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  • PLASIR DU JARDIN

PLASIR DU JARDIN GARDEN SHOP

102 Florida Road, Durban

KwaZulu-Natal Institute for Architecture Conservation Award 2001

Summary

An Edwardian house, originally constructed in 1902, was gutted to form a showroom for garden furniture. The brief called for large high volume showrooms with a conservatory character, outdoor garden ambiance, minimal office accommodation, a large basement for parking and storage and a small flat for the visitors.

The floorboards and ceilings of the house were rotten facilitating the decision to remove the internal walls of the house. The trusses and roof were removed and exposed trusses erected to create greater volume in the showroom formed from the existing house. The new showroom was constructed at the rear and is on a lower level to the existing house to relate to the main entrance at the east of the building A large basement for parking and storage was created below the new showroom.