New Zealand Institute of Architects Awards Wellington's Best Buildings

From a writer’s residence powered only by sun and water to the massive new Regional Hospital project, excellence in design was celebrated in the 2009 Wellington Architecture Awards.

The landmark BNZ Harbour Quays Building, Moore Wilson Fresh and Chews Lane Precinct are also among winners in the Wellington awards program, organized and run by the New Zealand Institute of Architects and supported by Resene.

Jury convenor, architect Angela Foster, said the standard of entries had been very high and it was encouraging to see that sustainable principles were now integrated into the design process and evident across both commercial and residential projects.

“It is now something that is integral to projects rather than just added on and it is clear that it is something clients are asking for,” she said.

The BNZ Harbour Quays building, by Jasmax Limited, took triple honors with awards in the commercial, sustainable and interior architecture categories.

The Five Green Star rated building was praised by jurors for its strong sculptural element, ecological and social considerations and as an invigorating environment.

Ms Foster said: “This is a totally different way of looking at an office building, the epitome of open plan and rather like a mini city.”

Wellington Regional Hospital by CCM Architects in association with Rice Daubney (early stages only) was among winners in public architecture hailed by Ms Foster as an innovative hospital design.

Jurors also said the project, based on the ‘model of care’ concept had worked extremely well making the building accessible despite its massive scale.

Chews Lane Precinct and the Moore Wilson Fresh building, both by Athfield Architects, were also honored.

Chews Lane, a winner in urban design, was praised as having revitalized the site, achieving intimacy and diversity at pedestrian level, again despite being a project on a huge scale.

Moore Wilson Fresh was described as a “subtly detailed urban market” with jurors noting that the client/architect association of 40 years’ standing had resulted in a “dynamic relationship between shopper, product and space”.

The new Te Puni Village - Victoria University of Wellington student residences, by Architectus, was seen as a “celebration of light and color within the urban landscape”.

Ms Foster said: “This could simply have been any multi-story building but instead is a refined gesture to the city. At night it is a sparkling lantern on the city ridgeline.”

The Herd Street Development in Wellington, by Archaus Architects Limited and Warren + Mahoney Architects in Association, was the sole winner in residential architecture - multiple housing. Jurors were captivated by the boathouse, described as “jewel of the harbor”.

Not all winners were buildings. The Wellington Waterfront Framework by WCC Architects, which guides the future development of Wellington’s central waterfront area, was a winner in urban design winning acclaim as “an example of “where urban design is about process rather than product”.

The Villa Melina Boutique Homestay in Seatoun, by Novak + Middleton Architects, a winner in commercial architecture, “exuded comfort” while incorporating cutting edge sustainable approaches and many European ideas and products suggested by the Swiss clients.

The Central Forklifts Building at Avalon, by Designgroup Stapleton Elliott, also a winner in the category, won accolades as an elegant response to an industrial subject.

Heritage Awards

Heritage awards went to the Railway Social Hall behind Wellington Railway Station, by CCM Architects, and to Days Bay Changing Rooms by John Mills Architects.

The social hall won accolade for an elegant refurbishment which is contemporary yet sympathetic to the structure, allowing the hall to “regain its grandeur”.

The changing rooms have also been revitalized with a contemporary sculptural interior moving the focus towards the public beach while respecting the shell of the original building.

The Victoria University Coastal Ecology Laboratory by Pynenburg & Collins Architects, was a winner in public architecture with jurors remarking on the well resolved laboratory spaces feeding off a central core.

The “unashamedly lavish” Osteria Del Toro Restaurant, by Designgroup Stapleton Elliott, took honors in interior design, with the décor summed up as creating “a rich and unique dining experience”.

Residential Architecture

Praised as an “elegant bunker,” the Harding house, an Athfield Architects designed hilltop home in Melrose, provides shelter from the Wellington winds while encasing a warm and tranquil interior.

Jurors hailed the property as simple, refined and “an outstanding example of site responsive architecture”.

Other Wellington winners included the Collins Wiles House at Ngaio, by Erin Collins, described by Ms Foster “as a little gem on the side of a hill”.

The transformation of Two Karori properties, both by Herriot + Melhuish Architecture, were among winners.

Karori House 1: Stewart Dickens House is now “consumed by sun and views”.

Karori House 2: The Stonyer House has become an “entertainer’s dream” and effectively “a magnificent kitchen with four bedrooms attached”.

Other extensively remodeled properties included Winona in Khandallah, by Novak + Middleton Architects, described as “an elegant and sophisticated renovation”.

Another extensive makeover, a Maupuia House, by Tim Nees Architects, won acclaim for paying tribute to the 1970s structure while introducing innovative architecture.

A Writers Residence near Martinborough by Art +Architecture was a winner in the sustainable category, charming jurors with its simplicity, tranquility and harmony.

Ms Foster said the property, which is not connected to either telephone or power supplies, was “totally sustainable and like a Vitruvian Hut - so simple and making you truly feel detached from civilisation”.

Solar panels are used to heat water and, on dull days, a small turbine, powered by a nearby stream, takes over. Heating is provided by fireplaces with wetbacks.

An Aorangi House Building Upgrade by Studio Pacific Architecture, also won in the category, for “Intelligent sustainable interventions applied to an existing multi-story building.

The Pukaha Mount Bruce Wildlife Centre - Visitors Centre by Proarch Architects was a winner in small project architecture with the jurors noting how the original Lockwood structure had been “peeled back” to embrace the forest canopy beyond.

A Greytown Artist Studio by Accent Architects, which “leans up” towards a mature walnut tree, was described as “an extension of the garden canopy”.

Two new Eastbourne properties were among winners. A House for Gillian Watt, by WATT Architects, in Sorrento Bay, was described as a “celebration of light and space” and Bay House, by Novak + Middleton, as “simple yet complex” and “poised serenely in the hills of Days Bay”.

A “well detailed and seamless” Kapiti Coast House at Te Horo, by Bevin + Slessor Architects, was admired for the way it reaches out to the garden as an extension of the living environment”.

Enduring Architecture awards

Enduring architecture awards were made to two 1970s buildings, Wellington’s Westpac Bank Building which was formerly The Bank of New South Wales and designed by Stephenson & Turner NZ, and to the Ainsworth House at Korokoro, by Roger Walker Architects.

Jurors said the elegantly restrained facade and interior of the Westpac building had stood the test of time, transcending styles and fashions.

The Ainsworth House was a seen as “Very much a celebration of archetypal 1970’s Wellington architecture.

“It is what you think of when someone says ‘Roger Walker,’ “ said Ms Foster. “It’s like an adult’s playhouse, with lots of quirky spaces and little nooks and crannies”.

Jurors

Ms Foster was joined on the jury by Wellington architects Michael Melville and Morten Gjerde who lectures at the University of Victoria’s architecture department and is a consultant to the city council, and by visual artist Cathryn Monro who created the steel Per Capita sculpture on the corner of Cable Street and Tory Street.

As well as visiting all shortlisted properties, the judges met with the architects and clients. The buildings were judged against a series of key criteria including their contribution to the advancement of architecture as a discipline and enhancement of the human spirit.