Old school new school

This private residence for students and young professionals opposite the University of Pretoria campus, designed by Boogertman + Partners, combines classical ivy-league elegance with contemporary urban living.

The landscaping on the sidewalk towards the parking entrance of Brooklyn House adds to the public domain while the public staircase leading to the podium-top restaurant is accessible to the public.

The façade combines classical references with clean, modular, geometric blocks, expressing associations with the formality of ivy-league institutions, as well as the heritage of modernist landmarks on the university campus opposite.

Brooklyn House is the first phase of a multi-phase university residence development opposite the University of Pretoria (UP) on Lynwood Road. The planned development, called University Square, will consist of four residential buildings, each with its own distinct identity, in a village type concept that will include conveniences such as shopping outlets, restaurants, bars, a gym and a hotel.

Although University Square will cater largely to university students, and is well positioned in proximity to the university campus, it will also be available to lecturers and young professionals.

The precinct will cover the area from the busy Lynwood Road along its northern edge to Brook Street on the southern side. While on Lynwood Road Brooklyn House has a six-storey-high public-facing presence, the whole development is designed to taper sensitively down to a three-storey residential scale, stepping down and fragmenting to become porous and respond more appropriately to the suburban context along Brook Street.

Aesthetically, Brooklyn House makes a bold statement, differentiating itself from the more brightly coloured, playful and informal approach to student accommodation that has become prevalent. Referencing the architectural conventions associated with the elite US ivy league universities, Brooklyn House communicates a more formal and aspirational attitude to education and educational facilities.

Without devolving into a merely imitative or stylistic approach, Brooklyn House incorporates classical references, but executes them in a distinctly contemporary manner. While key elements on the main façade feature brickwork and arches, they’re executed in a combination of black and titanium grey bricks, with matching mortar, thus expressing timeless principles in up-to-the-minute materials. In addition, the classical detailing has been combined with modernist-inspired clean, modular, geometric blocks, which not only contrast with the bonded brickwork, but also respond to the modernist architectural landmarks on the UP campus. As such, the design speaks to both a local and global educational context, and communicates a sense of continuity between past, present and future, which complements certain timeless principles of education itself.

Other detailing, such as the suspended, art-deco inflected signage in black and brass, add to the character of the building, further melding classicism and modernity.

Efficiencies created in the yield of the site – ingeniously increasing the yield from the original 110 beds anticipated by the client to 199 by creating a new floor plate and the inclusion of some units with shared kitchens – has ensured that considered design and quality finishes predominate throughout the building. Not only have individual rooms been thoughtfully positioned to maximise views, but wide corridors running from end to end on each level ensure abundant natural light, views and a premium sense of space. The courtyard typology ensures open-air shared communal space with seating and tables for residents on the podium level. Additional shared facilities include a rooftop gym and swimming pool, an outdoor cinema and braai areas. These shared facilities paradoxically represent potential savings for residents, as the building negates the need for external service providers, such as gym memberships.

Occupying a prominent position close to the university entrance, and joining catalytic recent developments such as the nearby The Javett Art Centre at the University of Pretoria (Javett-UP), Brooklyn House also addresses the question of how it should connect with its urban context in a pioneering manner. Its urban design component aims to facilitate an integrated and accessible urban experience, well connected with its campus and surrounds.

A restaurant and convenience store, accessible to the public, top the plinth above the parking podium, providing a sense of activity and integration with the building's urban context.

While the building is set on a plinth raised above two parking levels – so it does not address the public realm on street level – it is nevertheless unique in that it includes a restaurant and a convenience store, which are directly accessible to the public via an open staircase from the sidewalk level. A planned pedestrian bridge crossing the busy arterial road onto the campus will make the building easily and conveniently accessible to all students with entry to the campus. High-tech access control with facial and mask recognition will ensure security of the residents.

Knitting Brooklyn House, and by extension University Square, into the campus in this way will not only create an energetic extension that feeds positively into the life of the campus, but will also ensure that the development itself will be energised by the rhythms of campus life. The inclusion of shared public space via the restaurant, and also the shared communal spaces, recreational and leisure facilities, allows the building to maintain a level of activity, a sense of vitality and social buzz crucial to the success of the communal life in the building.

As such, it also engenders the atmosphere, sense of identity and shared purpose in synergy with campus life and the development’s more formal, aspirational approach.