NEWSWORTHY
PIERSON MUSIC CENTRE , GQEBERHA
With a history dating back to 1926 , Pearson High School strives for excellence in academics , sport , spiritual and cultural activities , and aims to cater for every individual . The introduction of a state-of-the-art Music Centre was the school ’ s next
natural progression in achieving its
four pillars . The Music Centre will be a modern structure that contrasts the older existing buildings . Designed as an architectural expression , the new music centre will be a jewel as it forms a new landmark beacon for the school . The building is positioned such that it forms a destination within the spatial arrangement of the school linking academic and sporting programmes . The facility will house nine music classrooms , including a central auditorium that will form a collection of spaces where the making of music and sound will be co-ordinated . The auditorium , that forms the crux of the building , is also planned to not only be solely used by the school , but is to a level that can be used by external entities adding additional financial benefit for the school .
BOARDWALK SHEDS , PRETORIA
The site for this project is located on Olympus Drive in the east of Pretoria . It is adjacent to Plantland the Wilds Garden Centre on the corner of Atterbury Road and Olympus Drive . The majority of the surrounding area comprises of residential complexes and educational facilities . It borders on the start of the Faerie Glen small holdings on the way to the well-known Silver Lakes residential area .
Boardwalk Sheds is a ± 4,000m 2 shopping centre with a Pick n Pay Supermarket , PnP Clothing and PnP Liquor as well as a Crazy Plastics and Crazy Pets . This will offer the community a convenient local neighbourhood centre . The current context and location were considered and investigated by the developer . This informs a possibility of the centre forming part of a larger commercial development in future .
Currently the site has an existing warehouse building with parking shared with the garden centre . One of the challenges for the site is to accommodate ample parking as well as a functioning delivery yard for the anchor . The fall of the site contributed to the delivery yard problem to find a flat enough piece of land to do deliveries on grade . The only position that makes commercial sense is right in the back corner of the site where the site gradient is at its steepest . A professional team of engineers and architects put their heads together to come up with a workable plan . Vehicular access and movement on the site were an important consideration to enhance ease of traffic flow . While planning the building the architect was faced with another challenge due to the size of the site ; which was to design a building with a feasible lettable area , enough parking and a workable delivery yard . The answer was a very functional and economic layout . Possible future expansion had to also be taken into account while planning the development .
Due to the fact that the site is situated in the Olympus small holdings area , a minimalist ‘ farm style ’ architecture was considered . The structure of the building is an industrial warehouse with a contemporary interpretation of the pitched roof farm shed . This speaks to the vernacular of the area , historically and in the present . The external finishes will be a combination of metal and timber cladding with well-placed lighting and greenery . The construction of a steel structure also attributes to a quicker assembly time of the structure . With the brickwork only going up to a lower height and the rest being steel cladding , this also decreases the construction time . This has financial implications for the developer as future tenants can start trading sooner .
The client wanted to develop a contemporary building that is easily accessible by patrons with the convenience of enough parking . Together with a supermarket and liquor store , clothing store , pet shop and household items , there will also be a coffee shop with outside seating . This offers the visitor a one stop social shopping experience .
Developers : Ilungile Consulting Services Architects : Bentel Associates International Civil & Structural Engineers : Struxit Projects Electrical Engineers : Quad Africa Consulting Mechanical Engineers : VMG Consultants Health & Safety : Oryx Occupational Safety Solutions Main Contractors : Renico Group ; Barrow Construction
Architect & Principal Agent : DMV Architecture Quantity Surveyor : Johnston & Rosser Quantity Surveyors Structural & Civil Engineers : Elwandle Consulting Engineers Main Contractor : WBHO Construction
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