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Schools of architecture don’t specifically
teach the surf life-saving club-house design?
How did you approach this?
It’s not unlike how an architect might approach
residential architecture. You certainly consider
the building’s fit in the landscape. This was at the
forefront of our work. I’ve been a member of the
surf club for a decade, done patrols and nippers.
Just using the old club and knowing the organization
from the inside was probably the most informative
influence on the way this has been designed.
It needed to be a single building, yet had quite
a complex brief for multiple uses. Flexibility
of use was the key.
Did you envisage a design with a strong presence,
or consider housing the various needs and grow
the answer from the inside out?
Planning regulations meant we were restricted
to the old clubhouse footprint. Rather than a
totally new build from the foundation up, we were
forced to perform a major renovation. It couldn’t
be a completely new building due to the coastal
engineering requirements. A new building would
have meant setting the entire structure back
50 metres, placing us somewhere near the
lower car park where there is no beach view.
Embraced by headland referenced in
strong end walls and visual projection east,
north and south.