Kerstin Thompson Architects’ (KTA) collaboration with Hume City Council on the Town Hall Broadmeadows has received best in category for Architectural Design in the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards.
The category accepts entries for architecture, interior design, landscape design and urban design. It focuses on the design and planning of buildings, interior and exterior spaces, with particular emphasis on space creation, and factors that influence our engagement with the public environment.
Historic elements like the distinctive steel-and-timber detail have been preserved.
Image:
Dan Preston
The brief for Town Hall Broadmeadows required maintaining the cultural significance of the site while reviving the aesthetic quality and community relevance of the existing town hall.
KTA’s approach for the renewal was recognized for its sensitivity to the building’s fabric while simultaneously being able to lift the building to better respond to the contemporary needs of the community.
“Kerstin Thompson has been able to maintain [the building’s] grandeur by upgrading and improving the [its] performance without diminishing its capacity to trigger memories of the past,” said Celina Clarke, jury chair of the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards. “This is a virtuoso example of what can be achieved when outdated community builds are skilfully reused and improved, rather than simply replaced.”
KTA was careful to conserve as much of the original two-tone brick facade, so intrinsic to the hall’s character, in the redevelopment.
Where possible, the original two-tone brickwork has been repurposed into the renewal.
Image:
Dan Preston
Key historic elements like the grand staircase have been preserved, while a new hub has been added to the south of the hall to provide additional floor area. The civic character of the Town Hall has been preserved, while the new design incorporates a new level of flexibility and amenity to accommodate future needs and functions.
“Clever internal planning carefully considers each new element while the best of the existing fabric is respected and championed,” the jury citation reads.
Hume City Council co-ordinator of major projects Dan O’Loughlin said, “Since its construction in the 1960’s, the Town Hall Broadmeadows has played a central role in the civic and social life of the Broadmeadows community.
“The redevelopment expands on this legacy through adaptive re-use, transforming this culturally significant building into a landmark contemporary facility, tailored to meet the needs of residents and businesses in Broadmeadows.”
O’Loughlin said the renewal has ensured that the Town Hall will retain its place in the social and economic matrix of the Broadmeadows community for years to come.
KTA’s renewal of Town Hall Broadmeadows was selected from a shortlist of 15 finalists. Springvale Community Hub (by Lyons, Rush Wright Associates and City of Greater Dandenong) and ACMI Renewal project (by BKK Architects, Razorfish an ACMI) were also highly commended by the jury.
The Victorian Premier’s Design Awards for 2021 were announced as part of the 2022 Melbourne Design Week. Managed by Good Design Australia on behalf of the Victorian Government, this was the 25th anniversary of the award, recognizing achievements in design strategy, fashion design, architectural design and more.
Australia’s first emission-free, full-sized, high-performance electric motorcycle, the Savic C-Series designed by Dennis Savic and David Hendroff, received the top accolade, the Victorian Premier’s Design Award of the Year.
The complete shortlist of Architectural Design 2021 finalists, and winners and finalists of the other categories, can be found on the Victorian Premier’s Design Awards website.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
