Dualchas is celebrating success at the recent Highlands and Islands Architects Association (HIAA) awards. The Highland Cinema in Fort William picked up the top prize for Place Making, and was also commended in the Best Project Overall category, with the judges commenting that it was “a transformational project which has created a vibrant sense of place”.
According to Dualchas Director Rory Flyn, the award is testament to the vision of the client.
“It was always a shame that Cameron Square, where the town hall used to stand, had become a largely redundant space. There was also a lack of indoor recreation within the heart of the town where people could take shelter from the rain and give locals and tourists more to do in the evenings. Angus MacDonald, our client, wanted us to design a building which addressed these issues and gave Fort William a central square of which the community could be proud.”
A family home for Dualchas architects Neil and Laura Stephen in Achnacloich on Skye was also commended in the Best New Building category, with the judges describing it as “beautifully proportioned and expertly detailed.” Neil commented, “ Laura was definitely my most difficult client, and I was undoubtedly hers, but we got there in the end!”