Ryde Civic Centre

The Ryde Civic Centre is a landmark modernist civic building in Ryde, a northern suburb of Sydney, Australia. It stands in the centre of Ryde, along Devlin Street. Designed in the Post-War International style by Buckland & Druce architects, the Civic Centre was the seat of the City of Ryde from its opening in 1964, and was extended in 1972 to include the Civic Hall as an event and function space. The Civic Centre remained the council seat until 2016, when the main building was closed due to maintenance and safety issues. Identified for redevelopment and demolition since 2011, the Civic Centre has been vacant since 2016 while its future is being determined, while the Civic Hall remains open. In 2019 Council lodged and approved a proposal to redevelop the Civic Centre site as the "New Heart of Ryde" designed by Plus Architecture, with Taylor Construction Group tendered as the builders in early 2020.

Ryde Civic Centre
Ryde Civic Centre, with the Civic hall on the left
Alternative namesRyde Civic Hall, Ryde Civic Hub
General information
TypeGovernment town hall
Architectural stylePost-War International
Address1 Devlin Street
Town or cityRyde, New South Wales
CountryAustralia
Completed15 August 1964
ClientMunicipality of Ryde
OwnerCity of Ryde (current)
Design and construction
ArchitectLeslie J. Buckland
C. Druce
Architecture firmBuckland & Druce
Main contractorJames. S. Sampson Pty. Ltd.

History

Designed in the Post-War International style by Leslie J. Buckland & Druce architects, who designed the Parramatta City Council Administration Building (1959) and Library (1964), the Civic Centre, with its curtain wall facade, was noted for its similarity to the 1962 AMP Building (by Graham Thorp of Peddle Thorp Walker) in Circular Quay.[1][2]

The council last met at the Council Chambers on Blaxland Road on 4 August 1964, with the mayor, C. M. Cutler, declaring that there had been “tremendous advances in the municipality”.[3] The Civic Centre was officially opened on 15 August 1964 by the Premier of New South Wales, Jack Renshaw.[4]

Redevelopment and future
Civic Centre at night, 2010.

Described in The Sydney Morning Herald in 2011 as an "ugly, unloved building", the Civic Centre was identified for redevelopment since 2011.[5] However a newly-elected council resolved in September 2012 not to proceed further.[6] In November 2012, the council supported the rezoning of the Civic Centre site back to community space but this was overturned by the Liberal-majority council seven votes to five in mid-2015.[7][8]

In June 2015 council voted to spend $771,000 on an international design competition for the future of the site of the Civic Centre, with the Liberal mayor, Bill Pickering, noting that safety concerns had prompted further action, calling the building a “dinosaur” that was “falling down around [their] ears.”[7] Ryde Council first met in new chambers across the road from the Civic Centre in Top Ryde on 27 September 2016.[3] In August 2016, the Design Our Ryde international architectural competition for the Ryde Civic Hub Precinct was won by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design, a state-owned architectural firm in China.[9]

With the election in September 2017 of a new council with a majority opposed to the redevelopment plans, the "Civic Hub" proposal was overturned.[10] The design competition-winning proposal was rejected in December 2017, with the new Labor Mayor, Jerome Laxale, explaining that “the winning entry from the International Design Competition has proved to be unworkable, as predicted at its inception [...] The design competition itself has wasted well over $1 million in ratepayers money and our community has rejected 500 to 600 apartments time and time again.” Laxale also commissioned council staff to prepare a report on "a feasible new Civic Centre which will include council chambers, administrative space, meeting rooms, a performance space and retail space".[11][12]

The New Heart of Ryde

In mid-2019, the Ryde Council endorsed a Development Application lodged in January 2019 for a new proposal for the Civic Centre site designed by Plus Architecture entitled "The New Heart of Ryde", with the Civic Centre and Civic Hall demolished to make way for a new entirely publicly-owned complex without any residential development.[13][14] 50 per cent of the space "will house public meeting rooms, offices, childcare facilities, commercial and retail facilities, a plaza and open space, on-site parking and Council chambers."[15] Community consultation of the project found 85% of respondents supported the project, and the $110 million project was tendered to Taylor Construction Group in January 2020, despite some opposition on the basis that the project was too expensive compared to the cost of refurbishing the existing Civic Centre and that the Civic Centre should be heritage listed.[16][17]

See also

References
  1. Cheng, Linda (3 February 2016). "International ideas competition for Ryde civic hub". ArchitectureAU. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  2. Francis-Jones, Richard; Nield, Lawrence; Ruan, Xing; Van der Plaat, Deborah (2009). Skyplane: What Effect Do Towers Have on Urbanism, Sustainability, the Workplace and Historic City Centres. UNSW Press. p. 129.
  3. "Ryde Council opens chamber as Hunters Hill continues merger challenge". Northern District Times. 29 September 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  4. Ryde (N.S.W. : Municipality). Council (1964), Official opening of the administrative block, Civic Centre, Ryde, by the Honourable J.B. Renshaw, M.L.A., Premier of New South Wales, Ryde Municipal Council, retrieved 25 July 2018
  5. West, Andrew (13 December 2011). "Seven-storey civic centre may make way for towers three times as high". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  6. "Past Civic Precinct Committee". City of Ryde. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  7. Bastians, Kate (24 June 2015). "International Design Competition reignites Ryde Civic Centre redevelopment". Northern District Times. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  8. "Ryde Liberals use majority to seal Civic Centre's fate". The Weekly Times. 21 April 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  9. "Ryde Civic Hub Architectural Winner Announced". The Urban Developer. 10 August 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  10. "Ryde Civic Centre could be saved as New Council rejects Civic Hub scam!". The Weekly Times. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  11. "Winning Civic Centre design scrapped". The Weekly Times. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  12. "Mayoral Minute 15/17 REDEVELOPMENT OF CIVIC CENTRE SITE RYDE - Mayor, Councillor Jerome Laxale" (PDF). Council Meeting - 12 December 2017. City of Ryde. 12 December 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  13. "Development Application Submitted for The New Heart of Ryde" (Media Release). City of Ryde. 9 January 2020. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  14. "The architects behind The New Heart of Ryde". City of Ryde. 15 July 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  15. "'The New Heart of Ryde' to Deliver Enhanced Facilities for the Entire Community" (Media Release). City of Ryde. 29 May 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  16. "Redevelopment of Ryde civic centre pushes ahead despite serious misgivings". ArchitectureAU. 10 January 2020. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  17. Taylor, Andrew (17 May 2020). "'Vanity project': Ryde Council divided over mayor's civic centre plans". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 10 August 2020.

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