Phoenix House

Phoenix House is a building located on King William Street, constructed in 1915 by H.L. Anderson and extended in 1931-32 by Campbell-Jones and Sons. It features four main storeys and is built of stone. The wide classical front has 11 bays arranged in a pattern of three, five, and three, with the center section recessed above the first floor. The ground floor is channelled with alternating plain and vermiculated courses that form voussoirs for the round-headed arches. A Vitruvian scroll frieze and a mutule cornice are present at the first floor level, which is treated as a mezzanine. Panelled piers between the windows create pedestals for the giant order that unites the second and third floors. The recessed center has columns, with pilasters on either side, and a bracketed and modillioned cornice. Attic storeys are located to the left and right, topped by a balustraded parapet at the center. The central entrance features Doric blocked columns in antis, an entablature with a broken segmental pediment, and a bronze phoenix. Iron balconies are present on the second-floor windows. The return to Abchurch Lane, including No. 14, is designed in a simplified manner.