Noise
Suburbs located close to the city experience a range of noises. Traffic and construction noise are common, and noises associated with the high density of residential and commercial land use. The large number of pubs and clubs also create noise problems. Existing land uses can cause a problem for new resident in these highly sought after and expensive locations. For example residents in Milsons Point and McMahons Point made many complaints about the noise from rides at Luna Park. Properties close to the Harbour or Botany Bay may experience noise from naval vessels, container and passenger ships, recreational boating, and jet skis. This may affect La Perouse, Point Piper and Darling Point. Suburbs located close to the ocean would experience the sounds of the ocean. This includes Cronulla, Tamarama, Coogee and Bondi. Suburbs located underneath the flight paths from Sydney Airport are exposed to high levels of noise. This affects suburbs such as St Peters, Sydenham, Marrickville, Stanmore, Petersham, Leichhardt, Tempe, Mascot, Botany, Kurnell. Parts of suburbs located near major transport routes will also experience traffic, train and tram noise. Suburbs bordering industrial areas or ports may be impacted by noise from heavy machinery and transporting goods. This would impact suburbs such as Botany,Smithfield, Wetherill Park, Enfield and Chullora. Areas affected by the process of gentrification such as many suburbs in the inner west may be affected the noise from equipment for renovations such as sanders and grinders. Areas near large scale urban renewal projects would also be impacted by construction noise. People living in newly developed suburban areas with a high proportion of young families will be affected by noises such as children playing, barking dogs, leaf blowers, and lawn mowers. Areas with a high proportion of teenagers and young people may experience noise from revved-up cars, parties and loud car sound systems. Lifestyles The stereotypical Sydneysider spends a great deal of time on physical activity and sport and has a casual lifestyle. Sydney residents spend a fair proportion of their time in the outdoors, particularly in Summer In coastal areas this is coupled with a beach culture of hanging out on the sand or surfing. In some suburbs with strong multicultural influences, people are able to maintain cultural traditions from their country of birth, including food, language and customs.
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Street life
Street life in the city of Sydney is mainly determined by the commercial activity taking place. During the day the city is bustling with workers from nearby businesses and tourists enjoying the sites of the city. At night the pubs, clubs, theatres and restaurants encourage people to use the city to socialise and relax. In some suburbs the street life is influenced by the dominant ethnic community. In Kingsgrove, or Guildford, street life is influenced by the large Arabic population, who like to congregate in the front yard, porch or in the garage and socialise with those passing by. In Leichhardt, the Italian café culture encourages people to socialise in alfresco cafes. In newer residential areas with a young population street life is dominated by cars being washed, lawn mowed, bike riding, cricket games and children playing in parks. In other newer suburbs, the activity of children is contained within the house and street life is limited. Energy and vitality A concentration of events, people and facilities can be found in the inner city of Sydney and other smaller centres within Sydney such as Parramatta. These locations are hubs of activity, exchanges of ideas, and social activities and as such foster energy and vitality. Greater concentration of venues such as hotels and theatres are also likely to be found in these centres and are likely extend activities into the night. Suburbs with younger populations are found in the Blacktown, Liverpool and Campbelltown Local Government Areas and would tend to have more energy and vitality than those with older populations. The greying areas such as Pittwater, Hunter Hill and Kuringgai are likely to be quiet and subdued. Colour Coastal suburbs can be association with blue and yellow, representing the colours of the water and sand. Suburbs located near large national parks or areas of bushland could be seen as green suburbs. This would include St Ives, North Waroonga, North Epping. However the real green suburbs are those which have been designed to integrate environmentally friendly initiatives, for example Newington. Other green areas are those that have a high proportion of green voters, common in the inner west. Some older suburbs with heritage buildings use colours such as dark greens, maroons and blues. For example, Canterbury Council has strict regulations about the colour that homes can be painted in Ashbury. It uses a fairly strict colour palette to maintain uniformity in the suburb. Some suburbs can be associated with the colour pink due to their large gay and lesbian populations. These suburbs are also likely to be associated with a rainbow, the symbol for gay pride. These suburbs include Surry Hills, Kings Cross, Newtown and Leichhardt. Many newer suburbs in designed estates use fashionable colours such as stone and grey. As such the whole suburb is influenced by the colours preferred by the development company. Grey suburbs are those dominated by older age groups such as Bayview, Narrabeen and North Turramurra, reflecting the location of large retirement villages. Streetscapes
