Since 1988, JAM Architects has been based in Richmond, Melbourne. For much of this time, Directors Chris Manton, Kathryn Alexander and Cameron Fry have lived in the Geelong region, drawn to the regional lifestyle and access to coast and country.
In this article, Kathryn discusses the opening of another JAM Architects studio in Newtown, Geelong.
As Geelong locals, we have experienced the region’s transition first hand. Over the last two decades, Geelong has rapidly expanded its economic framework to include tourism, health, education and government agencies.
This shift in industry has brought with it a changing demographic and rapid population growth, which also brings exciting business opportunities.
In 2020, we opened JAM Architects’ Geelong studio to complement the Melbourne practice. This decision was largely founded on the exciting commercial prospects that Geelong’s growth offered, and on the practical limitations of commuting to Melbourne during the pandemic lockdowns.
On a personal level, after 20+ years of living in Geelong, we are firmly embedded in the local community and actively involved in numerous local groups.
Chris, in his role of Rear Commodore at the Royal Geelong Yacht Club, has been instrumental in facilitating the Geelong Waterfront Safe Harbour Project, a component of the Revitalizing Central Geelong Action Plan. This key project has engaged stakeholders at Federal, State and Local Government levels. Chris is currently committed to overseeing the successful construction of a new sailing school on the Geelong foreshore.
Kathryn is an active participant in and advocate for the local design community. She is currently Victorian Branch Councillor of the Design Institute of Australia, and regularly sits on industry juries for graduate programs. She is Chair of The Geelong College Planning Committee and Deputy Chair of The Geelong College. She has been both an organiser of and guest speaker at Geelong Design Week events and has a keen interest in the Geelong’s UNESCO City of Design designation.
As a Deakin University Alumni, Cameron has been involved as a guest tutor for several graduate programmes within the Architectural faculty at Deakin’s Geelong Waterfront campus. He has been involved in the Architect Institute’s emerging architects programme (EmAGN) as a guest mentor, as has Kathryn.
JAM Architects’ greatest asset is our team which includes highly qualified Architects, Interior Designers, Visualisers and administrative support. As a relatively small practice, we encourage our team to be “hands on” and to apply their broad design, documentation and administration skills to each project. We consider ourselves one team, and often our Melbourne and Geelong personnel will work simultaneously on a project.
Our projects are diverse in scale and typology, including residential, multi-residential and commercial commissions for both public and private sector clients. These include numerous coastal houses, commercial developments, interior fit outs and master plans in the Geelong, Bellarine and Surf Coast regions.
Most recently JAM Architects’ design for the redevelopment of the Returned Soldiers and Sailors Mill in Geelong has been granted approval by the City of Greater Geelong. The combined attributes of existing heritage structures, interface with the natural beauty of the Barwon River and proximity to the vibrant Pakington Street commercial precinct indicate that this redevelopment will be a significant landmark project for the Geelong region. It will deliver residences, retail and commercial space, a childcare centre and extensive public realm improvements.
JAM Architects understand the unique attributes that regional cities offer. We are excited to grow our Geelong studio and positively contribute to the region’s built environment.
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