This one has slipped under the radar!

The National Wildflower Centre in Huyton are to construct a new building at the existing complex with a RIBA design competition determining the architect.

The shortlist was announced the other day. Ian Simpson could get his first building in Liverpool after Brunswick Quay was cancelled, doesn't quite match up to that project though. :lol:

Here's the press release:

National Wildflower Centre

Date:

21 January 2009

Press release contact:

Julia Davies
T: +44 (0)113 234 1335
E: julia.davies@inst.riba.org

Shortlist announced – National Wildflower Centre Competition

The RIBA is delighted to announce the shortlist in the international competition to design a new innovative, architecturally striking educational, conference and seed production complex at the National Wildflower Centre in Knowsley, part of the Liverpool City Region.

144 entries were received from all over the world including India, Australia, Argentina, Japan and the USA. This is one of the highest number of submissions for an open design competition in recent years, and is indicative of the unique nature of the scheme and its location. Six teams have now been shortlisted for the second stage design phase and these teams are (in alphabetical order):

* DM3 Architecture, Bath
* Ian Simpson Architects, Manchester
* Kirkland Fraser Moor, Hertfordshire
* Nicolas Tye Architects, Bedfordshire
* Studio Verna Architects, Lancashire
* Urban Salon Architects, London

The proposed new facility will inspire and encourage people to learn about the relationships between nature, mathematics and physics and will significantly improve the National Wildflower Centre offer through:

* Outstanding architecture with inherent sustainable build and design principles;
* A new centre of excellence for learning and an operational hub for creative conservation, wildflower production and innovation;
* Nationally important green conference facilities; and
* Exemplar energy generation.

Grant Luscombe from Landlife said: "The occurrence of the golden section in nature provided the inspiration for the National Wildflower Centre in Knowsley to use wildflowers as a means of stimulating interest in mathematics and physics. We are delighted that the shortlisted entries have used these aspirations to deliver a golden selection of designs to inspire and amaze. They have exceeded all our expectations, conceiving forms, shapes and functions to rival that manifest in nature itself."

Sue Carmichael, RIBA Adviser commented: "An inspirational and demanding brief attracted 144 entries of remarkable creative diversity, many exploiting the inherent potential of mathematical and botanical symbolism in their approach. The short listing process itself was both a delight and a challenge, particularly at the long list of 15 stage when the debate really intensified. The shortlist of 6, when revealed, included several emerging practices. The Jury Panel eagerly await to see which of these exciting initial visionary sketches evolve into deliverable solutions at the next stage."

Richard Tracey, Senior Regeneration Executive at the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), who helped to judge the competition, said:"Good design has a vital role to play in regeneration, creating new and unique facilities to improve the local environment. This innovative new complex will not only help to significantly improve the National Wildflower Centre offer, but also aims to provide a unique learning environment for visitors. The Agency is looking forward to seeing these designs progress to the next stage."

The shortlisted designs will be submitted in February 2009 with final presentations held in March.

http://www.architecture.com/NewsAndPress/News/CompetitionNews/Press/Ongoing/2009/National%20Wildflower%20Centre.aspx
http://www.nwc.org.uk/

http://www.dm3a.co.uk/dm3architecture/Wildflower%20Centre_files/shapeimage_2.png

DM3's entrance

Couldn't find any of the others

Good find.

So it will have wild flowers growing on the roof? Maybe they should go the whole hog and extend the roof down to the ground, people could dress up as hobbits and as well as all celebrating wildflowers in all their glory visitors could also take poetry classes in Elvish or even Elvis.

we carry all riba competition announcements at www.placenorthwest.co.uk

Wildflower centre design shortlist revealed
21 January 2009, 19:02


RIBA has announced a shortlist of six architects to design an educational, conference and seed production complex at the National Wildflower Centre in Knowsley, near Liverpool.

