How we designed Victoria & Albert, Broadbeach apartment development: Five minutes with DBI's Raith Anderson
The Sydney-based Iris Capital has officially launched Victoria & Alberteir first apartment project on the Gold Coast.
The two 40 and 56-level towers will home over 400 apartments, with an intent on developing something that suited every type of buyer.
Iris Capital, led by the hotelier and developer Sam Arnaout, had the local architecture firm, DBI Architecture, create a development with subtropical design traits unique to the Gold Coast.
Urban caught up with DBI Architecture Director Raith Anderson to discuss about the project.
JR: What was the brief from Iris Capital for V&A? What were the key features that were essential?
RA: The client brief was simple, "Create 'The' lifestyle destination on the Gold Coast."
Resort style living in the heart of Broadbeach with every amenity that you would need within the development, or within short walking distance. Apartments had to be designed to be liveable i.e. large spaces that flowed with quality finishes that would meet the needs of the full range of potential purchasers:
• High end buyers
• families or couples downsizing
• investors
• first home buyers
The focus on amenity was recognised early as being important which resulted in the entire podium containing a range of facilities, including a swimming pool for each tower, and both towers being afforded their own more exclusive amenities located at the top of the building.
The overall design was to appear seamless through the integration of the architecture, interiors and landscape.
JR: Was there a project that inspired you in the design?
RA: There were two key initial ideas that set the initial design direction. The first was the James Street precinct in the Valley, Brisbane. For the podium we were looking to create a sense of place that was welcoming, warm, and had a high level of texture and materiality. We wanted to create a vibrant, active environment that would meet the needs of the residents and the surrounding locals.
The second idea was more what we weren’t looking for on this project. No white pre-cast curves. DBI started using this language 17 years ago on the Gold Coast so we were looking to create a more current style that would complement the luxury living the development would provide. A style that was clean and sophisticated. One that would contrast with the podium and the immediate surrounding buildings.
JR: What were the most important features of the site/location which influenced your design?
RA: Given the sites location and being one of the last major sites available for redevelopment in Precinct 1 of Broadbeach meant that the opportunity had to be maximised. The sites proximity to the beach required the apartments to be designed to make the most of the view opportunities to water. Having two street frontages, one being the Victoria Avenue Mall, meant that connectivity was important, and the legibility of that connection through the projects retail offering to Albert Avenue was clear.
The mixed-use nature of the heart of Broadbeach allows for a diverse range of uses within the development which provides the opportunity for a more intense, more active, style of development. We also saw the occasion to express the sub-tropical nature of the Gold Coast within the building design and in particular the podium with greenery draping the façade connecting down to a well landscaped streetscape.
JR: What was the biggest challenge in the design of V&A?
RA: The biggest challenge was bringing such a diverse range of uses and project requirements together in what was seen as a heavily constrained site, and from this creating an overall cohesive concept. It was certainly an achievement. This is where having such a great team comes into play. These complex projects are challenging, and it takes a focussed team to deliver them.
JR: What are the differences between the two towers, apart from the density?
RA: The concept was to have the most eastern tower, The Albert, with the most direct views to water, to be the more exclusive, residents only tower. The apartments in this tower are consistently larger. The western tower, The Victoria, will have a mix of residents. Both towers have a very high level of amenity with the podium level spanning the two towers.
From an expression point of view, The Victoria tower, being the taller of the two will appear more dominant but this affords the top levels of the tower 360 degree views.
JR: How do you approach designing a two-tower development?
RA: As with any project design, we start with a detailed site and contextual analysis to ensure that orientation, views, ventilation, and solar aspect are well considered. With two towers we have the benefit of being able to manipulate both forms and their layouts to maximise the overall design outcome for the betterment of the development. For example, while the western tower is located “behind” the eastern tower, by making the floorplate of the eastern tower more compact and lengthening the floor plate of the western tower, we were able to maximise solar and view orientations so that nearly every apartment is afforded a view of the water and receives natural daylight.
With a multiple tower development there are generally two ways of approaching the building heights. The first is that the towers are a twin of each other. The second is to the vary the heights so that each tower has it’s own identity. They still need to compliment each other and read as a cohesive family. This is achieved through the external expression and selection of finishes. We chose the latter approach.
Being a mixed-use development, we were able to create a very strong base, this being the sculptured podium which anchors the overall development and sits it firmly within the heart of Broadbeach.
