The Seddon Memorial in Wellington, built 1908-1910, stands tall above the tree tops in honour of the Right Honourable Richard John Seddon (1845-1906), New Zealand’s longest serving Prime Minister. The design is a reinforced concrete column faced with Coromandel granite, mounted over a concrete crypt, complete with a life size bronze figure at the top, which represents the State in mourning for its dead.
The conscious decision to retain existing streets like Sunderland Avenue with the wider berms, hedges, deciduous trees and solidly constructed family accommodation of a former era is part of the overall aim of the development to acknowledge and emphasise the heritage character of this area and its links to the original air-base that formerly occupied the site.
Developers, Willis Bond & Co, approached Salmond Reed Architects to assist in preserving the rich heritage of the existing housing while bringing them up to modern-day standards of comfort. In collaboration with building contractor Haydn & Rollett, the design team has developed concepts and details to achieve that aim.
Externally, preserving key elements such as the roof forms and existing cladding materials and original architectural features such entry porches and half-round metal spoutings has retained the essential character of the buildings. New elements such as stand-alone garages, which replaces non-original metal garages, have been stylistically integrated into each property. 7 of the 9 houses have rear alterations which provide improved indoor-outdoor flow, in keeping with contemporary lifestyle requirements.
New kitchen, bathroom and laundry facilities have been incorporated into the existing internal layouts and retention of original elements, such as native matai timber tongue and groove flooring, original window and door joinery and brass hardware, coupled with the use of plaster ceiling panels with timber battens retain the character of the old, with the convenience and practicality of the new.
Light and fresh colour schemes, inside and out, lend a level of modern individuality without diminishing the heritage character of the original home and its surroundings.
The nine houses complete the blueprint for this coherent group of air-base homes which and provide evidence of the established air-base community which existed here since around 1937, all adding to the interesting mix that characterises this thoughtfully conceived development.
