Australia's new green landmark

A building enterprise run by Prince Charles has designed its first project in Adelaide, Australia. This will likely set a new green benchmark in the residential sector.

It was awarded a six Green Star ‘Design Review’ rating by the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), a first for any Australian residential. Known as The Prince’s Adelaide Terrace, it is being developed collaboratively between the Prince’s Foundation for Building Community and Defence Housing Australia (DHA).

GBCA’s  Chief Executive Officer, Romilly Madew stated that the impact of the achievement cannot be understated. While a quarter of Australia’s office stock is green star-rated, the multi-residential building sector is seen to have been slower in embracing sustainability, Romilly noted.

However, with the launch of The Prince’s Australia Terraces, Romilly says that it demonstrates that world-leadership sustainable design and construction outcomes in the residential sector are attainable now as well.

The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community was created by the Prince of Wales to raise the level of sustainability of homes, workplaces and communities. Executive director Victoria Chester says the Adelaide project “brings alive” many of the Foundation’s key principles. The new projects hopes to evoke the local heritage and use local materials to create a harmonious and enduring community that focuses on environmental sustainability.
Key features of the town houses include emphasis on local, low-carbon materials, including locally made concrete with a recycled fly ash content, local granite, and bricks reused from old industrial buildings.