Assignment 4 changing melbourne pdf

QUEENSBRIDGE

Figure 1: Vertical Garden Melbourne

GREENING THE CBD YING KAI CHEN : 834103

CHANGING MELBOURNE : ASSIGNMENT 4

TUTOR: HINGWAH CHAU

PAGE OF CONTENTS - Introduction: A Greener Melbourne.............................3 - Where is this Proposal and why? ..................................4 - A Growing Southbank.....................................................5 -Rooftop Gardens..................................................6 -Cloud Gardens.....................................................7 -Vertical Gardens..................................................8 -Melbourne: A temperate city.............................9

-Contributing to the garden capital...............................10 -Overview..........................................................................11 -References........................................................................12 -List ofFigures.............................................................13-14

Figure 2: Southbank Promenade

INTRODUCTION Melbourne is currently considered to be the most livable city in the world. (The Age Victoria) and is a vibrant and ever-growing. The City of Melbourne’s recent development has skyrocketed in the recent years due to rapid flux in population. Due to this growth, the CBD has seen an increase is high rise development. While these sorts of change are inevitable, continuous development in high rise can have detrimental consequences on the natural environments of Melbourne, potentially ruining Melbourne’s positive reputation.

Therefore as a countermeasure, I have proposed a series of greenery projects around the CBD most prominently in the developing Southbank region. These projects include the incorporation of roof top and vertical gardens as well as methods of adding greenery to several underused areas of the Southbank.

The implementation of these strategies can assist in combining natural environments with Melbourne’s booming designed and constructed developments as well as the cities thriving social systems as well as taking advantage of pre-existing network systems.

Figure 3: Melbourne Southbank at night

WHERE IS THIS PROPOSAL AND WHY?

The site of this proposal is based on Melbourne’s Southbank area primarily located between the Queensbridge and Princes Bridges. Observations around the area highlighted the continual growth of the Southbank region with a ever-present construction taking place in the South of the Yarra. This rapid development and construction is in part due to the exponential growth rate of the Southbank and the precincts unprecedented population density.

Research conducted by urban developer Leanne Hodyl(ABC News) has discovered the heavy building density as seen in Figure 4 which is only expected to grow. The Southbank developments were considered to be “weak and ineffective” and how building density such as these "squeeze out the space between buildings". Thus, reducing the possible spaces that could be used for greenery.

Figure 4: Leanne Hodyl's building density diagram.

Figure 5: Satellite view of the Southbank Promenade, the area of focus

As seen in this colour coded map in Figure 4, there is a direct correlation between the population and the building densities as the most heavily populated areas are also the places with the highest building densities.

Research conducted by both LSE cities and ID Population has discovered with a staggering population of 160 000 people per square kilometre puts the area's population density above that of many cities around the world as seen in Figure 7.

Figure 6: Nearmaps screenshot of Southbanks population density.

Figure 7: Bar graph comparing Southbank to other major cities.

A GROWING SOUTHBANK

Furthermore comparisons with skyscrapers from other parts of the CBD as well other parts of Australia not only explicitly demonstrates the growth of Southbank but also the surprising height of the region which is “close to becoming the tallest in the nation�(Dow, A).

As you can see in the Figures below Southbank has become the hotspot for building development. While previously the majority of the attention was focused on the northern half of the CBD, developments in the Southbank region have become the new centre of attention ( Dragomir, L). As such an increase in building developments in this one area(central Southbank block as seen in figure 8 ) will ruin opportunities for plant growth at ground level.

Figure 12: Tallest buildings visual in Australia.

Figure 8: High rise development in central Southbank.

Buildings currently construction include the Australia 108 which at 319 m dwarfs even the Eureka tower in height . Other buildings currently under construction include 2 Riverside-Quay and the Marco Apartments.

As seen in figure 12 and 13, 4 of the tallest buildings with 3 of them being in the top 3 in terms of height really puts into perspective how tall Southbank is going to end up when compared to other parts of the city. With this area of the CBD increasing in height, spaces for greenery and natural systems into this region is slowly diminishing.

Figure 9: Green highlighting buildings that are currently under construction.

As seen in the figure on the left there is are significantly more buildings that have been approved by the city council in the future. Therefore creating the congested and crowded environments expressed earlier by Leanne Hodyl. Buildings that have been approved are all of a notable height Figure 10: Blue highlighting buildings that have been approved by the city council. when compared to present day buildings. Such as the Australian 108 (the tallest tower in figure 10).

