International award for JCD Group’s Penrose Dock design by Wilson Architecture

Wilson Architecture-designed  scheme follows 2021 national ‘Best Building of the Year 2022’ award with recognition in the international sphere. Cork’s quayside office development Penrose Dock was the only Irish winner at the International Architecture Awards, among a number of global projects honoured at an awards ceremony hosted this month under the watchful citadel eye of the Acropolis in Athens

The 250,000 sq ft Irish development designed by Wilson Architecture was a winner in the Corporate Office Buildings category, one of 14 from all around the world in this category, in the global design awards scheme running since 2005, which saw 450 nominees, and 150 awards given across 28 categories.

The Irish win was for the €125 million development on Cork’s north quays, in two blocks from seven to ten storeys and included retention and upgrade of the limestone-faced Penrose House, the former Cork Steam Packet building

Last year Wilsons and developers JCD also won two awards at Ireland’s Building and Architect of the Year Awards 2021, including the top accolade of ‘Building of the Year,’ and another in the large office category.

Penrose Dock is fully occupied, with tenants including Grant Thornton, Matheson, Sophos, Varonis, Cadence, Cloudera, IBEC and Qualcomm.

There’s a further site on the city/western side, controlled by the O’Leary motors family from Bandon, where planning has been granted for further office development, also designed by Wilson Architecture, while on the eastern flank is the Clarendon/BAM Horgans Quay/HQ mixed-use development by Kent rail station, with offices there anchored by Apple.

The Penrose Dock development has its form based on classical proportions, and the design team said while largely glazed “it uses pilasters and spandrel beams with the glazed panels to achieve a timeless elegance in the façade composition, with the adjacent listed Cork Steam Packet Building providing the inspiration for this design approach.”

Christian Narkiewicz-Laine, President/ CEO of The Chicago Athenaeum said “This year’s winning projects show remarkable sensitivity to their surroundings and local cultures, inclusive design, and sustainable solutions. Sustainability, restoration and renovation, and eco-friendly design were paramount to this year’s selection.”

Lead architect on Penrose Dock, Frank O’Mahony of Wilson Architecture, said, “it’s an honour to be recognised at the International Architecture Awards, an aspiration of architects the world over.

“Our winning design embraces the historical and urban setting which includes the original Penrose House, and from which we drew our concept for the classically proportioned facades of the new buildings; and it is wonderful to see this acknowledged on a global scale.”

John Cleary, CEO of JCD Group said, “we congratulate Frank O’Mahony and the whole team at Wilson Architecture for being announced as a winner at these prestigious international awards. It is a great endorsement of the Penrose Dock development which is now 100% occupied.”

Glass by CareyGlass.