The Regis Hillcrest project is an aged cared development located in Western Australia comprising of 101 care rooms and 8 larger apartments. The development provides a significant upgrade to the current facility thus allowing Hillcrest to continue to offer high quality care to the ageing community of North Fremantle.
A magnificent heritage listed ‘Hillcrest Residence’ is located in the south-eastern portion of the site and has been refurbished and incorporated into the redevelopment resulting in a significant improvement of the heritage value of the site.
The development has been awarded 4 Star Green Star design under the Healthcare Design v1 tool and is now targeting as-built certification. The building has been designed to maximise views to the outdoor for occupants and building users, with 81% of internal spaces (excluding basement, ensuites and plant rooms) offering a direct line of sight to the external environment. Some other features that contributed to the Green Star rating include high efficiency air-conditioning and lighting, as well as low-flow sanitary fixtures and fittings, sustainable building materials, and low VOC interiors.
The use of Green Star tools is now extremely well-understood by the majority of the industry and a number of criteria can be considered standard practice. Nonetheless, in order to ensure a successful project it is critical that the client is committed to target Green Star certification from the project inception, and that clear communication between all stakeholders is maintained throughout the design and construction phases. It is also very important that the appointed GSAP is able to convey the Green Star philosophy to the team and guide the various consultants through the specific requirements necessary to demonstrate compliance. In fact, the use of the ‘right’ language and format when compiling the evidence for the project is critical to minimise delays during the submission process.