For generations of Canberrans, its been drab-ulous. But now some of Australia's top architects say Northbourne Avenue can be fabulous.
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Ideas for the extreme makeover of the unloved Northbourne Flats will be on public display in Civic this week with Canberrans asked to act as fashion police and cast critical eyes over the plans.
The national competition for a design for the new Northbourne Flats has attracted 40 entries from architects around Australia and their ideas to drag the ''gateway precinct'' in Canberra's north into the 21st century.
Community Services Minister Joy Burch said some of the most high-profile architectural firms in the country had entered the competition to redesign the public housing complex and a jury of senior public servants architects, which has already been deliberating for a week, will have the final say.
But the Minister said yesterday there would also be a ''people's prize'' which would be announced next week when she goes public with the winning design. ''The redevelopment of the Northbourne Flats is an important part of the ACT Government's plans to transform Northbourne Avenue into a sustainable, vibrant precinct,'' the Minister said.
''Today's exhibition is a great opportunity for Canberrans to get a glimpse of what the gateway to Canberra could look like.''
The submissions range from a complete knock down and rebuild to designs that would keep and use the existing buildings on the site.
All of the schemes have sustainability as a big priority but a number of the more innovative proposals include active rainwater harvesting and integrated grey water capture, treatment and re-use.
Community gardens feature heavily in several of the plans with the more adventurous including elevated or roof gardens, green walls, winter gardens and landscaped roofs.
Some of the more comprehensive schemes want to integrate the complex with nearby Haig Park and include features like a local library, a gymnasium, swimming pools, bike hire and convenience shopping with cafes and restaurants.
Construction ideas in the proposals feature industrialised building including glass curtain walling, to more conventional approaches including pre-cast concrete and traditional brickwork.
The number of units included in the proposals ranges from about 600 to more than 1000 apartments, with the most ''convincing'' schemes calling for about 900 units.
The entries are on show every day this week, including Saturday, from noon to 3pm, in the Garema Court Building on City Walk where visitors can vote for the ''people's prize''.