Quaker Street
London, UK
2007-11
The tapering site, which backs onto the Liverpool Street Station railway tracks contains an old factory, which was first used as a dairy distribution centre, where horse drawn carts would ascend and descend the first floor ramp to and from the churn hall. Latterly it has been used as a rag trade warehouse. Although the building is not listed, the LPA insisted the facades be retained as it is on the local heritage listings. The decision was to contrast the existing brick gabled facade with their triple engaged vertical windows with a roof top extension set back for the hotel use. The extension would be horizontal and be clad in a smoother lighter reflective cladding sheet to add contrast.
The set back both allowed the gables to be viewed from street level without a hindering backdrop and retain sufficient light levels for the opposite residential deck access LCC flat block. The interior floor levels were altered and lowered allowing a greater number of floors and hotel rooms, 105 in total to be accommodated. Two bays were broken out at street level to provide for a porte cochère, which contains the approach to the hotel reception and gives vehicle access to the excavated basement level. Internally between the retained brick front facade and the interior windowed wall of the hotel rooms sits a full height atrium, which is lit from the retained front windows and supplemented by new roof lights. This space provides natural light to the front row of guest rooms and a circulation space at ground floor along the entire length of the building.
The room windows are arranged vertically though as each floor they become more staggered and horizontal appearing at their utmost where the accommodation rises above the existing gables, which traces the transition of the old vertical building to the new horizontal extension. The roof garden and renewable energy PVP field array is supplemented with a roof top terrace and bar for hotel guests to access and enjoy.
Design whilst at MDR Ass.
K u n n a A r c h i t e c t s
Quaker St