Streetscapes vary greatly from suburb to suburb depending on factors such as age, density, land use, and ethnicity. Suburbs close to the city centre, or parts of suburbs which are close to major transport nodes are more likely to have streetscapes impacted by high densities housing developments. In older areas, this may mean fairly uniform streetscapes with blocks of 2 to 4 storey, red brick or cream unit blocks, limited trees, and garages visible from the street. In newer developments much larger blocks of units are likely with many balconies facing towards the street, large driveways and some landscaping. Suburbs with distinct heritage features will often have the facades of shop fronts preserved to reflect the period of development. An example of this is The Strand, the main street of Croydon, and nearby Edwin st. The railway station and commercial properties including the Croydon Post Office are considered significant buildings and have been preserved. The commercial streetscape is a broad shopping street with gardens running down the middle of the street. Shops have recessed balconies, semi-circular brick arches, parapets, stained glass and glazed, and ceramic tiles. A wide awning joins the shops together, and heritage colours are used. Homes in the Victorian, Federation and Californian Bungalow styles are common in nearby streets. Residential streetscapes in Croydon are dominated by tree lined streets, chimney stacks, gables, and ridge capping. Homes are usually set back from the road, providing a uniform look along the street. Suburbs with a distinct ethnic character often have this reflected in the streetscape. Signs are often multi-lingual, and cultural symbols are often seen in architecture or public art works. The streetscape of Cabramatta reflects the dominance of Vietnamese and China culture. John Street, the main street, is dominated by the Pailau Chinese gateway, adorned with Chinese symbols, and script in Chinese, Vietnamese, Khmer and English. Nearby a number of stone statues of animals line the main street. These animals, including dragons and lions, are considered in Chinese culture to bring luck and prosperity. The streetscape is also influenced by the prevalence of shops trading beyond the boundaries of their shops out onto the footpath. This gives the main street a “market-style” feel and look. Red and gold trim are also used on many shops which further contributes to the Asian-influenced streetscape. Temples and shrines have also influenced the streetscapes of Cabramatta, with the use of gateways, stone statues, vibrant red, yellows, blues and gold. Low-density, suburban development of Sydney followed World War II. It was constrained by a shortage of housing materials and as a result, fibro cement became popular for working class houses in areas such as Fairfield, Guildford, Liverpool, Blacktown and Penrith. Some cream and red brick homes were also built in these areas. Many of these homes have been subjected to the “knock-down rebuild” phenomenon and as a result suburbs in these areas have streetscapes which are varied with a mix or older housing and new. Brick was used for homes in middle class areas such as Winston Hills. On the outskirts of Sydney, as land becomes available for development it is common for housing developers such as Delfin and Mirvac to develop land enmasse using a set of standard houses to create designed suburbs, or masterplanned estates. The result is somewhat uniformed streetscapes of McMansions. Homes close to the street, with large garages, vaulted entries, columns, and large windows. Roofs lack eaves to allow house to be built closer together, and are built with narrow fenceless frontyards to make the most of available land. These estates are common in Kellyville, Baulkham Hills and Castle Hill, and many areas currently under development. Architecture The city of Sydney has many buildings with relatively modern, distinctive architectural styles such as the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, however heritage style architecture as one of the distinctive features of city. Many housing developments on the outskirts of Sydney since the 1980s have been constructed by the project home industry. Project homes are also a common option for “knock-down rebuild” porperties in the middle-ring suburbs. Designed for the average family, these homes are typically very large in size, take up a large proportion of available land, and tend to provide more space per person than any other affordable housing type in Sydney’s history. They tend to blend a range of different architectural styles, and offer