RHYL STUDIO
WSA | Welsh School of Architecture YEAR 2 2011-2012
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CONTENTS
Introduction Preface Stet Architecture Rhyl Timeline
Process
RYAG Understanding Rhyl Transect Walks Problem Trees Visions/ Program Initial Proposals
3
4 5 6
8 9 10 11 12 13
Studio Proposals Music Centres Arief Ahmad Afandi Josh Burns Fong Hei Chang Joanna Chow Daniel Hayes
15 16 17 18 19
Enterprise and Skills Benedict Edwards Camille Munro Dylan Price
20 21 22
Arts Centre Sophia Ahmad Zaharudin Gediminas Stasaitis Jasneil Singh Panesar
23 24 25
Rhyl Presentation
26
Reflections
27
Acknowledgements
28
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PREFACE FigureGround For the second design project in year 2 of the BSc in Architecture our brief was to design a small public building (‘figure’) and an associated public space (‘ground’). We were given the choice of three coastal towns in Wales to analyse and develop design proposals for: Barry, Tenby and Rhyl.
The Rhyl Studio The approach taken in the Rhyl studio was to work closely with the local community and this was a major factor in our decision to choose to work in Rhyl. We were encouraged to research other projects which focussed on meeting the needs of local communities such as the Hub Movement, TAPE Community Music and the Chapter Arts Centre in Cardiff. During the site visits we worked closely with young people from the Rhyl Youth Action Group. The views of the young people, expressed through a series of workshops, informed the development of our brief and informed our design proposals. Another feature of the Rhyl studio, which differentiated it from other studios, was that we had to consider the re-use of the existing HoneyClub building. As a result, there were many varied approaches to the designing of the site, all of which aim to serive a purpose in Rhyl and are rooted in the local community.
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STET ARCHITECTURE The Stet Architecture studio is run by Colin Rose and Victoria Maynard. We believe that current architectural education aims for a radical product of design, not a radical process. We aim to challenge this scenario by engaging with real clients and places, to design socially relevant spaces in partnership with those typically excluded from architectural discourse. We are motivated by what happens when these partnerships are made. Over the past three years we have brought together students from the Welsh School of Architecture with members of Emmaus Bristol, Denbighshire County Council and Rhyl Youth Action Group. Feedback from those involved in each of the projects has substantiated our belief that the process of working together is incredibly valuable.
For the community groups it’s a chance for people to think about questions that would not otherwise get asked. Students have to learn how best to engage with people who don’t share their architectural language - important verbal and visual communication skills that are rarely taught or tested. For both groups there is the broadening of horizons that comes from sitting down at a table with people whom they might otherwise never meet. And where the project is ‘live’ to some extent, both parties are enthused by the feeling that their work can really make a difference.
Colin Rose & Victoria Maynard
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RHYL, NORTH WALES Rhyl is a seaside town in North Wales which has been a popular holiday destination since the Victorian era. It continued to thrive as a resort town and tourism peaked in the 1960’s and 70’s. Tourism declined, however, when cheap flights abroad became available. The town’s economy collapsed and is now one of the most deprived town in Wales. Small businesses have suffered losses and most hotels and B&Bs have been converted to cheaply-acquired Houses of Multiple Occupancy (HMOs), attracting people on low incomes, often with social problems. This has influenced the community in Rhyl as a whole, which has gradually developed a reputation for anti-social behaviour. Many interventions have been built along the coastline in the attempt to revive the town socially and economically, but many have failed to do so and have blocked off views to the sea, causing some local people to lose faith in regeneration projects. However, there have been successful schemes, which aim to give back to the community, giving a reason for hope. Despite the town’s deprived state and the disappointing regeneration schemes thus far, Rhyl is a town full of potential and a land of opportunity.
