Project: Habitat House
Location: Sydney, Australia
Client: April Group
Design Team: The World is Round
Photographer: Terence Chin

Habitat House is designed for tenants aiming to secure and nurture the best teams for their business, becoming Surry Hills’ leading commercial address. Providing highly efficient 770sqm floors within a fully repositioned 1960s office building, Habitat House is located 100 metres from Sydney’s Central Station. The inspired rooftop – an extension of the internal workplace – is a key drawcard, attracting an array of dynamic companies to the building; this multi-faceted green space supports healthy collaboration and enhances tenant interaction.

An example of adaptive re-use, Habitat House has been transformed into a building that suits its tenants’ requirements impeccably.

The World is Round was engaged by April Group to re-position their 1960s commercial building as a premium offering, focusing on lifestyle, amenity, wellbeing and collaboration. The project was completed across eight commercial levels, two basements, and a conversion of the vacant roof into a vibrant rooftop garden.

The basement carparks have been upgraded to include bike storage and surprise the user with spots of colourful mural art. The new hotel-like end-of-trip facility encourages tenants to embrace healthy living and sustainable habits. The lobby area features a curved wall made from glass bricks and charred timber wall panelling, adding an edginess which feels at home in the city fringe suburb. New bathrooms throughout celebrate the history of the building using a mixture of terrazzo and subways tiles sitting within a new round timber batten ceiling. The new lift cars with a glass rear façade work in an exposed art covered concrete shaft. A new high-performance window system has been installed on both facades with operable windows allowing an abundance of fresh air to mix with the new gas-driven mechanical system. The floors are raw, and light filled allowing incoming tenants to plan their workplaces with the emphasis of natural light. The new lighting has multiple control abilities to allow the tenant to configure the form of light from up down to down or just up.

Tenants enjoy the rooftop terrace, which provides a space for work, socialising, health and relaxation. Aware of the correlation between mental health and access to green space, the owner conceived the rooftop as an urban escape to help support the wellbeing of tenants. It can be used as an entertainment area, for meetings, yoga, meditation and staff presentations, and it has kitchen facilitates so people can eat lunch and host events. The rooftop was a “deal sealer” for tenants, and it has helped the owner secure a vibrant top-tier tenant profile wanting to be located in the city fringe and close to transport. While the rooftop is now in full swing, it will flourish even more over the next few years as the established plantings grow; bougainvillea, jasmine and other native plants will cover the overhead wires, creating a canopy that provides sun protection and that all-important greenery for tenants.

TIRAR products used in this project include 1200mm American White Oak door pull
for frameless glass doors and 600mm American White Oak door pull for bathroom doors.

Read more about this project on The World Is Round’s website >