Clever Precast makes this Building a Gem

摘要

We love buildings that add something to the streetscape rather than taking away from the intimate appeal of the street. So, it's nice to see a building that has a textural facade treatment handled so well in a sculptural sense - in this case using precast as it should be used - as a dynamic layered screen, and not just as a punctured flat wall. Located in MacLeay Street on the main strip of Sydney's cosmopolitan Kings Cross/Potts Point neighbourhood, Ikon is a redevelopment of the former Hotel Nikko Landmark, subsequently the Park Royal Hotel, itself a redevelopment of the famous Chevron Hilton Hotel that had a fascinating and sometimes shady past. The Chevron became famous as a centre for American services personnel back in the days of the Vietnam War, where between 1976 and 1971 it hosted thousands of Gl's. Many Baby-Boomers will remember the building as it was in its 1960-70's hey-day as the glamorous and dangerous centre of Sydney's nightlife. You may have even been there when the band played the Righteous Brothers (Unchained Melody), Percy Faith (A Summer Place), Frankie Valli (Can't Take My Eyes Off You), Paul and Paula (Hey Paula), the Turtles, and the Beatles.