Project Example : Market Redevelopment, Eagle Centre, Derby

Description of Scheme

Background

The original Market was built over the Eagle Centre Shopping Centre basement car park in the 1970's, but was closed in November 1990 as it failed to meet modern fire safety and access requirements ; subsequently a Design & Build Competition was won by our consortium led by Conder Projects, to demolish the entire existing structure and build a new 100,000 sq ft modern Covered Market, linking the Eagle Centre enclosed shopping malls with the Bus Station and central Car Parking areas of Derby City.

Scheme Brief

The brief was formulated in late 1990, identifying the requirement for 250-plus market stalls on a rectangular grid, with open aisles for ease of access and large focal seating / amenity areas, within a flexible open-plan Market Hall structure providing an attractive retail environment, to be designed in a bright modern style in keeping with the city council's "Brighter Derby" campaign ; all to be leased by the market stall tenants under the management of Derby City Council, with CIN Properties as developers acting on behalf of British Coal Pension Funds ; a fast-track approach was necessitated by the urgent requirement to replace the defunct facilities and ensure an early re-opening and operation of the Market ; indeed much of the final design and detailing work was carried out in tandem with the initial on-site demolition phase of the Contract in the summer of 1991.

Design Approach

Continuing consultation with the representatives of the Client, market traders and statutory authorities throughout the design process resolved the numerous conflicting requirements which were identified in the original brief, with alternative feasibility studies leading to the final design concept as portrayed in this early hand-drawn perspective exterior part-view, showing the large landscaped perimeter balconies with cantilevered stepped roof profiles over, employed to reduce the massing and visual impact of such a large structure, whilst endeavouring to integrate the Market building within the surrounding street scenes :-

Budget and Funding

The agreed Design & Build Contract value was some £5m for the new enclosed Market, having a gross floor area of some 100,000 sq ft, including 255 market traders stall / kiosk shells, fixtures, fittings and associated external works.

Final Design

Following several alternative feasibility studies a finalised cohesive design solution emerged, which was worked-up on PDA's Computer-Aided Design facilities as a three-dimensional colour presentational model, with sequential presentation views prepared to help describe the scheme to all parties concerned with the project, including the following 2-d drawings :-

The final design solution comprises a large single-storey flexible open-plan Market Hall, with ramped / escalator / lift / stair access routes leading to generous open aisles between rectangular market stall islands arranged around central focal seating areas, with market kiosks, landscaped external balconies and associated service / amenity facilities arranged around the perimeters :-

The structure comprises a light-weight insulated stepped flat roof off a long-span Conder Harley painted steel exposed Space Frame System, enabling generous natural day-lighting through integral raised roof-lights and exposed service ducting threaded within the roof zone, with painted steel support column trees built off the existing basement car park reinforced concrete framed structure below ; facing brickwork kiosk shells and waste-height panels are incorporated at perimeter areas deemed susceptible to damage or vandalism, with insulated composite cladding panels and solar-tinted double-glazed toughened glass patent glazing units over, all co-ordinated in red and grey colour combinations, to give a cohesive identity to the new Market ; internal hard-wearing finishes have been chosen carefully to achieve low-maintenance and ease of cleaning throughout, with anti-slip heavy-duty floor tiling in contrasting colours to identify circulation routes, bedded on a new in-situ levelling screed over the existing undulating reinforced concrete slab below.

The market stalls are arranged as free-standing steel-framed island structures, built off new reinforced in-situ concrete plinths, with zoned colour co-ordinated coated profiled steel roof sheeting, fascias and contrasting trims ; stalls are split according to tenant layouts, complete with decorated blockwork partition walls tied to the island structural posts, together with timber counters, shelves, sinks, refrigeration plant, individual water and metered power supplies etc, according to the requirements of each market trader, whilst eight-head sprinkler nozzle trees branch off the sprinkler mains which drop from the Market Hall service zone within the space frame roof over ; each stall can be made secure by the inclusion of individual self-finished roller shutters which are housed behind the fascias and pull-down to a locking device fixed to the stall plinth.

Final Costs

The scheme was completed on programme and within the Contract Sum of £5m all-in, including comprehensive market stall fixtures & fittings etc ; further separate additional works were subsequently instructed by the new owner / operators of the Eagle Centre, MEPC Ltd, which included the refurbishment of the trader's service areas and management offices, totalling some £500k in value ; all designed and overseen by the Practice.

Completed Scheme Photographs

The following sequence of photographs show exterior views of the completed Market Complex from above and main perimeter external entrance elevations :-