Habitat on Juers is about peopleand community and focusses on a progressive way of living and working locally as well as ageing in place – the whole is so much more than the sum of its parts. Juers is an example good design overcoming pre-conceived biases against higher density housing development projects without impacting the community. Stepping from single-storey terrace houses on the street edge, to two storeys at the rear of the site, the scale of the architecture responds to the neighbouring-built form whilst maximising privacy fromthe street.

Steering the design are strategies based on providing opportunities for residents to choose between connecting or retreating from their neighbours. Linking the clusters of units is acentral biophilic heart-space with shared amenities for the residents. Each unit overlooks the garden, affording connection and security through surveillance. Habitat on Juers pushes the envelope on typical housing typologies and is a role model in demonstrating good social and affordable housing design for the Australian context.

Juersfeels different – it was inexpensive to build and manages high standards of accessibility, amenity, and sustainability but most importantly it’s a place to live, play and work happilywith pride of place.