Cunning Plan Number Seven

Facades and Heritage Buildings.

After the September earthquake, a gaggle of architects were up in arms about the need to retain a boring building in Manchester Street, because it was a good example of some early 20th century decade. Ho Hum!

Nothing against that building. It wasn't ugly. It was in excellent condition. But it was hardly heritage.
To me, heritage is the old stone buildings. Heritage is the churches, the arts centre. Heritage is the cathedral. Now THOSE are beautiful buildings.

Since February, we have much bigger issues than a single building less than a hundred years old.

Recently, there has also been discussion about retaining the Town Hall, another heritage building.
Seriously? It's a '70s building with a nice auditorium!

I think somebody needs to decide what constitutes heritage.

Now, about the REAL Heritage buildings (using my definition).
The John Knox Church at Carlton Corner. Amazingly, the walls came down, but the roof stayed intact. I guess they built them this way, with the walls being detached from the building structure. The walls were brick, not stone, but it still qualifies. I guess churches get a free pass.
I guess they will just build new walls to fill in the panels, but why not do something a little different. I would like to see those brick/stained glass panels replaced by opaque glass blocks. That would give it an ethereal feel, without changing the shape.

Back to the stone buildings. I don't know if stone walls can be made earthquake-proof, without making them ugly. I do think, though, that tilt-slab walls are safer (if built properly), but they are seriously ugly from the get-go.

So why not make them less ugly. The university and the Town Hall were built from tilt-slab, with stone chips impregnated into the visible side. Not too bad.

Here's a thought. Make tilt-slab walls for many of the heritage buildings, but make them look like stone. Not by covering them with that nasty veneer that was fashionable a few years ago, but by making the face LOOK like stone. Make casts of real stone walls, and pour the concrete onto it in the slab construction. I imagine the guys at Weta in Wellington could make a tilt-slab church that looks 'real'.
Why not use the technology that kiwis have?

Just a thought.