exterior aesthetics based on a “contemporary”, “classic” or “heritage” look. They can consist of a formal living room, a rumpus room, a formal lounge, 4 or 5 bedrooms, a grand entrance, and often a central staircase. These constructions tend to create a homogeneous neighbourhood. In inner and middle-ring Sydney suburbs it is very common for homes to be altered rather than knocked down. Evidence of various waves of immigration after 1950 can be seen in the alterations made to some older homes. For example in Roseberry, Greek, Italian and later Middle Eastern migrants made changes to homes which are now deemed unsympathetic to the architectural heritage of the area. These included the construction of columns, balustrades, aluminium windows and cement rendering. More recently it has become commonplace for the front façade of older home to be restored, while the back end of the home is almost entirely opened-up to allow for seamless integration of the outside Heritage architecture
Heritage buildings in Sydney generally fall into one of the following categories of architecture: Gothic Revival, Georgian, Classical, Romanesque, Italianate, Federation, Edwardian, French Second Empire, or Queen Anne. The city of Sydney A large number of heritage buildings remain in Sydney. In many cases, these buildings are restored and renovated to ensure their continued use. In other cases the facades of heritage building are retained, while more modern buildings are constructed around or behind them. The Town Hall and Macquarie Street precincts are examples of the heritage architecture found in Sydney which has been maintained and restored. Town Hall precinct Three landmark heritage buildings are located in the vicinity of Town Hall on George Street - the Queen Victoria Building, Town Hall and St Andrew’s Cathedral. The Queen Victoria Building, built in the 1880s, has been restored to enhance the remaining Victorian features of the building, including restoration of the external sandstone façade and carvings, use of a Victorian-inspired colour theme and tessellated tiles for flooring. In addition, modern shop fronts have been designed to minimise distraction from the original features of the building. Sydney Town, located adjacent to the QVB building, is based on French Second Empire architecture. Begun in 1868, it is built from sandstone sourced from nearby Pyrmont. The architecture includes mansard roofs, wrought iron cresting, a large stepped entrance, and balconies and platforms suitable for public receptions. Recent restoration work has included restoring and cleaning the façade and the clock tower. In some cases this has involved re-carving intricate pieces of sandstone. Article: Old trade, new look: stonemasons carve town hall a new face. Watch the Stonemasons in action at Sydney Town Hall. Next to the Town Hall is St Andrew’s Cathedral. The oldest cathedral in Australia, it was completed by 1868, and was designed based on Gothic Revival architecture. It contains a hammerbeam roof, carved sandstone ribbons and piers, marble and pressed-design tiles, and stained glass windows. In 2000, the cathedral underwent a major restoration. The entire floor of the cathedral was lifted, cleaned and relayed. Any damage tiles were replaced. Macquarie Street precinct The Macquarie Street precinct contains a number of early colonial buildings including the Hyde Park Barracks, NSW Parliament House, the Mint, Sydney Hospital, and St James Church. Sydney Grammar School, St Mary’s Cathedral, Government House, the General Post Office, the Great Synagogue, the Strand and Customs House are located nearby. Several of the buildings were designed by architect and convict Francis Greenway between 1818-1822. Each of these buildings has had ongoing restoration work completed. United Brewery – Central Park Development In some cases it is not appropriate or cost effective for heritage buildings to be restored, or the previous use may deem much of the building inappropriate for future use. The Central Park Development on Broadway, Sydney, is located on the former site of the Carlton and United Brewery. The Brewery began operation in 1835 as Kent Brewery, and was acquired by Carlton and United in 1983. The brewery ceased operations in 2005. Frasers Property and Sekisui House are jointly developing the site which includes the brewery, along with a large number of buildings and associated structures, and some nearby properties. Some of the industrial buildings will be retained and converted, and some will be demolished. Some items that represent the history of the site will be retained such as signage, and machinery such as beer vats and malting tanks. Two heritage streetscapes have been retained and restored, and terraces, pubs and warehouses nearby have been revitalised for cafes, shops, galleries. Sydney Suburbs The oldest buildings in Sydney are located in and around Parramatta including Old Government House and Experiment Farm, and Elizabeth Farm in Rosehill. Terrace houses were a feature of Sydney from the 1830s and are seen in the inner suburbs. They are common in suburbs