Western Australia’s leading urban planning projects for 2014 were recognised by the Planning Institute of Australia (PIA) on Friday night at its annual WA Awards for Planning Excellence at Crown Perth.
Held around World Town Planning Day, the awards aim to emphasise the important role of the planning profession in the development of Western Australia’s infrastructure and to heighten public awareness of good planning.
Executive Officer of PIA WA, Emma de Jager, was pleased by the level of Award entries in 2014 and impressed with the high quality urban planning that is being demonstrated across the state.
‘The various projects and planners that were nominated for the awards this year were all very impressive in their respective fields, and are collectively contributing to a more liveable and vibrant city’, Ms de Jager said.
‘Many of the entrants in 2014 exemplified significant developments in place-making and planning technology, equipping the city and its surrounding suburbs with the necessary infrastructure and amenities to cope with our increasing population and lifestyle choices.’
Lavan Legal has been a long time supporter of the awards, believing it is essential to acknowledge planning excellence in order to cultivate ongoing innovation within urban design the Western Australia.
‘These awards continue to highlight the quality of sustainable land development in Western Australia. A key focus of the Lavan Legal Planning and Environment Team is land development in a Western Australian context and we have been fortunate enough to have been involved with many of the projects which have won awards in previous years’, said Lavan Legal Partner, Craig Wallace.
‘We consider it important to recognise those projects that demonstrate imagination and sustainable planning initiative, and highlight the wealth of experience and technical ability held by planners in WA. We are accordingly delighted to continue our involvement with these awards and congratulate the winners in 2014.”
Among the winners in 2014 was the Healthy Active By Design (HABD) tool, which received both the highly coveted Minister’s Award and the President’s Award. HABD was developed by HASSELL in conjunction with The Heart Foundation as a guide for urban planners on developing towns in a way that encourages physical activity and inherently fights obesity and chronic disease.
HABD addresses the current health crisis of preventable chronic diseases and acknowledges the link between these, the way we live and the places we build.
When considering this project, the judges noted that ‘the final product is an aspirational but practical online toolkit which provides guidance on best practice for the design of places which encourage and facilitate healthy lifestyles. The tool kit also provides a number of case studies which clearly demonstrate what can be can be achieved through the application of the HABD principles.’
‘HABD is an innovative outcomes-oriented initiative which has the potential to refocus the planning and design process on one of the most important and fundamental outcomes of planning - the health and wellbeing of our communities.’
Winner of the Great Place category was Beaufort Street in Mount Lawley, which has become a vibrant hub of culture, art and cuisine through the partnership between the City of Vincent and the community-led Beaufort Street Network.
‘Beaufort Street demonstrates that a great place is made up of the collective sum of all its parts - social, cultural and physical’, said judges upon awarding the Great Place category. ‘The ongoing partnership between the Beaufort Street Network and the City of Vincent has evolved and encouraged Beaufort Street to become one of Perth's most highly active, visible and creative neighbourhoods.’
Other winners of awards included the City of Swan’s ground-breaking Bushfire Mapping technology and WALGA’s Biodiversity Plan, whilst the redevelopment of Claremont Showgrounds received a commendation for Best Planning Idea (Small).
Launched in 1991, the Awards for Planning Excellence celebrate the wide scope of planning achievement and recognise excellence in planning endeavour in Western Australia. The inaugural award categories were for community planning, planning and development, rural planning achievement and urban planning achievement. These categories were subsequently expanded until they were consistent with those of the National Awards for Planning Excellence and reflect contemporary community issues.