HERITAGE Completion of the Tower Block a milestone
The final project in College’s earthquake recovery programme has been completed, after nearly six years of an endless stream of tradies, scaffolding, hammering, trucks, cranes and diggers. The new kitchen and revamped Tower Block is back in use, much to the relief of kitchen staff and boarders. It was also the swansong project for Bursar Colin Sweetman, who delayed his retirement to ensure all earthquake repairs were completed before he signed off his final spreadsheet. Thanks to previous earthquake strengthening, the Dining Hall was back in action a month or so after the 2011 earthquake. However, the kitchen had sustained some damage, so the board decided to take advantage of the situation and upgrade and update the whole kitchen and Tower area. The first task was to install sprinklers.
Boarders can now queue up inside rather than outside as was previously the case. They enter into a room with a double servery which speeds everything up, making it twice as efficient to move the boys through to the Dining Hall. Mr Cook says boys have been enthusiastic about the new servery, and say it is so much better whenever you eat in new surroundings. He says more boys have also been coming in to eat. The kitchen has been completely rebuilt, with up-to-the-minute catering facilities, and enlarged areas for food preparation and storage. The Tower Block is also completed. The result is a light airy space with the addition of a bonus floor created by filling in a void between the Tower and above the kitchen, using a strengthening process to tie the two together. Colin Sweetman says it provides a significant self-contained 150sqm of extra space.
While the boys were able to continue to eat in the Dining Hall, the kitchen and storage areas were relocated into prefabs on Gloucester Street next to Somes House. For nearly 18 months, this meant the food was prepared in the prefabs, then trucked across to the Dining Hall, causing many changes in the way staff worked. All crockery and cutlery had to be returned to the prefabs for washing rather than being done onsite and there were at least three round trips per day, more if there were other events on. Dining Hall Manager Paul Cook says despite the conditions, kitchen staff adapted, coped really well and just got on with the job. “We now have had a much- needed upgrade to the kitchen, so even though it has been a bit of an inconvenience, in a way the earthquake has been an advantage because we now have such great facilities.’’ The entrance to the Dining Hall is now through a new door off the cloisters outside Julius House.
College Issue 32 2017
77
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