A state-of-the-art community-owned building opened earlier this year in Masterton has won a Wellington Architecture Award.
Waiata House, owned by Lands Trust Masterton and designed by Proarch Architects, was recognised in the commercial category of the NZ Institute of Architecture's regional awards announced in Wellington on Thursday November 7. It was the only Wairarapa building to receive an award.
Lands Trust Masterton chairman John Bunny congratulated Proarch on its innovation and quality of work in a project that had involved the trust, tenant and architect working closely together.
"The judges recognised Proarch's work in designing the building to the specific requirements of the tenant while setting the building up to anticipate other opportunities as Masterton evolves," Mr Bunny said.
The judges said the "strict lines separating the public and private realms" of the building's environment were blurred in a central atrium, in which details and arched windows from the site's original opera house building's facade had been re-used.
