The Mackintosh Project can be delivered in a variety of ways. However, the extent to which each opportunity meets the GSA’s vision or, indeed, is consistent with the desires of stakeholders or with government policies and guidance, varies considerably.
A structured approach to identifying and appraising projects allowed a long list of options to be identified, analysed and filtered to create a short list of deliverable options that have been tested for value for money. The short list of options comprises:
- Option 1 – Do Minimum, comprising the stabilisation of the existing structure and façade. This is included for comparison purposes only rather than a realistic option to pursue.
- Option 2 – Faithful Reinstatement, comprising a reinstatement of the original building yet in a manner that is compliant with all relevant legislation and digitally enabled.
- Option 3 – Hybrid, comprising a reinstatement of the original design ethos and the recreation of certain iconic rooms and finishes, digitally enabled with flexible space.
- Option 4 – Modern equivalent, comprising the demolition of the fire-damaged building and the construction of an entirely new facility on site.
In order to identify a preferred option, financial and non-financial criteria, such as sustainability, economic impact, planning, heritage and the cashflow generated by each option have been considered.
The Economic Case concludes that Option 2 (Faithful Reinstatement) provides the greatest overall value for money in Net Present Social Value terms.