Nottingham, United Kingdom
Jestico + Whiles, CPMG Architects, and Axis have completed 1 The Island Quarter, a new city spot with performance and events spaces, bars, and restaurants, on a canalside site in Nottingham.
Located to the southeast of the city center, 1 The Island Quarter has been constructed on a post-industrial brownfield site less than 500 meters from the city’s main railway station that was originally home to the Boots central factory.
Visible from London Road and Station Street, the main building is part of a wider masterplan intended to draw visitors to Nottingham’s eastern fringe.
The architects have created a sculptural outdoor stage that has been introduced within a new landscaped public plaza, which will host concerts and open-air markets as part of a program of year-round events.
The plaza provides a step-free, accessible route down to the new-build elements of the canal towpath.
The lower parts of the main building and the shaft of the stair tower feature a robust red brick from Nottingham Patent Brick Company while the upper levels consist of textured cladding.
Across the façade, there are arches forming window openings and a colonnade that runs adjacent to the plaza.
The adjacent listed 18th-century canal turnover stairway has been resurfaced for improved accessibility and refurbished with new railings linking to the existing cast iron railing at the northern edge of the footbridge.
Jestico + Whiles has also worked on designs for the restoration of three Victorian warehouses on the site, including the Grade II-listed Great Northern Warehouse and the James Alexander Warehouse to create a series of cultural venues for the city.
Project: 1 The Island Quarter
Architects: Jestico + Whiles + Associates Limited
Executive Architect: CPMG Architects Limited
Landscape Architect: AXIS Architects Planners PTE Ltd
Interior Designer Macaulay Sinclair
Lighting Designer: Studio Fractal
Client: The Conygar Investment Company
Photographers: Christofer Terry
