February_1970 — Page 23

X

THE

باید چه چیه درد در این پر

DIN IN M

TE

This design placed third in the competition was submitted by Bernard Hills and Partners

be given to the enclosure of staircases and separations relative to fire pre- cautions. In another connection, it will be necessary to separate the tower circulation from the operations of the bank at second-floor level.

"The splendid terraces offer themselves in an obvious way for use at the lower levels; it will be a pity if those at the higher level are not fully developed for use by the bank itself, but this no doubt could quite easily be done.

Cost doubt

'The author claims that the scheme can be built within the cost limit and his claim has been very fully investigat- ed and checked by the assessors and by their advisers all of whom express some doubt. Nevertheless it is open to the author to succeed in his claim by a very strict discipline of cost control and planning. This will impose aus- terity on the structural form and character of the building, but it is of such kind that it is likely to benefit from its process rather than other-

wise.'

The adjudicator continues: 'I place second Design No. 4, again because of its outstanding architectural merit and its complete practicability. It is very different in kind from Design No. 7 which again is a justification for the competition in as much that it pro- vides a choice of excellence.

'It is a very distinguished piece of form modelling which breaks clean away from the podium and tower

Far East BUILDER, February 1970

device. It is by no means simple, but it has an overall unity which would clear ly identify the whole complex as the Uganda Commercial Bank building. It has the further very considerable merit that it effectively grasps and deals with the problem of change of level on a steeply sloping site, not only by the contrivance of its internal planning but by the excellence of its external form. Because of its general compactness, it is unable to avoid exposure to morning and afternoon sun, but the effects of this have been anticipated by screening devices.

'All the functions of the bank have been successfully accommodated in a convenient and well related way. The banking hall places the customer in the middle with excellent working space on the outside. If anything, the cus- tomer's space is a little tight.

'A small precinct of shops is very well developed at the lower level backing on the Salisbury Road with an backing on the Salisbury Road with an interesting arcade which opens a pas- sage through the site and should impart a character to the shops and guarantee their success in trade of a high level.

'Parking vehicle access arrange. ments are effective and well related to the areas which they serve. The funda- mental doubt about this excellent scheme is cost. To build within the limit would call for very shrewd cost planning and control.' (The architects estimate the cost of their scheme at US$2.3 million).

'As third I have placed Design No.

5 which I consider to be, in contrast with the first and second a good, safe solution, evidently the work of a skil ful and sensitive architect, but in its own way a building which does not slavishly follow an established pattern.

'The scheme is far from exciting, but it is competently handled, pro- vides good banking facilities and is a well mannered piece of architecture. The phasing division is not very clear and it would be necessary to hope that the whole could be built at once.

'It is of the type which does nothing more than to absorb the site into itself and to develop along its elevations. This has obliged the author to place the shops along the flanks where he has posed himself the pro- blem of access by means of terraces which might well act as a deterrent to shoppers and, on the Russell Road side, are too narrow.

*Although the main banking hall is generally effective it could be argued that the central space fails to direct the customers. It is a possible weak- ness also that the accommodation on the mezzanine is too thinly dispersed thus causing excessive lengths of cir- culation.

'Although the connections between customer parking and the bank are explicit the former is somewhat re- mote because of the deliberate in- sertion of the shop service zone be- tween. Between arrangements would need to be made for security relative to bullion delivery for the drive-up till if it were retained.'

25