Abstract
The Australian garden suburb occupies a significant cultural, symbolic, and physical place in
Australian society. From the mid 20th century, suburban identity was strongly linked to the
concept of living in the landscape be it a backyard, a bush setting, or simply an abundance of
open space. These values were expressed in the Australian garden suburb, and this was
exemplified by Canberra’s urban development from the 1950s to the 1980s. More recently
city planners have had to come to terms with the competing forces of urban migration,
competition for development control, and rapid spread of city boundaries and these changing
forces have been played out in the suburbs. As a result, today’s suburban development is
substantially different to that of the post war garden suburb.
This paper reports on a study of 250 homes rebuilt after the 2003 Canberra bushfires. It
argues the planning regulations that govern building envelopes do not take into consideration
the landscape impact of redevelopment in garden suburbs, and that planning controls should
consider sanctioning landscape spaces on residential blocks subject to redevelopment. It
argues a whole of landscape emphasis is needed as planning authorities manage change in
suburban structure and form resulting from redevelopment.
Australian society. From the mid 20th century, suburban identity was strongly linked to the
concept of living in the landscape be it a backyard, a bush setting, or simply an abundance of
open space. These values were expressed in the Australian garden suburb, and this was
exemplified by Canberra’s urban development from the 1950s to the 1980s. More recently
city planners have had to come to terms with the competing forces of urban migration,
competition for development control, and rapid spread of city boundaries and these changing
forces have been played out in the suburbs. As a result, today’s suburban development is
substantially different to that of the post war garden suburb.
This paper reports on a study of 250 homes rebuilt after the 2003 Canberra bushfires. It
argues the planning regulations that govern building envelopes do not take into consideration
the landscape impact of redevelopment in garden suburbs, and that planning controls should
consider sanctioning landscape spaces on residential blocks subject to redevelopment. It
argues a whole of landscape emphasis is needed as planning authorities manage change in
suburban structure and form resulting from redevelopment.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | State of Australian Cities National Conference |
| Editors | Promaco |
| Place of Publication | Perth, Australia |
| Publisher | Promaco Conventions Pty Ltd |
| Pages | 1-25 |
| Number of pages | 25 |
| Volume | 1 |
| ISBN (Print) | 0 86308 161 5 |
| Publication status | Published - 2009 |
| Event | City Growth, Sustainability, Vitality and Vulnerability - Perth, Australia Duration: 24 Nov 2009 → 27 Nov 2009 |
Conference
| Conference | City Growth, Sustainability, Vitality and Vulnerability |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | Australia |
| City | Perth |
| Period | 24/11/09 → 27/11/09 |