The Hub Stage 2 is medium density development consisting of one and two bedroom apartments situated in close vicinity to a wide range of amenities, including the Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra Stadium, Belconnen Town Centre, Calvary Hospital, the University of Canberra and Canberra Institute of Technology. The Hub Stage 2 provides three storey walk-up apartments with lift access to the basement carpark.

Externally the building has imposing cantilevered balconies and eaves, split face and rendered blockwork walls, colourbond cladding, coloured privacy glass balustrades and architectural louvers. Oiled hardwood fences have been included to soften the aesthetics of the development.

Apartments facing Thynne St have views of the adjacent parkland, particular detail to landscaped courtyards has been undertaken to create a space where residents can gather for social occasions and the other apartments have views of the purpose built streetscape, Bruce and open spaces.

INNOVATION:    

Innovative design features heavily throughout the building with many involving environmentally sustainable design principles. Solar panels have been installed in the project and feed back into the electrical grid system. Hot water solar tubes have also been installed and will significantly reduce natural gas usage. An energy efficient compact fluorescent down light has been used in a good proportion of the apartments. This saves 80% on the energy used as compared to the low voltage halogen down lights. These innovations will reduce the carbon footprint of the development and there will also be a reduction in the cost of the utilities for the end user.

A stormwater re-use system has been designed for use in landscaped areas. A 125,000 litre underground tank captures stormwater from the roof and landscaped areas. This stormwater is then used to water the landscaped areas on the site. Also a synthetic grass has been used in the main courtyard areas to reduce water usage whilst still providing aesthetic appeal.

Particular attention to the design of the apartments has been undertaken to maximise the usable floor area and circulation space. In the one bedroom apartments an efficient kitchen layout has been designed to allow more living space for the resident. A space, energy and water saving single drawer dishwasher as well as a convection microwave and 2 burner cook-top have been incorporated in the inclusions list.

AWARDS:

The Hub was nominated in the 2010 Master Builders Excellence in Building Awards.