urban design

project: design guidelines for station street, fairfield

client: darebin city council

description of project

hansen worked in collaboration with Darebin City Council to provide design guidelines to direct appropriate built form within the business area of the Station Street Neighbourhood Activity Centre in Fairfield. The catalyst for this study was the expiry of interim Design and Development Overlay building height controls.

Through desktop research, fieldwork and community consultation it was noted that the area is well serviced by public transport, shops, offices and community facilities. Due to the relatively low (mainly one and two storey) traditional building scale the area the centre is sensitive to change and design guidelines are needed to manage the considerable development pressures emerging in the centre.

Through community workshops a design vision for the centre was generated seeking to maintain a low level streetscape (up to 3 storeys and 4 storeys around the railway station) with setbacks of upper levels and to encourage new development to reinforce valued traditional streetscape elements.

To achieve this vision a series of simple and effective design guidelines were generated to direct how development should occur. The guidelines address matters of building height, setbacks and relationship to the street and adjoining sites, design details and features, materials and textures, and signage. Ultimately the guidelines will be translated into policies within the Darebin Planning Scheme.

design guidelines for station street, fairfield

urban design

project: design guidelines for station street, fairfield

client: darebin city council

description of project

hansen worked in collaboration with Darebin City Council to provide design guidelines to direct appropriate built form within the business area of the Station Street Neighbourhood Activity Centre in Fairfield. The catalyst for this study was the expiry of interim Design and Development Overlay building height controls.

Through desktop research, fieldwork and community consultation it was noted that the area is well serviced by public transport, shops, offices and community facilities. Due to the relatively low (mainly one and two storey) traditional building scale the area the centre is sensitive to change and design guidelines are needed to manage the considerable development pressures emerging in the centre.

Through community workshops a design vision for the centre was generated seeking to maintain a low level streetscape (up to 3 storeys and 4 storeys around the railway station) with setbacks of upper levels and to encourage new development to reinforce valued traditional streetscape elements.

To achieve this vision a series of simple and effective design guidelines were generated to direct how development should occur. The guidelines address matters of building height, setbacks and relationship to the street and adjoining sites, design details and features, materials and textures, and signage. Ultimately the guidelines will be translated into policies within the Darebin Planning Scheme.

design guidelines for station street, fairfield