It's no secret that the St James Theatre Strengthening and Upgrade project took a lot of work and involved many people. A historical and culturally significant project, the theatre underwent significant seismic strengthening alongside other more delicate upgrades. The age of the theatre, workmanship across previous eras, and challenging site constraints added to the complexity.
The success of this project is a testament to collaboration and we are thrilled with the project receiving a Gold Award at the 2023 Commercial Project Awards.
The St James Theatre has been an integral part of Wellington for over a century. This remediation and restoration project sought to strengthen and refurbish the building to continue to contribute to the Capital’s arts scene for the next 100 years. Being a Category 1 heritage building, it was challenging to maintain the iconic look of the theatre while bringing it up to a high New Building Standard (NBS).
The project team also faced workmanship issues from previous eras, heavy metal and asbestos contaminated soil, and a lack of seismic gap from neighbouring buildings. There were also significant site constraints, being surrounded by a hotel, shared laneway, and one of the busiest nightlife streets in Wellington. With each major task feedback was gathered from all teams and subcontractors before determining how to proceed.
Congratulations to all our project partners and the thousands of people who contributed to this significant project.
