Refurbishment of a blue-marked palatial bank building in central Stockholm

The Jakob Mindre city block is spectacularly located at Gustav Adolf Square in the centre of Stockholm. The building is blue marked (of exceptionally high cultural-historical value) and comprises two older palatial bank buildings and an office building. The commission was to refurbish and upgrade the structure to meet today’s office requirements regarding air quality, light, acoustics and accessibility. The conversion and extension have been based on preserving and recreating the qualities of the older building and have been carried out in close collaboration with an antiquarian throughout the entire process.

In the roof landscape towards Gustaf Adolf Square, no visible changes have been made. Facing Jakobsgatan, the roof has been rebuilt in order to provide better ceiling height and functionality. However, the scale and the eaves facing the street have been retained. A new copper roof with skylights that adheres to the composition of the windows in the façade has been constructed. The three-floor extension and conversion coalesces the roof landscape facing the interior of the block, where the new roof builds on the rounded arched forms of the existing edifice.

The interior transformations aim to comply with today’s requirements for a modern office. With new ventilation solutions, the HVAC system has been relocated from the roof and the lightwells to the basement, enabling the use of the penthouses for tenants and new roof terraces. The lightwells have been sunk to their original position in the building, which provides better daylight for the offices and the possibility of opening up blocked windows facing the stairwell. The building has been fitted with new acoustic solutions and special-orientated ceilings that conceal the ventilation and cooling units.

A major problem for existing tenants has been the internal communication between the buildings. For improved accessibility and internal communication, the original staircase extending from the bank lobby to the representative floor level has been opened up. Existing staircases leading to the roof have been rebuilt and the lift has been extended in order to make the roof terrace accessible. The buildings have been connected with new skyways over the larger lightwell that extends across different levels. The outside of which is clad in a metal that reflects the light downwards and creates exciting views from the rooms around the lightwell. A unifying hub has been fashioned in the heart of the building where the two lightwells are connected to form a large open social area comprising kitchen and dining room. In this section, extra care has been taken in the material selected for the walls of glazed acoustic tiles and the patterned end grain wood block floor.

The entrance and lobby areas are located in the old, magnificent street-level bank halls. The difference in levels between Jakobsgatan and Gustav Adolf Square is taken up with a new, seating-friendly staircase that also houses the ventilation unit for the space in order to keep the beautiful roofs completely free. The stairwell has been designed to provide a more welcoming ambience with new brass lift fronts and a specially-designed carpet, artworks and seating. The colourway, choice of materials, patterns and many details have been inspired by the original qualities of the buildings. Windows, doors and joinery have been inventoried and reused in the project. All the fixed furnishings have been adapted to the building and, in most cases, are also bespoke and built on site.