Sheffield skyscraper gets green light for completion

Call 01704 885280

Sheffield skyscraper gets green light for completion

Work is to continue on Conran & Partner’s half-built St Paul’s skyscraper in Sheffield after it’s plans were altered.

The £67 million tower build ground to a halt when the practice was refused permission for alterations to the external skin.

Among the suggested alterations was the introduction of transoms to make the full height glazing, two-thirds height instead, but this was rejected by the city’s planning committee.

However after talks between the council and the developer, it is believed that the transoms have been designed out of the scheme allowing the development to continue.

Article by Caroline Jones

3d visual cost by computer-rendering.com

Permalink

Operon seals deal for university accommodation

Operon has teamed up with Bank of Scotland Corporate and Buckinghamshire New University to deliver The Student Residences Project, a £32 million, 630 en-suite room new development in Hughenden, High Wycombe.

The contract will begin in January when Operon will take over the facilities management for 400 rooms at existing accommodation, with the remaining 230 to be built during 2009. It is hoped that the new build will have the scope to increase the number of new units to 500.

Nigel Barker, group finance director, Operon, said he was delighted to be involved in the project.

The new student accommodation is part of a major building and refurbishment programme being undertaken by the university.

Article by Caroline Jones

3D Rendering by Computer-Rendering.com

Permalink

Dukes Wharf plans win approval

Norwich City Council Planning Committee has approved the redevelopment proposal for Duke’s Wharf in Norwich city centre.

The site in the Central Conservation area on the former Eastern Electricity site, adjacent to the River Wensum.

The Duke’s Wharf scheme will act as a catalyst to rejuvenate this historically important part of the city and will include a mixed use development of more than 200,000 sq ft of commercial accommodation with offices, restaurants and cafes 16 residential units and 93 car parking spaces.

The development will include generous public spaces, an art gallery, public courtyard and garden, and will introduce a new riverside walkway and pedestrian links anchoring Duke’s Wharf with Duke Street, Charing Cross and The Lanes.

An art gallery with a public sculpture garden and commissioned artwork will be incorporated within the entrances of the development.

Target follow will now be seeking to quickly complete the planning process so that the company can secure funding in what are currently challenging economic conditions for any development project.

James Smith, Targetfollow’s associate director for development, welcomed the decision.

The design for the development is a collaboration of ideas between Feilden + Mawson Architects and Art Architecture - local practices based in Norwich. The buildings at the top of Duke Street designed by ET Boardman Architects in 1910 will be retained.

The residential element of the development will feature both flats and houses.

Philip Bodie, Partner of lead architects Feilden and Mawson, said: “Having made the decision to retain the Boardman Buildings, this led to a fresh look at the architectural approach for the whole development. This process has resulted in what the team believes will be an exceptional piece of architecture that will enhance this part of Norwich City Centre.”

The new buildings will aim to achieve a BREEAM Excellent rating and will have a low carbon footprint for energy use. The residential units will achieve Code for Sustainable Homes Level 3 as a minimum.

One of the first occupiers could be Targetfollow itself, as Duke’s Wharf could become the company’s new UK headquarters.

Article by Caroline Jones

3D rendering by computer-rendering.com

Permalink

Contenders for Manster Medal unveiled

The shortlist for the Manser Medal 2008, for one-off houses and housing developments is:

  • Garden apartment by Gianni Botsford Architects, Pembridge Villas, London W11
  • Accordia by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, Alison Brooks Architects and Maccreanor Lavington, Brooklands Avenue, Cambridge
  • Halligan House by Simon Conder Associates
  • McGonigle House by Twenty Two Over Seven, Ravenhill Road, Belfast
  • Oxley Park by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, Oxley Woods, Milton Keynes

The Manser Medal is sponsored by The Rooflight Company.

3D visualisation by computer-rendering.com

Permalink

Bolton’s £210m gateway development wins approval

Careyjones has been given the go ahead for a £210 million mixed-use scheme at Church Wharf in Bolton.

The 30,000m2 gateway development will include housing, offices, family homes, a multi-screen cinema, car parks, cafes and bars, a 160-bed hotel and 1,500m2 of shops.

 

The regeneration project is being backed by joint-venture partners Ask Developments and Bluemantle and was approved by Bolton Council last week.

Detailed plans, which will include a new riverside walkway alongside the River Croal, are expected to be submitted early next year.

Article by Caroline Jones

3D rendering services by computer-rendering.com

Permalink

Kitchens, bathrooms and flooring under one roof

Kbbreview Expo 2009, the trade exhibition for the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom industry, is proud to announce it will now be joining forces with The Tile & Stone Show and Floorstyle.

The exhibition in 2009 will be held at London’s ExCeL centre, and will bring together the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, tiles, stone and flooring industries under one roof.

Article by Caroline

3D Rendering by Computer-Rendering.com

Permalink

Heart of East Greenwich plans approved

First Base and English Partnerships have received planning permission for their redevelopment of the former Greenwich District Hospital.

Regeneration company First Base and English Partnerships (owners of the site) have in mind a residential, commercial and leisure scheme, including 645 homes, of which 50 per cent will be affordable.

The redevelopment, dubbed the Heart of East Greenwich includes a public square, leisure facilities including two swimming pools, fitness facilities, a health centre with two doctors’ surgeries, plus a library, crèche, a range of shops, cafes and flexible Workspace to support local creative industries.

The scheme, by Make Architects, will be rolled out as part of the London-Wide Initiative - a programme managed by English Partnerships to provide more affordable homes for key workers throughout London.

The partners will work with Greenwich Council and the Greenwich Teaching Primary Care Trust, who will be responsible for the public, leisure and healthcare services operating on the site.

Article by Caroline

3D Rendering by Computer-Rendering.com

Permalink

March of the malls continues despite credit crunch

After more than four years, Highcross, a shopping mall tipped to revitalise the centre of Leicester is nearing completion, and will open on Thursday September 4.

Finishing touches are being made to stores, and the complex also includes a late-night restaurant district, including restaurant chain Wagamama.

Research by the British Council of Shopping Centres (BCSC) shows £5.3 billion was spent on UK shopping malls in 2007, more than double the figure in 2000. Some 5.2m sq ft of new town-centre retail floorspace is planned every year from 2009 to 2012.

And the economic downturn - the CBI reported that the high street had it’s weakest trading in 25 years in August - has failed to stem the excitement about Highcross. More than 1000 people paid a visit when the development opened its doors for four hours in June.

For Leicester, Highcross is firm evidence of a £3 billion urban-regeneration scheme which includes a science and technology park, performing-arts centre and housing. The aim is to pull in shoppers from Nottingham and Peterborough, and push Leicester in to the top 10 of shopping malls.

Developer Hammerson has two further malls opening in Paris and Bristol next month and believes that Highcross will draw in shoppers from Nottingham and Peterborough, pushing Leicester into the top 10 of British shopping destinations.

Costing £350m and creating 2,000 new retail and leisure jobs, Highcross will incorporate The Shires, a town-centre development that opened in 1991

Article by Caroline

3D Rendering by Computer-Rendering.com

Permalink

  • Exterior Architectural Rendering

    Exterior renderings are a great way for Architects & Property Developers to show their plans fully developed.

  • Interior Design Rendering

    Interior renderings bring concepts to life & allow designers to experiment with different ideas.

  • Furniture & 3D Modelling

    Our design professionals can also create stunning, fully detailed and textured 3D images of furniture models.

  • 3D Video Animation

    Video animations are virtual fly-bys or walk-throughs that can provide a clear understanding of the building