The new backyard is bigger than you think

Enter medium and high-density development. Once a dirty word, density increasingly denotes a new kind of community living in which shared public domain supports a multiplicity of activities we once used our backyards for.

Highly landscaped parks and open spaces that surround higher density homes can be places we have a picnic with friends, host a neighbourly BBQ, toss the footy, find a shady nook for a read, or watch the kids play. The list goes on.

Density. Intensity. Intentionality.

This multi-function concept must be front-of-mind as we start to think about the future of denser and more communal urban environments. The design ethos can’t just be about density per se, but intensity – that is, all the ways that space can be used to support the needs of modern communities.

Our challenge as designers and architects, therefore, is that we must be constantly thinking about the utility these spaces provide, designing with a laser-focused intentionality to ensure those spaces deliver.

What this means in a practical sense is that instead of the approach of yesteryear in which suburban parks were simply retarding basins with a few bushes dotted about and the occasional bench seat to break the monotony, now they are highly-designed and thoughtfully curated places of discovery, recreation, relaxation, education and play. The open space at Burwood Brickworks in Melbourne, for example, has been designed to function as a meeting place, fitness space, wetland and nature reserve, as well as having a variety of secluded zones for contemplation and meditation.

As a development industry designing for fast-paced modern lives, we can also be thinking about other multi-function options for our public domain areas such as having free wifi so residents can work or study outside, or communal gardens for growing food, or community sheds for engaging in ‘enjoyable work’. It can also mean open space that’s activated for outdoor yoga classes or boot camp or team sports.

The brilliant thing about designing for an intensive array of resident use is the way that it encourages people to be active, outside, and meeting the people around them. There is ample evidence that shows that communities that foster these kinds of links and interactions have residents that are substantially happier, healthier people than the average.

Liberty. Equality. Fraternity.

One of the greatest goods that comes from designing for more compact, social, and amenity-rich neighbourhoods is the sheer fact that more people get access to more great stuff.

If you look at one of the many popular mews precincts we have designed at Ed.Square in Sydney’s west, a very obvious calculus plays out. Had we approached this development as a fairly standard outer-suburb development for detached dwellings, 13 homes per hectare would be the norm with a little bit of land left over for a centrally located park. Instead, Ed.Square’s medium density design can accommodate 5 times that number of homes – providing five times more families with not only access to high quality housing but high quality open space as well.

Located on low-traffic laneways with mature trees, citrus plantings, and bench seating, residents of these homes are able to ‘borrow’ the open space at their doorstep for a variety of leisure and recreation needs. Judging by the popularity of Ed.Square’s mews homes and townhouses, this style of living combined with its low-maintenance accessibility, more than makes up for the loss of backyard space.

Flexibility. Practicality. Liveability.

When it comes to the design of the homes themselves, we must also be as intentional in our design approach as we are to the urban layout of our streets and neighbourhoods.

More compact homes have the benefit of being more efficient to run and less expensive to maintain. There are fewer un-utilised rooms that function only as a place to house furniture or host a formal family dinner once a year. And there is more emphasis on footprints that have a level of flexibility built in.

Nearly a million Australians run a business from home, and countless more work from home or telecommute at least occasionally. Homes that can support office work or a means of production are in high demand – especially those with flexible configurations.

What part does storage play in smaller homes? How can previously under-utilised spaces like attics and basements be repurposed to provide for a range of active and passive use? How can private space – like courtyards and balconies – be configured to provide a place of sanctuary and seclusion, as well as provide a contiguous experience between indoors and outdoors? What about homes that can be configured for multi-generational families or non-family households so that privacy and liveability are maximised?

These are the questions and challenges we work to solve every day. And as a designer I now think about how a square metre of space – whether it be inside the home or part of the public domain – as needing to deliver three to five times the value than it might have as few as five years ago.

Frasers Property’s projects like Central Park, Ed.Square, and Burwood Brickworks represent market-leading examples of higher density living with zero trade-off for lifestyle and comfort. As Australia’s towns and cities continue to grow, the evolution of how we live will see less emphasis on large homes and wasted space and more focus on practicality, flexibility, amenity and fraternity.

The new backyard is a bold idea for a big country; but one with enough room for everyone to share.

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