Contact Artefacts please if you have any comments or more information regarding this record.	Menu Home Upfront Now Up Books Towns Structures People Firms Lexicon		Durban Beachfront Development, Mini-Town Node Durban, KwaZulu-Natal DESIGNWORKSHOP : SA: Architect

Date: 2010 Type: Public Space Status: Extant 2011 SAIA KZN Award for Architecture   Click to view map Coordinates: 29°50'40.22" S 31°02'08.29" E Alt: 8m

Architect's Notes The Mini Town node is the northern most of the 4 development nodes defined by the City along the length of the redevelopment of Durban's Golden Mile Promenade. The former 'Snel Parade loops away from the shore line and then back again giving way to the historic Sunken Gardens [circa 1934] and Amphitheater [circa 1935]. This geometry is followed by the 'wall' of hotels and apartment buildings that line the western side of the Marine Parade and give large scale spatial definition and identity to this piece of the beachfront. The opportunity of the project was to transform the site into a productive public space by emptying it of all obstructions - built and topographic - structure physical and visual access and movement into and across it, compact Mini Town to also reduce the extent of its obstruction, concentrate and increase parking to the north of Mini Town where the Marine Parade is also closest to the revamped promenade, concentrate and intensify a limited number of focal activities that would provide identity and specific uses to its expanse, and provide a grid of shade across the whole remaining open grassed area as respite to the heat of the beach and Promenade. The primary intervention was a new public facilities and restaurant building. Its purpose was to bring focus and primary identity to the site. This is supported by its location at the northern end of the site and at the nexus of the Marine Parade, the Promenade and the new Car Parking. The main influences in its formal conception and functional arrangement were that, having removed almost all visual and physical obstructions between the Marine Parade and the Promenade, we didn't want to add a new one; the existing Skate Park defined the site's southern buildable extent; the beach front is often windy even when it is otherwise a beautiful sunny day and we thought that a shady wind protected and safe restaurant courtyard would be an attractive amenity for families with young kids would had just come off the beach; and we also recognised that the spatial and visual strength of the 'wall' of hotels and apartments lining the Marine Parade would retain its most dramatic impact if this new building lay low rather than introducing a new face into the family photograph; rather to underline it. The design is a direct response to these defined performance objectives. We used the slope of the site from the Marine Parade down to the Promenade to tuck the building under a new natural ground level so that it only has an elevation to the Promenade, which wraps slightly around its southern end to address the Skate Park. The building has almost no formal presence from the east other light suggestions of its presence like balustrades to edges of level changes. All functions are lined up along the length of the Promenade so that its entire length is active and there are no blank walls where people interface with the building's edges. And the slightly raised primary restaurant space opens through fully glazed sides, east onto the Promenade and Ocean and west into a below-grade, tree shaded and wind protected courtyard; the restaurant is transparent from shady green on the one side to burning bright blue on the other. Supporting the intention that the whole elevation is active, glass screens enclose or open all functions arranged along the building's length onto the Promenade. This includes the new Skate shop at the southern end which opens directly onto the extended Skate Park; a Life Savers' facility including a boat store; new Public Ablutions that, for safety and security reasons, are completely visually open to the Promenade except for the actual WC and shower cubicles; what is hoped to be a Pastry and Fresh Juice Bar; and the Restaurant, with its outside umbrella shaded beach side terrace. Above the east facing glass facade is a modulated horizontal line of vertical slatted timber balustrade that protects the edge of the accessible grassed roof - which is at the level of and accessible from the Marine Parade - and drops down past the slab edge to shade the glass from summer sun. This screen is the building's primary identity. Toward the southern end of the building, the screen moves away from its primary line, and expands its surface area to support formal expression of the stair that links the upper Marine Parade level down to the Promenade. The stair is away from the glass facade to allow pedestrian movement continuously along its length, is twisted from the building's normative geometry to align with natural pedestrian movement tendencies, and is supported on inclined concrete columns that are dancing with a little sea side exuberance on the raised terrace. Skating and BMX bike riding is the land-side version of surfing. It's a consistent culture, but it has an urban edginess associated with graffiti, low slung pants, lean bodies and youthful risk taking. It's location right against the Promenade is exciting and energising to the beach front experience, both for participants and observers. After a hard search around the world we were able to locate an American skater and Park designer and builder. Following consultation with the local skater community, the design was finalised for a new skate topography that extends the existing park to the north, focusing on a 3m high over-vertical bowl with a terraced mini stadium at its edge for spectators and skaters to hang out immediately adjacent to the Skate Shop. Award for Architecture Citation The site is the northernmost node to the general beachfront upgrade and contains the Amphitheatre and Sunken Gardens of 1932 which had to be incorporated in the renewal. The approach was to remove all obstructions and for best surveillance create an essentially even slope from OR Tambo (Marine) Parade to the beach promenade. In that process the berms to the Gardens were reduced in height while the new restaurant could be concealed with its only elevation opening to the promenade. However, in order to cater for windy days, a sunken courtyard was included on the landward side. The jury applauded the approach to the redevelopment as a landscaping design, the revalidation of the historical amenities, the integration of the skate park and mini-town, the ingenious yet self-effacing concept of the promenade café facing both the sea and the courtyard, the inherent robustness and flexibility of the design, and the innovative balustrade detailing. All truncated references not fully cited below are those of Joanna Walker's original text and cited in full in the 'Bibliography' entry of the Lexicon.