Neometro
17 Union Street
A vibrant urban village, embodying place, culture and community within Brunswick’s Jewell Station Precinct
As lead architect within a multidisciplinary consortium led by developer Neometro, BKK’s design has transformed the rundown Jewell Station Precinct into a vibrant urban village. Initiated by VicTrack via a competitive bid process, the 17 Union Street Brunswick project was conceived to shape a high quality, replicable development outcome for similar sites where land is particularly scarce.
Taking a precinct-based approach that sought to capture the character and culture of the broader site context and deliver a revitalised living/commuting precinct, the BKK team developed a comprehensive masterplan featuring two apartment buildings and a revitalised public realm serving as the station forecourt. To capture Brunswick’s diverse character, the two buildings were designed by different architectural practices working collaboratively to achieve consistency of quality and precinct cohesion. BKK designed the North building, comprising 43 one, two and three bedroom apartments with ground level tenancies and multi-basement car parking, delivering a richly activated outcome that augments and complements the Brunswick locale.
Big-picture Thinking
Our masterplanning and design approach was built upon cultural and spatial mapping, through drawing, to develop a deep understanding of the neighbourhood character and context. We considered how the design could provide housing that meaningfully responds to place, addressing the needs of the people who would live there and contribute to the immediate community.
A defining feature of the site is the Upfield Shared Path which runs alongside the railway line and is one of Melbourne’s busiest cycling routes with up to 1,000 bikes passing through each hour at peak times. We saw this busy thoroughfare as an opportunity to anchor the development in place, creating an activated interface that improves this section of the path whilst maintaining resident and pedestrian safety. On a narrow site, we located the two buildings as bookends, creating a public square at the centre, supporting pedestrian connections to Jewell Station. The ground plane works hard to maximise activation, providing flexible ground level tenancies conceived as creative spaces to retain and nurture Brunswick’s creative DNA, and creating a shared zone that utilises concrete seating and different-coloured pathways to define pedestrian and cyclist priority. The building itself adds to the ground plane, with zigzag columns forming a contemporary-styled loggia that mediates between public and private zones and serves as a calm buffer from the fast-paced bike and train zones beyond.
A defining site feature is the Upfield Shared Path, which runs between the building and the railway line.
Collaboration and Humility
As a particularly design-passionate developer, Neometro’s enlightened involvement brought their extensive experience into the mix, collaborating via intensive workshopping and design reviews that helped shape the vision. As a highly visible project representing a unique PPP relationship between VicTrack and Neometro, success relied upon a design-led approach and extensive engagement with multiple stakeholders, from state and local government to user groups and local community. Our team undertook presentations to the Office of the Victorian Government Architect, and targeted consultations with VicTrack, Merri-bek City Council and other key stakeholders, talking through the design and encouraging stakeholders to be part of the solution. This collaborative approach helped navigate complex requirements and achieve stakeholder buy-in while maintaining a clear design vision focused on safety, robustness, flexibility, and human-centered design.
Our masterplan included restoring the heritage Jewell station house. BKK collaborated on this with Lovell Chen and with GLAS Landscape Architects on the public realm.
Playfulness and Innovation
Our design approach for the North building was driven by a deliberate strategy to support longevity, adaptability and identity, utilising a democratic, concrete grid structure that can be infilled or adapted whilst maintaining architectural clarity, and provides a framework for the lives of residents to animate the built form.
Working within the constraints of a narrow building envelope, the apartments maximise resident amenity, incorporating study nooks for flexible working arrangements, double glazing to mitigate train noise, and inboard balconies providing shade and enclosure whilst maximising views. A large rooftop terrace area provides a shared place for residents to connect, complete with clothes lines, gardens, sheltered areas and 360 views.
Leadership and Advocacy
The project sets a new benchmark for inner-city development, demonstrating how architecture can successfully negotiate the confluence of different user groups and interests. Rather than creating a homogenised public realm, the design reflects a precinct approach that embraces the complexity of urban life, building upon local culture and identity. BKK’s approach maintained a strong advocacy focus throughout, utilising our ability to articulate a clear vision and effectively address stakeholder concerns to unite diverse parties toward a common aim, and shape a design-led benchmark for future developments along Melbourne’s rail corridor.
Transformative Places, Holistic Benefits
The precinct design and built outcome of 17 Union Street provides a model for catalysing positive urban change while respecting local character. Rather than whitewashing Brunswick’s industrial heritage and creative spirit, the development provides opportunities for small enterprises and local artists to thrive alongside residents. The building’s considered integration with the Upfield Shared Path, incorporation of public art, and flexible grid structure that invites residents to animate the facade, demonstrates how new development can enhance rather than diminish neighbourhood character. By embracing its position at the intersection of transport, community, and urban renewal, 17 Union Street provides a framework for precinct development that transforms challenging sites into vibrant, inclusive places that serve both residents and the broader community.
“For us, it’s often the simple solution that’s most beneficial for the resident: natural light, air, nature and space. BKK amplified each of these with great success.”
– Lochlan Sinclair, Neometro
17 Union Street won the Sustainability Advancement Award at the 2022 Australian Interior Design Awards for its long-life approach. It’s frame is so adaptable that nobody will need to demolish it.