Po¯hutukawa House – Stufkens + Chambers Architects.
Twenty-three buildings have received awards in the 2019 Waikato Bay of Plenty Architecture Awards, among them several projects that show the community benefits resulting from architects’ sustained involvement in urban centre revitalisation.
The awards jury convenor, Hamilton architect Evan Mayo, said it was encouraging to see high-quality public, commercial and educational buildings.
“These buildings are real community assets, and some of them offer valuable precedents for the provision of important services.”
Mayo said that as a local architect he was particularly pleased by the recognition of the jury, which included fellow Hamilton architect Matt Grant, Wellington architect James Fenton and UK-registered architect Leonie Neuweger, of projects that are playing an important role in the improvement of Hamilton’s central city area.
Mayo noted the prominence in the awards of houses in well-known resort areas, including the Coromandel Peninsula and Taupō.
“These houses continue the region’s reputation for high quality, well-crafted homes that are specifically tailored to their environmental conditions,” Mayo said.
Edwards White Architects is one Hamilton practice leading the way in Hamilton’s revitalisation.
This year, the practice won four Waikato Bay of Plenty Architecture Awards: a Planning and Urban Design Award for Riverbank Lane, a “vital link between Victoria Street, Victoria on the Park and the Waikato River”; an Interior Architecture Award for its own studio, which occupies a mezzanine within Riverbank Lane; a Housing Multi-unit Award for Parkhaven, a city apartment building that “cleverly integrates usable exterior space into a vertical living arrangement”; and a Heritage Award for Wiseman Central, a 1917 restored heritage-listed building on a prominent CBD corner.
“Edwards White is a prolific and versatile practice that is as adept at organising public space as it is at stripping back and detailing heritage buildings so that the best of their characteristics really sing,” Mayo said.
Cambridge architect Christopher Beer’s “skilful modernisation” of the near-derelict Spectrum Building in Te Awamutu received an Interior Architecture Award. The jury praised the restoration and refurbishment of the collection of buildings for the retention of the traditional shop front “that has preserved the local streetscape.”
In the Commercial Architecture category, a close working relationship between Chow:Hill Architects and Trust Waikato Te Puna o Waikato has resulted in an award for the Trust’s
new offices.
“This is prominent new building with rich contextual character and great public visibility which draws upon the cultural histories of the site,” the jury said.
Meanwhile, the jury said PAUA Architects’ Aotea Harbour Holiday Home skilfully provided excellent views of a nearby historic pā and Aotea harbour while negotiating the constant demands of shelter from wind. “To achieve this, three building forms have been carefully composed to create pleasant courtyards.”
The Whakatāne Museum and Research Centre Te Whare Taonga ō Taketake, designed by Irving Smith Architects, won a Public Architecture Award.
The museum is the second stage of a project that commenced in an abandoned retail store 10 years ago.
“It is the result of planning, patience and the vision and sees a previously under-utilised city asset transformed into a well-used research and education facility.”
GHD Woodhead Creative Spaces won a Public Architecture Award for Rotorua’s Te Aka Mauri Children’s Health and Library Hub, a combined healthcare and library facility that is a “daring move away from hospital-based health practices to holistic health and wellbeing approaches”, Mayo said.
An Education Award went to Design Tribe Architects for The New Zealand Māori Arts and Crafts Institute Precinct Development Ngā Kete Tuku Iho. The Awards jury said this new base for Aotearoa’s pre-eminent carving school “had been delivered with passion and clarity.”
The Kollective, designed by Wingate Architects on a challenging former swamp site, is “a highly considered building that sits lightly on the land,” the jury said. “It is one of the first co-working platforms in Tauranga, and will surely spawn many more.”
Parhkaven – Edwards White Architects Ltd.
Edwards White scoops four awards
Of the 23 awards presented at the Waikato Bay of Plenty Awards, a notable mention goes to Edwards White Architects. In winning four awards across four categories, they continue to show how adaptive re-use can benefit Hamilton City. Edwards White picked up a heritage award for Wiseman Central, a multi-unit award for Parkhaven, an interior award for the design of its own studio, and a planning and urban design award for the Riverbank Lane.
Wiseman Central is a heritage-listed building originally built in 1917 on one of the most prominent corner sites in the Hamilton central business district. Works carried out included reskinning the upper floor façade in order to conceal all the exposed bolt heads, removal of visible air conditioning units, reconditioning of all windows and repainting. At street level new faceted glazing was introduced, providing a rhythm that references the proportions of the existing upper floor.
While many projects that Edwards White has worked on in the central city have centered around the refurbishment of existing buildings, Parkhaven has been a new development. Situated adjacent to Founders Theatre, Parkhaven is a five storey mixed-use building that is home to Frank café at street level, commercial space on the first two floors and three levels of apartments of varying sizes. Large uninterrupted areas of glazing provide magnificent views across the city.
Wiseman Central – Edwards White Architects Ltd.
The conversion of a former mezzanine restaurant into Edwards White’s own studio again demonstrates its passion for reinterpreting formerly vacant buildings to give them a new life. The awards jury commented that the fit-out “is a masterclass in stripping back to celebrate inherent qualities”. Further, “the addition of several carefully crafted interventions has transformed this space into a collaborative professional environment.”
Edwards White’s fourth and final award for The Riverbank Lane is another refurbishment project of what was once known as Riverbank Mall. This was an arcade that opened in 1978 but had stood largely vacant for almost a decade before being sold in 2014, and progressively upgraded over a number of years. The Lane provides a link between Victoria Street, the neighbouring Victoria on the River park and the Waikato River and is home to a number of boutique shops and eateries.
Hamilton and its residents continue to benefit from projects such as these, and Edwards White looks forward to observing and interacting with any future developments that continue the work of revitalising the city.
