urban renewal in barangaroo places - fieldwork... · web viewbarangaroo is a, “dynamic retail,...

Urban Renewal in Barangaroo24/03/2020

ANALYSE THE RESULTS OF ONE URBAN DYNAMIC OF CHANGE OPERATING IN A COUNTRY TOWN OR SUBURB

Caitlin DarcyYear 12 Geography Task 2

IntroductionBarangaroo is a, “dynamic retail, cultural and financial hub” (NSW government, n.d.) and is

located to the north-west of Wynyard and boarders Sydney CBD covering an area of 22

hectares. Its coordinates are 33o52lS 151o12lE. The precinct focuses on being sustainable and

having a small ecological footprint on the environment.

Urban renewal is defined as the redevelopment of an area that has undergone urban decay.

Barangaroo was previously an industrial container port and had many factories and was

officially closed down in 2003, leading to urban decay. The Government began the renewal

of Barangaroo in 2011/12.

Key

Barangaroo Boarder

Highways/Motorways

Roads

Parks Water

Buildings

Map of Barangaroo

N

EvidenceBarangaroo South and Barangaroo Reserve have undergone urban renewal. Barangaroo

North is still undergoing urban renewal with the construction of the Crown Resort, metro

line and area for public recreation, events and entertainment. Evidence of adaptive reuse

can be seen in figure one that shows an aerial photo of Barangaroo and Millers Point in 1937

and 2017.

Fieldwork was conducted at Barangaroo on Friday 6 March 2020 with Austin Brooks from

Observatory Hill. Whilst conducting fieldwork the following evidence of ecologically

sustainable urban renewal was observed:

Louvres on the sides of buildings (figures two and three)

Lion made up of living plants with a rainbow theme to celebrate Mardi Gras (figure

four)

Bins with sorting systems in the major food court, “The Canteen” (figures five and

six)

Tapered footpaths and drains in the middle of the footpath (figure seven)

Construction in Barangaroo Central (figures eight, nine, ten)

Architectural design and artworks to represent the culture and history of Barangaroo

(figures four, seven and eleven)

Adaptive reuse (figure twelve)

Barangaroo Reserve

Walkways and cycle ways, including Wynyard Walk, bike storage and bathroom

facilities for post-cycle, ferries and construction of Metro station.

Housing/residential buildings (figure fifteen and eighteen) including key-worker

housing (figure eighteen)

Green walls (figure fourteen)

Retail buildings (figure sixteen)

Public transport

During an interview with Austin Brooks from Observatory Hill, he highlighted that

Barangaroo:

Uses solar panels (figure eighteen)

Owns an off-site solar farm

Uses chilled beams in buildings to cool down them down (figure eighteen)

Is carbon neutral

Incorporated sustainable building materials (figure thirteen and eighteen)

Is environmentally sustainable (figure eighteen)

Is working towards zero waste

Is water positive

Is climate positive

ResultsSocial and Cultural Benefits/Sustainability

Barangaroo has multiple artworks and installations to represent its culture, history and

aboriginal heritage. These include the design of the drains to look like the ropes that were

used at Cockle Bay (figure seven), a lion made up of 5,600 plants with a rainbow theme to

celebrate Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (figure four), a video about the Aboriginal

people (figure eleven) and the Cockle Bay Shell Mural (figure seventeen).

The HSBC lion is made up of 5,600 plants and is watered with recycled water from the

Barangaroo precinct. The Head of Retail Banking and Wealth Management, Jessica Power

said that the lion represents the company’s, “commitment to diversity and inclusion and

ongoing support for the LGBTIQ community,” (HSBC, 2020).

The Barangaroo precinct strives to achieve community wellbeing by having as many services

as possible within walking distance (eg. doctor, dentist, childcare, gym, office space,

residential space) as well as easy access to public transport. Access to bike lockers and

showering/bathroom facilities encourages people to cycle to work. This together with

artwork and plants increase the mental and physical health and wellbeing of workers.

Unfortunately, Barangaroo doesn’t provide a large range of different housing types at

varying costs. The current minimum price for an apartment is $1,350,000

(Realestate.com.au, n.d.). There is key-worker housing under construction (figure eighteen),

however, it was proposed that the residents of this housing use a different entrance to the

other residents.

