The unexpected Sydney project in the hunt for a world architecture prize

It’s far from the glamorous projects most people associate with architectural greatness, but a new council pound may have turned the utilitarian into a prizewinner.

Blacktown’s new pound – the largest in the southern hemisphere – is one of 44 Australian-designed projects shortlisted for one of the most prestigious architecture awards in the world.

The World Architecture Festival prize’s shortlist, announced this week, was culled from 800 entries.

Sydney practice Sam Crawford Architects was shortlisted for the Blacktown Animal Rehousing Centre (BARC) in the civic and community category along with Bendigo’s Law Courts by Wardle, Liverpool City Place by fjcstudio, and the Australian embassy in Washington DC by Bates Smart.

Designed to be light and airy, BARC provides a concierge-style service for people looking for a pet. Backed by global research on the most humane ways to operate an animal rehoming centre, it was designed to minimise the smells and sounds that trigger anxious pets and deter would-be adopters.

Crawford was pleased by the inclusion of a council-led project: “Sydney councils have been leading the way in commissioning architects to provide high-quality facilities for local communities.”

The shortlisting came too late for the project’s champion, the late mayor Tony Bleasdale, who died in May on a flight returning from overseas.

Blacktown city architect Bill Tsakalos said Bleasdale had thought of BARC as a place that benefited people and animals: “People learning how to care for animals and animals benefiting from the care and love of people who knew how to look after them.”

Bleasdale had been proud they’d delivered a facility that attracted visitors to see the “world’s best practice in animal rehoming”.

Tsakalos said Crawford’s response to “a very utilitarian brief” had transformed the pragmatic and functional “into the poetic by innovating roof forms, public spaces, animal spaces and way-finding graphics”.

Of 12 global projects shortlisted for educational projects, three were Australian – and all in Sydney. They include Darlington Public School by fjcstudio, Mosman High School by Woods Bagot, and Strathfield’s St Patrick’s College Scientia Building by BVN which won the NSW educational architecture award 10 days ago.

A NSW Department of Education spokesperson said the $44 million project, which also won at the NSW Architecture awards, had a focus on inclusion, particularly for the generations of local Indigenous families whose children had attended the school. Artwork and cultural objects were included to inspire children and foster a greater understanding of Aboriginal heritage and the wider community.

Also shortlisted was David Langston-Jones for two small homes on Little Young Street in Surry Hills that feature a Japanese raked garden at the rear. Ian Moore Architects was shortlisted for Back to Front House while Common ADR was included for House for 100 Years in Melbourne.

Shortlisted architects attend the finals in Singapore in November, and present their projects to a panel of celebrated designers. The finalists represent 71 countries, with the top five shortlisted countries including China, Australia, United Kingdom, India and Singapore.

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