Burwood Brickworks: World-first sustainable shopping centre to open on Friday
It can grow its own food, recycle all the water it uses and generates more energy than it consumes — it’s the world’s most sustainable shopping centre and its set to open in Burwood.
Lifestyle
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The world’s most sustainable shopping centre is set to open tomorrow at the $120 million Burwood Brickworks.
The 13,000 sqm centre will be home to Australia’s first rooftop farm in a shopping centre and contains several Australian and world-first approaches to energy efficiency, sustainability and biophilic design.
Peri Macdonald, executive general manager for retail at Frasers Property Australia, says the centre has already received a 6-star Green Star Design Rating from Green Building Council of Australia and is on track to achieve certification under the world’s most rigorous proven performance standard for buildings, the Living Building Challenge.
“The shopping centre will generate more energy than it consumes on an annual basis, retain and recycle all the water it uses and dedicate 20 per cent of its site footprint for growing food, among many other sustainable initiatives,” he says.
The framework developed by the International Living Future Institute asks whether a building can operate as effectively as a flower – receiving its energy needs from the sun, using and circulating water, producing no waste or toxicity, and looking beautiful.
“Living Building Challenge certification means the shopping centre gives more than it takes, is self-sufficient, does not exceed the resource limits of its site, and encompasses regenerative spaces that connect people to light, air, food, nature and community,” Mr Macdonald says.
Sustainable and meaningful elements to the design include the use of timber remnants to create a striking travelator tunnel, a permanent art installation by Wurundjeri artist Mandy Nicholson, and bricks sourced from the demolished brick factory to create beautiful paving at the centre entrance.
While all tenants have had to adapt the design, construction, fit-out and function of their stores, major tenants Woolworths and cinema Readings have made substantial changes to their standard format.
Mr Macdonald says the retailers have committed to including these more sustainable, energy efficient and ambient improvements in other stores.
“Woolworths have changed their refrigeration and they’ve done a complete review of their supply chain to work out exactly what was in everything they needed for their fit-out and then made some changes as a result to remove products that have harmful materials in them,” he says.
“Little things like they’ve introduced access to daylight, so they’ve got solar tubes at the back so you’re actually getting daylight in there and that’s something Woolworths are actually looking at installing in other stores. They’ve got a lot of salvaged timber in there that’s not something they’ve ever done before and plan to do more of.”
“They’ve been extraordinary, likewise Readings our second major tenant. In terms of the cinema operation they pretty much changed every part of their fit out to comply with the materials aspect.”
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The centre, located 19kms from the CBD, offers a mix of flagships and localised speciality stores across food and dining, entertainment, retail services and health and wellbeing that are aimed at engaging and entertaining locals, residents and the broader Melbourne community.
To mark the opening on Friday, an official ribbon cutting ceremony will launch three days of family fun, retailer offers and live entertainment.