257-259 Broadway
Property owners Sonar Holdings engaged Fender Katsalidis for the design of a commercial development at 257-259 Broadway.
Once a gateway location to the Sydney CBD, the site’s underutilised strip of land presents an excellent opportunity for redevelopment and regeneration. The proposed design combines 2,500sqm of open plan, column-free office accommodation over 7 levels, as well as retail space to service the commercial tenants.
The streetlights and bustling city life of the eclectic Broadway precinct recall images of the Mondrian painting Broadway Boogie Woogie. Proximity to Central Station and the University of Sydney give this hub of activity a Manhattan-esque feel, inspiring the building’s design through proportions of interlocking rectangular geometries that reference the urban grid.
The building’s functional design responds to site context and aims to enhance the local precinct with a contemporary geometry and responsive architectural form. The proposed sandstone facade takes cues from the adjacent heritage building, reinforcing the solid masonry street presence. Its tripartite order is also represented in the proposed facade, which has a similar division of three vertical elements.
The open ceiling is in keeping with the rich history of industrial built form, while large interlocking square and rectangular window openings framed by stone offer maximum aspect to views and natural light.
The site has a narrow frontage to Broadway, facing Victoria Park. Ground level provides commercial entry and lobby space with retail frontage to Broadway. The rear frontage to Grose Street is characterised by mid-level brick warehouse buildings and offers vehicular access.
An internal interconnecting stair links this retail space to two further retail levels below. Lower ground level doubles as a retail space and storage area. A basement level contains end-of-trip facilities and a loading bay for service vehicles with direct access to Grose Street.
The proposed building design offers a new contemporary aesthetic for the site, while respecting heritage and local context. Above all, it aspires to contribute positively and generate further quality design outcomes for the Broadway precinct.
