Kaizen: Culture 01 Kaizen: a Japanese Philosophy Which Focuses on Continual Improvement
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Kaizen: Culture 01 Kaizen: a Japanese philosophy which focuses on continual improvement Melbourne Recital Centre Designed by ARM Architecture1 Photo by Slattery Kaizen: Culture 01 Evolving culture, chasing dreams: Cost considerations for new cultural infrastructure Governments are recognising the Provision of open spaces for Culture underwrites value of culture and cultural diversity, communities as gathering spaces for the appeal of not just in cities but in regional and expression and celebration is equally rural communities across Australia. important. any community. Impacting wellbeing and local economies, its effect is transformative. Culture is what differentiates cities What are the costs Australian governments combined now and communities: contributing to spend somewhere between place-making; cultivating community and the benefits $0.75-1 billion on capital works well-being, connectivity and self- annually (ABS, 2017). development through engagement of investment with arts and culture; activating in cultural These are places where culture can neighbourhoods; driving cultural flourish – the expansion and renewal tourism and the economy. Arts and infrastructure? of key cultural assets – such as Sydney culture paves the way for renewal and Opera House, the State Library of regeneration in both city and country Victoria, ACMI, and construction of new areas, benefiting communities and libraries, public artworks to enliven developers alike. streetscapes, performing arts venues as well as galleries and museums. Geelong Library and Heritage Centre The new Geelong Library and Heritage Centre is a diverse facility incorporating a library, function centre, heritage repository and café over a six level building in the midst of the Geelong Cultural Precinct. Within weeks of opening, the centre provided clear evidence of the impact redevelopment can have on the precinct. In the first 12 weeks after opening the library tripled its patronage prior to demolition, experiencing 130,000 visitors. During this period its neighbour, the Geelong Gallery also experienced increased visitation in the order of 35% which reflects flow-on from increased pedestrian traffic in the precinct. Now, over three years on, over four million visitors have passed through its doors. It is projected that government investment will be repaid in five years, and combined with a redeveloped Arts Centre and Gallery, will contribute over $30 million to Geelong’s Gross Regional Product every year. Geelong Library and Heritage Centre Designed by ARM Architecture2 Photo courtesy Emma Cross Australian Centre for Contemporary Art Designed by Wood Marsh Architecture Photo courtesy John Gollings Cultural visitors stay 25% longer Tasmania’s Museum of Old and New Signposts to life and spend 20% more, growing state Art (MONA), is an extraordinary Dynamic, sculptural and iconic, new economies. In Australia, international design by Fender Katsalidis, created cultural facilities quickly become part of visitation is only set to grow, with an investment of over $100 the lexicon of local culture. Investment particularly as fast growing economies million of private money. MONA now benefits the immediate community in China and other Asia-Pacific attracts over 330,000 interstate and and is a strategic proposition, countries develop, enabling greater international visitors who contribute improving liveability, triggering new mobility. By 2030, 1 billion people from over $760 million to the state’s connections. It is also a reason to visit Asia will have disposable income to economy annually. In addition to art, a city, generating significant economic travel. All Australian governments are MONA promotes Tasmania’s hospitality, bounce, to experience how we live. investing in infrastructure, domestic food and wine through annual events Australian cultural industries now and international campaigns to grow including the Dark MoFo festival which contribute over $50 billion a year in market share. brings over 420,000 people to events economic activity with cultural tourism staged across Hobart. The Boston Consulting Group an important part of this contribution. determined international cultural Partnering with MONA, the Tasmanian visitors spend $1 billion per year in Government will now present Geelong Library and Melbourne alone, with arts and culture MoFo (MONA Festival of Music the biggest driver for visitation outside and Art) in Launceston from 2019, Heritage Centre of people visiting family and friends. spreading the love to the state’s This is projected to increase to $2.5 northern capital, generating $50 million billion by 2025, with the combined per year for the local economy. domestic and international to grow by 8%, to an overall $5.7 billion. Many communities are seeking the MONA effect in their town, to capture In 2015, NSW received over 11.4 experiential spending through a model million cultural and heritage visitors, that can clearly allow regional cities generating $11.2 billion for the state’s and towns to thrive if done well, and economy. Almost 60% visited museums continue to draw bigger attendees or galleries. to our major cities. Cultural tourism is clearly lucrative and important to Australia’s future economy. 3 Compared to commercial and residential Costing culture projects, arts and cultural projects will So how is an arts and culture project often require maximum flexibility within different to another kind of civic facility spatial design to future-proof and ensure or one for commercial or residential relevance to the final changing users purposes? of the facility. Achieving this can be a challenge when working with numerous Slattery’s portfolio spreads across stakeholder groups; from the council or the gamut of construction projects government project team, design teams with many years’ experience in the as well as councillors, user groups and cultural sector; working with state other members of the community who governments, local councils as well as may be involved. Compromise is critical to many universities and private investors negotiate and value manage both feature to develop new facilities, repurpose and functionality. Sometimes the architect heritage buildings, and renew existing and design team’s vision can be totally and well-cherished spaces that need lost if design decisions are not thoroughly upgrading. worked through and fully understood from the outset. Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, The University of Melbourne Slattery has been working with The University of Melbourne on the forthcoming Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, a major project designed by John Wardle Architects and under construction on Sturt Street, Southbank adjacent to the Melbourne Recital Centre. It will offer superior music performance and education facilities; a lively, unique and specifically arts-focused environment that will be an important forum for community engagement with music and the arts. As is usually the case with complex projects, the project experienced budget pressures from the outset. Slattery oversaw a collaborative value management process for all key stakeholders including design team and end-users of the facility. To enable informed decision making, Slattery collated all the costs and comments from architects, acoustic specialists and related design team as part of the workshop preparations. When MCM opens in 2019, the community will truly understand and take ownership of the exciting new building, its leading-edge design and functionality. Melbourne Conservatorium of Music Designed by John Wardle Architects4 Studio 1 Environmentally sustainable design Design right: Whole of features—energy use/electricity Post Occupancy Life Costs through solar or geo-thermal When handing over the keys to a exchange; rainwater and recycled facility, no one can really anticipate Usually a new building is proposed water use for watering gardens and how the buildings are going to perform following assessment of community or toilet flushing—are also important and if the operational assumptions institutional needs or when there is a considerations to plan for from the made during the design and user demand for such facilities which is not outset. This can then be translated into group consultations are going to being met by current infrastructure. concepts and options, to generate a hold true once open. Especially given Diligence in planning is an absolute full financial and economic assessment construction durations, it may be two must, including contingency allowances of the project, including operating to three years since they were made. within the budget. It’s very hard to get and life-cycle costs as part of its cost- ‘make-good’ capital funding in addition benefit analysis (CBA). How the project Due to this passage of time and to investment that has already been will be implemented including where the emerging technologies of the a significant outlay for governments the investment will be sourced from, is current “disruptor” times we live in, and communities to construct cultural a vital part of the discussion. And in the Slattery recommend that a post- facilities. With the recurrent costs long term, fees for occupancy contingency be included compared to capital roughly 6:1, the programming for the artists that in any project budget to address the operating model and life-cycle costs for perform and present, and marketing inevitable shortfalls once a building has any new building must be considered costs to develop audiences—in opened. As members of a community and