Riverside Rebuild Reaches Completion

MEDIA RELEASE

15 January 2015

Riverside Rebuild Reaches Completion

Christchurch’s CBD residential market has received another vital economic boost with the city’s existing Riverside Apartments reaching practical completion after nine months of reconstruction works.

The former earthquake-damaged building on Carlton Mill Road has been given a new lease on life thanks to a package of works designed by international architects The Buchan Group. These works include code-specified structural strengthening, a new external façade, and upgrades to the apartment’s boutique rooms.

The Riverside Apartments complex features five privately owned apartments covering a total of 1,400sqm. The Buchan Group was appointed in March 2013 to provide design and architectural expertise to the project.

The Buchan Group’s Christchurch-based Practice Manager Raylene McEwan said the revitalised apartments have been rebuilt to earthquake-resistant standards after ground improvement and remediation was carried out on the site.

“Our project team’s initial brief was to assist in the repair and rebuild of the multi-storey Riverside building, which included removal of the existing external façade and major structural repair works and levelling, followed by the recladding of the entire building,” Ms McEwan said.

“After building consent was obtained, the building was stripped back almost to its bare concrete frame and re-levelled by compaction and jet grouting under the foundations. This is an important technique which ensures loose soils are reinforced to help correct the building’s structural foundations.

“A new cladding of composite aluminium and solid plaster not only modernised the façade design but provides a low maintenance and high quality finish. Insulation was also upgraded to meet current standards.

“The final stages of the refurbishment included refitting the building’s interior walls and rooms, including the luxurious penthouse bathroom designs.”

Ms McEwan said the team was proud to deliver a building that provided high quality accommodation for those looking for contemporary apartment living in the Merivale region.

“This redesign now showcases strong external design features resulting in a visually impressive and simplistic building which we feel embraces the new, forward-thinking vision for Christchurch City,” she said.

“This project shows it is physically possible and economically viable to repair earthquake damaged buildings, to bring them up to current building code requirements and return them to function rather than having to demolish and construct new in every case.

“There is an appetite for apartments in close proximity to public transport and recreational areas, and the overall finished product has been well received by the local market with strong interest from potential tenants and buyers.”

ENDS.

About The Buchan Group

The Buchan Group is one of Australasia’s most acclaimed architectural, interior and graphic design firms, servicing clients from diverse sectors in Australia, New Zealand, China, South East Asia, the Middle East and the United Kingdom for more than 120 years.

Led by The Group’s directors and principals, an interdisciplinary design team of more than 300 professionals have created some of the world’s most recognised retail, hotel, residential, educational, health and commercial projects.

The Buchan Group traces its history back to 1890, with the opening of the first practice in Geelong, Victoria. The Brisbane practice was established in 1983, before expanding to the Gold Coast, Sydney, Auckland and Christchurch.

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