Designs revealed for major precinct in Sydney's Bradfield City Centre

The masterplan and concept design for Bradfield's first major precinct have been unveiled, featuring more than 1,400 new homes alongside commercial, retail and community spaces.

The reference design for the precinct, known as Superlot 1, was developed by architecture firms Hassell, and Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM), in collaboration with cultural design partners Djinjama and landscape architecture firm COLA Studio.

The masterplan includes a mix of housing - 10 percent of which is dedicated to affordable homes - alongside a hotel, and commercial, retail and community spaces, all situated within close proximity to the new Bradfield Metro Station and the new two-hectare Bradfield Central Park that the station will sit adjacent to.

According to a communique from Hassell, the design aims to set a benchmark for sustainable, inclusive and future-focused urban development. To achieve this, publicly accessible spaces - such as retail offerings and shared amenities - are placed at the ground level of buildings along active streets, with the intent of maximising safety, interaction and community participation.

The precinct is also designed to be permeable, featuring a fine-grained network of streets and mid-block pathways intended to promote walkability and connectivity. It includes a 15-metre-wide landscape spine called the Green Loop, which was shaped by engagement with First Nations communities through cultural design partner Djinjama. The loop leads to the Community Gathering Space, a timber pavilion with a woven canopy.

Principal at Hassell Kevin Lloyd said the design sets out "to create a precinct where nature and urban life are intertwined, ensuring Bradfield City feels welcoming, sustainable and uniquely of its place."

Bradfield City Centre is part of an approved masterplan that proposes 114 hectares of land nearby the recently completed Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport be developed into a new city with a metro station, housing, open spaces, and commercial and retail offerings.

The unveiling of designs for Superlot 1 follows the completion of the first building in the new Bradfield City Centre: the Advanced Manufacturing Readiness Facility, also designed by Hassell in collaboration with cultural design partners Djinjama. This comes alongside the approval of a new Advanced Manufacturing Research Facility designed by Architectus, Aileen Sage Architects and Jacobs, with collaboration from First Nations spatial design practice Bangawarra.