By Herriot Melhuish O'Neill Architects Ltd
Many of the buildings in Petone's Jackson Street, a well known Wellington shopping street, have stood for over 100 years. The clock is now ticking to restrengthen and retain them, and HMOA was invited to work on this mixed-use, heritage-listed corner site.
The front facade and four shops of this unreinforced masonry building have been restored while the four residential units completely redesigned. These north-facing, three-bedroom apartments range from 120sqm to 141sqm and all have decks. The slick, refurbished façade now stands out from the surrounding buildings.
Using exposed finishes, rough brick and old timber, HMOA successfully contrasts old and new. Materials link back to the original with timbers recycled where possible, existing native-timber joists have been up-cycled for kitchen joinery, and floorboards reused as a floating floor in one of the apartments.
With their exposed structures and old finishes, the shops are kept rustic, ready to greet customers for another 100 years.
Photos: Andy Spain
Herriot Melhuish O’Neill Architects is an NZIA award-winning practice with studios in Wellington, Christchurch, Auckland and Tauranga. Established in 1997, our rich portfolio of commercial and residential work demonstrates a strong commitment to creating beautifully-crafted architecture that enhances the lives of those who experience our buildings – both inside and out.
We believe that enduring architecture is a delicate balance of factors – our clients’ needs and aspirations, our professional training and expertise, the history and nature of the site – but also intuition and commonsense. Every design decision, from materials to how the building complements the landscape, matters to us and adds to the experiential qualities of our projects.
Directors Max Herriot and John Melhuish in Wellington, Duval O'Neill in Christchurch and Matt Pearson in Auckland are committed to the best architectural design practices. HMOA Associate and registered architect Jenny Duck runs the Tauranga studio.
As well as new homes and house renovations, we have experience in the education, recreation, heritage, health and hospitality sectors, office interiors, multi-unit developments, civil projects and master-planning.