106
LANDMARK NEO-PALLADIAN HALL ONCE THOUGHT
‘NOT FIT FOR PURPOSE’ TRANSFORMED INTO ST ALBANS
MUSEUM + GALLERY - A VIBRANT CULTURAL HUB
Built in 1830 and designed by George Smith,
the Grade II* Listed St Albans former Town Hall
is one of the city’s most prominent landmarks.
The elegant venue has been recently extended
and repurposed to designs by John Mc Aslan
and Partners as a world-class centre for arts
and culture at the heart of one of Britain’s most
historic cities.
As part of the refurbishment Selectaglaze, a
specialist designer of Secondary Glazing systems
that has operated in St Albans for over 40 years,
was approached by the consultants to consider
ways of improving environmental controls.
Very large tripartite single glazed windows in
the impressive 1st floor Assembly Room offered
extremely poor thermal insulation.
Other windows required significantly improved
security to meet Arts Council guidelines for
inclusion in the Government Indemnity Insurance
scheme.
Working closely with contractor Willmott
Dixon Construction a sample window was first
produced for the Assembly Room. This was a
special 3-part vertical sliding unit measuring 4.3m
(h) x 1.7m (w) designed to be as sympathetic as
possible to the original window design.
The new St Albans Museum + Gallery is free to
visit and showcases over 2000 years of heritage
with permanent displays telling the story of
St Albans from the pre-Roman era through
to modern times and will also host changing
exhibitions and events.
This project, financed in part by the Heritage
Lottery Fund, has transformed an underused
building which had fallen into disrepair and
repurposed it into a vibrant cultural centre for the
City.
Contact Selectaglaze on 01727 837271/
e mail: [email protected] or
visit: www.selectaglaze.co.uk