November is the month for celebrating and showcasing every firm and project that was victorious at the inaugural SCAPE Award of Excellence. These names are raising the bar for excellence in the local architecture and design industry, standing on a stage set for international acclaim. In partnership with Infinity Surfaces and alongside our Impact Partner Oggie, we present the top firms and portfolios in the country for 2024. Introducing the Winner of Commercial Build of the Year: Gabriël Fagan Architects
In the heart of the Cape Town CBD, an ambitious project breathes new life into a historic 18th-century warehouse. The transformation, completed by Gabriël Fagan Architects, presents The Barracks, a dynamic and sustainable new part of the urban landscape. The restoration addresses the need to activate the street, resolving years of divided ownership and enabling a unified vision for the building’s revival.
Activating the city
The project contributes positively to the central business district of Cape Town in several ways. Coming from a need to activate the street, the restoration of the old 18th-century warehouse was required. It was run down and divided into five ownerships, each of which did not have a unified vision for the building. Consolidation and single ownership allowed for a focussed intervention to restore the building.
A revealing restoration
Needing to finance its restoration, a starkly contrasting apartment block was proposed to hover above the warehouse to reinforce the old building’s simple form and propriety on the street, and to future-proof it against falling into the disrepair of its recent past. The restoration enabled the revealing of the original interior fabric to the public for the first time since the 1700s, which now works as a backdrop to the restaurants and commercial spaces that inhabit the building and have transformed it from the mundane to a vibrant addition to the cityscape.
The link to connection
The project also allowed a connection from Bree Street to the internal Lutheran Church courtyard — a link across ownership lines to initiate a trend of connecting the many hidden mid-block spaces in the city to the streets. The link has energised the commercial use of the courtyard which in turn has enabled the Church to afford the restoration of their Grade 1 buildings, which are of national heritage significance.
With the apartments contributing to the vibrancy of the whole structure, a formula is launched that pursues sustainable mixed-use developments that have something to give back to the city.
“This project is highly commended for its detail orientated approach to refurbishing the old warehouse and adding an extension which does not compete with the existing building, but has an identity of its own.” – Melodie Leung, Director at Zaha Hadid Architects
This article is an extract from our November issue. Read the full issue here.
