Telephone +61 7 3844 1362
studio@shanethompson.com.au
47 Wahcumba St, Dutton Park
PO Box 1170 Fortitude Valley
Queensland 4006 Australia
Petrie Terrace, Australia.
Caxton Street is located within two of the earliest parts of Brisbane to be settled; the Petrie Terrace and Spring Hill. These areas have a recognisable streetscape character, scale, and materiality originating in the mid-19th century. Caxton Street today still enjoys a popular patronage from locals and visitors alike. It contains a mix of low rise commercial development and detached housing immediately surrounding. More recent significant additions, near Caxton Street include The Barracks and Suncorp Stadium. With the Roma Street train station within walking distance the accessibility to Caxton Street to both Brisbane city and the wider community is great. The synthesis of this traditional character with modern infrastructure and development creates an exciting and significant location in Brisbane city.
The site for this project is located on the northern side of Caxton Street. It is a sloping site with street access from Caxton Street and Cathie Street. The site is on a small allotment, typical in character to this area. It is a ‘bookend’ to the low-rise commercial precinct on one boundary and the detached residential housing down towards Hale Street. Now a two storey masonry building used as a bar and restaurant on the ground floor and office space above, the site was originally occupied by a house. This site represents an opportunity to provide an urban bookend and gateway marker to this vibrant food and beverage precinct.
The form and expression of the building is influenced by the narrow site and heights of the existing surrounding buildings. Apparent to the character of this street are the buildings built close to or on the alignment to the front boundary to Caxton Street. This proposal seeks to build up to the alignment of Caxton Street and to provide pedestrian shelter along the street.