The winning competition entry by architecture practice EM BE CE for a significant affordable housing development in Sydney is testament to a simple, yet important fact in the context of Australia’s housing crisis.

Good design needs to be durable, low-maintenance and efficient – but it still needs to be good design. EM BE CE’s scheme for City West Housing in Alexandria provides a key example ofhow achieving one should not have to mean sacrificing the other.

The client, City West Housing, is focused on providing affordable housing through a model thatbuilds, holds and operates their projects, ensuring a commitment to long-term thinking and efficient,well-built buildings. This project is set to feature more than 100 units with a design that prioritises community, structural efficiency, thoughtful spatial planning, shared outdoor spaces and site-specific architectural responses, ultimately doing more with less.

While there is no one-size-fits-all solution to the housing affordability crisis, EM BE CE’s winning scheme provides a model for how to approach it as designers. It begins with strong architectural principles. The building takes form initially as a response to existing trees on what is a notable corner site, providing curves that celebrate the trees and mark out the main communal spaces through connection to landscape. Meanwhile, the masonry façade as a whole is a standout featureof the project. Dignified and distinctive, its language of deep brick blades creates privacy while orchestrating views and access to natural light.

The materiality is part of a wider approach centring on structural efficiency and durability. A highly efficient structural grid and incorporation of modular design allow the building to be truly robust,creating the space for meaningful design of private residential and communal areas. The design teamhas also made smart, effective moves such as consolidating service cores and circulation in order tomaximise the quantity of housing on offer.

Outdoors, a central shared garden maintains multiple points of connection with residential areas,while intelligent circulation design allows for incidental communal spaces within the building.Interms of orientation, the number of south-facing units is kept to an absolute minimum and cross-ventilation is prioritised throughout.

The rigorous, thoughtful spatial planning then extends into theindividual units, where compact spaces are given natural light, protected from road noise and includenotable amenities such as study nooks – again showing that affordability can be achieved withoutlosing internal amenity.

EM BE CE’s winning design is defined by its rigorous long-term thinking and overall flexibility.Affordable housing design doesn’t have a template, but this project provides an illustration of how robust architectural skills are needed to address its challenges.

Care for community and quality housing are the principles at the heart of the design, based on a substantial foundation of efficient structural planning, durable materials and sound spatial planning. The result is a dignified, elegant design that does more with less – bringing a distinctive new presence to the city and demonstrating how good design can achieve quality housing for all.