Early 2000s building to be wrapped in red cladding in nod to Bristol’s Byzantine revival architecture
Sheppard Robson has been given the green light to refurbish and extend an early 2000s office building in the centre of Bristol.
Designed for a joint venture between Ardstone Capital and CBRE Investment Management, the scheme will retain nearly 90% of the existing building while adding three storeys to its roof.
The existing structure was completed in 2002 and is located on a prominent site on Temple Way, close to Bristol Temple Meads station.
Sheppard Robson’s plans will see its facade stripped back and replaced with a cladding of vertical fins with a dark red colour, intended as a nod to the Bristol Byzantine architectural style popular in the city in the late 19th century.
Space between two wings of the building will also be infilled to create larger and more flexible floor plates, which will be orientated around a new central core.
Extensions to the north will form a two-story colonnade at ground floor, framing a new double-height reception which has been reoriented towards Temple Quarter.
The three new storeys at roof level will replace the building’s current top floor plate and a plant enclosure, stepping back as the building rises to create a series of planted terraces wrapping around the top of the building.
Mark Kowal, partner at Sheppard Robson, said the project was an example of the retention of late 20th century buildings which would until recently have “faced the pressure of demolition”.
”Our design reimagines this outmoded building into a workplace that is aligned with the requirements of modern tenants and their sustainability aspirations,” he said.
“The transformative nature of the project is balanced with resourcefulness. We have retained as much as we possibly can whilst using bold architectural ideas to signal the arrival of a major new development and public spaces for Bristol.”
Energy will be supplied through a district heating network, with photovoltaics contributing to around 30-40% of the building’s electricity use depending on how its operated and occupied.
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