Winners of AJ’s ‘Best in Low Cost Design’ project awards have been selected for the Adelaide Street, Belfast scheme, which replaced the vehicular traffic corridor With half a kilometer of urban parks and new public space.
Designed for casual play and contains 140m2 From new planting, they’re providing a resource for locals with previously little access to outdoor play spaces or gardens—and they’ve unexpectedly created a new habitat for hawk moth larvae, too.
The judges said that Adelaide Street was an example of people-centered collaboration and planning In what remains a doggedly car-centric city, with an installation setup “scheme” for similar schemes in Northern Ireland and abroad.
The committee added that “returning the road as a community asset is interesting while maintaining traffic”, and that the installation formed part of the planned re-housing of Belfast Center over the next 10 to 20 years.
Two awards have been given for sustainability for the first time in the 28-year history of small projects. These were for the Boathouse by Ashworth Parkes Architects and Black Barn Studios by Charlie Luxton Design.
Both were identified as strong contenders for the lessons that can be learned from environmentally sustainable design, including the importance of data tracking as well as construction and materiality.
Bogor Musholla of Caukin Studio took home the People’s Choice Award, winning nearly 40 percent of the votes cast by AJ readers in an online poll.
The wood-frame structure, which serves as a prayer facility and community center for Bogor in West Java, consists of one main space adjoining a small covered veranda and restrooms. Seismic activity in the Indonesian province was taken into consideration during the design process.
More than 170 entries were received from across the country for this year’s awards, sponsored by Marely, which have been narrowed down to a shortlist of 20. They range from boathouse to bench, prayer room to workplace recording studio. , and a bridge to an urban park and play structure.
On Wednesday (3 May), the selected designers submitted their projects to the jury in cash form. The awards were announced later in the day at a free event held at Morris + Company’s London offices in Hackney.
The judging panel included: Esther Everett, Head of Design Development at London Legacy Development Corporation; Pedro Gil, Director of Gil Studio; and Louis Jobst, Director at Akin Studio and Last year’s award winner.
The previous winners are Rashid Ali ArchitectsAnd Carmody GroarkeAnd Haworth TompkinsAnd David Lesch ArchitectsHawkins/Brown Architects Kate Darby And Mole Architects.
All entries for this year’s awards can be viewed for free AJ Buildings Library With full shortlist available here. Copies of the AJ Small Enterprises edition are available for purchase AJ Store.
Sponsored by AJ Small Projects
Did you miss awards night?
You can still visit the exhibition at Morris Corporation Offices in Hackney (through the entrance to EDIT Restaurant) at these times:
May 4-26, 2023 9 – 9 p.m
Title 217 Mare Street, London E8 3QE