Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929), Thursday 16 June 1910, page 10


BOWMAN BUILDINGS.

A MONUMENT OF ENTERPRISE.

Within a few weeks the industrial work-ers will withdraw from Bowman Buildings and the public will see the completion of a striking and ornate addition to the archi-

tecture of the main street of the capital. It is said that the owner (Mr. Keith D. Bowman) has invested a sum approximat-ing £70.000 in this great enterprise, which is striking evidence of confidence in the future of South Australia on the part of this representative of a sterling pioneer family. The building is admitted to be the finest example of reinforced concrete work to be found in the Commonwealth. It has a frontage of 90 ft. to King William Street, and the rear portion skirts Gilbert place for a similar length, covering in all nearly a quarter of an acre. To make way for it Broken Hill Chambers and the old Bank of Australasia were demolished. The structure is one of five floors, including a spacious basement, and it is divided into two wings, separated by a handsome arcade which contains 14 shops. Altogether it comprises 82 apartments, and the attrac-tiveness of the site and the accommodation offered are such that even before completion nearly the whole of the shops and offices have been let. The building is capped by eight domes, sheeted with lead shingles, and on either wing there is a terracotta roof, which serves as a splendid set-off to the sombre hue of the reinforced concrete. The architecture, which breaks new ground, embraces all the most up-to-date features of a commercial building. There is not a dark nook in it. Where full daylight does not penetrate, and where it does, the elec-tric current may be switched on, and the meters are read in one spot at a passage end instead of in each room. The electric wires for lighting, for fans, and for radia-tors, and the telephone wires are all con-cealed in the walls. Every hall and stair-case is lined with a red Lincrusta-Walton dado, with a cedar rail capping, giving a delightful effect. All the wood fittings are of cedar. On each floor there are two white-tiled lavatories with every conve-nience, and the offices are furnished with beautiful inlaid linoleums. In each wing there is a Waygood passenger elevator, be-sides a goods lift, fitted with push-button control. The passenger cages and screens were made locally from the design of the architects. The arcade is covered with a lofty roof of thick figured white glass re-inforced with wire. The glass is very bright and strong, and is fitted in between metal-lic water bars supported on steel rafters, the whole scheme being a pattern of neat-ness and economy. All the stall borders, the piers dividing the shop fronts, and the dados leading to the offices are lined with Blue Belge marble, with a white streak running through it that helps to make up a striking effect. The entrances to the offices and the floor of the arcades are laid in small, showy colonial tiles. A bicycle stable is provided at the rear; and the care-taker is accommodated at the top of the building. Mr. Bowman is to be congratu-lated upon the successful development of his ideas. The building is certainly a great credit to the architects, Messrs. Garlick and Jackman, who have here excelled themselves in reinforced concrete work. The structural part was entrusted to the Reinforced Concrete Company of South Aus-tralia, and the work connected with the other principal trades has been in the hands of Mr W. B. Bland. The electrical requirements were installed by Messrs. Newton & McLaren. Internally the build-ing betrays the workings of esthetic minds, and externally it presents a bold and imposing appearance that arrests the attention of the most casual passer-by. The effect is much improved by a well-designed balcony, which comes flush with the edge of the street.