Verity Lane Market
Architecture Hospitality Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
30 Images
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1. Lane way entrance Creating laneway culture and revitalisating of the heritage-listed Sydney Building. 6187 px 4125 px 15 MB A3 print |
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2. Terrace Balcony Outdoor seating area upon laneway balcony. 4066 px 6099 px 11 MB A3 print |
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3. Laneway seating An elevated seating deck defines the different uses of the laneway. 3879 px 5819 px 15 MB A3 print |
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4. Bar Located adjacent to the rear seating to encourage social use of the laneway. 4160 px 6240 px 17 MB A3 print |
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5. rear laneway 6240 px 4160 px 17 MB A3 print |
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6. 4017 px 6026 px 11 MB A3 print |
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7. 4160 px 6240 px 14 MB A3 print |
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8. 3497 px 5245 px 9 MB A4 print |
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9. 3987 px 5980 px 18 MB A3 print |
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10. opening up to the street looking in to the market from Northbourne 4094 px 6141 px 11 MB A3 print |
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11. bathrooms upstairs utility sinks and subways tiles recall the history of subway stations 4075 px 6112 px 17 MB A3 print |
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12. northbourne avenue heritage facade 5856 px 3904 px 14 MB A3 print |
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13. bar 6199 px 4133 px 14 MB A3 print |
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14. seating bar and seating opening up to the rear lane 4409 px 2480 px 9 MB Print - Low res only |
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15. window seating sitting at the window overlooking the 4160 px 6240 px 10 MB A3 print |
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16. downstairs bathrooms utility sinks and subways tiles recall the history of subway stations 3307 px 4961 px 8 MB A4 print |
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17. lighting detail of textured lighting in the upstairs bathrooms 2717 px 4075 px 10 MB A4 print |
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18. the laneway experience 3721 px 2480 px 9 MB Print - Low res only |
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19. Pizza Argentina Foord hall in prep mode 4252 px 2835 px 9 MB A4 print |
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20. Upper Level Terrace looking over the laneway 2953 px 4430 px 10 MB A4 print |
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21. Northbourne Colonnade 3543 px 5315 px 10 MB A3 print |
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22. pop up kitchens 4430 px 2953 px 10 MB A4 print |
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23. stair edge detail 2480 px 3720 px 9 MB Print - Low res only |
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24. view across the market 2953 px 4430 px 9 MB A4 print |
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25. stair details 3390 px 5084 px 9 MB A4 print |
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26. 3380 px 1310 px 507 KB Print - Low res only |
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27. 4963 px 2884 px 2 MB A4 print |
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28. 4963 px 3188 px 2 MB A4 print |
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29. 7016 px 3726 px 3 MB A3 print |
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30. 3416 px 1412 px 1 MB Print - Low res only |
Description
Verity Lane Market is a chef driven food hall and hospitality precinct that has brought new life to Canberra’s Sydney Building. The project has transformed the building with a primary address and connection through to Verity Lane, which has been a catalyst to create a new laneway culture. Social activity spilling from the building’s colonnade has also served to reorientate Canberra’s previously vehicle dominated main thoroughfare, Northbourne Avenue.
With a long and fascinating history as the earliest retail and civic buildings in Canberra’s city centre, the Sydney and Melbourne Buildings are one of the pre-eminent examples of Federal Capital style architecture and had been a landmark at the centre of social life for generations before energy in the city moved elsewhere.
Whilst externally consistent in appearance, each separately developed part of the building was internally different and built to varying structural systems. In this project, we stripped back a century of alterations to reveal for the first time the structure and underlying materiality. We introduced new and complementary elements and detailing in playful dialogue with the layers of history and original, patinaed fabric.
The extension to the rear laneway is clad in red brick of two different height formats and the rhythm of the façade, the structure, the positioning of the large glazed garage doors and the massing of the terrace balcony has all been carefully considered to articulate the original four blocks that have been combined to create the food hall spaces
The new stairs, with balustrades inspired by the iconic 1950s diving tower at the Civic Pool, and custom-made concrete sinks in the bathrooms which celebrate the utility and scale of train stations – a nod to the new light rail terminus just outside, are amongst highlights in an approach where contemporary insertions reference the building’s heydays.
The food hall tenancies are deliberately small and have been designed with a consistent language to create an atmosphere and buzz of a market with the focus on the food. Their small size has required a highly functional and coordinated fit-out that efficiently uses space. The landlord fitout has allowed vendors to change flexibly, supporting chef’s to test new concepts without committing large upfront costs as well as accommodating short term pop-ups and visiting residencies.
Questions and Answers
Who are the clients and what's interesting about them?
Phillip Keir – with a background in theatre and publishing, notably Rolling Stone Australia, is a significant arts patron and has wide interests. He had held the block long term as a passive investor while the iconic Private Bin nightclub became a series of subsequent nightclubs and bars, before eventually closing. His vision now as a hands on landlord operator has been to create a chef-driven immersive food experience and to curate a precinct that welcomes a wider demographic. A food hall, popular in North America and Europe, is a new typology for Canberra. Having been inspired by his various travels, he has looked to share his love of food and hospitality. The food hall is also home to world-class drink offerings and has been designed with a series of distinct, flexible spaces to allow diverse uses and events.
What key materials were used on the project?
Honesty in materials and construction was important. Key materials are the red bricks, exposed steel, timber and concrete floors and ceilings, and ceramic ‘subway’ tiles. The intent was to be robust, flexible, and unpretentious. Connected within, the new honed concrete slab throughout ties the original and new halves of the building together and allows level access from the colonnade.
Lighting has also been critical to creating ambience and defining space. Many of the fittings have vintage cues, which were included to recall the Sydney Building’s early days.
What do you hope people feel when they enter the space?
We hope people feel like the Market has naturally grown out of the history of the Sydney Building and was always meant to be here. With a sense of timelessness and using quality materials and crafting, we have sought to create welcoming spaces that are both convivial and comfortable.
What are the sustainability features?
Careful adaptive reuse and prioritising future flexibility have been central to our approach. Existing materials such as steel and bricks from the demolition stage were exposed, retained and re-used in the rebuild. The thermal efficiency of the building was upgraded with regard to insulation, ventilation and glazing without diminishing heritage values. The food hall is primarily passively heated and cooled, which is unusual for commercial spaces in Canberra.
What were the key challenges?
Working within the small dimensions of the 6m wide original blocks, was a particular challenge, however this also lent itself usefully to an enforced intimacy. Mediating level changes between the two sides to create accessible entries and providing sufficient egress widths for stairs within this heritage context without these elements over dominating took considerable care.
Details
| Project size | 1700 m2 |
| Completion date | 2020 |
| Building levels | 2 |
Project team
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Mather Architecture | Architecture & Interior Design |
| Built | Base building Builder | |
| Emporium Building | Fitout Builder |