Alcorn Middleton

20/05/2026

Public amenities are some of the most overlooked yet important pieces of civic infrastructure. This project challenged the idea that they should simply be utilitarian or disposable, exploring instead how thoughtful, durable architecture can improve everyday public experience and contribute to better parks, suburbs and cities.

At Cameron Park Amenities, the project focused on restraint rather than addition, identifying where targeted intervention could improve safety, durability and everyday use while retaining the civic value already embedded within the existing structure.

Central to the project was the retention of the column-free covered gathering space connected to the amenities, originally designed as a shaded grandstand for cricket within the park. Today it supports informal gathering, yoga, community activity and use connected to the neighbouring playground by .

We’re incredibly grateful to the Darling Downs & West Moreton Regional Awards jury for recognising the project through both a Commendation for Small Project Architecture and the William Hodgen Award for Building of the Year.

Project: Public Amenities
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18/05/2026

Project: Ipswich City Council Amenities - Cameron Park
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Engineers: .environment.collective + Hunt Michel & Partners
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A project defined less by addition, and more by careful subtraction.

Cameron Park Amenities formed part of our award-winning Ipswich City Council Public Amenities project, recently recognised with both a Commendation for Small Project Architecture and the William Hodgen Award for Building of the Year at the 2026 Darling Downs & West Moreton Regional Architecture Awards.

Rather than replacing the building outright, the design focused on identifying which parts of the existing structure carried value and how targeted demolition, selective opening and carefully resolved insertions could improve safety, accessibility, ventilation and long term durability.

The retained structure also allowed the amenities to continue operating as a shaded civic shelter within the park, supporting everyday gathering, recreation and community use beyond the building’s primary function.

These early diagrams, details and construction drawings capture the process of working intentionally with what already existed, demonstrating how thoughtful architectural judgement can transform even the most ordinary public infrastructure into something generous, durable and valued by the community.

15/05/2026

Project: City Council Amenities_Richardson Park
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Engineers: .environment.collective + Hunt Michel & Partners

At Richardson Park, much of the architectural thinking centred on revealing and working with the existing structure rather than concealing it.

Internal ceilings were removed to increase light, ventilation and spatial volume, exposing original hardwood beams and rafters that had remained hidden for decades. New perforated mesh elements were carefully detailed to maintain visibility and airflow while addressing CPTED, durability and maintenance requirements.

Despite the project being delivered under a design and construct procurement model, considerable attention was given to detailing, coordination and buildability throughout documentation and delivery. Much of the project’s success relied on resolving small but critical moments with clarity and restraint, ensuring the final outcome remained robust, affordable and achievable without losing architectural merit.

The result is a modest civic building where the quality of the project is carried through careful detailing, proportion, material restraint and the considered reworking of an existing structure.

15/05/2026

Project: Ipswich City Council Amenities_Richardson Park
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Engineers: .environment.collective + Hunt Michel & Partners

A forgotten but important piece of public architecture, renewed to continue serving the community for decades to come.

Richardson Park Amenities, delivered as part of our Ipswich City Council Public Amenities submission in the 2026 Awards Program.

Originally constructed in the 1960s, Richardson Park Amenities had long served the Goodna community but had gradually become underperforming, inaccessible and difficult to maintain. While demolition and replacement would have been the more conventional outcome, Ipswich City Council remained open to an alternative approach that retained and reworked the existing structure.

From project inception, we embraced the challenge of identifying what was valuable within the existing building and where targeted architectural intervention could meaningfully improve safety, accessibility, durability and everyday use. Working within the original footprint, the project was carefully developed around affordable and achievable outcomes that extended the life of the building while avoiding a generic replacement solution.

These early diagrams capture that process of selective removal, retention and adaptation that ultimately shaped the project.

19/04/2026

A modest reworking of a Queenslander, led by discipline rather than gesture.

The plan is compact and tightly resolved, yet feels open as you move through it, with rooms and hallways giving a sense of space beyond its footprint. The exterior is intentionally quiet and understated, allowing the interior to feel more expansive, shaped by natural light and a sense of depth.

A simple palette runs throughout, with white exterior cladding and interior walls balanced by the warmth of timber joinery and detailing, a proportion we kept carefully in check throughout the design process.

Spaces are arranged with a clear logic, able to open up or close down depending on the occasion, balancing privacy with connection and rethinking the everyday without drawing attention to it.

One of our most cherished homes to date.

Now on the market.

26/06/2025

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The courtyard sits at the centre of the home, the lungs of the plan, quietly drawing in light, breeze, and life.

Once an internalised living room, it is now open to the sky and affectionately likened to a “Shibuya Crossing,” where family and friends casually cross paths and gather throughout the day.

Three key hallways connect the kitchen, dining area, and daughter’s wing, with the end of the courtyard marking the shift between the original 1930s home and the new extension.

What is often the darkest and most stagnant part of home, is now open, bright, and breathing - passively ventilating the interior and bringing renewed life to its centre.

24/06/2025

20/06/2025

We’re proud to share that Toowong Towers was recently awarded Best of State – Queensland (Residential) at the 2025 , a national program recognising excellence across Australia.

Beyond aesthetics, it is a home carefully shaped around real life - breathable, adaptable, deeply lived in and genuinely loved 🫶

The project has also been:
• Shortlisted for the 2025 Awards – Interior Architecture
• Shortlisted for the 2025 Awards – House Alteration and Addition under 200m²

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17/06/2025

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Refined yet hard-working, minimal but made to live in, this kitchen balances warmth and durability through a pared-back palette.

Custom joinery, thoughtful storage, and quiet detailing give it a sense of ease and generosity without overstating its role.

16/06/2025

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Where the original living room once stood, we purposefully carved out a central courtyard, a deliberate incision that brought both clarity and calm to the home’s organisation. Replacing an internalised room with open sky introduced spatial relief, turning the plan inward and anchoring it with a light-filled centre, realising the clients’ wish for a tree to sit at the heart of the home.

This luminous courtyard now draws northern light and breeze into the kitchen, and creates a layered visual connection through to the children’s wing opposite. It also draws the language of the Queenslander inward, blurring the line between exterior and interior, and allowing adjacent spaces to breathe, function, and flow as one.