This progressive infill development, located in Ferryden Park, received the Small Scale Development and Aged Care and Community Housing awards at the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) SA Chapter’s 2022 Awards for Excellence. Project proponent UnitingSA demonstrated sound sustainable design principles that were realised via an integrated design process.
The development provides affordable housing for women aged 55 and over experiencing or at risk of homelessness. It comprises eight two-bedroom houses with landscaped gardens surrounding a communal outdoor undercover area, with an overall design intent that embraces water sensitive urban design principles.
Drivers for the design:
- The client had a clear desire for sustainable design principles.
- In a relatively tight site, each component of the design had to have multiple functions.
WSUD features include:
- Permeable paving: The shared outdoor entertaining space and individual dwelling parking bays feature permeable paving to address stormwater management challenges on the site. The design has the added benefit of increasing soil moisture to sustain the landscaped areas.
- Rainwater harvesting and use: Collection of rainwater from 100% of the dwellings roof area within a 1,150 litre rainwater tank, plumbed to toilets for indoor use.
This project offers a modern take on single storey group dwellings with attractive shared outdoor spaces – places where residents can establish their own sense of community, underpinned by quality water sensitive urban design.