Zone Constructions

RAAF RICHMOND CINEMA REFURBISHMENT Case study

Background • RAAF Base Richmond is entered on the Commonwealth Heritage List (CHL) for its historical, design and social significance (Place ID 105653). • The site was purchased by the Commonwealth in 1923, becoming the second military air base in Australia. • RAAF Base Richmond is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base located within the City of Hawkesbury, approximately 50 kilometres north-west of Sydney. Situated between the towns of Windsor and Richmond, the base is the oldest base in New South Wales and the second oldest in Australia. The base is home to the transport headquarters RAAF Air Lift Group, and its major operational formations, Nos. 84 and 86 Wings. The main aircraft type operated at the base is the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. Richmond is a regular venue for air shows and has at times been mooted as a site for Sydney’s proposed second international airport. The Cinema • This cinema, built in the 1940s, is a timber framed hall designed in the vernacular style typically employed by the Commonwealth during the 1930s and 1940s. The roof is clad with galvanised corrugated metal and the walls are clad with weatherboards to window sill height. The upper wall areas, originally asbestos cement, have been reclad with fibrous cement sheeting. It is believed that the building was relocated to this position from elsewhere within the Base. • The basic fabric of this building included half-timbered walls, timber window frames and doors, simple rectangular building plan, and gabled roof form. • The building’s interior has been substantially altered although the general layout of the spaces remains basically intact. • Characteristics of 1940s interiors should be considered during any upgrade of interior fittings and finishes/furnishings. • This building is currently located in a traffic island and therefore, during major works, a reconfiguration of traffic flows around the building is required.

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