The project involved the fit out of the former Civic Station Building which was repurposed as a Visitor Information Centre, fit for its proximity to Newcastle CBD, Newcastle Museum, Newcastle University and the Honeysuckle Precinct.

The refurbishment focused on celebrating the history of the building, which was earmarked for heritage listing. Heritage items, such as the original Oregon double hung windows, cast iron sink, cedar benches, brass coin plates and ticket booth windows were lovingly restored and displayed, coupled with new 21st century architectural items. The whole room displayed feature vinyl flooring with a map of the Newcastle CBD, its corresponding contours laid out in flexible LED lighting and stainless steel mesh fabric across the ceiling. The interactive area of the Centre has modern curved joinery with stone benchtops, circular planters with banquette seating, clusters of pendant lighting and multimedia displays.

The back of house areas are of an equally high finish, with parquetry flooring, acoustic wall paneling, full height joinery with American o ak and stone benchtops. The office has a new adjoining accessible bathroom with new fittings and fixtures including the refurbished heritage cast iron sink and western red cedar vanity.

The project was extremely successful, highlighting Kingston’s attention to detail, capabilities in high-end carpentry and expertise in heritage construction. The project is currently undergoing submission for an MBA Award in the Restoration of an Historic Building Category as a result of the collaborative approach undertaken during the project and the outstanding quality achieved from the job.