Environmental Benefits/Sustainability

Barangaroo precinct is a climate positive area and one of the most sustainable precincts in

the world. To achieve this Barangaroo is water positive (returns more water into the

environment then is used – figure seven), working towards zero waste, has a complex

rubbish sorting system, is carbon neutral with solar energy and chilled beam air conditioning

and uses environmentally sustainable materials. As of December 6 2019, Barangaroo was

announced as carbon neutral, making it the first urban precinct in Australia to be awarded

carbon neutral status.

Initiatives used to become climate positive include the complex rubbish sorting system

including up to nineteen different bins where rubbish can be sorted by category to allow for

the best disposal. This system is so refined that there is a separate bin for if a restaurant

breaks a plate. As well as this, in “The Canteen”, there are three separate bins for public to

sort their rubbish into (figure five).

Barangaroo reduces the amount of energy used for lights, heating and cooling by using

sustainable design. Louvres (figures two, three and eighteen) are attached to windows,

allow light and wind through but can also reflect or block heat to cool down or heat up a

room. All buildings in Barangaroo make use of chilled beams (figure eighteen) where water

is brought in from the harbour and then pumped through pipes in the building to it down.

Barangaroo relies on solar energy (figure eighteen) from 6km2 of rooftop solar panels as well

as an additional offsite solar farm.

Economic Benefits/Sustainability

Barangaroo was developed from a brownfield site (a site that has been previously

developed but is not currently in use). This is cheaper and more environmentally sustainable

than developing a greenfield site. Some of the necessary infrastructure such as water

supply, sewerage and electricity were already in place but needed upgrading due to the

population increase. Barangaroo now provides a positive contribution to the NSW economy

with about 20,000 people working in the precinct.

The sustainable design of Barangaroo provides economic benefits for residents by reducing

the cost of commuting as everywhere in Barangaroo can be walked or ridden to by bike. For

people who work but don’t live in the Barangaroo precinct, costs of commuting to work can

be reduced through the easy access to public transport from Sydney CBD provided by the

new Wynyard Walk, the ferry service and future metro station.

ConclusionBarangaroo is an excellent example of sustainable urban renewal. The project has provided

significant social, cultural, economic and environmental benefits (figure twenty). Whilst

there is not a wide variety of housing at varying costs (figure nineteen) all other components

have a high level of achievement. With around 20,000 people working in Barangaroo, there

is a large amount of opportunities for employment and business. The architecture of the

buildings is diverse and sustainable (figure eighteen). There are multiple opportunities for

walking, cycling and public transport as well as quality end of trip facilities.

The master plan has allowed for the protection and improvement of the natural

environment through initiatives such as the move to zero waste including the use of a

complex rubbish sorting system, solar panels and offsite solar farm and use of chilled

beams. However, the protection and improvements for the cultural environment are

lacking. Whilst the HSBC lion (figure four) does celebrate the LGBT+ community this was the

only feature that celebrates modern culture and diversity. To celebrate the Aboriginal

heritage and history, there is a video about Aboriginal culture playing in Barangaroo Reserve

(figure eleven) and the Cockle Shell Wall Mural (figure seventeen).

BibliographyBarangaroo becomes Australia’s first carbon neutral precinct 2019, NSW

Government, Barangaroo, viewed 22 March 2020, <https://www.barangaroo.com/the-

project/news/barangaroo-becomes-australia-s-first-carbon-neutral-precinct/>.

Barangaroo n.d., Photograph, Property Council of Australia, viewed 9 March 2020,

<https://www.propertycouncil.com.au/Web/Content/Media_Release/NSW/2018/

Barangaroo_South_wins_NSW_s_top_property_honour.aspx>.

Brooks, A 2020, pers. comm., 6 March.

Brooks, A n.d., Sustainability in Barangaroo, Handout, Year 12 Geography, Observatory

Hill, delivered 20 March 2020.

Colour the Streets n.d., The Streets of Barangaroo, Barangaroo, viewed 13 March 2020,

<https://thestreetsofbarangaroo.com/see-do/colour-the-streets>.

