Portland, Australia

Maker’s Lane

Creating places with maker spaces.

Just west of Sydney’s Blue Mountains sits The Foundations in the town of Portland, a former cementworks manufacturing site that is now under-utilised. Meck has been engaged to bring to life the project’s Stage 1 small-lot subdivision, narrow streets and open space works.

Photo Source: Guido van Helten

Integrating Town + Country

Portland is known as the ‘Town that Built Sydney,’ and The Foundations offers the potential to be reimagined as one of the main attractions in the Blue Mountains region. Meck’s Stage 1 Pre-DA plan incorporates this vision and justifies new streets, open space, pedestrian connections, development sites and potential built form opportunities. The plan show how the Stage 1 precinct edges connect to the surrounding Town on one side and blends into countryside on the other.

Renovating Heritage Gems for Future Maker Spaces

Stage 1 ties together numerous works into a holistic place-based response. The plan incorporates the renovation works of the heritage listed cottages along Williwa Street thanks to a multi-million dollar restoration by The Foundations. The six duplexes have been restored in line with heritage guidelines and will be among the first residences and maker spaces on the site. Meck also collaborated with developer McDonald Jones to incorporate new home designs adjacent to the cottages that respected their heritage character and provided modern amenity for new residents and artists.