That sums up Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos’ hope that everyone will feel welcome under the arches of the Bondi Pavilion when it reopens to the public on Wednesday night after a $48 million restoration.
Mayor of Waverley Paula Masselos and Peter Tonkin,of Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects,at the refurbished Bondi Pavilion.Louise Kennerley
After decades of protests that saw successive plans dumped and revised,the new pavilion was designed for everybody,she said. “It was the unofficial Bondi town hall,and it is again. It is not just an arts destination. It has got the best on display,but it is not an elitist building.”
When the Bondi Pavilion was completed nearly 95 years ago,1000 dressing sheds crammed its courtyard and underground tunnels delivered bathers to the sand without offending the squeamish public.
The unofficial town hall was also known as the “playground of the Pacific”. As it started looking tired and tatty,it was reviled as a “white elephant” and called a “mock-Spanish mansion” that was as dated as neck-to-knee swimming costumes.
The past and present come together in the renovation by Tonkin Zulaikha Greer Architects,which has uncovered signs of the past and engraved the concrete slabs with marks that recall the sheds and tunnels.
The Bondi Pavilion will reopen to the public on Thursday 22 September following a 2-year restoration process.
When work finally began two years ago,architect Peter Tonkin said the “entire pavilion was about to fall down” and its famous arches were dropping off from the rest of the building. Floors were rotten and everything was cracking from the harsh beachside climate.
Tonkin said bricklayers stitched the building together using “hundreds and hundreds” of “helical” ties – little metal rods that connect one brick to another – the brickies’ version of sewing.
Before choosing 33,000 multicoloured new tiles to replace the original Spanish-style roof tiles,Tonkin pored over old black-and-white photos. Visiting the pavilion this week,he said he was “very,very happy” with the result. “It is the most beautiful classic Italianate pavilion.”
From the outset,he had wanted to remove “the horrible yellow plastic dome” over the interior.
The Bondi Pavilion reopens to the public on Wednesday night after a $48 million restoration.Louise Kennerley
Precast columns,which look and feel like massive pieces of seasoned driftwood,hold up a new glass atrium. Large timber beams filter the northern light,provide shade and air,and keep the rain out.
“It is open to naturally ventilate the entire building,and achieve our five-star green rating,” he said.
On the rooftop,217 solar panels supply 71 per cent of the building’s energy needs.
Tonkin won this year’s top architecture and heritage prizes in NSW for the. When asked if Bondi Pavilion was another example,he demurred. “This isn’t adaptive reuse. It is just continuing its original use.”
Precast columns,which look and feel like massive pieces of seasoned driftwood,hold up a new glass atrium in the refurbished pavilion.Louise Kennerley
The construction uncovered many signs of the past from those promoting the short-lived Turkish Sea Baths,frescoes in the ballroom (now a theatre),and a safe that nobody can open or crack. Other important historical features were protected,such as an Aboriginal floor mosaic that was a gift from the people of Arnhem Land.
The upgraded pavilion retained its Bondi vibe,Masselos said. It would welcome children coming to ballet classes on the newly sprung floor,community group meetings,the local radio station,and tourists and residents trailing sand off the beach.
It includes a welcome centre,offering concierge-style tourist advice and local council services,and a box office.
A new “Bondi Story Room” includes a wall-size touchscreen map of Bondi. Included in the 300 stories so far is the tale of chemist Max Steele. When attacked by a “15-foot monster shark” Steele was reported to have “gamely swum” to shore where he directed bystanders on how to use a ligature and apply first aid.
It also profiles more famous visitors,including the late Queen,and Margaret Dovey,a young swimming champ who grew up locally and became Margaret Whitlam,the wife of prime minister Gough Whitlam.
The “Bondi Story Room” in the newly refurbished pavilion.Louise Kennerley
The story room also details the area’s Indigenous settlement and the naming of Bondi. It means “thud”,the sound of waves breaking on rocks.
These stories also include details of the campaigns in 1987 and 2017 to prevent the privatisation of the pavilion under the banner,“Not a makeover but a takeover”.
Masselos said it had gone way beyond a makeover. “It’s an example of best practice of how you can take an old heritage building and completely repurpose it for the 21st century,have it bristling with tech ... Yet it still retains its absolute essence as a heritage building.”
The renovation has also restored heritage-listed views – that run north to south and east to west – through the building.
The removal of the courtyard’s old amphitheatre,where the dressing sheds were located for many decades,has created a 2667-square-metre courtyard large enough for 2000 people. It is now called the Garu Courtyard,using the local Dharawal name for northern.
Masselos said visitors to the building,including NSW Customer Service Minister Victor Dominello,were shocked to realise the size of the building – nearly 8000 square metres inside and out – following its restoration.
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