A pier built in 1855 to serve railway ships in Geelong, Victoria, is about to become a waterfront district with a rounded high-rise at its tip. International architecture studio SOM has won the competition for the geelong pier redesign.
The project covers 10,000 square metres and is being delivered for developers Gurner Group and Costa Property Group. It will add public space, apartments, a 200-room hotel, shops and restaurants built out over Corio Bay.
A pier with a working past
Cunningham Pier was originally built to give railway access to docking ships. It received a major refurbishment in 1929. Today it is a stretch of car parking that ends in a restaurant and event space.
SOM will extend and transform the structure as part of the cunningham pier redesign. Visitors will arrive through a pedestrianised public square with water features, then walk out over the bay.
A 34-storey tower at the pier’s end
A 34-storey building will rise at the far end of the pier. At that height it will overtake the 21-storey Miramar apartment tower and become the tallest building in Geelong.
Waterfront towers are reshaping skylines elsewhere too, and Bugatti’s 60-storey Miami River tower partnership offers a comparable case of a high-rise built on the water.
In plan, the tower is trefoil-shaped. It resembles three cylinders joined together, each tapering toward the top and bottom.
Along the length of the pier, SOM plans a row of buildings with rounded edges and layered terraces. The studio says the forms reference the movement of water and marine life.
Homes, villas and floating amenities
The waterfront development will include around 280 apartments and 12 waterfront villas. Each villa will have its own yacht berth.
Activity spaces and sports courts will sit on floating platforms. Together, these elements are meant to make the pier a neighbourhood on the water, not only a place to pass through.
The geelong pier redesign: a promenade above the old structure
SOM describes an elevated public promenade as the organising spine of the scheme. The new construction stands beside the historic pier, which the design keeps in place below.
“An elevated public promenade forms the organising spine of the proposal,” SOM said. “By positioning new construction alongside the historic pier, the design preserves the existing structure below while creating a pedestrian environment above.”
Shops, restaurants and gathering places will line that route. According to SOM, they will connect the city to activities and views across Corio Bay.
For another Victorian-state project at a very different scale, Casa Piva’s seclusive Melbourne architecture shows how a home can balance privacy with openness.
The studio also plans new marine habitats at the pier to support biodiversity. “This ecological ambition forms part of a broader approach that considers the waterfront as a place for both public life and marine life,” SOM said.
Where the project fits in SOM’s portfolio
This scheme is not SOM’s only recent unveiling. The studio has also revealed a tiered skyscraper on a waterfront site in Chicago and plans for a 20-storey data centre in Kansas City.
For Cunningham Pier, the test will be whether a 34-storey tower can rise from a heritage pier without overwhelming it. The answer will shape how Geelong’s waterfront grows.
Source: dezeen.com
Frequently asked questions
Who won the competition for the Cunningham Pier redesign in Geelong?
International architecture studio SOM won the competition for the Geelong pier redesign. The project is being delivered for developers Gurner Group and Costa Property Group.
How tall will the new tower at Geelong’s pier be?
A 34-storey tower will rise at the far end of the pier. At that height it will overtake the 21-storey Miramar apartment tower and become the tallest building in Geelong.
What will be built as part of the Geelong pier redesign?
The waterfront development will include around 280 apartments and 12 waterfront villas, each with its own yacht berth. It will also include a 200-room hotel, shops, restaurants, public space, and activity spaces and sports courts on floating platforms.
What happens to the historic pier during the Cunningham Pier redesign?
The new construction stands beside the historic pier, and the design keeps the existing structure in place below. An elevated public promenade above it will serve as the organising spine of the scheme.
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