Kensington International Hotel

The Kensington International Hotel (KIH) project is a flagship international hotel project and is to be a template for future KIH to be built in Nigeria and across the world.

The scheme sits off the main trunk road in Ode-Omu, Gbongan-Oshogbo Road. Its compact form is the result of its footprint of 2 plots of land.

One of the driving forces in the brief is to create a 3-tier accommodation level on site, these being: Standard, Executive and King’s Suites. The scheme was to be arranged so that the suites, gets more luxurious as progress is made vertically through the hotel. In line with this, the roof top offers a panoramic view of the surrounding area with open layout for a more subdue private gathering.

A 500 seater hall is to be included as well as, Offices, IT suites and other spaces that can be rented out to generate revenue for the client.

To accommodate the ambitious project, whilst been sensitive to the overall height of the building, the communal Hall was eventually situated underground. This is to help insulate against sound pollution and a separate access and egress for the visitors. Other ancillary services such as swimming pool, car park and the Mechanical and Electrical machinery etc are also accommodated in this zone.

A major consideration, as well as using grey water and solar panel on the roof is the use of Engineered timber to be used predominantly for the structural element of the scheme.

The organic shape of the scheme is derived from a cocoa bean pod, cocoa farming been a staple and profitable crop, native to the region. The organically shaped parametric form will be constructed in Engineered timber, which will result in a lighter structure, hence the size of concrete used for the foundation etc. The triangulated spaces will be infilled with sealed glazed unit to permit natural daylight and substituted for solid panels for opaque finish to reflect the use and programmes it shields.

The scheme present san open-arm form on the ground floor, welcoming guests into the triple story welcome entrance lobby. The restaurant and lounge in in direct axis to draw guests to it,; offering a pool as a destination for a rest bite, prior to engaging on other activities offered by the hotel, be it Sauna, gym or more formal business meeting in offices available.