Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Designed by Australian landscape architects Turf Design Studio together with Danish designer Jeppe Aagaard Andersen, Central Park Public Domain was commissioned by Frasers Property to reimagine the public domain of the Carlton United Brewery site.
Central Park Public Domain won a 2020 Green Good Design Award from The Chicago Athenaeum.
Within the context of highly collaborative design workshops in Sydney, London and Paris, Turf conceived an expanded and interconnected network of new places – streets, lanes, parks and plazas; each unique yet forming a whole greater than the sum of its parts.
Turf’s first task was to work with Foster + Partners, Ateliers Jean Nouvel, Johnson Pilton Walker, Tonkin Zulaikha Greer and Tzannes Associates to review and refine the original masterplan inherited with the purchase of the site.
The site offered immense possibilities; at the heart was the former C&U Brewery, surrounded by a built fabric of some of Sydney’s oldest workers’ cottages, terraces and warehouses.
Central Park’s public domain exemplifies how a well-considered and legible public domain framework can both unite a site and restitch a city. At the heart of the site is Chippendale Green; a north-facing park of terraced, sun-drenched lawns tucked away from the frenetic pace of the city.
A large public park was always central to the masterplan intent. Orientating the park’s long axis with the frontage of existing Chippendale terraces proved vital in creating a place of meaning and connectedness for the community.
The park is set back from Broadway – creating an intimacy rarely achieved by a park of this size within a CBD.
Turf has conceived a new city precinct, delivered via an expanded and interconnected network
of new places; streets, lanes, parks and plazas – breathing new life and vitality into the inner city
Chippendale.
Central Park’s public domain design meets the challenge of forging a robust and intelligent public domain that serves the local community and the city as a whole.
Since opening in 2012, Central Park has quickly become a much-loved new addition to city life.
From the everyday dog walk or yoga class to hosting bi-monthly markets and numerous annual major events, Central Park has been embraced by the community at all levels.
At the heart of the site, a precious family heirloom, the state heritage listed C&U Brewery building will soon be completed; transformed into a bustling mix of market, community and creative workplaces.
There are many projects that begin with an objective for excellence that grows weary with time and produce outcomes that are a mere shadow of the initial intent. Central Park has stayed true to its original vision; to be an urban precinct the world looks to for inspiration.
In its details, the Carlton & United Brewery’s sandstone and bricks feature in the terraced lawns and flow into the shared laneways. The old is celebrated and juxtaposed with new architectural forms, exuding a relaxed yet richly connected sense of place.
Through-site links connect Broadway and the city to Central Park and onto the laneways of Chippendale once blocked by the Brewery operations.
Sustainability is at the core of the Central Park mission, including minimum Five Green Star Certification and the achievement of carbon and water neutrality over the life of the project. It was critical that every stage of the development process embraced these sustainability principles, striving for innovation and measurable achievement in sustainability.
Furthermore, the size of the development provided a rare opportunity to explore a variety of initiatives and innovations for a truly world-class sustainability outcome, moving the development towards a 6 Green Star rating.
Project: Central Park Public Domain
Landscape Architects: Turf Design Studio & Environmental Partnership
Designer: Jeppe Aagaard Andersen
Client: Frasers Property
Photographers: Frasers Property Australia and Sekisui House Australia, Dig It Photography, Simon Wood Photography, Destination NSW, and Turf Design