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The Great Place Award

This Award recognises a ‘Great Place, Street or Neighbourhood’ in Australia.

Great Places have a true sense of place, cultural and historical interest, community involvement and a vision for tomorrow. Great Places offer better choices for where and how people work and live. They are enjoyable, safe and desirable. They are places where people want to be — not only to visit, but to live and work every day. Great streets, neighbourhoods and public spaces are defined by many criteria, including architectural features, accessibility, functionality, environmental compatibility and community involvement.

PLACE

A public space may be a gathering spot or part of a neighbourhood, downtown, special district, waterfront or other area within the public realm that helps promote social interaction and a sense of community. Possible examples may include such spaces as plazas, town squares, parks, marketplaces, public commons and malls, public greens, piers, special areas within convention centres or grounds, sites within public buildings, lobbies, concourses, or public spaces within private buildings.

Characteristics of a Great Place include:

• Promotes human contact and social activities.
• Is safe, welcoming and accommodating for all users.
• Has design and architectural features that are visually interesting.
• Promotes community involvement.
• Reflects the local culture or history.
• Relates well to bordering uses.
• Is well-maintained.
• Has a unique or special character.

STREET

A street comprises the entire three-dimensional visual corridor, including the public realm and how it relates to the adjacent land uses. Submissions should document the street’s character across this realm. Streets of different types are eligible, ranging from pedestrian realms through to arterial roadways, but each should have a definable beginning and end. Special emphasis is placed on streets that are complete, that is, streets that service and take into account all users — not just motor vehicles.

Characteristics of a Great Street include:

• Provides orientation to its users, and connects well to the larger pattern of ways.
• Balances the competing needs of the street — driving, transit, walking, cycling, servicing, parking, drop-offs, etc.
• Fits the topography and capitalises on natural features.
• Is lined with a variety of interesting activities and uses that create a varied streetscape.
• Has urban design or architectural features that are exemplary in design.
• Relates well to its bordering uses — allows for continuous activity, doesn’t displace pedestrians to provide access to bordering uses.
• Encourages human contact and social activities.
• Employs hardscape and/or landscape to great effect.
• Promotes safety of pedestrians and vehicles and promotes use over the 24-hour day.
• Promotes sustainability through minimising runoff, reusing water, ensuring groundwater quality, minimizing heat islands and responding to climatic demands.
• Is well-maintained and capable of being maintained without excessive costs.
• Has a memorable character.

NEIGHBOURHOOD

A neighbourhood can be based on a specific plan or the result of a more organic process. Neighbourhoods of different kinds are eligible - downtown, urban, suburban, exurban, town, small village - but should have a definable sense of boundary.

Characteristics of a Great Neighbourhood include:

• Has a variety of functional attributes that contribute to a resident’s day-to-day living (i.e. residential, commercial or mixed-uses).
• Accommodates multi-modal transportation (i.e. pedestrians, cyclists and drivers).
• Has design and architectural features that are visually interesting.
• Encourages human contact and social activities.
• Promotes community involvement and maintains a secure environment.
• Promotes sustainability and responds to climatic demands.
• Has a memorable character.

Who Might Apply?

Nominations to be received from the public, an organisation or a PIA member.