Nearly two weeks ago, we had the pleasure of spending a day with our architects from LEEBOYD and RANKINFRASER. It was a detailed design meeting that delved into many aspects of the Hub plan and led us to confirm several key elements of the design:
- The building is perfectly sized at 850 square meters.
- The current layout is robust, featuring a mix of meeting rooms and other versatile spaces.
- We gained much clearer views on the landscape, with exciting changes identified for Phase 2.
The ideas, changes, and tweaks identified at the meeting will now be explored with the rest of the design team:
- Narro – Civil and Structural Engineers
- Max Fordham – Environmental, Mechanical, and Electrical Engineers
- Morham Brotchie – Quantity Surveyors
- Thomson Gray – Principal Designers
You may notice some activity and Hi-Viz vests on and around the Town Centre land as we have also commissioned two surveys to help with our landscaping proposals:
- A tree survey
- A preliminary ecological survey
Meanwhile, the Trust team needs to explore and research further on our Hub destination areas:
- The Café – Business model, design/look
- The Heritage Centre – Work on the digital package and equipment needed to make it a visitor attraction
- Digital Experience – Display screens, Wi-Fi, sound, retail systems
- Main Hall – From fold-away stages to lighting and everything in between
- Services and Enterprise – We are consulting on these areas, more details to follow
This week, we are arranging a third round of discussions with existing users of both the Kabin and Community Centre. These will be ‘one-to-one’ meetings with the architect to ensure that we capture all of their needs and help their groups and clubs’ flourish.
Phase 2 will take at least six months as we prepare our application for planning consent and we will continue to update you on our progress.