Finals for Parliament building design competition weeks away
Published:Wednesday | December 5, 2018 | 12:00 AMPaul Clarke/Gleaner Writer
It's a heady time for the five finalists in the Houses of Parliament Design Competition, with just a few weeks left for the panel of judges to name the winning design, which is to be constructed as Jamaica's new seat of power.
December 18 is the final date for submissions for the 3D models and detailed renderings of the concept designs, one of which will feature as the new Parliament building to be constructed on lands at National Heroes Park, replacing the outdated George William Gordon House on Duke Street, Kingston.
Gordon House, constructed in 1960, was never built to house the Parliament, but was to be the home for the city council, now the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation.
FINALISTS
The finalists - Team National Flower, led by well-known architect and businessman Stephen Facey; Design Collaborative, with lead architect Evan Lewis; FORM Architects, with the team led by Damion Edmonds; the young but ultra high-tech firm Atelier Vidal; and GSA Architects with Guenet Anderson at the helm - are putting the final touches on their designs.
The top five design teams were each awarded $2 million for advancing to stage two of the competition. The ultimate winner will be awarded a further cash prize of $5 million, and that decision will be made in early March 2019 at an awards ceremony. Second place will be awarded $4 million and third place, $2 million.
The winning team will be offered the opportunity to work as part of the implementation team.
The design competition is also granted oversight by a parliamentary steering committee for the duration of the project.