The existing retail shopping precinct is located amidst the picturesque Stanley Bay and comprises three distinctly different structures, the Shopping Centre, Murray House and Village Square.
Woodhead has been commissioned to develop a retail concept that seeks to update the ‘look and feel’ of the precinct. The design team was required to provide a sense of place suitable for high quality boutique retail stores, fresh food precinct and entertainment zones. The client brief was to adapt the Australian vernacular for a light translucent façade.
The revitalized design creates a softer edge between internal and external spaces, bringing trade into an intermediate zone, ideal for alfresco dining, meeting places and entertainment zones.
The heavy concrete façade of the current building has been lifted and lightened, using warm timber elements and banner graphics to redefine the façade. The timber louvers shift in angle allowing variations between opacity and transparency, creating views in and out to the incredible Stanley Bay. The character of the façade has been adorned with way finding, graphic signage and retail banner elements, drawing customers into retail zones and leisure spaces.
The village square is transformed into a dynamic amphitheatre, surrounded by the retail offering, and features a children’s play area modelled on a ‘shipwreck / treasure island’ theme, with a ship half submerged within the piazza floor. In an attempt to create a conceptual, designed piece of public art, typical children’s equipment is also incorporated.
