The 12 winning projects at this year’s Western Architecture Awards demonstrate architectural design excellence on a modest budget.

Of the dozen big winners, two were awarded in the Commercial Architecture Category, including Knoll Ridge Cafe, Whakapapa by Harris Butt Architecture and HB Architecture, described by judges as ‘a stunning building that sits comfortable in the snowscape, mimicking the terrain with its unique yet simple roof form’ and Totally Vets Hospital in Feilding, designed by Dalgleish Architects.

Continuing the trend from other NZIA local awards announced this year, public architecture projects were well represented in the winning line-up. Palmerston North winners included the Palmerston North Community House designed by Shadbolt Architects and the dining hall design for Palmerston North Boys High School, a Proarch Architects project.

Also receiving an award in the public architecture category was TSB Hub Sports and Event Centre in Hawera, by Jackson Architects. The Awards’ jury said the architects had responded well to a complex brief and challenging design process.

Two awards went to Whanganui projects, the Whanganui Gateway in the Planning and Urban Design category, and the I-Site in the Heritage category, both designed by Void Architecture Research Urbanism.

Featuring in the Residential Architecture section were two Palmerston North houses, Cotton Bond House, a design by E3 Architects and Duckett Architecture, and the Humphries Residence by Architype-Shadbolt Architects Ltd. The third winning entry was Wallin House in Bell Block, created by Saunders Architects Ltd to ‘make full and lively use of a small urban site.’

In the Small Project Architecture category, two designs were awarded - Opunake Primary School canopy structure by Chapman Oulsnam Spiers and the Palmerston North Youth Space, another winning design by Proarch Architects.

Run by the New Zealand Institute of Architects, the Western Awards seek to honour quality architecture within the community stretching from Ruapehu to Palmerston North including the Taranaki, Whanganui and Manawatu Districts.

Below is a full list of 2011 Western Architecture Award winners, with judges citations.

Commercial Architecture

Knoll Ridge Café, Whakapapa
Harris Butt Architecture T/A HB Architecture
The client’s brief for a mountainside building that would enhance his customers’ alpine experience required clever solutions to substantial challenges. Full citation here.

Totally Vets Hospital, Feilding
Dalgleish Architects Ltd
The cleverly arranged entrances to this elegant shed lead to a calm, airy and light interior, featuring an impressive foyer and retail space. Full citation here.

Heritage

Whanganui i-Site Centre, Cafe and Quay Gallery
Void Architecture Research Urbanism
The Architect has successfully adapted and partially restored an old building handicapped by its accretion of ill-assorted materials. Full citation here.

Planning and Urban Design

Whanganui Gateway
Void Architecture Research Urbanism
The Architect’s response to a brief for a gateway to Whanganui expressive of the city’s identity combines elements of urban design, engineering, landscape architecture, sculpture, gardening, lighting and craft. Full citation here.

Public Architecture

Palmerston North Boys High School – Dining Hall
Proarch Architects Ltd
Sited alongside a major arterial route, the dining hall at Palmerston North Boys High School caters for 160 boarders and 20 staff, and serves the secondary function of providing a buffer against the road and its traffic. Full citation here.

Palmerston North Community House 
Architype – Shadbolt Architects Ltd 
This project exemplifies the difference an Architect can make to the life of a community. Responding to a brief shaped by the requirements of numerous user groups, and working through a complex design process, the Architect has delivered a one-stop services centre for 16 Palmerston North community organisations. Full citation here.

TSB Hub Sports and Event Centre, Hawera
Jackson Architects Ltd
The Architect has responded well to a complex brief and managed a challenging design process to provide a facility that has an important place in the life of a provincial town. Full citation here.

Residential Architecture – Houses

Cotton Bond House, Palmerston North
E3 Architects and Duckett Architecture in association
Scrupulous attention to detail is manifest in this modern dwelling in suburban Palmerston North, which is the result of a close collaboration between the clients, both of whom are artists and art collectors, and their Architect. Full citation here.

Humphries Residence, Palmerston North
Architype – Shadbolt Architects Ltd
On a greenfields site subject to district plan envelope restrictions and design covenants, the Architect has produced a well proportioned ‘lodge’ style house with a clear circulation axis focused on a large central volume. Full citation here.

Wallin House, Bell Block
Saunders Architects Ltd
In this project, a substantial alteration to an existing building, the Architect has designed a house that makes full and lively use of a small urban site. Full citation here.

Small Project Architecture

Opunake Primary School – Te Putahi Ako Canopy
Chapman Oulsnam Speirs Ltd
Providing both protection and a link to the outdoors for two classrooms, the canopy over Opunake Primary School’s Te Putahi Ako (Learning Centre) is a restrained, contemporary addition that sits well with the existing building. Full citation here.

Palmerston North Youth Space
Proarch Architects Ltd
Working with a very modest budget, the Architect has refurbished an existing building in Palmerston North’s café precinct to provide a much-needed destination where the city’s young people can meet in a safe and enjoyable environment. Full citation here.

2011 local architecture award winners in other regions can be found here: Nelson Marlborough Architecture Awards; Auckland Architecture Awards; Canterbury Architecture Awards; Wellington Architecture Awards; Waikato Bay of Plenty Architecture Awards; Gisborne Hawkes Bay Architecture Awards.