Chief Executive of the Green Building Council of Australia Romilly Madew and Stockland Development Manager Justin Travlos
The Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA), today recognised Stockland for taking an industry-leading approach to sustainable design and development with the $222 million redevelopment of Stockland Wetherill Park, awarding the project a 5 Star Green Star – Retail Centre Design rating.
Stockland is currently undertaking a transformation of the 32-year-old centre, located in Sydney’s thriving Western Suburbs. Upon completion in mid-2016 Stockland Wetherill Park will be a state-of-the-art, sustainable community hub.
Launched by the Green Building Council of Australia in 2003, Green Star is Australia’s only national, voluntary, holistic rating system for buildings and communities. The 5 Star Green Star rating by the Green Building Council of Australia signifies ‘Australian Excellence’.
Green Building Council of Australia, Chief Executive Officer, Romilly Madew said, “We congratulate Stockland on their 5 Star Green Star rating for Stockland Wetherill Park. It is fantastic to see companies like Stockland taking this level of sustainability commitment out of CBD areas and into suburban and regional locations.”
Stockland Development Manager, Justin Travlos said, “We are extremely proud that our delivery of Stockland Wetherill Park has achieved Australian excellence for sustainable design and delivery.
“We look forward to continuing to work with our retailers, the community and the GBCA to improve the environmental performance of this centre now and into the future. We truly believe in the ability for sustainability practice to change the retail landscape in Australia and this recognition is an important step in that direction.”
Stockland Wetherill Park has been recognised for incorporating sustainability into all aspects of the shopping centre redevelopment, across design, management, indoor environment quality, water, materials, transport, emissions, land use and ecology.
A number of state-of-the-art sustainability features have been incorporated including mixed-mode air conditioning within the malls, low-energy light fittings and climate and responsive ventilation systems to provide air conditioning to the centre efficiently.
Stockland National Sustainability Manager, Commercial Property, Greg Johnson said, “International research has found shopping centres integrating green principles are not only more energy and water-efficient, but can also generate higher sales. This coupled with the genuine savings that we can pass onto our retailers further influences the business case for turning green and how it can benefit everyone involved.”
“The community initiatives at Stockland Wetherill Park are part of a longer term strategy to provide our customers and the local community with an experience that engages and inspires," Mr Travlos said.
“This will be further developed over the next year when we officially launch the centre, with a range of events and festivals, permanent and temporary artworks and community development projects. We look forwarding to continuing to transform Stockland Wetherill Park to deliver more than just another shopping experience.”
A number of new innovations have also been included during the construction phase to ensure all elements of the redevelopment maintained sustainability standards. Most notable has been the delivery of the first high performance construction site office in Australia by construction partner Brookfield Multiplex.
Dennis Else, Executive Director Sustainability, Health and Safety at Brookfield Multiplex, said, “The revolutionary site office has seen significant improvements in productivity, collaboration, comfort and satisfaction among the construction workers on the Stockland Wetherill Park project. We know the impact smart design can have on people in terms of productivity in offices, wellbeing in hospitals and learning in schools. With 80 per cent of our workforce based onsite we wanted to apply this thinking to site offices.”
Stockland is proud to have the most Green Star rated shopping centres in Australia, this 5 Star rating is the first for the Stockland retail portfolio. Stockland is also rated as one of the most sustainable property companies in the world and its long term commitment to sustainability has been demonstrated by its listing on the Wold Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the last eight years.
