RIAI | Irish Architecture Awards

Citation

Dublin Over €300,000

Concise detailing and clarity in planning bring new vision to a local public building. The interplay of the volumes at the end of terrace creates a wonderful backdrop for a new civic space. A wonderful public building on a small scale.

Architect's Comment
The refurbishment and extension of the Library in Baldoyle - to include a Local Area Office for Fingal County Council services - provides the opportunity to reassess the relationship between these public functions and the village of Baldoyle. The existing Library, which is barely noticed by the streams of commuters along Strand Road, is retained and its proximity to the Mall and views over Dublin Bay are exploited.

The Mall, an existing green space, is opened up and paved to provide a civic amenity which is sheltered from the sea and focused on the sublime view of Irelands Eye. This space acts as a forecourt to the Library / Public Area Office and along with the park outside the Church, brackets the centre of Baldoyle giving it presence within the suburban sprawl.

Practical considerations of a blank first floor to avoid overlooking, a compact form to avoid overshadowing and substantial circulation content, informed the concept of a manipulated tube that is folded and bent around the existing Library building. This produces a form that signals the public nature of the building by its singularity rather than through excessive scale.

The new construction, which is largely circulation giving open public access to all areas, forms a loop that begins and ends with Irelands Eye. The open ends of the tube are focused on The Mall - allowing direct access from the public space rather than the busy road - and the view to Irelands Eye, which forms a backdrop to public meetings in the large room at first floor level.

The prestige of the Local Authority is re-enforced by a stone cladding to the outside of the tube, which is a robust re-enforced concrete structure. The detailing of the cladding allows a clear reading of it as a thin skin wrapped around the concrete form. All of the new spaces internally are characterised by the presence of the concrete floor, walls and ceiling of the tube. The subdivision into functional spaces and provision of services is resolved by the insertion of a piece of timber origami. A folded plane of timber boards whose horizontality on the ground floor draws the visitor in before turning onto the ceiling and wrapping around the space at first floor where it enfolds the body of the public meeting room. This move re-enforces the clarity of the concept by keeping the concrete clear of services and allowing it to define the tube without the need to meet other practical considerations.

Clients' Comment
These offices were an important Commission for Fingal County Council as they marked the opportunity to reinforce the clear statement we'd made about our commitment to design quality in our County Hall building in Swords.

The difference in this case was the suburban location. Though the building is located on the seafront, the immediate environs comprise suburban two-storey housing. It was very important that a clear statement was evident of how best design practice could contribute to a transformation and enhancement of areas that can otherwise be featureless in design terms.

FKL responded with a singular clarity about the public function of the building. The challenge in integrating the old library - formerly an RIC Barracks - without compromising old or new is handled with deceptive simplicity. This building will be the focus of the delivery of local democracy and local authority services. Local Area Committee Meetings will happen here regularly and the building will be a resource for locally elected Councillors. In addition the evolving role of libraries as centres of information delivery for personal empowerment. The use of the glazed façade to the principal reception areas and exhibition space allows the building to work inside out of opening times as it's located on a very attractive promenade route. Framed views seaward from inside these places also serve to remind visitors of the quality of the location.

Delivery of a building in a suburban location is almost a practice speciality at this time. Perceptions about erosion of "quality of life", buildings being magnets for anti-social behaviour etc. must be overcome with sensitivity. In this case close examination will demonstrate little overlooking and a general consciousness of good manners in design terms.

Fingal County Council is very proud of it's new building delivering local services locally. We've learned by experience that we communicate messages about ourselves through everything we do. In this case the message of openness delivered through a commitment to the best quality of contemporary architecture could not be clearer.