Urban Eye: Prudential Extension
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Urbanism +1
This is a conversion of an office building into apartments, with the addition of several floors. Apart from some refurbishment, it looks like there has been no change at street level. It should, however, make a small urbanistic contribution by increasing the after-hours population of Lambton Quay.
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The original building was pretty much the closest Wellington got to a classic 1930's skyscraper, albeit in shrunken form. It was stylish and dashing, and the developer's marketing was happy to refer to it as "one of the country’s most flamboyant art deco-style buildings", with a "jagged skyline... [that helps] to provide an appearance of distinction".
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The new floors are set back just slightly, so if they had been well detailed they might have not only retained the integrity of the cornice, but actually enhanced the spirit of the architecture. One of the most urbane features of Art Deco skyscrapers was the use of setbacks, which not only reduced shadowing (as required by the zoning regulations) but also turned the building into a soaring spire rather than a blunt extruded lump. When I first wrote about this before the scaffolding came off, I was optimistic.
![The Prudential building from below](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6909/1288/320/prudential.jpg)
Environment +1
Apart from its contribution to sustainability through density, there's no sign that this conversion makes any special moves towards environmentally sustainable design.
Social 0
It has replaced expensive office space with expensive apartments, so it is socially neutral.
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