Bachelor's of Architecture Portfolio

By Alison Toole

CONTENTS

01 Grand Union Office

A renovation of an excising office block based in Camden Town

02 Events

An events/exhibition centre based adjacent historical Clifford’s Tower Centre

A low cost budget hostel a quaint village

Centre adjacent to Tower in the Centre of York

Eco Hostel hostel based in Holmfirth, south of Huddersfield

Personal collection of hand sketches, collages and architecture photography

GRAND UNION OFFICE

Introduction

camden Town is the chosen site for this project, the town is a borough of London, the capital of the UK. The vibrant town is saturated with culture, many native languages spoken there.

The community is proud of its liberal outlook, and promotes diversity, equality welcoming people from all walks of life.

Getting about the town is really easy, being incredibly well-connected by the Northern line, stopping at Camden Town station, Mornington Crescent, and Chalk Farm. All of which are within a short walking distance from the site. There are also a number of buses traveling directly to Camden from zones around the city. Euston station, Warren Street, Charring Cross or Paddington all have connections. Alternatively, you can travel the waterways of the Camden canal or cycle using the designated cycle lanes.

Camden isn’t only famous for its cultural diversity, but its quirky shopping outlets too. Visitors rate the alternative music scene as a unique experience, not found anywhere else.

There is so much to see and do, yet a visit isn’t complete without a trip down the endless street food stalls within Camden Market. Serving delicious international cuisine from all across the globe.

Mingled amongst the cobbled back streets are hundreds of street traders selling unique pieces of jewellery, artworks, one off hand made products and everything in-between. The town is rapidly evolving, with new businesses constantly seeking Premises within the popular area. There are huge demands for affordable office space like the one I have designed.

Project Outcomes

• Create a happy sustainable workforce environment with access to green space.

• Design a communal garden and allotment that promotes community cohesion

My intended outcome for this project is to renovate an existing office building, rather than demolish and rebuild it. Too often structurally intact buildings are demolished these days, contributing to the climate crisis, and disturbing wildlife’s natural habitat. It’s important that we as designers, use our positions in the built environment to incorporate environmental design strategies that support decarbonisation for future generations.

Analysing the site and the surrounding areas I identified just how scarce green space is in the highly-dense urban centre. Access to green space and nature is essential for the mental, physical and emotional health of individuals. With this said, “my inspiration is to build a sustainable happy community” by reducing segregation and isolation in the “Grow together” project. An initiative that generates cohesion of communities with a shared interest in agriculture.

View of allotment from the office balcony.

Site & Access

The project site (highlighted) is at the rear of a grade II listed Sainsbury’s building located on Camden Road, in the centre of Camden town. The area is currently known for anti-social be haviour and frequent criminal activity. My design aims to tackle the existing problems by providing a design specifically tailored to help eliminate the space being used as a criminal hub using trans parent materials and lighting.

This diagram shows the site boundaries.

Site Analysis

Sustainability is an important factor in my design. Too many buildings are demolished these days that are structurally in tact. So, my proposal is to renovate a portion of the existing tired looking Grand Union House office block, on Kentish Town Road. Renovating Nick Grimshaw’s architecture, and producing modern, quality affordable office space right in the centre of kentish town.. Other projects adjacent to the site (Salisbury’s & Grand Union Walk) are both also the designs of Grimshaw. ( Recently been grade II listed)

To save on embodied carbon emission number of sustainable measures will be undertaken as part of the agenda. Such as retaining the existing structural columns, floor slabs, and beams in an initiative to help to reduce emissions of unnecessary embodied carbon, and recycle materials where possible.

Winter Garden replaces the ground floor car park

Introduction EVENTS CENTRE

This event space project is located in the historical city of York, a cathedral city with Roman & Vi king origins, situated in North Yorkshire. The once capital of England is sited at the confluence of the river Ouse & Foss. There are many historical buildings here, such as a minister, castle and city walls. The construction site is located east the tourist attraction Clifford’s Tower, currently the site is occupied by a busy public car park.

Site Location

Concept Diagrams

Visualisations

view of exhibition space

View of construction

Materials

200mm Concrete Raft Foundation

5mm Waterproof membrane

10mm Screed

75mm Sand

150mm Hardcore

200mm Cast in place concrete

150mm Rigid Insulation

2mm Waterproof membrane

12mm Plasterboard

150mm Hardcore and 75mm sand to level and support the ground ready for raft foundations

• Concrete raft foundation

Reason; Raft foundations distribute loads over the en tire area, providing suitable stability for the project.

• 250mm Reinforced cast in-place concrete walls Reason; The material is durable, forms complex shapes well and fire resistant

• 400mm steel I beams placed in a structural grid. Reason; Steel beams are strong, can span longs lengths, flexible and can be cut and brought to site in the correct measurements.

• 40mm Composite steel decks Reason; Decking is strong, easy to install and cost effective.

• 200mm Rebar cast in place concrete Reason; Quick to lay, pre-cast not suitable for the angled form of the building.

View of cafe

ECO HOSTEL

This project is based in a tourist destination in a village named Holmfirth. The area attracts the adventuress type who wish to explore the picturesque landscape and surroundings. Having an eco hostel in the village will offer affordable accommodation to families and individuals who enjoy the natural environment of the Holme Valley. Sustainability has been a leading factor in the design of the project, with the intention of being greener to the environment.

Visualisation of Cafe

Plans & Elevations

Floor Plan

Section