Jury citation
The success of Nightingale Village in the urban design category is a result of the innovation embedded in the model, which has created a fossil-fuel-free precinct in a central location that provides long-term homes for a diverse community. However, it is also reliant on a few key moves: shared basements for cars and shared services that support the entire site; a vegetated buffer to the bike track and train line along the western side; the closure of Duckett Street to cars, giving it back to the public and the landscape; and buildings that allow for passive surveillance, incidental encounter and natural ventilation to the street.
At street level, Nightingale Village has produced an urban environment that is car-free and pedestrian friendly, that offers community-oriented outdoor space, and that is activated by commercial tenancies. This is further enriched by the development’s (agreeable) argument of architects, which has produced a delightful array of multi-residential housing that makes the streetscape diverse and intriguing.
Nightingale Village is located in Brunswick, Victoria, on Wurundjeri Country, and was reviewed by Alexis Kalagas in Architecture Australia March/April 2023.
Project credits
Architects: Architecture Architecture, Austin Maynard Architects, Breathe, Clare Cousins Architects, Hayball, Kennedy Nolan, Openwork and Andy Fergus; Project team: Nick James, Michael Roper, Daria Selleck, Mark Austin, Andrew Maynard, Mark Stranan, Jeremy McLeod, Madeline Sewall, Frances McLennan, Bettina Robinson, Fairley Batch, Bonnie Herring, Ali Galbraith, Emily McBain, Giles Freeman, Marie Penny, Mark Ng, Patricia Bozyk, Renee Eleni Agudelo, Sarah Mealey, Shannon Furness, Clare Cousins, Oliver Duff, Tara Ward, Candice Chan, Laura Norris-Jones, Luc Baldi, Rob Stent, Bianca Hung, James Luxton, Gianni Iacobaccio, Robert Mosca, Yuyuen Low, Saifee Akil, Ela Rajapackiyam, Patrick Kennedy, Rachel Nolan, Michael Macleod, Victoria Reeves, Elizabeth Campbell, Tamara Veltre, Oliver Monk; Builder: Hacer Group; Urban planner: Hansen Partnerships; Quantity surveyor: WT Partnerships ; Engineer: WSP; Building surveyor: Steve Watson and Partners; Access consultant: Access Studio; ESD consultant: WSP, Umow Lai; Wayfinding: Olax; Arborist: Tree Logic; Traffic: GTA Consultants; Waste management: Leigh Design; Landscape and urban design: Openwork; Landscape consultant: Amanda Oliver Gardens, Eckersley Garden Architecture; Project manager: Fontic; Urban design: Breathe, Andy Fergus; ESD consultant: Hip V Hype Sustainability.
