Melbourne Might Soon Be Home to the World's Most Sustainable Shopping Centre
It will include a 2000-square-metre rooftop farm and restaurant, designed by eco-warrior Joost Bakker.
Eco-warrior Joost Bakker (Greenhouse by Joost, Brothl) is at it again, acting as creative consultant for what may become the world's most sustainable shopping centre.
Teaming up with Frasers Property Australia, Bakker will design a 2000-square-metre rooftop farm and restaurant at the heart of the new Burwood Brickworks development — set to begin construction in mid 2018, just 15 kilometres south of the Melbourne CBD.
The rooftop's massive agricultural hub will sit within the complex's 12,700-square-metres of retail and hospitality space, with the urban farm split between greenhouse, external planter box and landscaped growing areas. Some of the sustainable elements Bakker plans to implement include a closed-loop water system, composting capability, and minimal transportation of food and waste.
It has yet to be decided which restaurateur will run the space, with Frasers currently seeking expression of interest from established food and drink providores. The rooftop is already sounding like an inner-city gem and we are eager to see which tenant takes this massive project on.
"There is such a hunger for this kind of development throughout the world," says Bakker. It really fills a gap in the market to feed and nurture conscious consumers... [that] want to shop, eat and relax in environments that truly support a sustainable world."
The design of the wider mixed-use development will also focus on sustainability, using a large solar PV system and an embedded electricity network to target a minimum five-star green rating, with the aim of becoming Australia's first six-star Green Star Design — and to achieve Living Building Challenge accreditation.
This accreditation is seriously hard to obtain and means the building must have a net zero carbon footprint, produce more electricity than it consumes, grow agriculture on 20 percent of the site, and prove net water and waste positive. It must also be constructed using non-toxic and recycled materials, and have other social benefits like access to natural daylight and indoor air quality.
Once completed in October 2019, the Burwood Brickworks development will join the challenge to determine if they meet the criteria to be considered the world's most sustainable shopping centre. Here's hoping Frasers puts their money where their mouth is.
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