Heritage

The work ranged from external repair of stone pointing, window joinery and repainting on both front and rear balcony elevations to the alteration and refurbishment of the main bedroom, its en suite and sitting room and also of the dining and reception rooms.  The external works involved the careful repair, refurbishment and painting of the windows, now over 100 years old and stone repairs and repointing and cleaning.  Internally SBP altered and refurbished the main bedroom, its en suite and sitting room and also of the dining and reception rooms including specialist painting, wallpapering with hand printed materials, marbling and graining and the use of hand made drapes.   These were selected by Tanner Architects to combine with the period architecture to provide historical continuity and extremely beautiful finishes.  The works had to be carried out during periods when the Governor General was absent and it is always critical that all signs of the works have totally vanished when the Governor General arrives, as the building is used for extensive entertaining as well as the Governor General’s family home.

At the Australian Property Institute awards ceremony this project was awarded the “Commonwealth Bank Heritage Award”.  Brush Farm House was built in 1818 for Gregory Blaxland.  It is not only one of Australia’s oldest houses but also one of the most substantial houses surviving from the Macquarie period and represents a nationally important site where some of the colony’s initial land grants were made.  The buildings, after a number of lives and alterations had by 2006 fallen into extreme disrepair.  Most of the structural timbers of the floor needing replacement due to termite infestation.  Our work was to both refurbish the premises, retaining original and Victorian features while removing later alterations, and to sympathetically install amenities and disabled access so that the building can be used as part office and part cultural and heritage museum.

The work involved a new roof and replacement of much of the roof structure -reconstruction of the verandahs including cast lacework – extensive timber repairs and replacement of floor structures and boarding while retaining the heritage pressed metal and wood ceilings and their cornices in position and refixing to the new structures.  New Services were installed – hydraulic, electrical, lighting controlled by a Cbus automated system to avoid chasing heritage plasterwork for cabling, air conditioning, fire detection and modern data and telephone systems.  Heritage joinery details have been replicated where irrevocably damaged and traditional construction techniques such as lime mortars and plasters used to match the original methods.

The refurbishment of this 1935 heritage building was to an extremely tight program commenced 18 December with a need for full availability of the Macquarie Room (large entertaining and Bridge meeting room) and reoccupation of accommodation by mid March.  Demolition of the existing brick walls, interiors and fire rated ceilings needed to be complete by Christmas to give sufficient time for reconstruction to the new layouts including the new air conditioning, hydraulic, electrical and communications services of the altered accommodation.  The ceilings had to be 2 hour fire rated and the joinery and finishes of the highest quality.  Access was extremely difficult, this old building having only a rear fire stair with access direct to the street, a small passenger lift with access through the Club main entry, no loading dock and no street parking.  All material movements had to be negotiated in timing and location with the Council with much of the noisy work daytime and material moves night time.  The insertion of air conditioning into this old building with no ceiling voids and heritage finishes became design and construct, but was indeed successful.

Tempe House was built in 1836, St Magdalen’s Chapel around 1888.  These two buildings were extremely dilapidated after numerous tenants and alterations, in the case of Tempe House to the stage where external heritage verandahs had collapsed, extensive stone walls and pavings had cracked and distorted beyond repair and roofs had deflected and were leaking, seriously affecting the internal plaster and French polished timber features.

These premises have been refurbished using the materials and techniques of the era of their initial construction.  New highly detailed timber verandahs with new lead roofs, new Peak District slate roof to the main house, new rustic galvanised roofs and verandahs to the stone outhouses, paint stripping, partial reconstruction, cleaning and repointing of all stone elevations, new tuck pointing and repair and renewal of stone cappings and details to the Chapel walls, restoration of the Chapel stained glass windows by Jeff Hamilton including much repainting and re firing of glass and rebuilding to an extremely high quality of workmanship.  Restoration and renewal of extensive french polished timber skirtings, architraves, windows, window shutters and painting to colour schemes of the era together with the introduction of a modern minimalist steel and glass canopy to provide shelter to the access elevations of the Chapel.

This seminary chapel with exceptional 14.5m high vaulted ceiling had not been internally refurbished since built in 1935.  The works included – alterations to the Vestry to build amenities for the disabled and new disabled ramp access inside and chair lift outside, scaffolding the Chapel then plaster repairs, painting, the installation of new lighting, fire detection, and public address systems, French Polishing of the extensive timber panelling, doors and confessionals, refurbishment of the Celestories and externally the installation of a new hydrant and hose reel main around the building.  SBP completed the works within the six weeks held clear of venue bookings.

This ornate 1912 Heritage Listed Catholic Church of two storey height needed additional multi-use space to improve the services it could provide to its community, but lacked space or other buildings on the site that could provide this.  This design and construct project with the involvement of Architect and Engineer to ensure compliance with the Heritage Report, involved construction of a timber clad, steel framed mezzanine through and over the existing vestibule and chapel with attractive timber framed glazing overlooking the floor of the Church that matched and enhanced the existing vestibule construction.  The space includes a kitchenette, carpeted open multi-use space, an attractive open suspended steel and timber stair with unobtrusive protective glazing over the existing stained glass windows.  Our staff worked closely with Father Brundell over access and working hours and provided protective hoardings and regular cleaning to ensure that we could do our work without adversely affecting the parishioners and the Church program.  We understand that the Church staff and parishioners are extremely happy with the additional space, our attention to their needs during the course of the works and the quality of the workmanship.