Status: Private Noosa North Shore Eco Centre

Status: Private

The building brief was to provide a multiplicity of functions such as offices, research facility, front reception and administration space to greet visitors, residents and a conference facility.

As the building was to act as a gateway to the Noosa North Shore conservation park, it was paramount for the building to emulate the sustainable values and ethos of the proposed setting.

After the design brief was given, the client was unsure of the exact building location and tasked us to conduct Master planning exercise. We visited the site and investigated the existing site conditions, proximities and accessibility issues.

Instead of assembling all the proposed functions into one building, we suggested a series of new spaces dovetail with the existing. Ultimately the chosen location was next to the current administration building as it will provide direct access to the staff, visitors and residents.

Several functions and entities occupy this building, and the central gallery spaces act as circulation space and a meeting point where all of them come together for a core purpose to protect, promote and educate the natural environment. All the essential functions are separated to provide enough room to grow and produce enough privacy to carry their tasks.

We undertook thorough research to determine the most appropriate form of construction. We prepared a matrix to analyse the preferred selection of materials, taking particular account of issues of its locality and access, life span/longevity, sustainability, maintenance and durability, and cost and finally the appearance against the natural setting.

The research concluded with Yellow gum for the heavy construction as well as Kauri pine for joinery which is grown locally from sustainably harvested forests.