Figure 11: Red highlighting projects that have been proposed but have yet to be approved

Looking even further into the future demonstrates that even after the completion of the approved projects, the region is still a hotspot for potential development. Proposed projects. This future image of Southbank portrays the dense skyscraper growth with easily exceeds Melbourne's desired 100m blanket height for this region.

Figure 13: Tallest buildings chart in Melbourne.

This is why I propose the implementation of rooftop and vertical gardens into the Southbank area particularly into the newly developing high rise.

Doing so would take advantage of proposed building developments through the merging of both constructed/designed systems with natural systems and help contribute to the future of the Garden city.

Figure 14: A rooftop garden in Chicago

ROOFTOP GARDENS For my project I intend to focus on the Southbank as it has demonstrated an alarming amount of high-rise development. In order to overcome the regions inevitable growth I have proposed the implementation of rooftop gardens on the tops of the newly developed and approved high rise towers in Southbank.

In order to bolster the regions rooftop gardens I have proposed to incorporate green roofs on to the tops of Southgate near the Langham hotel as this space is large flat and very empty. Furthermore being located on top of a busy shopping center means that this site could easily take advantage of the thriving social systems of the area and by planting trees could potentially increase the intrigue of the area and combine both social and natural systems together.

Figure 16: Screenshot of the rooftop of Southgate could be used to plant a rooftop garden.

Rooftop gardens have countless benefits that are both environmental and economical as well as being aesthetically beautiful. Such benefits include providing ventilation as well assisting in storm water management. The Gardens on top can help to reduce storm water runoff thus decreasing stress on sewer systems (NATS nursery. 2014).

Green roofs also prevent the urban heat island effect as the gardens act as insulators by absorbing heat cooling the city down as well as reducing the energy required to heat and cool buildings (EPA. 2015). In order to successfully incorporate a rooftop garden the building layers shown on the left would be needed.

Figure 17: Layers required for a greenroof.

Figure 18: Greenroof propsal on the roof of Southgate.

Current rooftop green spaces (Exxon mobile, Hamer Hall foyer) Potential space for Rooftop gardens Figure 15: Google maps screenshot of Southbank

So far from observation the closest thing to rooftop gardens located within the Southbank and that is the observational deck at Exxon Mobile which is only open to employers at the oil company as well as the green space around Hamer hall. Neither of these are really utilized to their full extent but they demonstrate the precincts compatibility to house rooftop gardens.

CLOUD GARDENS

In order to take for advantage of the booming high rise development in the Southbank precinct I have proposed a potential “Cloud Garden” idea which would be located on top of the tallest skyscrapers such as the Eureka or the new Australia 108 which is currently under construction.

However when analysing the practicality of planting a rooftop garden on to the Australia 108, the problem of growing plants at such altitude was a problem.

Notable issues include extreme weather situations such as heavy winds which can reach up to 200km/h (Dow.A, 2015) would be detrimental to the gardens.

High speed winds can very easily damage and destroy plants and young seedlings. Therefore at an altitude green gardens would need to be covered in order to protect the valuabe plants inside as well as making it safe for people visiting.

Figure 19: Australia 108 above the clouds Figure 22: 20 Fenchurch st, London

Figure 20: The Sky lobby of the Australia 108.

Located on the 83rd and 84th floors of the Australia 108.

On these floors there are hotel rooms, gyms, restaurants and lounges. This space is very notable and iconic on the design of the building. The “sky lobby extended out from the sides of the building and would offer citizens a 360 degree view of the city" (The Australian, 2012).

One precedent case for a similar idea was the rooftop garden at 20 Fenchurch Street.

At 155m tall this rooftop garden is the tallest in London (Skygarden London, 2015) and is also protected by a glass dome roof.

Sunlight

My proposed idea of turning a portion of the Sky lobby into a cloud garden will take advantage of the Sky lobby’s position. The illustration on the right is a section demonstrating my proposal.

Similar to the rooftop gardens on the previous page the cloud garden would also require the foundation layers.

Sunlight

Plant level Growing Medium

Figure 23: Section of rooftop garden of 20 Fenchurch strret.

Filter sheet Drainage layer

Waterproofing Roof Construction

Protection layer Figure 21: Sky lobby Cloud garden idea illustration.

A roofed facility such as this one shown in the figure housing the rooftop garden is similar to the cloud garden proposal for the Australia 108.

