Southport Uniting Church

This office space & community centre was designed to work in harmony with the existing heart of the church. Connecting each of these very different spaces together seamlessly. Featuring a partially hidden part-subterranean car park, covered by the large earth berm and central community garden, it was essential that the new buildings would integrate into the surrounding streetscape and communal landscaping.

After the initial design failed to meet the needs of the clients, they came to CKA for further advice. We developed a more strategic approach to use the west side of the site, saving money and enabling the reuse of an existing multi-purpose space, which was still useable. It also allowed for the new building to act as a sound barrier & divider between the church and train station. This approach considered the future of the site, providing enough leftover space of 2500sqm to develop an aged care centre and affordable housing at a later date.

Sustainable initiatives were incorporated into the design, saving the organization further costs in the long term. The development has the capacity to go off-grid with the inclusions of on site water collection systems, solar farm and double glazed windows, which were fitted with perforated screens to protect west facing aspects.

Comprising of 2 buildings, the main purpose of the structures was to provide open-plan offices for approximately 15 staff, with offerings of private work spaces for senior team members, a designated reception with relief area, lunch & breakout zones, printing, tech and storage rooms. Multi-purpose spaces were also required to offer flexible rooms, which could be used for community use.