One Central Park

The initial concept by Atelier Jean Nouvel was for some of the green and varied neighbourhood character of adjacent Chippendale to 'invade' the site, extending through the public domain, to envelope the One Central Park building. This brief was expressed in early architectural renders and further developed to include a number of large vertical gardens by Patrick Blanc and facade planting at each level of the building. The developer Frasers Property (and Sekisui House) took a development risk on the suitability for the greening of such a high profile building to be a marketing point of difference and a new gateway for the city, as well as achieving the far-reaching sustainability objectives.

One Central Park is the most ambitious living architecture project in Australia. The combination of living walls and green facades was the first to be achieved in Australia. Major issues included water usage and compliance to a 5 Green star rating. Irrigation using reclaimed and treated sewerage from the building itself solved these issues. This type and scale of automated irrigation system had not been implemented before. Additional fertilising was carried out by 'fertigation' process with nutrients added to the irrigation, as well as nutrient and chemical imbalances. Soil mix for the planters was specially developed to have a long life span, with similarities closer to hydroponics than conventional soil.

The design challenges revolved around successfully establishing the planting on the facades in the face of difficult environmental challenges including exposure to sun and wind, water and nutrient requirements, plant support/stability and maintenance. These challenges were addressed by a range of innovative measures including new technology, technical development and testing, such as the wind exposure and plant selections tested in a wind tunnel to ensure suitability of the green wall system. Product testing, research and development played a big part in the design. Planter box systems, living wall design, soils, irrigation, drainage, mulch layer and access for maintenance were project specific and trialled.

Central Park highlights the importance of green infrastructure in our urban areas to an extent seen in few other developments to date. It makes a major contribution to precinct-wide sustainability initiatives, with the highly visible planted facades creating a strong statement of the importance of urban greenery at an individual, community and city-wide level. The new public domain such parks, plazas and streets within the precinct has provided significant community benefit and improved connectivity between Broadway and Chippendale as well as a gateway marker to the City. The constantly changing appearance of the plant species also provides an invaluable connection with nature, plants and seasonal change.

The Central Park development is a major urban renewal project in Sydney and has turned the former site into a highly active and sustainable mixed-use precinct. Up to 77% of Central Park's buildings will now deliver residential apartments, and approximately 23% will deliver an eclectic array of commercial spaces, cafes, restaurants, community amenities and a major new retail hub. The creation of major public domain spaces, particularly the central park, as part of the precinct master plan provides significant benefit for residents, workers and the wider community. The extensive facade greenery and other planting associated with One Central Park has made an important contribution to Sydney's green infrastructure.

Climate adaptation and urban greening is a fundamental issue challenging designers of the built form. One Central Park can inspire future urban projects to also use urban greening to create more environmentally and socially sustainable cities. The landscape design of One Central Park needed to be sustainable from an economic perspective, in the selection of durable materials and planting, the reuse of waste water for irrigation and ease of maintenance. This project will drive the development of living architecture and green urban infrastructure in the future.