Blockhead concept - This little piggy went to market (on his fixie)
Following Anstey in Colour and Anstey in Development, the final instalment is… "This little piggy went to market (on his fixie)". Today we look at Brunswick Market (661 Sydney Road), its immediate derelict neighbours on Florence Street and the potential development opportunities that exist within the precinct.
The strategy covers a number sites, which are but a short stroll or fixie ride from Anstey Station and Sydney Road. See Google Maps image below, with site highlighted in a rich shade of Brunswick Green.
As John Batman once declared on the banks of the Yarra, to whomever was listening "This is the place for a village!" So too do we at Urban.com.au decree that this is "the place for a village!"
The strategy behind the plan is simple: live local, grow local, buy local - a self sustained village of sorts. The market traders could live within any one of the 5 apartment buildings or shop top homes, the fruit and vegetables would be grown on-site and sold on site, with the Brunswick Market housed in a new building fronting Sydney Road, integrated with an urban farm to the rear that spills out onto Florence Lane (nee Street).
Key features
- A rebuillt Brunswick Market.
- A Multi-storey urban market housed within a glass house.
- 5 apartment buildings ranging in height starting from 3 storeys fronting Sydney Road and rising to 13-storeys facing Breese St, employing a variety of materials to break down the visual mass and create an identity for each tower element.
- The pedestrianising of Florence Street with a strong interface between it and the new market / multi-storey urban farm.
- Shoptop housing along Florence Lane with a mix of retail spilling onto the laneway with plenty of bicycle parking.
- An expansive rooftop park.
- North facing sky gardens interspered between apartments.
Whereas my last renders for integrated vertical farming were more about exploring a notion, Brunswick Village is certainly a more viable commercial concept. Regardless of whether the site is owned by state, private of institutional interests the concept could proceed given the acquisition of a minimal number of adjoining sites.
Without burdening readers with a thorough business case, development would roll out as follows. The current vacant carpark would be developed initially, with profits from residential unit and retail space sales to fund the still running market redevelopment. Stage two involves redeveloping the market space fronting Sydney Road to the north of Florence Street. The new market would move into this area and stage three would see the remainder developed, delivering additional multi-stotey urban market space along with a signature circular residential building.
There you have it, the potential to deliver a redeveloped market with improved urban outcomes whilst having the market run continually in some way, shape or form throughout the construction process.
Next up is a revamped Station Pier. Feel free to leave your suggestions as to what you'ld like to see next. Enjoy the images below.