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TIMELINE
RHYL STUDIO
PROCESS
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ENGAGING WITH THE COMMUNITY RHYL YOUTH ACTION GROUP (RYAG)
As a studio, we worked closely with young people and staff at the Rhyl Youth Action Group (RYAG). In addition to ideas and much enthusiasm, the young people helped us gain insight into the town’s assets and current problems in Rhyl, through a series of workshops held at the youth centre. This information played an important part in the forming of our studio’s brief and the final proposals.
Above: St Mary’s Parish Newsletter
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UNDERSTANDING RHYL
On the first visit to RYAG, we began by working in groups with the young people, encouraging them to map out their everyday routine. We focused on the places they frequently experience and their opinions of these places. Guided tours of the young people’s favourite spaces in Rhyl then took place, which helped us to see and experience the town from their perspectives. This proved to be very beneficial as it helped us to understand the town in a more intimate way. Talks were held in the Apollo Cinema by members of the Denbighshire County Council, Chris Ruane - the local MP and from Denbighshire County Council. We gained much insight into the local issues regarding Rhyl’s decline in economy and how the history of the town was related to this. Local schemes and developments were also introduced to us, giving us an idea of the regeneration work that Rhyl has undergone in the past few years.
03.12.2011
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TRANSECT WALKS To understand the town on a larger scale, we chose four street elevations to study in groups to carry out transect walks: two along the promenade parallel to the coastline, and two perpendicular to the coastline from the town to the sea. The young people were also involved in this exercise and were encouraged to sketch the elevations as we progressed along the walks. In addition to sketching, we answered the following questions for each building we encountered: What is the building used for? Who uses the building? When is the building used? What does it feel like? What are the problems of the building? What opportunities are there for the building? This was an effective and efficient way of compiling and documenting the information of a town. On the same weekend, we learned more about Rhyl through interviewing local people and identifying the town’s amenities.
Examples of transect walk sketches and photo montage:
Map showing 4 transect walk section lines
03.12.2011
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PROBLEM TREES On our second visit, the young people were asked to identify the problems and issues that they felt affect the community in Rhyl. These were documented in the form of “problem tree” drawings, where we tracked the problems down to the “root” causes. The young people’s input was insightful and this exercise was extremely useful in choosing appropriate programs for our design proposals.
Examples of “problem trees”
20.01.2012
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VISION/ PROGRAMS
After identifying the problems in Rhyl, we worked on drawings with the young people which illustrate their “vision” of the use of the honeyclub in the community and the changes that it could bring about. Using these “visions” we progressed to brainstorming specific aspects of the program and where we envisaged these to take place at the site.
Examples of “Vision” drawings
Brainstorming chart Using the site model to consolidate programs
21.01.2012
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INITIAL PROPOSALS In groups, we developed initial proposals and prepared a presentation with drawings and models for a mini competition in the afternoon, judged by the MP, Chris Ruane. These proposals were then used to inform our brief, which was then narrowed down to three design options: a) Music centre b) Enterprise/ Skills centre c) Arts centre
21.01.2012
RHYL STUDIO
PROPOSALS
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ARIEF AHMAD AFANDI Rhyl used to be a famous seaside town during the Victorian era and the glorious days have left many precious artefacts including the Honeyclub building. Hence, I propose to reuse the existing structure as a public space, adding a new auditorium and learning skill centre with lightweight tectonic against the existing heavy brickwork tectonic. This becomes a reminder of how the new development should embrace the past and celebrate the precious artefacts from the past. As for the programme, the proposal will accommodate music learning skills for the youths to learn and perform to the public in the new proposed auditorium. This programme was introduced to tackle the social problems among youth, giving them opportunities to learn and discover their potential in the interest of performing art.
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JOSHUA BURNS My project looked at how I could attract local residents of Rhyl and seasonal visitors to a place that can be inspiring and enjoyable. I decided to design a performance centre including an auditorium, restaurants, gift shop, community rooms and function rooms as well as office spaces. My approach to the task was to look at how a constructivist ethos could influence the layout and arrangement of space in order to influence the circulation patterns and congregation areas. I also tried to use the strategy of layering to create numerous thresholds in terms of spaces and also the physical materials in the building. It seemed that Rhyl is a much divided place and so this project was allowing various groups of people to use the building and therefore bringing them together. This was achieved through different elements of design, one of which was creating an outside courtyard that the main stage could open onto.
