Track record

Acquisition of a former public house, Godalming

Majestic Wine

Identified and acquired the site for Majestic Wine

Agency

Building Surveying

Applications

Service

Retail & Leisure

Industry

James Porter

The project

Rapleys were appointed as Planning Consultant, Building Surveyor and Employer’s Agent on this conversion, extension and fit-out project. We identified the site, supported the client with acquisition, developed the design, collated/submitted a planning application and obtained consent for change of use. The building had stood vacant for a long period of time and had become a hotspot for fly-tipping, along with general deterioration impacting the historic streetscape in a conspicuous location. Its subsequent development and end use was warmly received by the local community. The development included the restoration of the existing historic building, followed by modern fit-out of the Majestic Wine Warehouse, creating a flagship store to accommodate traditional sales alongside fine wine tasting events.

Due to time constraints, we developed a design and build procurement strategy with the client, on a negotiated basis with their preferred contractor. This enabled design and construction stages to overlap. A collaborative approach andacceleration of the programme within the condensed timescale allowed the grand opening to take place on the originally planned date.

Our solution

Appointed a structural engineer to survey the existing building and identify immediate and long-term risks. The structural engineer was novated to the Principal Contractor and recommended remediation works completed, including re-coating steel structure and reducing chimney stack heights
Moisture to basement –Utilised existing air brick penetrations to retrofit mechanical ventilation and installed a sump pump for flood conditions
Budget restrictions –With the condition of the historic building and an obligation to improve the thermal performance, the budget was under immense pressure and numerous examples of value-engineering were identified in both buildability and specification
A new 3-phase electrical supply was required but could not be installed prior to grand opening. A mitigation strategy was implemented to open the store on the existing single-phase supply and then seamlessly switch to the permanent 3-phase supply at a later date
The existing roof structure was utilised to form a vaulted ceiling, creating an aesthetically pleasing and unique feature.