Reid Architects designed a new mixed use scheme in city centre Cardiff for Trinity Hotels.
Anchored around a 148 bed Staybridge Hotel on floors 2 to 11, the brief also includes the provision of a bar/restaurant at ground and first floors and 25 apartments from levels 12 – 15. The hotel is planned with its public spaces at floor 11 giving views towards Cardiff Bay to the south.
The site is in a prominent gateway location on St Mary Street and was the site for the Central Hotel previously. The new building is a high quality re-development of the site and will contribute greatly to the urban fabric and the views on approach to the city from the south.
Constraints of the site and economic use of the site area are addressed in part by the use of a fire engineering strategy that justified using a single stair for means of escape.
The building is designed in a mix of terracotta tile (coloured to blend with the local stone buildings), zinc, timber and aluminium framed double glazing. Increased areas of glazing at ground and first floor levels contribute to street life by giving transparency to the bar.