Route Diagram
Ground Floor Plan
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FONG HEI CHANG The scheme minimises compartmentalisation of the Rhyl community due to the infusion of foreign residents of different backgrounds. A lack of a common community aspiration results in minimum community cohesion in Rhyl. The bold design of this music centre with its staggering form is to give the people of Rhyl a new social identity, something they can be proud of. Instead of mimicking its surrounding Victorian neighbours, the building stands out protesting the need for this new identity. Besides providing social enhancement, the music centre also catalyses economic growth as a scheme of self-sustainable businesses. Social interaction is increased within the building and the outside, allowing the building to be used all day long and being put to full use. The segregation of the community, due to different economic backgrounds, can be bridged by narrowing the gap in academic skills through musical education.
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JOANNA CHOW My scheme was informed by two starting points. The first was the historical maps of Rhyl which show evidence of vistas which linked the town to the beach/seaside. The second, the many existing programs which are contributing to the regeneration of the coastal town already. My aim was to connect these existing programs to form a cohesive strategy by creating a music school and to reconnect the town with the beach, which is the town’s best asset. Taking inspiration from the beach itself, my design proposes a continuous landscape, articulated with paving and changes in levels. The landscape physically and visually reconnects a large public space in the town with the beach. Most spaces in the music school are underground and are part of the landscape, allowing for a larger public space at ground level. By designing a music school, locals can be involved in learning music, performance, and it connects the existing schemes “Tape” and “Taste Academy”. The public space leading towards the sea comprises of a series of timber posts which can be used in a variety of ways as the community pleases. The public space behind the housing has potential for development as a square with commercial units facing onto it.
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DANIEL HAYES This project was led by the conflict in design implications indicated by the context of the site versus the functional requirements of a music venue. This progressed into a scheme of two contrasting spaces - the auditorium and the foyer; each with a very different atmosphere and tectonic. The auditorium, located within the heart of the design, aims to create a heavy and enclosed experience, emphasising darkness and texture. Whereas the foyer spaces capture light and colour, have large open spaces and smooth and refined surfaces. The design hopes to achieve a heightened user experience of the differing spaces through a strong contrast with each other, which in turn makes the venue a more exciting and invigorating space for the people of the town.
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BENEDICT EDWARDS When we started the project, in the urban conditions stage, I was looking at the history of Rhyl and found out how Rhyl was founded, why it boomed due to tourism and then its slump after the 60’s. This allowed me to look at the regeneration action plans and see what the council thinks are important for Rhyl. This gave me a unique perspective of what Rhyl should have, and was the reason for me using the carpark behind the Honey club as the site. I wanted to create a building for the community of Rhyl who I felt are fairly neglected in their own town. As well as this, the Honey club seemed too on show and I wanted something for Rhyl, not the tourists. I felt it would get overrun in the summer if it was on the promenade. I wanted a building which would be a skills and learning centre where people could be taught to gain qualifications and further their job prospects as there is a high level of unemployment especially in the area immediately around the site. In terms of education I wanted to give it a more informal feeling and the section shows that I wanted learning through overlooking and curiosity. This was done by having the rooms and balconies all look into the main atrium space. The building is a simple brick construction, by using recovered bricks from the demolition of the HMO’s which need to be taken down in Rhyl. With a circular plan, the first wall being a perforated wall and the next radiating from the centre, the circulation path is situated in the middle. This was to form a focal point in Rhyl, trying to pull into the community which doesn’t really exist there as a lot of people don’t stay in Rhyl over 5 years.
