Clad in brick with aluminium, the three-storey building appears both familiar and new, and is an exemplar of how mixed-used buildings can add density and vitality to urban centres. Although built to provide an apartment over commercial office space, the current use of the whole building for commercial activity shows how robust and adaptable the planning is. Materials have been selected for their robustness; South Island clay bricks, redolent of Auckland’s volcanic stone, also demonstrate the generosity of the owner and design team in providing a handsome neighbour.
