
Kieran Leong
VIC Architect Registration No. 17730
Glenroy Community Hub provides the City of Merri‑bek community with a welcoming, nature-inspired environment to learn, grow, celebrate and heal. We envisaged the project as an opportunity to imagine what a new model community building might be and do. Connecting the community through a garden experience, biophilic design principles are utilised to create meaningful, restorative and uplifting connections with nature.
The Hub’s centrepiece is the new contemporary library, with Glenroy Memorial Kindergarten, maternal child health, a community health provider, neighbourhood learning and childcare co-located with the library. Framing the hub as a ‘social connector’ is a key strategy to increase community awareness of the range of council services and interaction. Strong social connection points bring together diverse groups and encourage intergenerational connection.
Every local council wants and should expect value-for-money from their projects, but City of Merri‑bek set their sights higher, by expecting the project to be a catalyst for social change. Through projects like this, Merri‑bek is showing true leadership in sustainable design.
Kieran Leong
Principal, DesignInc Melbourne
The landscaped forecourt arbour provides public activity space, identity, and transition from the Bridget Shortell Reserve to the community hub. The garden experience continues into the building with internal landscaping, natural light and views and access to nature.
In a first for community buildings in Australia, the Hub is Passive House certified and Living Building Challenge Petal ready, including seeking Zero Energy. Each one a rigorous sustainability certification that measures not only environmental performance, but also demand high-comfort standards that support the health, happiness and wellbeing of users.
Key benefits, sustainability, and resiliency features
VIC Architect Registration No. 17730
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