Full project description and drawings:

 

We were approached to carry out a feasibility study to explore the possibilities for an underused clubhouse in the grounds of a recreation centre, which served the residents of a local neighbourhood community. Our brief was to provide ideas for a new social centre that would become the heart of the community and renew interest in the activities provided by the recreation centre.

 

Our proposals reconfigure the interior of the clubhouse to provide space for a bar and café, as well as a multi-purpose space for group events and meetings.  The interior space remains open providing a flexibility, which maximizes its potential use. Large folding glazed doors also allow the space to open up fully to the outside during the long warm seasons, providing a light naturally ventilated interior environment.

 

A new pavilion is proposed that connects directly with the clubhouse, and snakes through the previously undefined garden to create three separate gardens of specific character; a shaded play space for younger children, a larger recreation area, and natural planted garden.  The pavilion itself provides an exterior shaded seating area that projects the clubhouse outwards into the garden area, creating a comfortable place for people to socialize and for families to play. At one end the pavilion extends beyond the existing building to frame the entrance and define the garden enclosure, and at the other end terminates with an integrated barbeque facility.

 

To the front of the clubhouse the existing changing facilities and toilets are reorganized, and disabled access is provided, with a new enclosing timber fence for privacy. Large glazed openings to the front and entrance side reveal the interior to the exterior, a signal of change that transforms the old identify of the clubhouse and welcomes the facility to the community.