such as Paddington, The Rocks, Ultimo, Kirribilli, Balmain, Newtown, Bondi Junction, Milsons Point, Forest Lodge, North Sydney, Glebe, Surry Hills, Alexandria, Redfern, Leichhardt, Erskinville and Darlinghurst. Terrace houses were usually constructed in rows, and most commonly were two stories. They were often decorated with filigree of cast-iron or wrought iron, parapets, and detailed dividing walls. Workers cottages were popular in the Victorian period (1845-1900). These often had cast-iron lacework, bull-nosed verandahs or hipped roofs, and at times timber fretwork. Many timber cottages have been demolished, but many weatherboard cottages remain. Workers cottages developed at a time when industry was thriving in the city, and people were most likely to walk to work. They were common in inner city suburbs such as Leichhardt, Surry Hills, Redfern and Balmain, but were also found in other suburbs nearby to industries. In Homebush, workers cottages developed close to the abattoirs and brickworks. Brick workers cottages became more popular as bricks became less expensive. Federation architecture occurred between 1890-1915. Common features of these homes are decorative timber features, tall chimneys and roofs, fret work, Australian themes and verandahs. A Federation home had a large garden, and was a sign of prosperity. Following the end of World War I, as a result of a lack of tradesmen and supplies, Federation Homes were seen as too extravagant and went into decline. Suburbs with examples of Federation homes include Penshurst, Turramurra, Millers Point, however they are common in many areas as the availability of cars increased the suburbanisation of Sydney. Californian Bungalows were constructed between approximately 1915 and 1945. These are defined by gabled roofs, pillars supporting a verandah, stone, brick and timber materials, and are traditionally painted in dark greens, reds and blues. Californian Bungalows are common in the suburbs of Ashfield, Concord, Lane Cove, Beecroft, Pennant Hills, Coogee, Clovelly and Parramatta. These houses reflected the changes that were occurring in the society. They were less pretentious than Federation houses, more accessible to the average person and lanes down the side of the house allowed space for a car. Above: Photo from the Central Park sales building. Yesterday I attended a forum on the use of green walls and roofs in Sydney. The forum was part of the Sydney Design series and put on by the Powerhouse Museum and City of Sydney Council. This was an examination of the issues associated with city living, the need for sustainability to be considered in city design, and the solutions offered by green roofs and walls. The presenters were Sacha Coles, a director at landscape architecture firm ASPECT Studios, professor Stuart White, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Futures, and Lucy Sharman, Senior Project Officer Green Roofs and Walls, City of Sydney. I will attempt to do justice to their ideas. What is a green roof? Structurally a green roof consists of waterproofing, a membrane, soil and plants. To be considered as a "green roof" over 30% of the surface must be covered in vegetation. What is a green wall? The definition of a green wall is less restrictive. It can be something being grown up a wall (such as a vine), planter boxes next to a wall with plants reaching up and along the wall, or a vertical forest installation such as the work of Patrick Blanc. Urbanisation and sustainability An increasing proportion of people live in the world's cities. Initially we can see this as exacerbating the world's environmental problems with issues of housing demands, increased pressure on food supply from the farmland on the periphery of the city, photochemical smog, loss of open space, storm water pollution, and a raft of other problems. However, we need to think of cities as centres of sustainability. The increased density associated with city living can actually mean that cities can provide viable sustainability solutions. Increased densities result in decreased car dependency, easier transport solutions, less need to lay new roads, electrical lines and water (unlike new developments in new suburban areas on the outskirts of cities) . Architectural innovations such as green walls and roofs can provide cities with the ability to improve their capacity to feed themselves, filter their water and waste, and moderate temperatures associated with the urban heat island effect. Globally some cities are already making a grey to green transition. These include Chicago, Basel, London, Stuttgart.
How can governments encourage GRW? Some cities around the world have begun introducing incentive program's to encourage GRW. These include: - subsidies - fee reductions - reduced storm water & levee fees - density bonuses - awards - education programs - technical support and advice - mandatory legislation In Sydney there are still some barriers to widespread use of GRW. It is still quite poorly understood, there are technical issues and cost barriers, and industry is not quick to embrace it.
