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London Road Fire Station | Refurb

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#1 ·
Went inside the the courtyard today! The two images I took show the appalling state of this fantastic building! The outside looks bad, but the inside is even worse! The current owners should be ashamed of themselves!

That is disgraceful!

London Road Fire Station, Manchester
London Road, Central Manchester.
Designed and built by Woodhouse, Willoughby & Langham from 1904-1906 this fine Grade II listed building was headquarters of the Manchester City Fire Brigade for the first half of the 20th century. It also housed a police station and a coroner's court, the latter still being in operation.
This exuberant buff, terracotta and red brick building occupies a triangular plot and is located opposite Piccadilly Railway Station. The central courtyard includes a series of balconies, whose tenements were once home to 40 firemen, and a training tower. By any measure it was a well equipped and sumptuous complex, with its own library, stables, bank and gymnasium.
A fine baroque building, which presently is under utilised and awaiting a major cleaning and refurbishment. It was in continued occupation until the late 1980s, but its future is presently unknown, despite several plans to convert the building to another function, including one abortive plan to make it into a hotel.
Taken today!







 
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#54 ·
A few points from the article.

But the future of the £280m scheme hangs on a hotel prelet. Last November, the developer said that a deal with an operator for the 220 bed Hotel was close to completion. Today, the company said it was two months away.
Is this true or just opportunistic journalism? If it is true, surely Albany's plans to include a 5* Hotel in their Crown Tower Scheme could be deterring any would be Eastgate Hotel operator? Don't forget the City Inn Hotel is already under construction, and there are also plans for hotels at the London Road Fire Station and the former BT building, also on London Road.

Anyone?

Sir Howard is also favoring Liverpool-based developer Albany Assets proposed redevelopment of the Crown Buildings into a 44 storey containing flats and offices. The plans are at an early stage.
No mention of the 5* Hotel, and the plans are at an early stage. Early stage?
 
#55 ·
If shouldnt really put off hotels, there are already afew around town but there arnt that many that are top class. Most of them are your £50 one night things. If you go to somewhere like London, Paris or New York, there are 100s of hotels that arnt in Manchester. I would have throught most hotels would be killing for the chance to be such a building, that is best location that you could have in the city. Its next to the main train station which handles over 50,000 people a day.
 
#56 ·
thanks jrb you're a star on this forum,

also noted those things you pointed out, Early stage for Albany? that doesn't sound right, they said work would start on it early this year so that doesn't sound like early stages to me.

I don't think Mr Langsam is gonna budge, he's sure to dig his heels in, I reckon the council will need to go the CPO route with that one.
 
#57 ·
another mention of the fire station and a possible apartment block opposite, though I'm not exactly sure where he's talking about.

http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/h...finallythe_property_market_is_looking_up.html
posted 22nd March
---
Across town, the Piccadilly area is buzzing with developments including the towers of Albany and Inacity. While these skyscrapers will provide the swanky accommodation for Manchester's new downtown area, David Partridge, deputy chief executive of developers Argent and chairman of the Piccadilly Partnership, is more worried about where the key workers and first time buyers will live.

His answer is a new build block, , on a prominent site opposite the London Road Fire Station where 150 one and two beds apartments will be offered on a shared equity basis of 75 per cent with the option to be able to buy the other 25 per cent over the years.

The land is jointly owned by the city council and the GMPTE who could also benefit from the development. Partridge said: "We want key workers and young people to be able to live in the heart of the city. We want them to be able to put £50 down and move in! There will be no rent to pay on the remaining quarter and they will be able to staircase up."

And he is also gathering support for Argent's plan to turn the listed but lifeless old Fire Station building into a music `hub' with live music, big events, recording studios and hotel.
 
#63 ·
investigator said:
Seems strange to me as Britannia and langsam have a first class record for the renovation of listed buildings and others and i know that they were thwart on several occassions the development of the fire station
Yes i does seem strange. Their motives are very unclear and perplexing.
No new news to report on this btw.
 
#67 ·
roverman said:
Surely two of North Manchester's greatest Jewish boys (Mssrs. Bernstein & Langsam) can agree on a solution for this building. Mazal Tov!
I thought the city council could do a CP on this building if they thought it was in danger and given the length of time it's been left we must be getting close to the point where parts may have to be demolished if something isn't done soon.

It's unbelievable that such a kooky building is being left to rot - it makes no commercial sense!
 
#68 ·
FIRE STATION

Skymann, are you blogging for Bernstein?!?!?!

Looked at the planning history for Britannia and it seems they've made a few attempts at getting permission. They're not normally known for hanging around. Don't they want it as their HQ and as a flagship hotel?

When I went there the building still looked to be in use so don't know why they would knock it down. Surely not. What bits do you think need demolisihing??
 
#70 ·
Going over old ground.

investigator said:
Skymann, are you blogging for Bernstein?!?!?!

Looked at the planning history for Britannia and it seems they've made a few attempts at getting permission. They're not normally known for hanging around. Don't they want it as their HQ and as a flagship hotel?

When I went there the building still looked to be in use so don't know why they would knock it down. Surely not. What bits do you think need demolisihing??
I can see your point, Investigator, if you have just read Skymann's one post, but if you read the entire thread- that may take some time, or at least scan through much of it, you will see that there seems to be little real motivation from Brittania to take this scheme forward.

Isaac Newell said:
Unfortunately it may make more commercial sense to drop the thing rather than use it. That would be a shame.
MCC / Bernstein in Partnership with the Piccadilly partnership have put forward a perfectly viable solution for this scheme, that they would aim to complete before the '07 International Festival (again more details earlier in the thread), so to suggest 'dropping the thing' to me would be an architectural crime. It is one of the cities best buildings and should be renovated. As principally Longford and many others on the forum will I am sure agree: they simply do not make buildings like this any more.
 
#71 ·
Wasn't Britannia refused planning permission on the basis that the council are insisting that this be in some way accessible to the general public? The council quite rightly want it mixed use with the music venue etc, while Britannia are only interested in making it a hotel. I'm still unsure as to how a music venue and hotel are supposed to sit side by side. I'm sure its been done before though. I'd welcome any examples.

Anyway, neither seem to be budging so I bet its drawn out until demolision is inevitable. Then, at the risk of losing any of it, the council are forced to accept Britainnia hotel only scheme.

Thats a pretty uneducated just guess though.
 
#73 ·
What the HELL is going on with this. Ready by the International Festival my arse. >(
 
#76 ·
Hello. Was reading the latest Estates Gazette in WH Smith in Victoria Station, being too tight to buy a copy, and there was a snippet about Britannia Hotels and Argent (?) being close to agreement on the London Road Fire Station site. Britannia have apparently dropped their own plans and now agree that it should be a music venue of sorts. Think I've memorised it right!
 
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