Novus on Harris Greenlit for Innovative Flood Design

It started with a desire to Design with Country, which led to a bold vision of how to manage a significant built form on a flood-prone site at Parramatta. 

Build-to-rent developer Novus has had its first Sydney project, the $200-million 204-apartment Novus on Harris, greenlit in Sydney’s second city. 

The Rothelowman-designed 34-storey tower on the 1448sq m site at 39-43 Hassall Street was approved by the State Government this month, and The Urban Developer understands a builder for the project will be announced soon. 

Rothelowman principal Ben Pomroy said the project had “pushed boundaries” in its innovative design for the site. 

“There was a real openness to explore some bold ideas,” Pomroy said. 

“It’s a flood-affected site and that was the starting point for developing an understanding of place. 

“Normally buildings are designed with a hard edge. Parramatta was designed in a way that, rather than block the water, we subverted that and made the building a series of rafts.”

The water could move through the site and disperse, Pomroy said. 

“Each project we do, we learn a little bit more about Designing with Country,” he said. 

“Generally, buildings take a defensive position to flooding but First Nations people understand it’s a function of time.”

▲ The building takes its colour palette from Clay Cliff Creek at Parramatta.

Rothelowman has partnered with Novus on a number of their build-to-rent projects but Pomroy said each site required a different solution. 

“For Parramatta we won the design competition. We did a heap of research to embrace country in a meaningful way,” he said.

“The whole eastern edge of Parramatta City has amazing amenity and we designed the tower to embrace that. It has an earthy palette inspired by the local creek clay.”

Parramatta is fast becoming the heartland for build-to-rent in Sydney. Gurner’s GQ platform won approval for its 61-storey, 391-apartment build-to-rent tower last year, and Home’s 47-storey, 428-apartment tower is under construction. 

Novus, in partnership with M&G Real Estate, also marked the official topping out of its Novus on Sturt build-to-rent project in Melbourne’s Southbank this month. 

Hamilton Marino Builders began construction of the purpose-built 163-apartment development in 2022, comprising studio, one, two and three-bedroom homes as well as a ground-floor retail offering—with construction on track to complete in the third quarter of 2024.