Sussex Yacht Club

The new Sussex Yacht clubhouse replaces the existing facility with a futureproofed building. The building has been designed as a contemporary take on a traditional form to complement the historic vernacular of the town and its architecture. The design builds on a language of yacht architecture and subtly resembles the existing clubhouse, which is a popular local landmark. The exposed riverside location and coastal architecture of the broader surroundings has provided inspiration for the scheme. The materiality, using standing seam cladding and brick, is designed to be contemporary, robust and low maintenance.

Futureproofing the building, the ground floor level has been raised and the materials on the ground floor have been designed to be waterproof and cleanable should there be a flooding of greater than the 200yr flood level. To counterbalance this lifting of the building, the new facility has been designed with a dual pitched roof to reduce its height and perceived mass. The mass of the scheme is further reduced by splitting the plan of the building into two smaller elements and building them in two different bricks. Dark grey blue brick to the industrial riverside portion of the building, with a softer red brick to the town side.

“Sussex Yacht Club has enjoyed an excellent collaboration with the team at ECD since their appointment as our principle architects. They have taken time to ensure they fully understand our needs as a client and have always been mindful of the fact that, as a members’ club, we have a large committee structure made up of volunteer Members and Directors with whom they have had to listen, adopt and explain the methodology and processes involved in modern architectural design at this level. ECD have taken great care to design a building suitable for our prominent site, situated at the end of an historic town centre which balances elegance with modernity and practicality.”

– Terry Kinch, Commodore, Sussex Yacht Club

Awards:

• Shortlisted – AJ Architecture Awards: Leisure Project category
• Winner – Sussex Heritage Trust Awards: Public and Community Category

Images curtesy of the project contractor, W.Stirland