Google 2020, Map of Barangaroo, General reference map, viewed 9 March 2020,

<https://www.google.com/maps/place/Barangaroo+NSW+2000/@-

33.8605872,151.1995215,16.03z/data=!4m5!3m4!

1s0x6b12ae4136fd92d5:0x5017d6816334950!8m2!3d-33.8637941!4d151.2022304?hl=en-

GB>.

Macken, L 2019, Sydney’s most expensive residence sold for more than $140

million, Domain, viewed 22 March 2020, <https://www.domain.com.au/news/sydneys-

most-expensive-residence-has-sold-for-more-than-140-million-894214/>.

Meet the lion now living in Barangaroo 2020, HSBC, viewed 19 March 2020,

<https://www.about.hsbc.com.au/news-and-media/living-lion-barangaroo>.

NSW Government n.d., About Barangaroo, viewed 9 March 2020,

<https://www.barangaroo.com/see-and-do/barangaroo/about/>.

NSW Government n.d., Central Barangaroo Project, viewed 18 March 2020,

<https://www.barangaroo.com/the-project/progress/central-barangaroo-project/>.

Sold Apartments & units in Barangaroo, NSW 2000 n.d., viewed 22 March 2020,

<https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-unit+apartment-in-barangaroo,

+nsw+2000/list-1>.

AppendixAll photos taken by Camilla Kelgren and Caitlin Darcy

Date taken: Fri 6 March 2020

External louvres on the side of the building


Aerial image of Barangaroo and

Millers Point taken in 2017

Arrow indicates location where these images can be

seen

Aerial image of Barangaroo and Millers Point from 1937

Figure 1


Figure 2

Figure 4


External louvres on the side of the building (International Towers Sydney). The red

colour adds an element of design. Other residential

buildings have other coloured louvres

During the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in late

February to Early March, the lion was given a rainbow mane

to celebrate the LGBT+ community.

Living plants make up the body of the lion. Recycled water is used to water the

plants.


Figure 3


Multiple bins for different types of waste in “The Canteen”

Figure 6


Bins in Barangaroo Reserve

Figure 5

The drains capture water for reuse and are designed to look like the ropes that

were used at Cockle Bay to acknowledge the history of the area

Footpaths are slightly tapered to make water flow

into drains

Figure 7

Construction occurring on Crown Resort in Barangaroo

Central

Figure 8



Figure 9

Crane working on construction in

Barangaroo Central

Commercial buildings in Barangaroo (International

Towers Sydney)


Figure 10


Construction occurring in Barangaroo Central

Barangaroo South

Crown Resort

Figure 11

Video playing on loop in Barangaroo Reserve celebrating

Aboriginal culture


Example of adaptive reuse. Building was formerly a factory but is now office

buildings


Figure 12

Figure 13

Sustainable building materials were used to make this building. The building was

delivered to Barangaroo in the form of a “flat-pack” which reduced the time needed to construct the building at Barangaroo and

reduced disturbances to workers and residents


Figure 14


Barangaroo House is a restaurant owned by Matt Moran and features

a large green wall


Figure 15

Crown Resort

Residential buildings

David Jones shop in Barangaroo. One of the many retail buildings in

Barangaroo. Many of which are targeted at the upper class.

Figure 16


Figure 17

Cockle Shell Wall Mural – this artwork pays tribute to the heritage and history of the

Aboriginal people history. Aboriginal people would collect shells and place them around

the area to know what was previously hunted and what should be avoided. These

are called middens.


Figure 18

Diagram outlining the features of the buildings in Barangaroo

Date recorded: Fri 6 March 2020

Examples of the cheaper apartments sold in Barangaroo

(from Relestate.com.au)

Examples of the more expensive apartments sold in Barangaroo (from Realestate.com.au)

Cheapest apartment sold that could be found on realestate.com.au

Figure 19

Example of a middle-range priced apartment that was sold in

Barangaroo (from Realestate.com.au)

Date taken: Sun 22 March 2020

Evaluation criteria

Figure 20 Date recorded: Fri 6 March 2020

Evaluation of Barangaroo South using above criteria

urban renewal in barangaroo places - fieldwork... · web viewbarangaroo is a, “dynamic retail,...

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