omniedinburgh - vue cinema: Greenside Place, Scotland Omni + Calton Square, Leith Street, Edinburgh by Allan Murray Architects Warner Village Edinburgh: Multiplex Cinema

Omni Edinburgh: Vue Cinema

Films/Times - VUE Cinema: 08712 240240 Calton Square - offices for Pillar Properties + Parlison Properties Building PR 18.11.02 Edinburgh's most high profile cinema complex has just opened following a gala premiere of 'Harry Potter II'. This represents a key component in Allan Murray Architects' ambitious design for this £73m mixed-use development at Greenside Place in Edinburgh's city centre. The leisure building, called 'Omni', includes a five-star hotel, a health + fitness club, a variety of bars and restaurants as well as a Warner Village 12 screen multiplex cinema. The hotel wraps round an expansive rooftop garden and gives the building a unique 'fifth' elevation when viewed from the elevated position of Calton Hill. Allan Murray Architects' detailed urban analysis of the site generated two distinct buildings and the practice was retained as master planner for the whole site as well as project architect for 'Calton Square', the 190,000 sq ft flagship office development for Pillar Properties plc and Parlison Properties Limited. The two buildings are separated by a new square which breaks down the scale of the overall development and affords an uninterrupted view up to the monuments on Calton Hill. The design responds to the location's unique urban character and relates to the massing of the surrounding buildings, the superb views out from the site and the client's desire to create a 'landmark' building. The structural grid for the buildings spring from the existing car park structure and a transfer slab was constructed to increase flexibility. Construction work started in November 2000 and the mass of the new buildings echo the scale of the former tenements on Leith Street (demolished in the 1960's). The elevations respond to the context of the city and employ Stancliffe sandstone (from Derbyshire) and Jura limestone (from southern Germany). However, the extensive areas of curtain wall glazing help to create a bold, modernist statement that engages, but does not mimic, the historic urban character. Perhaps the most distinctive element of the scheme is the eight storey, oval-shaped corner tower at the 'prow' of the site. It is fully glazed and cold cathode lighting has been employed by consultants Arup Lighting to heighten the drama and ensure its 24 hour presence. The Greenside Place site was the last large gap site in Edinburgh's east end and has been the subject of a number of aborted proposals over the past forty years (including a new headquarters for BBC Scotland). Allan Murray Architects were selected in 1998 following an invited international architectural competition, whose entrants included the Richard Rogers (London), Page & Park Architects (Glasgow) and Weintraub De Stefano (Chicago). The practice confounded the client's expectations of what was originally proposed by extending the parameters of the site and reconfiguring the relationship between the office [Calton Square] and the leisure buildings [omni edinburgh]. They were commissioned to develop these initial proposals and planning consent was successfully secured for this extremely sensitive location within Edinburgh's World Heritage Site. Selected Subcobtractors/Suppliers: Sandstone: Stirling Stone Limestone: Max Balz Zinc Roofing: Varla Glazing: MAG Hansen Project Architect: Douglas Fraser Omni Edinburgh (Warner Village Cinema): Greenside Place / Leith Street, New Town, Edinburgh, Scotland VUE Edinburgh - Website: www.myvue.com Since the completion of Warner Village Edinburgh the eastern section was developed as The Glasshouse Hotel with the Mood Bar (Club) in between. Calton Square Edinburgh Restaurants Adjacent Buildings / Structures: Leith Street Bridge by Broadway Malayan John Lewis Edinburgh St James Centre Edinburgh : back to index Edinburgh Cinemas: Dominion Edinburgh Filmhouse Odeon Wester Hailes Odeon Cinema (Lothian Road) Ster Century, Ocean Terminal UCI Cinema Fort Kinnaird UGC Fountain Park VUE, Omni Edinburgh, Greenside Place Scottish Architecture: best Scottish Buildings of the last three decades Cameo Cinema