Samson Corporation asked RTA Studio to reimagine this special-character enclave with a bakehouse in orange brick to the rear of the site and an arcade that leads to a compact urban courtyard set between the forms.
Building on our philosophy to knit any contemporary injection into the fabric of the surrounds (as can be seen with the gritty nature of the stacked and folded boxes at K’Road’s Ironbank or the mixed-use development in McKelvie Street that borrows its scale from Victorian terraces), the design focus was on sustainable solutions and careful proportion.
A lean-to that was tacked onto the dairy was removed to declutter the L-shaped courtyard and a new building, facing Ardmore Road, devised. Mass-timber, including glulam for beams and supports as well as cross-laminated timber wall panels, makes up the structure of the two-level addition, with retail below and office space above. Its architectural lines pick up on the elegant horizontal cornices of its Edwardian neighbour as well as the restrained vertical rhythm.
A perforated screen over a glass front drapes the upper level acting as an external ‘net curtain’ that allows the occupants a view of the village of villas below. Painted green, it will tie in with the adjoining parapet – and harks of the colours of heritage.
The glazed connector between the old and the new serves as an entrance to both buildings and a common courtyard, decorated with a mural by Sheyne Tuffery, will put art at the heart of this mini development.
Mass-timber double-storey buildings are still relatively uncommon in Aotearoa, but they key in with RTA Studio’s core philosophy to cut the carbon. 172 Jervois is an institution that is intertwined with memories of playing Spacies ‘til midnight, grabbing an ice block from the snow-freeze machine, and late-night munchies post pubbing and clubbing. It’s a rich part of local history that now finds its feet in the future.