06 February 2012

Sydney’s Edible Outdoor Rooms

A temporary installation transforms a Sydney street into a kerb-side garden.

Edible Outdoor Rooms is a great example of how changing the cityscape can be a matter of simple gestures.

The team at Sam Crawford Architects have created this temporary outdoor installation in Foster Street in Sydney's Surry Hills – an inner-city pocket where most of the action takes place behind doors, rather than out on the street.

Gaging interest from surrounding bars, cafés and offices for wider footpaths, more trees and outdoor seating in the area to bring the local community outside, Sam Crawford Architects approached the Council to suggest widening the footpaths of the area and creating a one-way street, seeing it as an "improvement to the street and improvement to business," says Sam Crawford, Director, Sam Crawford Architects.

"We're interested in the make up of the city and the processes that go into making the city," Crawford explains. "Our work is mostly residential but we took this on as a self-directed project."

Although Council was unable to provide the necessary funding for a large-scale project, Sam Crawford Architects were able to obtain a grant, and – with the help of other members of the surrounding area, plus a lot of time and supplies – created a series of 3 parklets, each containing planter boxes filled with an assortment of edible greenery.

These outdoor spaces encourage community engagement, as well as providing a place to sit and relax. Currently approved for 3 months with a view to extending the project for a year, Edible Outdoor Rooms shows the potential of taking small steps to re-think the way we use our city spaces.

"I would love to see more of this in the city, and there are plenty of other people who would too," Crawford says.

"We'd like to become more active in the city as a practice, and we've figured that the only way to do it is just to do it. It's a great way to get involved."