The Isle of Wight Council have launched a design competition to find the winning architectural team for a new public record archive.
The public face of the County Record Office is currently located just up from Newport Quay, with the archives split across various locations around the Island.
The brief
The winning design team will be asked to explore a range of options for converting part of the former Westridge Leisure Centre near Ryde into a centralised record office for the Island.
In its brief, the council say it,
“Has endeavoured for many years to find a long-term solution to the capacity issues faced by the record office location and has explored and developed a wide range of redevelopment options from new-build facilities to extensions on other existing council sites.
“One council facility which has never been properly explored for use in this purpose is the Former Westridge Leisure Centre, on Brading Road in Ryde. Westridge houses a variety of council services and facilities which have evolved significantly since the original leisure centre closed.
“Until recently a commercially let space was previously occupied by the Waltzing Waters tourism attraction at the heart of the building. It is the recently vacated space, formerly the Waltzing Waters attraction which this scope seeks to fully explore.”
How to apply
The deadline for applications is 2pm, 18 October 2018.
For more info on how to apply see the Architects’ Journal
Explore the County Record office
If you haven’t been inside the Record Office before, you can explore below in our 360 degree virtual tour.
Image: © Steve Daniels
