'Think how much this puts back into an area': architects celebrate public design

The state government wants to redevelop the Circular Quay waterfront; it might start by looking to Maitland.

Variously dubbed an archway, a portal, a tunnel or a mailbox, the “Maitland Riverlink” structure claimed multiple prizes at the NSW Architecture Awards on Friday night – including the Sulman Medal for Public Architecture, and the NSW Architecture Medallion.

Riverlink by CHROFI with McGregor Coxall is described as a 'kind of public living room.'Credit: Photo: Simon Wood

If there was a theme among the public forms of architecture celebrated at the awards it might be that they exhibited a generosity of scale and design that equipped them for a variety of uses.

They also tended to be somewhat ambiguous and versatile – places that can become what people make of them.

That is certainly the case with the CHROFI and McGregor Coxall-designed Riverlink – which has won multiple local and international awards since opening last year.

“It’s quite extraordinary because the vast space of it is an open space,” said the mayor of Maitland, Loretta Baker.

The purpose of the Riverlink was to connect the riverfront with the town centre of Maitland – under pressure from the opening of a nearby shopping mall.

And the relationship between the town and the river has been immeasurably strengthened by the angular archway, designed to be sympathetic to its heritage buildings. The Riverlink also houses a restaurant, public toilets, and can host artworks and events.

“In the summer we just put deck chairs in it, give out bottles of water and ice blocks, and people just sit around and talk to one another,” Cr Baker said.

Another major winner was the Green Square Library and Plaza, by Studio Hollenstein with Stewart Architecture, which won awards for public and interior architecture, and urban design.

The library snakes above and below ground – making it a striking presence at street level that also concedes surface space for public use.

Sydney's Green Square Plaza and Library.

“It actually makes that square,” said Peter Poulet, the former NSW government architect and chair of juries for the awards.

“If you were to lump a building into that square … it would destroy the square. The radical move was to subvert the building for the benefit of the bigger picture, which was the social good that the square makes.”

Kathlyn Loseby, the NSW chapter president of the Institution of Architects, said it would have cost more for the City of Sydney Council to have embarked on such a design.

“The council should be encouraged for having the courage to do something like this,” she said.

“Think about how much this puts back into the economy of the area. Because people want to go to that library. They want to hang around. They want to go to the cafe after. And kids will go in there and learn.”

Other winners for public architecture and urban design included Sam Crawford Architects for the Cabarita Park Conservatory, DesignInc with Lacoste+Stevenson for the Shellharbour Civic Centre, Mirvac, the Government Architects Office, the City of Sydney and Hassell for the design of the Harold Park project, and lahznimmo architects for the Elizabeth Bay Marina.

In relation to Circular Quay, the state government has said it hoped to finalise a redesign plan by the middle of 2020.

“Circular Quay could do with this sort of thinking,” Mr Poulet said of the Maitland project. “It's so loved. Imagine if it was actually thought through in terms of how people intersect with it.”