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New Municipal Buildings

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New Municipal Buildings MR. WATERHOUSE'S REPORT ON THE DESIGNS. A meeting of the Cardiff Town-hall Com- mittee was held on Tuesday, when Alderman Carey presided.—The Deputy Town-clerk (Mr. Board) read the following report of Mr. Water- house, R.A., on the designs sent in for the new municipal buildings and law-courts:- "20, New Cavendish-square, "Portland-place, W., ( '"9th December, 1897. "To the Mayor and Corporaton of Cardiff. "As your assessor, I have examined the 56 sets of designs sent in. They are, I may say, of unusual excellence, and most of them have substantially fulfilled the conditions imposed, with some little exception as to cost. On this account alone I am sorry to say I have been obliged to set aside several promising designs. Out of the 56 I with some difficulty selected nine as those which appeared to have realised your conditions in the most n isterly way, and these, on closer consideration, were finally reduced to the requisite three. At least three out of the nine had to part company from their fellows on account of the low estimate put upon the work to keep within the prescribed sum. I need hardly point out to you that it would be most unusual to obtain a design by a competition of this sort which per- fectly meet all the requirements of the case without alteration. Having once selected a design which shows its author to be both an artist and an adept at architectural planning and design, the necessary modifications need not long delay the preparation of the working draw- ings, nor of necessity increase the cost of the building. One feature in this competition will, doubtless, strike you: I allude to the lowness of the elevation of the designs generally and their consequent spread over the surface of the ground. This, no doubt, has arisen from the ample site you had to put at your architects' disposal. In a park and among trees buildings, no doubt, look better low rather than high, but the pursuit of lowness has its disadvantages when it presents the concentration of depart- ments, and, I think, there is danger in this direction in the present case. It shows itself in length of corridors and number of staircases and entrances. I have finally to recom- mend No. 22 for the first prize, No. 25 for the second prize, No. 6 for the third prize, and to thank you on behalf of the profession for the manifestly fair and considerate way you have treated it in the matter of this competition.-I am gentlemen, yours faithfully, "A. WATERHOUSE." Tl1ø Y\PYn1!1 tort rlOCl1l1"'Y1è: u'o"o n"=lIOt' .¿. "'J"J"5" c.. U.A."VJ. 1. Design No. 22, sent in by Messrs. H..V. Lanchester. J. S. Steward, and E. A. Rickards, of 50, Bedford-row, London. 2. Design No. 25, sent in by Messrs. J. S. Gibson and S. B. Russell, of Gray's Inn-road, London. 3. Design No. 6, sent in by Messrs. A. W. Cooksley and Alfred Cox, of 4, Adam-street, Adelphi, London. In a letter dated December 14, 1897, Mr. Waterhouse enclosed his notes upon the three premiated designs. In doing so he mentioned that Mr. Lanchester informed him that his partner, Mr. Steward, is a gold medallist at the Royal Academy—that is,, he. won the blue riband in his year as an architectural student, so that he is not by any means without ante- cedents. In his notes on the three premiated designs the assessor said in regard to No. 22, which he placed first, that the design had been worked out with a thorough appreciation of the peculiarities of the site, and "for the balance of the buildings on either side of the north avenue." Mr. Waterhouse went on to say that the elevations were, perhaps, somewhat stern, and the dome was rather depressed under the height of a very lofty tower. The elevations were but 35ft. to the top of the parapet. and the tower 220ft. He questioned whether the former might not be raised somewhat, and the latter lowered with advantage. (Hear, hear.) There was a refresh- ing vigour about the details, which were well designed, and the plans of the building were also exceptionally good. After dealing with some minor defects, Mr. Waterhouse stated that the police-courts were put on the west instead of the north side, and this was, perhaps, not in compli'ince with the conditions. He, however, felt that the design complied with the spirit, if not the absolute letter, of the con- ditions, as the courts were entered from the northern end. Dealing with No. 25. the second premiated plan, the assessor states that the design is ,n exceedingly clever one, but the buildings were not well balanced, and there was no central tower shown. The two towers—one at each end of the Towii-ball-were. however, very beau- tiful and of rich design, but they were not with- out defects. As to No. 6, which was placed third, Mr. Waterhouse wrote: —"There is rhythm rnd dignity about the elevation of the Town-ball, and, indeed, it struck me that, in this respect it was one of the most perfect designs in the competition." The plan of the corridors and sanitary blocks was unexception- able, but the arrangement of the assize courts and the detail were not so satisfactory. In a subsequent letter Mr. Waterhouse stated that the first premiated plan removed to a great extent the objection which lie had to the forma- tion of the ground. The reports gave satisfaction to the committee, and Alderman David Jones stated that when the council appeared before a Parliamenta-v com- mittee they would have the advantage of having behind them one of the first architects in Great Britain. All the plans, except those of Messrs. Lan- cliester, Steward, and Rickards, have been packed up and returned.

T-HE LOXBON COLLEGE OF MUSIC,

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