VERTICAL GARDENS Figure 25: Plantscraper, Sweden

Precedent case The “plantscraper” building in Sweden is an example of using vertical gardens in skyscraper complexes. (Inhabitat, 2012) seen in the figure, the entire vertical wall of the building is made up of a levels upon levels of plants. Therefore helping to rid the city of rapidly decling vegetation.

Figure 24: Plant lifespans in the Southbank.

In addition to rooftop and green gardens I have also proposed to implement vertical gardens to the sides of the high rise buildings currently found in the Southbank region. As seen in this map of Southbank roughly half of the trees in this area are either declining and or dying as a result of old age. These trees haven’t been replaced by planting new trees in their place therefore are inevitably going to die out by the time many of the building developments in the area finish. Therefore the vertical gardens project should help to bolster the number of plants by filling in for the declining trees.

Figure 27: Vertical Garden diagram

Figure 28: Vertical garden on Southbank apartment idea.

Adding Vertical Gardens to the sides of the high-rise apartments in Southbank would make the buildings further south of the Yarra more appealing. This would in turn encourage more people to visit these areas. However Vertical gardens would need to be planted on surfaces with adequate sunlight preferably those laying the sun.

Figure 26: Patrick Blanc building.

Another precedent case demonstrating the use of a vertical garden would be the above design by French deisgner Patrick Blanc ( Inside Urban Green, 2011). This example highlights the aesthetic qualities of vertical gardens and how vertical gardes can help to brighten up certain areas, thus making otherwise bland areas more appealling for those passing by.

Potential high rise buildings that could contain Vertical garden.

Figure 29: Southbank map with proposed vertical garden locations highlighted

MELBOURNE: A TEMPERATE CITY Being a city of four seasons really expands the possibilities when it comes to the various types of different plants and vegetation options for the gardens. Due to this variety it is really easy to create different gardens for the separate seasons in turn potentially reflecting the different moods of each one. Therefore not only encouraging people to visit this area but to also strengthen social interaction. Ultimately this project will help to bring together natural and social systems while taking advantage of the already thriving constructed and designed systems. To do this, I decided to take advantage of the intersection between Queensbridge and the Yarra River as this area is large and relatively underused despite the nearby Red Stair Amphitheatre. Additionally I have decided to develop the green foyer of the Hamer Hall. The reason for these developments is due to the close proximity to the Queens and Princes bridges respectively, the two most prominent network systems in the area.

Banksia Spinulosa is a native Australian plant that is found in the South Eastern temperate regions of Australia. These plants are very resilient and can bloom during winter adding colour in an otherwise dull garden. (Stewart, A. 2006).

Figure 33: Banksia Spinulosa

Australia’s national flower the Golden wattle is one of the most fragrant flowers.

(Australian National Herbarium. 2015).

Blooming during spring and summer, the Wattle is commonly found in South Eastern Australia. The golden wattles bright yellow colour would definitely brighten up the otherwise dull areas.

Figure 34: Golden Wattle.

Figure 30: Southbank map with Queensbridge square and Hamer Hall foyer.

Queensbridge square

Purple Hibiscus is another native temperate flower which would be an assist in spring by adding its vibrant purple violet hues.

Hamer Hall foyer Figure 35: Purple Hibiscus.

The vibrant red of the Australian Maple tree would add visual intrigue to the two areas and would incite interest to the visitors which can make this a major attraction during Autumn, similar to the Autumn leaves in the suburb of Bright in northern Victoria.

Figure 31: Red Stair Ampitheatre

Figure 32: Green Hamer Hall foyer

Figure 36: Australian Maple tree.

CONTRIBUTING TO THE GARDEN CAPITAL Pre-European Melbourne was once the home to an abundance of vegetation including 1260 flowering plants including orchids, wattles, daisy bushes and eucalypts. (eMelbourne: The City Past and Present). Therefore greening empty areas would help to reintroduce native species into the CBD this would recreating the previous biodiversity that Melbourne was famous for. Different plants would be planted in different areas as shown in figures below in order to accommodate Melbournre's dynamic four seasons.

Figure 37 : Photoshop concept with Golden wattles at Hamer Hall Foyer during the summer

Figure 39: Photoshop concept with Autumn Australian Maple trees during autumn.

SUMMER

AUTUMN

WINTER

SPRING

Figure 38 : Photoshop concept with Banksia bushes at Hamer Hall Foyer during winter.

Figure 40: Photoshop concept with assortment of spring flowers including the Purple Hubiscus at the during spring.

