Sydney University is proposing the development of a new health precinct on the site of its Camperdown campus.

As part of a comprehensive submission to the NSW Department for Planning, the project is currently on public exhibition with the opportunity for public submissions available as it goes through the DA and EIS stages.

At present, the architects listed for the design of the new health precinct are Australia's Billard Leece Partnership (BLP) and New York-based Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

According to the DA, the idea is to include in the proposed health precinct the University of Sydney Medical School, the Sydney School of Public Health and, the buildings of the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (RPAH), as well as the Arena Sports Centre and the adjoining athletic fields to create a larger health region that would incorporate both the study of health and the practice of healthy living.

According to the public proposal, stage 1 of the plan will have a total cost of $146m and will include:

• New pedestrian paths should complete those ringing the University Oval No. 1 as well as connecting to CPC, RPAH, west to the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse, and to the adjacent residential colleges.

• The new health education buildings will group around their own central commons, Upper Wakil Garden, with a possible future bridge connection to the RPAH café or entry level.

• Primary entrances from the east, oriented to Western Ave, with inviting secondary entrances toward the Oval and CPC building, to the Commons, and to RPAH to the west.

• New designated bike routes should tie into the existing bike path network, making the new health precinct building approachable from all directions.

• Vehicular access from Western Avenue that will terminate at a drop-off and turn around point south of the Oval at the Lower Wakil Garden forecourt in keeping with the CIP restricting vehicular access within the campus.

• A new access road along the western edge of the site accessed via Cadigal Lane will provide access to service docks.

The heart of the Masterplan is the outdoor commons at Upper Wakil Garden ( deisgned in conjunction with Arcadia Landscape Architecture), where the gardens of Upper Wakil commons flow out onto the pathways that connect to the building to the Campus beyond.

The outdoor stairways would then be designed to provide circulation for the Stage I building tying together exterior gathering terraces and interior commons.

You can see the entire proposal here

Branko Miletic

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