The Department of Conservation wanted an environmentally friendly building - one which would testify to its commitment to the value of conservation. Conservation House won the Sustainable Building Award at the 2006 Govt3 Awards for its new offices in the former Hoyts movie theatre complex on Manners Street in central Wellington. At the time, it was recognised as one of the most environmentally- friendly office buildings in New Zealand.

We sought to recreate, rather than recycle, a disused cinema complex, turning it into an enhanced state-of-the-art ‘green’ building. It utilises the most advanced sustainable ventilation and energy-saving strategies, such as replacing conventional air conditioning high highly efficient, noiseless, active chilled beams- the first such use in Australasia.

Sustainability was paramount, even during construction, when waste was sorted on site and minimised.

DESIGN FEATURES IN BRIEF: 

• Active chilled beam air conditioning system.

• Centralised atrium providing natural light and air flow.

• Rainwater collection and recirculation to water plants and flush toilets.

• Double-layer glass façade to allow natural air-flow, air conditioning or mixed-mode operation.

• Daylight dimming and motion sensors combine to give an energy-efficient lighting system.

• Sustainable internal fittings, including Ontera carpet tiles for easy replacement of individual tiles as needed.

• Heat pump water system

• PVC-free roller blinds.

• Low VOC formaldehyde materials.

AWARDS: 

• NZIA Resene Supreme New Zealand Award 2008

• NZIA Resene New Zealand Award 2008

• Wellington Civic Trust Award 2008

• NZIA Resene Local Award 2007

• NZIA Resene Colour Award 2007

• Property Council of NZ Commercial Office Energy Efficiency Award 2007

• Ministry for the Environment Environmentally Sustainable Design Award 2006

• Globally ranked 9th by Grist for green buildings. 

Acquired in 1999 for $10M, $100M was then spent on a five-star green design rating, with the finished project including refurbished heritage building and a new 11-storey office tower that attracted a rateable value of $188m just before it was sold for a Wellington record price, just shy of $200m. 

Spark Central is a 14 storey 35,000m² (including 75 car parks) commercial office building built on a 3660m² site in central Wellington and designed to a 5 NZGBC Green Star rating for design. The building was completed in December 2011, and features two office towers, one on Willis and one on Boulcott streets, joined with a north-south orientated atrium. The Willis building comprises the reinforced structural frame of an existing 1980’s office building (the Airways Building) which has been added to and extended, and also incorporates the majority of the heritage listed Tisdalls Building including the façade and historic internal stairway.

Retail tenancies are accessible directly off Willis and Boulcott streets, with an internal pedestrian link through the building connecting both city thoroughfares.

The building includes the use of coloured anodized aluminium screens which provide both sun screening to the north and a strong visual element to the north and south façades generally. These screens appear as a solid gold coloured element when viewed obliquely and almost transparent when viewed from straight ahead. This adds a very dynamic quality to these boundary façades.

The glazed façades to the east and west comprise a unitized curtain wall glazing system spanning floor to floor. This is either vertical or sloping inwards or outwards, articulated as a series of vertical glass ribbons. The glazing, although providing significant visual and thermal performance, is highly transparent, offering a clear view of activities within the building when viewed by passersby.

The other major architectural feature is the central atrium, which is open to office floors with either a glazed balustrade or full height glass (in the case of non Spark tenants). This space provides dramatic spatial drama, but is narrow enough to maintain significant visual connection between floors, allowing natural light to filter into the office floors and offer views to the north and south.

The perception of space and height in the open plan office areas has been greatly enhanced by eliminating the need for suspended ceilings, exposing the considered set out of the integrated chilled beam HVAC system.

The building accommodates 1800 Wellington based Spark staff in 80% of the available office space. The large floor plates of 2500 - 2800m² at levels 7 to 11 have allowed Spark to realise significant accommodation efficiency gains.

In addition the building also offers quality office accommodation for smaller organizations on commercial office floors of approximately 1150m.

AWARDS: 

• NZIA New Zealand Architecture Award 2013 – Commercial Architecture

• NZIA Wellington Architecture Award 2012 – Commercial Architecture

• Property Council NZ Commercial Office Property Industry Merit Award

Inspired by the laneways of Melbourne, Hannah's Laneway was the first mixed-use commercial/residential laneway development for Wellington.  Our redevelopment of much of the block created 174 apartments, 18 shops and two offices and, according to a 2004 Business and Economic Research Ltd report, helped revitalise the area by increasing its population seven-fold in a decade.  It is now known as a destination foodie street, with global write-ups for tourism.