Wanting to continue to respond to the surroundings, I knew I wanted to use stilts to raise the building to the correct height like the piers around the sight. However, these old piers use timber which does not hold up to the marine conditions and relies on maintenance to keep them in order.
Therefore, I knew I wanted to respond using a cross bracing "X" look. This was achieved using steel stilts and supplying tension through steel cable. These are then joined together with bolts and eyelets.
I used the High House by Architecture Studio Delordinaire as precedents as well as Outpost by 30 x 40. Outpost is an under construction residential project with videos documented on YouTube. The video of a meeting between the structural engineer and architect goes over the logistics of using stilts to level out the project. I used this to guide this decision.
These will transfer loads straight into the stilts and concrete foundations below.
High House.
Outpost discussion with structural engineer.
I feel that these steel cables and this style of bracing makes the building feel much "lighter" on the ground and less disruptive of its environment. It feels like it'd being tied down gently rather than a massing dropped into the shore.
The same technique is used to support the outdoor space which is tied into both the skin and the main interior volume.
These stilts showcase a system which can then be used to update Victoria Pier also once the sea levels rise far over it.
