Harmonious transition

Press, 26 February 1987, Page 23

Harmonious transition

Converting the Edmonds band rotunda into a restaurant provided architect David Childs with an awesome number of design problems. However, ingenuity combined with respect for the 58-year-old building’s original design have provided the solutions. “We aimed to maintain the beauty and purpose of the building as it was and do the minimum alterations,” says Mr Childs. Efficiency was also a factor. Achieving the conversion in just over two months — Christmas 1986 to March 1, 1987 — required a great deal of cooperation and tolerance from everyone involved. “At any one time, there were numerous tradesmen working in the basement, yet work progressed extremely smoothly,” says Mr Childs. The basement floor was

excavated by two feet to allow more headroom and storage space for the kitchen, storage area and public conveniences. The roof space originally empty under timber trusses and sarking supporting the copper dome, was used extensively for electrical and plumbing services, air-conditioning plant, water storage, the window-lifting mechanisms and sunshade counterweights.

To prevent a glasshouse effect, striped sunshades were added to provide a cooling canopy and, like the windows, they can be positioned to provide a varying degree of sun protection.