The winners of the Australia Award for Urban Design have been announced in Canberra. The awards aim to highlight the best in design for the built environment and to recognise good urban design as key to the development of our towns and cities.

The Paddington Reservoir Gardens in Sydney took out top honours for Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects with James Mather Delaney Design and City of Sydney.

The project was praised by the jury as being “brilliantly conceived and executed” with  “the extensive interpretative elements [shedding] light on this part of Sydney’s early heritage.”

The site has already become a well-known landmark for locals and visitors, with the original ‘bones’ of the reservoir retained and worked into the new design.

The 2009 awards also recognised research by the City of Melbourne and Victorian Department of Transport. Through Melbourne case studies, Transforming Australian Cities explores growth models for transport networks, with possible applications for many cities.

“[This] excellent study provides high quality evidence and graphic tools that will help promote this urban form model to all levels of government, to developers and to the wider community,” the Jury says.

The City of Sydney’s Sustainable Sydney 2030 – The Vision received a commendation for its “10 strategic directions and 10 urban design ideas supported by over 180 actions” and its “widespread engagement with the community”.

planning.org.au