Heritage Cases

CONTEXT & BRIEF The existing Fishermen’s Union Hall is situated on the corner of Syndicate Street and Pratt Street in Kassiesbaai, on Erf 416, a National Heritage Site. The Waenhuiskrans Fishermen’s Union (WFU) manages the fishing village Kassiesbaai, part of the stated Waenhuiskranz Cultural Landscape, a Grade I stated landscape. On behalf of the community, the Fishermen’s Union overtook the title deed for the land occupied by Kassiesbaai in 1937. The Fishermen’s Union is managed by a committee elected for a period of three years. The current chairman is Andre Marthinus. Martin Kruger Architects were asked to make a proposal for the new extension to the existing hall. The brief for the extension includes a new computer room with space for at least five computer stations, an office for the head of the Union, and additional storage space. In addition, modifications are also required to the existing bathrooms. Part of the design brief is to retain and complement the historical character of the existing hall. The specific character of the hall is defined by the rough plastered buttresses, the typical white plastered gable-end walls with a thatch roof. The windows and doors to the sides of the hall are similar to those found in the rest of the village. (See photographs of context) The front door is different to the typical residential doors with the decorative white inserts and the window above the door. The existing kitchen and bathroom at the back of the hall, made up of white rough plastered parapet walls with a flat corrugated sink roof, is typical of the Kassiesbaai character of service spaces. DESIGN PROPOSAL As per earlier urban design proposals, the existing hall and the proposed Fish House Heritage Center, sit on two edges that together with other existing buildings form a natural public square that overlooks the sea. It was therefore important that the hall retains its public character. The design proposal shows the extension to the back of the hall where it links with the existing kitchen and bathroom, and does not detract from the character of the main hall. Architectural features such as a low seating wall and a stoep are used to create an improved ‘spill-out’ space for the occupants making use of the hall and enhance the public nature of the building yet still fitting in with the residential character. The proposed low wall helps to create a more defined street edge and can be seen as an extension of the existing ‘werf’ stone wall of the residential building behind the hall. The design proposal is a modern interpretation of the existing architectural language. This can be seen in the use of the parapet wall, the proportions of the windows, the timber plank doors, and the scale of the extension. KASSIESBAAI INSPIRATION Architecture elements that inspired the design of the extension to the existing hall: - Window proportions and timber lintels over windows - Timber plank doors - The stepping low ‘werf’ wall - The ‘stoep’ - Scale of additions to existing houses