Frasers Property Australia is setting out to build the world’s most sustainable shopping centre, complete with a working farm on the roof.
A 2000sqm rooftop urban farm and restaurant will be located at the Burwood Brickworks development, 15km from Melbourne’s CBD.
Frasers Property executive GM of retail Peri Macdonald says the concept will transform the way we think about the impact of hospitality and retail on the environment.
“This is an Australian first, that will completely reconsider how food is sourced and provided by retailers,” he says.
“Two thousand square metres of productive agricultural space has been evenly split between greenhouses, external planter boxes and landscaped growing areas.”
Frasers Property have partnered with eco-warrior Joost Bakker on the project, which is expected to begin construction in mid-2018 for a 2019 opening.
“Mulching excess organic material for compost, implementing ‘closed loop’ water reduction management and limiting food and waste transportation are just some of the measures that will be employed on the rooftop to lessen the ecological footprint,” says Bakker.
“There is such a hunger for this kind of development throughout the world. New consumers want to shop, eat and relax in environments that truly support a sustainable world.”