The teams to go through to the second stage design phase are:

DM3 Architecture, Bath
Ian Simpson Architects, Manchester
Kirkland Fraser Moor, Hertfordshire
Nicolas Tye Architects, Bedfordshire
Studio Verna Architects, Lancashire
Urban Salon Architects, London
The shortlisted designs will be submitted in February 2009 with final presentations and a winner announced in March.

http://www.dm3a.co.uk/dm3architecture/Wildflower%20Centre_files/shapeimage_2.png

DM3's entrance

Couldn't find any of the others

Very ec(h)o friendly.....good to see some developments that show that we are not some concrete desert here on Merseyside.....yes we do have grass and trees and flowers.....(and rivers and beaches and forrests for that matter.)

pics of all shortlisted designs are on the Place North West website now, free to view in the features sections.

can't pick a winner myself, all very different

would be nice if they were posted up here?

here they are

Kirkland Fraser Moor
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u181/jayreilly_05/SSC/3.jpg

Urban Salon
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u181/jayreilly_05/SSC/untitled2.jpg

Ian Simpson
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u181/jayreilly_05/SSC/untitled4.jpg

Studio Verna
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u181/jayreilly_05/SSC/untitled5.jpg

Nicolas Tye
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u181/jayreilly_05/SSC/untitled.jpg

and finally the one we have already seen DM3 Architects
http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u181/jayreilly_05/SSC/untitled6.jpg

would be nice if they were posted up here?

suit yourself

:)

I like the Ian Simpson design the most but I think I'd be happy with the Nicolas Tye and DM3 Architects designs too,the rest I don't like.

Tellytubby land

exactly...taking the 'nature' theme a bit too literally!

Simpson or studio verna look the best to me!

I like Kirkland Fraser Moor's. Although it does resemble a pile of elephant dung in the Serengati.

Maybe that's why I like it.

I like the Nicolas Tye effort best but I think they will go for something "warmer" looking. Ian Simpson to get the nod maybe.

Studio Verna's design is extremely drab looking.

none of them are trouser wettingly good, however, you have to place these schemes in the space they will actually inhabit.

I think the KFM scheme is good, as a concept, sitting ther, in isolation, in the midst of a wooded gladeey foresty thing, but would look silly as the north wall of an old walled garden, which the scheme is to be?

all those that liked the ian simpson design will be pleased. it won.

Difficult to tell which is the best in 2-D and for the nature of the building, there were no horrific options but I think they got it right. Might give Simpson a slightly better opinion of Liverpool as well.

I think this design is a good choice. It certainly seems to be one of the better designs from what we can tell from the above renders.

Might give Simpson a slightly better opinion of Liverpool as well.

Indeed, although after the debacle surrounding his last submission for our city, even if he hadn't have won, he should be given credit for bothering to try again at all, even if it is on a much smaller scale.

I was invited down to have a more detailed look at the shortlisted schemes. The Simpson one stood out a mile... it is an excellent scheme.

Is the funding in place or is this in the same boat as the 'observatory' overlooking Crosby beach? The 'next stage' sounds a bit suspicious.

it is exactly the same process as the observatory. The same funder is chasing the monies for the next stage actually.

It is not suspicious, this is how most of these types of initiatives occur. You have to have a worked up scheme in order to begin apply for funding, so unless the charity can make all the initial investments up front themselves, which most can't, they have to be broken into incremental steps.

They now have a scheme and a rationale to take to funders etc, so hopefuly it will happen.

I meant 'suspicious' in the sense that the money wasn't already in place nothing untoward! For some reason I thought the NWC had received lottery money or something.

Oops, sorry!

As I said, they have to do these things step by step, so they looked for money to have the competition, pay search fees, funds for the shortlisted companies to firm up their proposals etc. Now that they have a worked up and costed scheme they can begin searching for the funds to build it.

Seems a good choice, just hope it goes ahead now.

From Place North West -

Wildflower centre prepares to submit extension plans

11 Nov 2009, 12:42

The National Wildflower Centre's Inspire project will be worked into a detailed planning application by the end of March 2010 after funding was awarded by the North West Development Agency.

The NWDA agreed to give £200,000 to cover the cost of design work. An architectural competition to design the educational, conference and seed production complex at the existing centre in Court Hey Park, Knowsley was won by Ian Simpson Architects in 2009.

The Friends of Court Hey Park will host a public consultation meeting on the scheme proposals at 4pm on Friday 20 November 2009 at the National Wildflower Centre. Members of the public are invited to attend the meeting to find out more about the proposal scheme before the formal application is lodged.

Article continues here - http://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/news/archive/4742-wildflower-centre-prepares-to-submit-extension-plans.html