| 33 Gravitas Consulting REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT New centre boosts quality of life Kim Newth Located next to Park Lane’s retirement community, the Arvida Good Friends Living Well Centre is a two-storey multi-use complex that includes a swimming pool, gym, fitness classes, health services and a cafe. Gravitas Consulting works alongside clients throughout New Zealand offering a full architectural design and project management service. Gravitas design for all sectors including retail, hospitality, commercial, industrial and residential. Exemplifying their professional service is a recent project for a beautiful new wellness centre in Addington, Christchurch where the team worked to create connected and collaborative spaces for a range of uses. Located next to Park Lane’s retirement community, the Arvida Good Friends Living Well Centre is a two-storey multi-use complex that includes a swimming pool, gym, fitness classes, health services and a cafe to help elder Cantabrians live well. Gravitas played a leading role in the project taking the concept design through to developed design and construction documentation, as well as managing coordination of all consultants. As the first such centre of its kind, this project is innovative in scope and breaks new ground. Refining the brief was no easy process, with an open and evolutionary approach needed to realize the design concept. “The brief and design process was very fluid as we worked with Arvida to develop the Living Well concept,” says Tyne Stimpson, Gravitas Consulting Associate and Architectural Designer. “Originally the centre was to incorporate a day care space but after working through a process the Arvida design team concluded that a gym, pool facility with a generous changing room area, conference room, café, hair and beauty, and health consultancy rooms would be the best outcome for what Arvida was looking for and the project evolved from there.” The centre’s layout was further refined even as construction got underway. “We had to make the best allowance we could to accommodate the community’s potential needs as we went along; it has been quite a journey but we are very proud of the final product that the design team and building contractor has produced.” ‘Living well’ is the vision for retirement living at Arvida Park Lane, with the new wellness centre providing a big boost to that aspiration since opening in March 2021. “With a smart street frontage, the new centre is by its nature a prominent new landmark in Addington and is designed to encourage interaction with the wider community. Beautiful landscaping connects the surrounding Park Lane villas and apartments with the wellness centre to create a very welcoming environment for residents and visiting friends and whānau. The centre has a grand lobby with information kiosk and, from there visitors can stop by the café or enjoy exploring the landscaped area at the rear of the property. A lift provides easy access to rooms on the first floor. As a progenitor project, the wellness centre is set to inspire similar ventures elsewhere, with concept design recently completed on another Arvida wellness centre for the retirement community in Nelson. Gravitas Consulting is truly a one stop shop design consultancy working on a range of projects throughout New Zealand. While the specialist area of expertise is architectural, Gravitas can undertake the head consultancy role and manage full design, documentation and consenting. Gravitas Consulting has been engaged as head consultant on a range of projects either currently under design or which have been recently completed. These include the new Silky Otter 8 x cinema complex in Wigram, full format Harvey Norman stores in Blenheim, Masterton and Queenstown, Spotlight stores in Christchurch and Wellington, the Quest Hotel in Kilmore St, five-storey apartments in Barbadoes St, Eagle Brewing Bar in Kaiapoi and a three-storey retail development in Queenstown. (09) 444 5300 | admin@citywideelectrical.co.nz | www.citywideelectrical.co.nz Industrial, Commercial, Domestic, Electrical Installation & Maintenance Data & Communications, Switchboard Design & Manufacture PO Box 317 082, Hobsonville, Auckland 0664 CITYWIDE ELECTRICAL • Architectural Design • Head Consultancy • Project Management ONE STOP SHOP CONSULTANCY Level 1 40 Welles Street Christchurch CBD | Email: james@gravitas.net.nz Phone: 021 413 747| Web: www.gravitas.nz Gravitas provide a one stop shop Head Consultancy Service including Architectural Design and the full range of Engineering Services through to Contract Administration and project management. A R C H I T E C T U R E
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