Opened in 2013, Habitat was one of the earlier high-rise developments in Melbourne’s Southbank, marking the area’s southern edge.
Pixelating the precast façade
Precast concrete on the southern wall provides a dense and solid façade next to the freeway. An abstract, pixelated pattern of sealed (non-openable) windows punched into the façade is based on the acoustic engineers’ soundwave map, mimicking how sounds refracts as it travels up the building. From inside, these windows frame views of the area. Outside, they create a singular aesthetic object as seen from a distance, and a more domestic building when viewed up close.
Planning controls required every apartment have 8 sqm of outdoor space. We consolidated these spaces and introduced three-storey-high sky gardens up the height of the tower, each garden shared by 15 apartments. Facing east to the Botanic Gardens and sheltered from the wind, these landscaped gardens provide habitable outdoor spaces where residents can meet their neighbours. Lift lobbies have light and views across the gardens, and glazed façades to the east and west make for a dramatic apartment edge.
The shared sky gardens – a radical idea at the time – showcased our ambition to realise the planning scheme in a more sophisticated way for the benefit of residents and the city. Similarly, the planning context required a tower and podium. Instead of a horizontal setback, we angled the façade to unify the tower and podium, creating ambiguity between the car park and apartments and amplifying the cohesion of the tower.
