15 Khartoum Road redefines workplace design in Macquarie Park

15 Khartoum Road by Choi Studio introduces a new workplace destination within Stockland’s MPark precinct, setting a benchmark for the evolving urban character of Macquarie Park.

GALLERY

Master planned by 3XN, MPark is one of Australia’s largest innovation precincts for life sciences and technology, positioning itself at the forefront of the future of work.

Located on Wallumattagal Country, Macquarie Park has long been defined by its economic strength, hosting major corporations, Macquarie University, and strong transport connections. Yet it has historically been shaped by business park models that prioritise car access over public life, with limited street-level activation and open space. MPark represents a shift away from this legacy, with three commercial buildings arranged around a new central park.

Choi Studio won an invited design competition for 15 Khartoum Road, approaching the project not as a standalone object but as part of a broader civic and ecological system. The guiding question became how the building could contribute to Macquarie Park as a place, rather than simply a workplace. The result reframes the commercial office typology as civic infrastructure, strengthening connections between parkland, streets, retail, workplaces and surrounding residential areas.

Working in close collaboration with landscape architects Square One Landscape Architects, as well as Nigurra and the Dharug Working Group, the project integrates landscape and architecture into a single system. Planted edges frame retail zones and extend upward, softening the building mass and reinforcing green outlooks, while embedding cultural narrative within the precinct’s ecological framework.

The building form challenges conventional commercial design in non-CBD contexts. Sculptural columns lift the structure from the ground, revealing its structural “musculature” and creating a strong civic presence. A porous ground plane enables through-site connections, with covered edges activated by retail, entries and communal spaces that flow into the surrounding landscape. Above, inclined façades and planted corners “break open” the office box, improving setbacks, daylight access and views while shaping a more expressive silhouette.

Materially restrained, the building prioritises resource efficiency and the inherent qualities of raw materials. Off-form lower-carbon concrete at the base is balanced by planting, while warm-toned shading elements create a layered façade responsive to its north-west orientation. Targeting 6 Star Green Star Design and As-Built, 5.5 Star NABERS, Platinum WiredScore and Net Zero operational performance, 15 Khartoum Road positions sustainability as a core design driver.

Ultimately, the project signals a shift in how workplace buildings can contribute to urban life, offering a more connected, human-centred model for Macquarie Park’s continued transformation.

Images by Thomas Li via ArchDaily