NEW WELLINGTON LANDMARK

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 85, 11 April 1935, Page 9

NEW WELLINGTON LANDMARK

THE PRUDENTIAL BUILDING. { j The new building of The Prudential ] Assurance Company Limited, on Lamb- | ton Quay, Wellington, was officially opened by the Kight Hon. J. G. Coates, j P.C., yesterday morning. , This new reinforced concrete build- f ing occupies an area with 60ft. front j age to Lambton Quay, and a depth of 83ft. Io Plimmer steps. The site is an j historical one, having previously been . occupied for many years by the old f Exchange Building, which was demol- g ished in order to make way fc-r this | new' and imposing structure. I In New Zealand it has been almost t the invariable practice to occupy the 1 full area of land available—to build r right up to adjoining properties and to ‘ grudgingly provide so-called light areas (which would more aptly be ’ termed “dark areas”) to permit, ol a certain amount of light and ventila- * tion to those portions of the building i which would otherwise be “ blacked to out.” The Prudential Assurance .Com | ( pany have, however, set back their| g new building from rhe adjoining pro- t, perties on the north and west sides, e and so have permitted the erection of! • a building which is, to ail intents and purposes, on an island site, as it i-U ; bounded on the east by Lambton Quay : and on the south by Plimmer steps. The new building is essentially mod era in design with a strong vertical emphasis. It has been designed en- ; tirely in reinforced concrete and com- j plies fully with the most recent de- ; velopments in earthquake - resisting construction. The bulk of Wellington’s city buildings are on reclaimed ' land, necessitating either pile foundations or the carrying of piers down through the reclamation to a solid bottom. In this instance, the building has been erected on the original t“lid ; ground, and no extra excavation hir been necessitated. i The building extends for eight floors ; above the ground floor, being built to the maximum height permitted by the < city by-laws. The lift tower rises 20 feet higher than the remainder of the ( building and besides furnishing a pleasing break in the sky-line of the ; building serves the practical purposes ' of housing both the lift machinery* ;

and the water tanks for lire prevention and fc-r sanitary services. The use of the vari coloured cements in the one building is a new depar* ture for this country and the success achieved by their use in this building gives some indication of the wide scope for designers of city buildings in the future, the bright colours being a glad relief from the drab natura cement colours almost invariably used previously. The Prudential Assurance Co. Ltd. started its career at Blackfriars in 1848 and is now on the eve of its 87th anniversary. The following colossal figures show how that service has en« gendered the trust of a discriminating public. As at December 31st, 1934, the asset! of the company exceeded £290,000,000. The annual income of the Prudential exceeds £50,000,000, while the total new business in 1934 exceeded £85.800,000. The number of life policies 'in force at the end of 1934 exceeded 28,000,000. *