Harlow Lifestyle Village West Melton is a retirement development on a 13-hectare site on the western edge of West Melton. Stage One includes a mix of standalone homes, duplexes and apartments, along with a centrally located Main Lodge and shared recreation facilities including a bowling green, pétanque and croquet courts.
DCM has been involved in the urban design and landscape design for the development, preparing the Urban Design Assessment, Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment, landscape plans and supporting graphic material. The design considers how residents move through and use the village, with internal streets, pedestrian connections and shared spaces supported by planting throughout the development. Privacy, sunlight, outdoor living and the relationship between homes and communal areas were also important parts of the design.
The landscape design includes street trees and amenity planting, a stormwater area that also provides space for passive recreation, and landscape buffers along the site boundaries. The planting and open space help soften the built form and provide a transition between the village, the surrounding residential area and the rural land to the west.
