The City of Sydney’s Waterloo Youth, Family and Community Centre has been awarded the state’s oldest and most prestigious public architecture prize, the Sir John Sulman Medal.

Surry Hills firm Collins and Turners Architects received the medal last night for the ‘pinwheel’-style building with its angular green roof, which was jointly funded by the City and the Federal Government.

In another salute to great public architecture, the community and commercial precinct Darling Quarter won the inaugural City of Sydney Lord Mayor’s Prize at the 2013 NSW Architecture Awards held in Pyrmont.

Past winners of the Sir John Sulman Medal, established in 1932, include the Sydney Opera House, the Renzo Piano building on Phillip Street, and the restoration of the Queen Victoria Building.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the awards celebrated the imaginative, innovative and inspiring design that gave Sydney its unique personality.

“Collins and Turner have created a practical, useful and inspiring space for the Waterloo community,” the Lord Mayor said.

“It’s wonderful to see how green climbing plants are gradually weaving their way around the structure, softening and integrating it into the park.”

“The centre not only meets the needs of the community but is also a model for sustainable design with its unique green roof and energy-efficient and recycled materials.”

The centre, home to the Weave community group, was described by the prize jury as an “exemplary convergence of public leadership, community initiative and design talent.”

“Collins and Turner have expanded the design brief into a masterful pictorial narrative about protection, intimacy and belonging,” the jury said.

“Weave’s new home is a humble but resounding victory achieved with commitment and imagination.”

The Waterloo Youth, Family and Community Centre also received a 2013 NSW Architecture Award for Sustainable Architecture.

The Lord Mayor chose Darling Quarter, designed by Francis-Jones Morehen Thorp with ASPECT Studios and Lend Lease, as the winner of her inaugural architecture prize.

“Darling Quarter is now a wonderful open space for city workers, visitors and residents to stop and enjoy a break,” the Lord Mayor said.

“Rather than dominating the area, the two buildings are light and welcoming, curving gently around the public domain space and framing it warmly.”

Darling Quarter also won the Lloyd Rees Award for Urban Design, the Sir Arthur J. Stephenson Award for Commercial Architecture and the Milo Dunphy Award for Sustainable Architecture.

The City’s Pitt Street Mall redesign by Senior Design Manager Maren Perry and Project Manager Russell Kosko won a 2013 NSW Architecture Award for Urban Design, with the jury saying it was a “refreshing change from the mall designs of the ‘80s.”

“The restrained aesthetic language is designed to be elegant, robust and timeless,” the jury said.

“Here, less is more and the result is calm and smart. The jury awards and acknowledges the project team and the committed patronage of the City of Sydney to ensure design excellence flourishes in the city’s public domain.”

For more information, visit http://nswawards.architecture.com.au