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CAMILLE MUNRO I found it insightful working with the community and gaining feedback on real life issues that were affecting the people of the area. This enabled us to come up with solutions that were relevant to the problems posed. My building is about an adaptable programme which is also reflected with a lightweight adaptable structural system. This corner site is ideal for connecting the different communities and transient population which are faced with a strong sense of detachment. The street is raised to provide a new social level, a chance to experience the existing faรงade in a new and more intimate way, to direct attention back to the sea, to separate night and day activities and to introduce a new skin symbolising change and moving forward whilst preserving and wrapping the memory of the past. The Emmaus programme offers homeless people a home, work and the chance to rebuild their lives in a supportive environment with services also extending to provide skills to the greater community of Rhyl. The existing heavy masonry houses the private functions providing a sense of permanence and safety; balancing with the new lightweight structure containing the public spaces that are suspended and feel more adaptable. No longer will there be big dreams turned into broken promises.
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DYLAN PRICE The Urban Conditions exercise and site investigation that followed revealed two main issues with Rhyl that I believed my scheme could target. The first issue was the nature of short term-ism in existing projects in the area, possibly due to low government spending on the area creating a desire for quick fixes, and not long term plans. Also noticeable was the lack of faith in any new developments in Rhyl. Locals would often express how “Rhyl was beyond repair”, “the council were wasting money”, or slip into nostalgia about how Rhyl used to be. The Rhyl Enterprise Centre aimed to be a long term solution to the area, integrating within the current program of pubs, restaurants and entertainment in order to enhance them and promote pride in the existing situation. The Enterprise Centre provides a circulation and service core, housing permanent features such as a social eating space, meeting rooms and computer labs. The surrounding ground is prepared for expansion by local builders, who may add office spaces for startup businesses who wish to use the service core. Expansion can also occur into some of the neighbouring victorian terraced houses, should they wish to integrate. The result is a situation where change is made by locals and dependence on outside support is reduced.
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SOPHIA AHMAD ZAHARUDIN From doing an analysis on site amenities, I realised that Rhyl lacked two things - places for cultural learning (art galleries, museums, etc) as well as good food outlets. The majority of the food outlets available were mainly fast food and pubs, rather than nice restaurants where families could go for a meal. From the beginning I wanted to design an arts centre where workshops could be held for the young people of Rhyl. I also wanted to include a restaurant where families could go together - catering for users of the arts centre and passing tourists. I was very interested in the existing building as there is a certain charm and intrigue to it. I had to take a stance on whether to tear it down or to retain it. I decided to keep the faรงade whilst gutting the rest of the building. I then decided to set the new building back and this allowed me to create an open-aired green space for public use. The four gallery spaces are connected by a long ramp which circulates around a main atrium, where temporary exhibitions are held, making it a dynamic and interesting space.
Facade Elevation without Existing Honeyclub Wall
Facade Elevattion with Existing Wall
Perspective Montages
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GEDIMINAS STASAITIS The area of the intervention is treated as an important cultural hub and the concept of connecting the city to the sea is an important one, because the town does not feel like a coastal town. The building I proposed is an art centre, which has artist-in-residence rooms for artists from around Denbighshire. The artwork that is going to be exhibited is made specifically by them. There is also a more public studio for arts students, people from RYAG or anyone else who is interested in studying art. A cafĂŠ is located on the ground floor along with an artwork shop for old pieces of art to be sold, made by anyone in the studios. The gallery spaces are designed to have a play-of-light in them so it hits all the spaces except the areas where artwork would be hung. Different gallery rooms have different spatial qualities and they are connected with a mezzanine that makes a journey pathway throughout the different gallery spaces. As for the whole intervention area, most of the derelict and burnt down buildings need to be knocked down along with the unwanted extensions. There is going to be an outside gallery space for alternative artwork such as graffiti. The Honey Club, would be knocked down and in its place the art centre would be built keeping to the footprint of the original building. Thus, the process of knocking down and rebuilding, acts as a catalyst for future projects in this highly important area.
