Green space, on its own, is definitely worth adding to a cityscape. But green space that grows food is even better.
That was the thinking of Josh Byrne, principal at Fremantle-based landscape architect Josh Byrne & Associates (JBA), when he took the project design brief for what was to become the Perth Cultural Centre Urban Orchard, as part of the Perth (Western Australia) Cultural Centre development initiative.
JBA got to work with what was a disused area on the rooftop of a car park in the Perth city-fringe area of Northbridge.
An initial attempt at “greening” had seen some grass and garden beds installed, but it was “all very run-down”, similar to how entire Perth Cultural Centre precinct had come to be seen, as neglected and uninviting.
“The Metropolitan Redevelopment Authority (MRA), which is the implementation arm of the state government’s planning portfolio, wanted to rejuvenate the entire cultural centre precinct,” Byrne says.