Wait, you're doing what with the building?
In 2019 we began planning to transform a three storey warehouse into a green building, community hub and business precinct, built on the idea of localism, sustainability and ethical consumerism.
The building is located on Gadigal Wangal land, in Summer Hill, and has stood vacant for 16 years. The building will house retail, food and beverage offerings, offices, maker spaces, community areas, a theatre, recycling hub and event space for workshops, films, exhibitions, talks and live music. Every dollar spent in the building will go towards making a positive social or environmental impact.
We all agree it’s a lot to fit into one building, so we’re lucky to have a team of volunteers, including architects, who have been working on turning this vision into a reality over the past two and a half years.
A green building, in the heart of Sydney's Inner West
Our team is working with the building owner to incorporate sustainability strategies and in doing so, turn the existing structure into an operational green living building.
The project is driven by various sustainability initiatives to ensure it’s low-impact on the environment throughout construction and operation. This includes solar paneling, vertical gardens, rainwater tanks and a green waste management system, both for in-house use and as a drop in service for the community.
We have engaged with sustainability consultants and sustainable suppliers and are also working with UNSW’s SMaRT Centre on a very special feature for the building, which you can find out more about here.
Sounds too good to be true? Become a tenant and help make it a reality!
We are now seeking expressions of interest from potential tenants who may want to take up residency in the building. Tenants can be anyone from creatives, educators, social enterprises, not-for-profits, service providers or local and for-purpose businesses.Â
We would like to hear from people who are looking for more than just a space to do business as usual. This is an invitation to be part of a mass collaboration amongst like-minded people and an opportunity to create something truly unique for the community. All tenants must be actively engaged in creating some kind of positive social or environmental impact.
Our formal Expression of Interest for tenants will be released soon. In the meanwhile you can contact us here to find out more about available spaces.
So, how on earth are we going to achieve this?
Great question! An idea is only as good as the people behind it. And, while our team of around 35 volunteers have been working hard on getting the building open for the past couple of years, we still need your support. By August 2022 we need the following five things to be able to sign a lease and get the building open by January 2023. Want to donate to our renovation costs or think you’d like to chat or collaborate? Donate or contact us here.
Development Application
Our DA needs to be submitted and approved by our local council. A team of architects, specialists and a town planner are working pro bono to get this done.
Funding
The owner of the building is doing a $1M renovation, yet we will still need around $350k for renovations. So far we have a $35k grant which is 10% of our total.
Tenants
We need pre-commitments from enough tenants to cover our lease & fill all of our spaces. We are in ongoing talks with interested potential tenants.
Partners
Collaboration is at the heart of all we do and we would be nothing without our partners. More dynamic partnerships are needed to get the building open.
Members
Our main income is from memberships, so when you become a Member, you're not only joining a grassroots co-op, you're also helping to keep the lights on.
Want to help get the building open?
Or learn more about membership first!
