Ian Armstrong
NSW Architect Registration No. 7260
15 Ward Avenue
On a sliver of land in Potts Point, 15 Ward Avenue proves that ambitious urban living can flourish within the tightest of footprints.
Small Site, Grand Design
For years, the long-vacant site was little more than a gap in the neighbourhood; three empty garages occupying a pocket of land with an uncertain future. This was until Macintosh Group approached DesignInc with a bold proposition—to transform it into a spirited co-living address that felt unmistakably at home in Potts Point.
The challenge was written in the dimensions; measuring just eight by eight metres (only 64sqm) and contained within an irregular lot, the site was the smallest DesignInc had ever tackled for a co-living project. Every design decision would need to work harder.
Creativity Within Parameters
These constraints became the project’s creative engine. Now, rising from the former parking lot, are six precisely planned studios, a shared living room and a rooftop garden that opens the compact building to the sky. At street level, a generous entrance sits alongside space for a boutique espresso bar, lending the development a welcome civic presence and a touch of neighbourhood theatre.
The result is assured, rather than overstated. Contemporary in expression yet attentive to its setting, the building slips neatly into the streetscape, complementing the area’s already established architecture.
15 Ward Avenue is ultimately a lesson in the potential of the overlooked. Through careful planning and architectural economy, an awkward remnant site now contributes new housing, shared amenities and movement to the city. For DesignInc, it is a compelling case for thoughtful infill—and a reminder that, in dense urban neighbourhoods, the smallest sites can carry the biggest ideas.
People
Lodi Van Eeghen
NSW Architect Registration No. 9477
