centres where often a large supermarket sits on its own,” explains Urban Taskforce.

“East Village demonstrates how a garden can be planted on the supermarket roof and that this can be contained by over 200 apartments.”

East Village by Turner Architects. Photography by Tom Ferguson.

The Innovative Development Award 2015 went to Viking by Crown Group which was designed by MHNDU architects. Urban Taskforce highlighted the building’s triangular shape and punched windows, which are influenced by the kinetic art of Yaacov Agam, as highlights of the design.

‘Viking by Crown’ by MHNDU. Photography by John Gollings.

The ‘High Density Development Award’ went to the contentious Swanston Square Apartments by ARM Architecture that were developed by Grocon for Melbourne’s CBD. The building’s façade design, which uses spandrel panels to form a 31 storey high image of indigenous elder William Barak, has attracted global media attention and was also the talking point for Urban Taskforce.

“This is certainly not an ordinary building thanks to its clever design by architects Ashton, Raggett, McDougal," says Urban Taskforce.

Swanston Square by ARM Architecture. Photography by Peter Bennetts.

NSW Government Architect, Peter Poulet was the 2015 Awards jury chair and says that each of the winning buildings displayed creativity and reflect consumer demand for buildings with flair.

“I am encouraged by the flowering of creative spirit that is coming through in this year’s awards particularly with apartment buildings,” says Poulet.

“It seems that consumers are now looking for buildings with personality.”

Nathan Johnson

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