Maritime Office Tower

Maritime Tower is the first of a new generation of office buildings whose character is defined by a sculptural approach to façade design.  The 17 storey building is located on a prominent corner site on the edge of Wellington’s CBD and serves as a major landmark for Wellington’s fast-developing waterfront. 

The building is sited among medium-rise office towers of varying ages and styles, and one of the main design challenges was to create a building of individual character and presence that would also be a valuable commercial asset of enduring quality.   

The solution was to create a singular form which is distinctly different from all other Wellington CBD office towers.  Maritime Tower takes advantage of its splaying corner location with a glazed façade that stretches in a curving ‘sail’ around two sides of the building.  This light glass skin is contrasted against the more rectilinear underlying elements of the building, revealed at its corners as a simple louvered box.  The relationship between these two contrasting elements creates the tension that gives the building its unique identity. 

The ground floor is primarily devoted to retail space.  It also has the entry lobby, and vehicle access points.  Above this are three levels of secure car parking space.  The remaining floors are devoted to modern, flexible office space, much of it with unparalleled views.  

The structure has been designed to minimise column interruptions to the lettable space.  A shear core resists seismic forces, while the stair-service core is located at the southern edge of the site, allowing maximum access to the glazing on the north, east and west facades.  

Lifts are arranged in a single bank facing the lettable space, optimizing office space dimensions and allowing toilets to be located against the southern boundary where they have least effect on views and light.  As a result, the tower offers exceptionally high net-to-gross floor area ratios.  On a typical office floor, only 10 percent of the gross area is lost to lift shafts, wall thicknesses, vertical service ducts, and egress stairs. 

Public spaces have been finished in durable, high quality materials in a strong contemporary manner.