Willis Street by architecture+

ArchiPro Project Summary - Revitalization of historic Stewart Dawson’s Corner with contemporary design elements, earthquake strengthening, and thoughtful façade restoration at the intersection of Wellington’s Lambton Quay and Willis Street.

Title:: Willis Street
Architect:: architecture+
Category:: Commercial/; Office
Photographers:: Andy Spain PhotographyPaul McCredie

Occupying a prominent site on the bustling intersection of Wellington’s Lambton Quay and Willis Street, this project encompasses a collection of buildings with historic frontages to Lambton Quay -commonly referred to as Stewart Dawson’s Corner – as well as the adjacent 4-12 Willis Street site.

Owing to its unreinforced brick façade, the heritage-listed SDC site was identified as requiring earthquake strengthening and the building’s owners Argosy Property Limited responded swiftly to MBIE’s requirements – doubling down on the opportunity to maximise this prime central city site.

architecture+ was responsible for the base-build design on this complex and multi-faceted project, working with a heritage consultant to make carefully considered decisions about the façade treatment, refurbishment of the timber windows, paint colour selections, and material selections. The approach to heritage was two-fold: to restore the heritage façade to the SDC site; and for the new surrounding architecture to contrast and compliment these buildings.

The design for the street façade at 8 Willis responds in a very contemporary way to its Edwardian neighbour at SDC. The street frontage was bought forward to align with the SDC buildings and the articulation of the glazed wall changes at the horizontal level of SDC’s heritage pediments. From below this datum to the street level, the scale of the glazed panels is broken down into smaller modules by the way of Poutama tukutuku screens, which sit comfortably next to the scale and detail of the heritage façade.

Design and Build Contractor:McKee Fehl Constructors

Structural Engineers: Beca

Mechanical Services Engineers:Cora Consulting Engineers

Electrical Engineers: Blackyard Engineers

Hydraulics Engineers: Michael Stretton Consulting Engineer

Fire Engineers: Cognition

Heritage Architects: Ian Bowman - Architect

Urban Planners: Spencer Holmes

Acoustic Engineers: Marshall Day Acoustics

Sustainability Consultants: ECubed

Project Gallery

8-Willis-stcontemporary-meets-heritagePaul-McCredie.jpg

8-Willis-stheritage-facade-and-contemporary-screenAndy-Spain-v3.jpg

Views and Engagement

Professionals used

architecture+Architects

eCubedEnvironmental Engineers

ENGINEERING, ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN

architecture+

Architects

Wellington

architectureplus.co.nz

architecture+. architecture+ is an award-winning architectural practice based in Wellington, New Zealand. Over the past 29 years architecture+ has gained a wealth of experience across many scales – gaining expertise in civic, commercial and multi-residential projects. Since its establishment in 1994, architecture+ has steadily grown to a sizable practice, led by five directors: Stuart Gardyne, Allan Wright, Stephen Poulopoulos, Belinda Tuohy and Kirsty Chamberlain. architecture+ fosters an inclusive office culture, where our talented staff play an integral role in office and practice development. While architecture+ has a recognised design focus, we are also highly respected for our technical skills and project delivery capabilities. We have a reputation for delivering well-considered projects of consistent design quality and for our sound technical understanding of construction methods and materials. Nominating the appropriate personnel for each project is fundamental to the successful delivery of our design services. Our methodology sees the meaningful involvement of a project director throughout a project's life, while leading a team with complementary skills and fostering a culture of collaboration. Our project teams are comprised of both long-serving loyal staff with their specialist expertise and newer graduates with fresh contemporary thinking.