Cedric Qin Shen Chua

Peri Suburbia

Nichols Point is a small township located to the east of Mildura. It sits in a peri-urban condition where residential, recreational and agricultural programs are juxtaposed. Despite this unique characteristic, residential development in the region is deeply suburban and does not respond to the nature of the site.

The thesis reimagines residential development in Nichols Point by transforming a segment of the existing irrigation channel into public amenity and concentrating housing development along the channel. It aims to retain farmland and articulate housing interfaces that can be opened to and interact with the public and surrounding context. The units are also designed to respond to Mildura’s extreme climatic conditions.