To preserve and enhance the remaining principal features of the grade II listed building where possible and create a high quality purpose built student housing complex that is centred around a live, work and play philosophy and creates a vibrant and active residential hub.
Regeneration of a disused iconic building is not for the faint hearted especially when it’s grade II listed and cavernous spaces are part of its inherent fabric. Once the lynch pin of social night life in the 1930’s, the cinema has long been unloved and fallen from the grace of its heyday.
The owner’s previous endeavours to find a purchaser for a multitude of uses had failed, hence they contacted our client knowing their successful track record.
Built in modernistic and art deco styles, the gloss has been lost to the ravages of time and through adaption of the building over the years. Retention of what remains of the original façade and styling are fundamental to the project and are the inspiration for the architectural vision.
Designed to become a student living complex offering studio and two-bedroom en-suite apartments with an extensive array of facilities will rejuvenate the building and equip it for the next 100 years of its life journey. Already around five storeys high, the new extensions have been designed to flatter the majesty of the original building yet not overcome the locality.
Preservation and enhancement of the principal features of the listed building have been incorporated where practicable.
A bustling reception area and post room, cinema, gym, sauna, e-sports gaming, active games area, and socialising areas, complete with study areas, and cycle store for active travel options, with the mundane but necessary laundry zone.
