The Lysaght building, located on the corner of Pakenham Street West and Halsey Street, was built in the 1920s. The building, with its classical façade, was one of five buildings deemed to have character value in the Wynyard Quarter provisions of the Auckland District Plan. 

Work began on its transformation into a new working space as part of an innovation precinct for the area in early 2014. The $6 million refurbishment has retained much of the structure and many of the defining features of the building, while simultaneously upgrading it to fully comply with earthquake standards.

Designed by Warren and Mahoney, the building’s transformation includes the addition of a new mezzanine floor, a new moveable façade on the building’s northern face and the liberal use of glass to ensure visibility of the building’s character details.

Project Director, Daniel Khong from Waterfront Auckland, the building’s owner and master planner for the area, says it’s great to be involved in breathing new life into the space. Mr Khong says the intent with the project was for Waterfront Auckland to take a lead role in showing how restoration could be done sympathetically and with environmental aspects in mind to achieve a 5-star Greenstar rating.

Sustainable features include louvres and sliding doors for natural ventilation, an energy monitoring system and a waste sorting room.

With the main refurbishment of the building now complete, the internal fit-out of the 1,800 m² space is set to begin in May 2015 and will be managed by the leaseholder, Auckland Tourism Events and Economic Development (ATEED).

Tenants are expected to move in by September 2015.

Consultants and contractors

• Warren & Mahoney – Architects
• Canam – Lead contractor
• MPM Projects – Project Management
• Aurecon – Building Services
• WT Partnership – Quantity Surveyors