OVERVIEW Overall the combination of adding green roofs, vertical gardens as well as addition plantation should help to preserve the natural environments in the areas without disturbing the already present network and constructed systems. Instead these proposals will ultimately take advantage of these systems in order to improve the Southbank's greenery.

Greening the Southbank would also help to improve the social systems of the area as adding brighten up previously dull spaces which can also help in improving tourism as well as reinforcing Melbourne's title as the capital of the Garden state.

Figure 41: Proposals in action.

Areas for Vertical gardens Areas for Rooftop gardens Areas to add extra plants

REFERENCES (APA 6TH)

Baijak, M (2015, May 11). A Synopsis of Melbourne's 200 Metre Plus Towers Produces A Startling Number. Retrieved April 29, from https://urban.melbourne/ development/2015/05/11/synopsis-melbournes-200-metre-plus-towers-produces-startling-number Boden, A. (2015, December 24). Floral emblems of Australia. Retrieved on June 1, from http://www.anbg.gov.au/emblems/aust.emblem.html.

Calicchio, D & Amon, R. (2011). Rooftop Gardens. New York, USA: Rizzoli International Publications, Inc. Clay, L (2015, August 19). Melbourne named world's most liveable city, for fifth year running. Retrieved June 1, from http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbourne-named-worlds-most-liveable-city-for-fifth-year-running-20150818-gj1he8.html Cotter, M (2012). Plantagon breaks ground on its first ever "Plantscraper" vertical farm in Swedenfrom http://inhabitat.com/plantagon-breaks-ground-on-itsfirst-plantscraper-vertical-farm-in-sweden/ Dow, A (2015, March 23). Extreme gardening on the 92nd floor of the Eureka tower.Retrieved April 29,from http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/extreme-gardening-on-the-92nd-floor-of-the-eureka-tower-20150320-1m45sm.html Dow, A (2016, February 15). Melbourne's skyline becoming the tallest in the world. Retrieved April 28, from http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbournesskyline-to-become-tallest-in-the-nation-20160212-gmstuj.html Dragomir, L (2016, Feburary 4). Southbank’s surge continues: Another CBD model. Retrieved on April 9, 2016, from https://urban.melbourne/development/2016/02/04/southbanks-surge-continues-another-cbd-model-update EMelbourne: The City Past and Present. (2008, July). Science, Nature, Geography. Retrieved on May 31, from http://www.emelbourne.net.au/biogs/EM00016b. htm EPA.(2015).Using Green roofs to reduce heat island effect. Retrieved on May 24, from https://www.epa.gov/heat-islands/using-green-roofs-reduce-heat-islands Fell, D. (2011). Vertical Gardening. New York, USA: Rodale.

Hodyl, L. (2015, February 9). Churchill Trust Report. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-09/melbourne-develops-the-city-centre-with-dire-consequences/6080146 Inside urban green (2011). Patrick Blanc- Felt living green walls. June 1, 2016, from http://www.insideurbangreen.org/patrick-blanc---felt-living-walls/ Mcarthur, G (2012, November 12). Planned super skyscraper in Southbank would dominate Melbourne's skyline. Retrieved June 1, fromhttp://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/planned-super-skyscraper-in-southbank-would-dominate-melbournes-skyline/story-e6frg6n6-1226514699810 NATS Nursey. (2014). Green roofs. Retrieved on May 22, from http://natsnursery.com/what-is-a-green-roof/ Nenad. (2015, June 16). Population densities of Australian Capital Cities – Melbourne and Sydney. Retrieved from http://www.smh.com.au/business/six-moreskyscrapers-for-southbank-under-malaysian-developers-plans-20150615-ghovgx.html Sky garden. ( 2016, January 28). Retrieved from http://skygarden.london/ Stewart, A. (2006, May 13). Fact sheet- Small growing natives. Retrieved on May 28, from http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s1636988.htm.

Urban Age Cities Compared. (2016). Retrieved 18 April, 2016, from https://lsecities.net/media/objects/articles/urban-age-cities-compared/en-gb/

LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Vertical Garden Melbourne Figure 2: http://www.travelvictoria.com.au/regions/melbourne/melbourneobservationdeck/ Figure 3: Eureka Tower viewed from Southbank https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melbourne_City_Centre Figure 4: Hodyl, L. (2015, February 9). Churchill Trust Report. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/ news/2015-02-09/melbourne-develops-the-city-centre-with-dire-consequences/608014 Figure 5: [Near maps screenshot.]. (2016, February/March). Retrieved April 12, 2016, from http://maps. au.nearmap.com/ Figure 6: [Near maps screenshot.]. (2016, February/March). Retrieved from http://maps.au.nearmap. com/ Figure 7: Author's own diagram.