In the City of Sydney currently:
27 green walls 53 green roofs in Sydney 94,000msq At least one DA each week which incorporates a green wall or roof. Documents from the City of Sydney Council that support sustainability and Green roof and walls developments. - Sydney 2030 - Greening Sydney Plan 2012 - Green Roofs and Walls Strategy Check out other upcoming events at PowerHouse Museum as part of Sydney Design 2013. Relevance to the classroom So how can this information be integrated into the classroom? After all, this blog is supposed to be about teaching. If you are using Sydney as your large city case study in Year 12 Geography Urban Places, this fits in perfectly. I'm considering looking at Central Park specifically and how this development gives us some hope of the improved sustainability of development in the city. I will also tie it in with a number of other examples of development around the city. My previous blog about the Inner West Light Rail extension fits in well with this topic too. Click for lessons on Sustainability in Sydney for Yr 12. There is scope to look at cities and sustainability in the broad sense in Year 11 Geography when you are examining the Population topic and looking at social, economic and environmental impacts of population growth. This also ties in with some of the presentations at the Australian Geography Teachers Association Conference in January from Professor Peter Newman about the transformation of Cheonggyecheon River in Seoul and Singapore as a biophyllic city. You could also tie this in with Year 10 Geography Australia's Future as part of a broader discussion on sustainable development in Australia. Why not create a vertical garden in your classroom or somewhere in your school? Flower Power currently sell a frame and planters to create your own vertical garden. It is only about 1m by 1m and will cost about $300 to set up but it would be a great way to attract some attention to your faculty or even your school depending on the scale. You may even be able to access a grant from your local council. We are all used to running geography fieldwork for the physical geography topics like Coastal Management, Land and Water Management, Biophysical Interactions and Ecosystems At Risk. There are various companies that run great excursions for these topics, but when you get to the human geography topics it isn't so easy to find pre-organised excursions. For my Year 11 Geography class I've taught the compulsory Population topic, and then Cultural Integration as one of the optional topics. We've examined the topic of refugees as part of an exploration of population movements, so I decided on a trip to Cabramatta to explore the impact of the Vietnamese community on this south-west Sydney suburb. I suggested this as an option on the online group Geography Teachers Online. As a result, I met up with a couple of teachers to thrash out some ideas about options for fieldwork. Some of the ideas we came up with were: - questionnaire of local residents - land use survey - urban transect of the Main Street - environmental survey - a photo essay based on cultural influences in the suburb - an interview with a local government representative/Councillor Cabramatta Library is located a short walk from the railway station. They offer a presentation on how the suburb has changed over time and are very obliging to school groups. They provide a half hour video on the development of Fairfield Local Government Area covering indigenous history, early colonial development, the market farms, education, rail development and migration. The presentation focuses on the Fairfield Local Government Area as a whole rather than Cabramatta itself, but this provides an excellent idea of the context in which Cabramatta developed. Following this there was a presentation on Cabramatta itself focusing on statistical information from the Census. It is also possible to organise a walking tour through the local council with a guide included, but they require about a months notice.
There are lots of opportunities for students to try different foods and drinks. For lunch, we went to Guan An Bau Troung, located on the main street, John St.The students all ordered a dish of their own and then I ordered a few different dishes for them to try and share. The food was really cheap and the servings were huge, even for boys who eat their weight in food in a single sitting. Obviously I had to check all the allergies, anaphylaxis risks involved, but I really think sharing a meal is a great bonding experience for a class.
If you want to have a look at the fieldwork activities we used the Cabramatta Excursion page of the www.preliminarygeography.hsieteachers.com site.
Back in the classroom we are going to analyse the field data a few different ways. - Students' field sketches will be scanned and shared. An analysis of the various cultural influences will be written. - We will create radar graphs from the environmental surveys - The questionnaire results will be shared amongst the class. Results will be tallied, and the implications of results considered. Is this community self-contained? Do residents spend most of their lives in and around the suburb? Is the ethnic background of residents still predominantly Vietnamese? The great thing about using Cabramatta as a fieldwork site in Year 11 is that is also a great case study for the following HSC year. You can refer back to it and draw on the students' experience when you are short on time and trying to maximise time in class. Cabramatta makes a great study for looking at ethnicity in Sydney as part of the Urban Places topic. You can find a summary of this part of the course that I wrote last year for HSC Online. A key issue in the sustainability of Sydney is its car-dependence. Every improvement in public transport is a step towards improving Sydney's sustainability. The Inner West Light Rail Extension involves utilising former freight lines to extend light rail services from Lilyfield to Dulwich Hill. Community groups have also been lobbying for the continuation of a Greenway Trail along the light rail corridor to link up with the Cooks River cycleway. The combination of both light rail and the Greenway will encourage public transport use and cycling/walking both for recreation and commuting, reducing some of the car dependence in this part of Sydney. There are also plans to develop light rail between Circular Quay and Kingsford.
Inner West Light Rail Extension. Read... Greenway Trail. Read... NSW State Budget to give Sydney light rail project $75m funding boost. Read... More councils sign on to Sydney's extended light rail. Read... Stalled greenway corridor plan fades from Coalition's map. Read more.. Read more... |
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