A development application for the construction of a ten-storey, mixed-use development at the historic Edwin Davey Flour Mill site in Pyrmont, Sydney is expected to be decided on in May.
The application, which includes plans for 136 residential apartments, was submitted by the mill’s owner, development company Ceerose, and is being assessed by the City of Sydney council. The design, by Grimshaw Architects, was created as part of a competition run by Ceerose. Grimshaw Architects’ entry was selected as the winner for its recognition of the mill’s history and use of sustainable design.
The mill has been in disrepair since 1996, when it closed down after more than one hundred years in operation. Now only a portion of the facade, which can be seen at the junction of Allen and Jones Streets, remains.
Grimshaw Architects’ design is made up of two interconnected buildings – a four-storey structure that sits within the restored heritage facade, and a ten-storey structure that steps up and over it. Between the two, a series of interlinked atria and voids focus natural light into the heart of the building.
The facade of the new structure will be built from large sliding panels that reference the vernacular warehouse and industrial heritage of the area. Subtle references to the mill’s history are carefully interwoven into the new building, like the nineteenth-century-style bracing struts that reinforce the existing facade. Some balconies sit behind the remaining walls, giving occupants a sense of history as they look out through the heritage windows.
Ceerose principal Edward Doueihi said blending the old with the new would provide an architectural point of difference to other residential developments.
Ceerose has also proposed public domain improvements that would connect Jones Street to the Wentworth Park light rail station adjacent to the site. The company says this would reinstate access between Ultimo and Pyrmont, which was severed with the construction of the Western Distributor freeway.
