Studio 5/03

Reimagining  University Square - Fostering Urban Encounters

Dulani Denipitiya

Studio Description

University Square is located in Carlton, within the active urban setting of the University of Melbourne. Bounded by university buildings, it is encountered daily by a large multicultural community who are studying or working at the University or residing in one of the many student accommodations in the vicinity. Originally, the site was part of the Wurundjeri country, near the junction of two river catchments and was a likely meeting place for indigenous communities. It was set out as a public square in the 1850s and, since then, has undergone several landscape changes yet has consistently served as a space for the nearby community and for recreation. The iconic Elm trees that have characterized this square are being removed, leaving a bare open space. The construction of the new Parkville Railway Station, which is currently ongoing, has opened up this site to other possibilities and potential activation as a hub for the community and as a place that can foster public encounters.

Studio Outcomes

This studio will focus on re-imagining University Square to explore design possibilities for the site and its importance as the location of the new Parkville Rail Station. The studio will be concerned with planning and designing this open space to address community needs and attempt to make the space more socially and environmentally sustainable. The site presents opportunities for multicultural engagement, new commercial establishments, the creation of ecological corridors and habitats, and renewable energy initiatives, among other design interventions. The challenge will be to identify and balance these different possibilities in reimagining the site so as to be more sustainable. Students will be expected to envision the future of this space and its context by first undertaking an in-depth site analysis, then developing a design programme, a master plan and detailed designs for two areas within the site with the aim of creating a sustainable urban landscape.

Studio Leader

Dulani Denipitiya is a landscape architect from Sri Lanka. She holds a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (first class honours) from the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka, where she later worked as a lecturer teaching design studio subjects. She has also worked as a professional landscape architect in a leading Architectural firm in Sri Lanka, engaging in various local and international projects. She is currently completing a PhD at the University of Melbourne with research that explores perceptions of urban leftover spaces in neighbourhoods in Columbo, Sri Lanka, and their multifunctional transformation through design. Dulani has been teaching studio on a part-time basis at the University of Melbourne since 2020.

Schedule
Lecture Tuesdays 16:15-17:15  in MSD Room B120 (Singapore Theatre)
Studio Tuesdays 17:15-20:15 in MSD Room 236 and Thursdays 18:15-21:15 in MSD Room 238

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