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JASNEIL SINGH PANESAR Puncturing through this building on the ground floor, to me, seems to be a logical prospect. Many large building in Rhyl have fallen into disrepair, as they are not used, many variations of these indoor markets have cropped up. Put together in a very slap-dash way which does not last seems to be common. A shopping area may not be so economically viable due to the competitive nature of the free market, but a smaller scale, more unique and situated space could be very useful. The burnt out building directly adjacent to the site poses as many opportunities as it does problems. The art Deco covering on the wall seems to have pulled away from many parts showing the original materials, this being the material I wish to go back to. My concepts, and by extension, my architectural intention for this project starts with the theme of conservation. I would like to create a design that links with the Honey club’s original structure and re-interpret the use of material and spatial planning to apply to more contemporary needs. By using the market idea and extruding upwards to create spaces above as workshop spaces, some of which can be used for study, others for making and producing things that can be sold in the markets below. This scheme would be enhanced by the idea of a live-work-sell-exhibit idea that I had. Artists in residence would live in purpose built apartments on the uppermost floor. They would use the workshops and produce art, however they may interpret that, and display it in the gallery. This could be funded by the production of goods that can be sold in the market thereby creating this artistic community and environment that engages with the public though it is self-contained. This idea of showing what can be done with what is there already seems to be the main metaphor for the building. Expressing this not only through the concept, but the architectural style, the use of material, and the general proposal. My scheme is not meant to be a radical architectural intervention, it is a more restrained, subtle, and architectonic proposal that, I believe, will help evolve the once great city of Rhyl.
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PRESENTING TO THE COMMUNITY On the 27th of April, we travelled up to Rhyl one last time to present our individual proposals to the local community. Chris Ruane, the local MP, various County Council members and members from RYAG attended our presentation. The response and feedback we got from them was positive and enthusiastic for each of our individual proposals. However, they showed more interest on the schemes with music programmes as they believed that music was something universal which could bring people closer together. In addition to the slideshow presentation, we also had most of our work pinned up around the room. This allowed those who were present to peruse our schemes at their own pace and ask any additional questions they had.
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REFLECTIONS “Thinking of a proposal on a wider scale, and its effects on the urban regeneration of a town.” Joanna Chow
“The Rhyl Studio was very good in the way it connected our architectural designs strongly with a place and people” Daniel Hayes
“Presenting our work to people outside of the architectural field was a good lesson as it taught us to edit our work and present our work in a different manner as we would have in architecture school.” Sophia Zaharudin
“The project is more realistic as it involves ‘real clients’ and real life situations, and breaking away from typical student projects.” Arief Ahmad Afandi
“The studio was good practice to come up with a proposal that satisfies local needs and tackles social problems of the site.” Dylan Price
“The importance of local understanding of a community before setting the brief.” Fong Hei Chang
“Different methods to engage with the local community such as workshops and talks with the local authority.” Benedict Edwards
“ The Rhyl studio was good as it allowed us to see other parts of Wales and understand its current economic and social situations. It also allowed us to collaborate with young people living in the area of study which provided a better understanding of the site and its context. The studio could have been better organised.” Joshua Burns
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Chris Ruane
| Vale of Clwyd MP
Tom Booty
| Rhyl Going Forward, Denbighshire County Council
Wyn Roberts
| Programme Director for the North Wales Coast Regeneration Area
Carol Smith
| Denbighshire County Council Conservation
Jo Howes
| Denbighshire County Council Rhyl City Strategy
Neil Dunsire
| TAPE Community Music & Film
Wynne Randles, Dave, Jamie | Rhyl Youth Action Group Ste, Lee, Kirsty & Colin
Father Charles Ramsay
| St Mary’s Parish Priest
Ann Jones
| AM for the Vale of Clwyd
Iolo Williams
| Arts Development Officer from Arts Council in North Wales
Malcolm Hall
| Rhyl’s Town Centre Manager
All of those who attended our final presentation in Rhyl