Figure 8: Dragomir, L (2016, Feburary 4). Southbank’s surge continues: Another CBD model. Retrieved from https://urban.melbourne/development/2016/02/04/southbanks-surge-continues-another-cbd-model-update Figure 9: Dragomir, L (2016, Feburary 4). Southbank’s surge continues: Another CBD model. Retrieved from https://urban.melbourne/development/2016/02/04/southbanks-surge-continues-another-cbd-model-update Figure 10: Dragomir, L (2016, Feburary 4). Southbank’s surge continues: Another CBD model. Retrieved from https://urban.melbourne/development/2016/02/04/southbanks-surge-continues-another-cbd-model-update Figure 11: Dragomir, L (2016). Southbank’s surge continues: Another CBD model. Retrieved from https://urban.melbourne/development/2016/02/04/southbanks-surge-continues-another-cbd-model-update Figure 12: Dow, A (2016, February 15). Melbourne's skyline becoming the tallest in the world. Retrieved April 28, from http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbournes-skyline-to-become-tallest-inthe-nation-20160212-gmstuj.html Figure 13: Dow, A (2016, February 15). Melbourne's skyline becoming the tallest in the world. Retrieved April 28, from http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/melbournes-skyline-to-become-tallest-inthe-nation-20160212-gmstuj.html Figure 14: Rooftop gardens, Retrieved from http://bombayoutdoors.com/garden-ideas/rooftop-gardens/ Figure 15: [Google Maps Screenshot.]. (May 2016). Retrieved from www.google.com/maps.

Figure 16: [Google Earth Screenshot.]. (April 2016). Retrieved from www.google.com/earth.

Figure 17: Layers required for a greenroof. Retrieved May 24, from http://designmeans.com/work/illustration/green_roof.html Figure 18: Author's own image.

Figure 19: Australia 108 above the clouds. Retrieved May 24, from http://www.domain.com.au/news/australia-108penthouse-sale-smashes-national-price-record-20150408-1mg23h/ Figure 20: The Sky lobby of the Australia 108. Retrieved May 25, from http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/work-hasbegun-on-a-giant-skyscraper-that-will-tower-over-the-melbourne-skyline-20151014-gk8w19.html Figure 21: Author's own illustration Figure 22: 20 Fenchurch street. Retrieved May 26th, from http://www.studioseilern.com/20-fenchurchstreet-02/4567018998 Figure 23: Section of rooftop garden of 20 Fenchurch strret. Retrieved May 27th, from http://aasarchitecture. com/2015/01/open-sky-garden-20-fenchurch-street-rafael-vinoly.html/open-sky-garden-in-20-fenchurch-street-byrafael-vinoly-12 Figure 24: Urban Forest Visual (2015), Retrieved May 28, from: http://melbourneurbanforestvisual.com.au/#mapexplore Figure 25: Plantscraper in Sweden. Retrieved May 29, from http://www.countysustainability.ca/indexFood.html Figure 26: Patrick Blanc vertical garden design, Retreived May 30, from http://1decor.net/vertical-garden-27-cool-pictures/ Figure 27: Diagrams of Vertical Garden, Retrieved May 30, from https://au.pinterest.com/lilritefoot/verti Figure 28: Author's own photo Figure 29: [Near maps screenshot.]. (May 2016). Retrieved from http://maps.au.nearmap.com/ Figure 30: [Near maps screenshot.]. (May 2016). Retrieved from http://maps.au.nearmap.com/ Figure 31: Author's own photo.

Figure 32: Author's own photo.

Figure 33: Banksia Spinulosa. Retrieved June 1, from http://anpsa.org.au/b-spi.html Figure 34: Golden Wattle. Retrieved June 1, from http://goaustralia.about.com/od/australianewzealand/ss/national-and-state-flowers.htm Figure 35: Purple Hibiscus. Retrieved June 1, from https://au.pinterest.com/tnatywary/indoor-plants/ Figure 36: Australian Maple tree. Retrieved June 1, from http://www.onlineplantnursery.com/autumn-blaze-maple/

LIST OF FIGURES Figure 37: Author's own image.

Figure 38:Author's own image.

Figure 39:Author's own image.

Figure 40:Author's own image.

Figure 41: [Google Earth Screenshot.]. (April 2016). Retrieved from www.google.com/earth.