How to get level street access for a flood-affected project
Street activation and flooding.
The traditional response to flood risk is to elevate floor levels above flood waters, or to use barriers to prevent water entering buildings and car parks.
However, this tends to create difficulties with street activation and is especially troublesome for accessibility where ramps and lifts take up valuable space at front of a retail area.
An alternative way is increasingly being successfully used, led by developers in Parramatta.
The idea is to get a valuable at-grade street interface for shops and cafes by accepting a higher chance of flooding. However, the flood risk is managed by placing lower value property in those areas and keeping more valuable items higher but towards the rear.
For example, dining tables and chairs can be placed in the lower floor levels while stock and equipment is at a higher level at the back of the shop. A bit like how a pharmacy stores bulk medication a couple of steps higher than the rest of the shop.
1102 Barrenjoey Road, Palm Beach recently obtained approval in Northern Beaches Council for such a scheme (albeit through the LEC). It is one of a few outside of Parramatta and perhaps marks a change in sentiment from (in this case, younger) council engineers to consider some more innovative ideas in flood protection.