Fernvale Village Shopping Centre
Fernvale Village Shopping Centre // Qld Architecture Awards, Darling Downs Regional Commendation
Situated on the site of the former timber sawmill, Fernvale Village is a low scaled shopping centre on the main road through the town. Integrated into the streetscape, the large supermarket box is buried behind the activated pedestrian zones of the master plan. This is achieved by creating an architecture whereby the retail shopfront streetscape becomes the verandah edge with the ‘big box’ hidden behind. Dynamic structural cantilevers, scale variations and translucent materiality combine with colour and signage to break down the building mass to interesting regional scale appropriate to location.
The verandah controls all pedestrian circulation linking the small specialty tenancies with the larger major stores and providing a link to future master planned stages. In terms of efficient, sustainable, passive design the verandah is a large naturally lit ventilated zone which also provides shade and weather protection to the shop fronts.
The highway frontage footpath awning is particularly spectacular, lighting the long graphic mural by artist Robert Moore. The street front mural depicts the sites’ history as a hub for the local timber industry. The mural is 36m long x 2.4m high and animates the supermarket façade to the highway.
