Birmingham Central Fire Station redevelopment | Lancaster Circus | 29fl | 107.5m | Prop.

[woodhousen]

Listed Building Consent (2011/03655/PA)

Listed building consent for internal & external alterations, partial demolition, extensions and change of use of former fire station including erection of new 30 storey tower to provide mixed use development comprising student residential accommodation (826 bed spaces) and flexible commercial uses (A1, A2, A3, A4, A5, B1, D1 & D2) with associated access, landscaping & parking

[NeilM]

My post from the other thread:

Hmmm, not a big fan at all, the central core does nothing for it, it may be a bit better without that, too be honest I think they should go back to the drawing board and try again.

Interesting about the Aston Uni South Wing, as I know the North wing is due for demolition at some point in the near future (i.e. 5+ years), looks like they want to go back to the original Main building only. I suppose once BCU A&DI move out of Gosta Green some plans will be drawn up for that area to replace the lost space with something more modern and user friendly than the 2 very awkward wings.

[woodhousen]

for me, im just a little concerned by how broad it is. i understand that there is a need to be efficient and they are looking to get the two wings serviced off the same core, but the modular form of building likes this means there are so many different ways this can be done with the same effect.

i personally would like to see the 2 wings of set from one and other, and potential overlapped... the latter would have the consequence of loosing one room per floor, but would make the building so much slender. also the petruding blocks eitherside doesnt help as it makes it yuet wider....

that said, the concept of a tower and a 107m height i think is fine.

in addition to this, i am also concerned of the fait of the firestation building itself and what will become of it. i understand the upper floors of the building will also be converted into student accommodation, with onlythe ground floor uses being used for commercial units. i just think this is a bit of a shame and not really celebraging the building itself. the shock to me is that English Heritage asked the courtyard be preserved, i always assumed that the courtyard was where to tower would have been best suited!!! and why protect the courtyard, when this tower is most likely to turn it into a winder tunnel and it will be a priviate courtyard at the centre of a private develpment? i could be wrong?

just my thoughts... i generall support the principle of development, im just not sure about the way in which the architect has fulfulled the brief!

[fruit&nut]

Birmingham Post has obviously picked up on our Kinetic/K4 discussion on the old thread.

Pair set up new Birmingham architect practice
by Graeme Brown, Birmingham Post
Jun 16 2011
A couple of the city’s best known architects have officially launched their new practice – with a vision for seeing projects through to the very end.

Bob Ghosh and John Shakeshaft were two of the original founders in 2003 of well known practice Kinetic and have now launched a new venture K4, which has already built up a work portfolio worth more than £65 million, having absorbed many of Kinetic’s clients and won new work.

Having now qualified as a project manager to complement his design skills, Mr Ghosh – who worked with Glenn Howells before Kinetic – said it had brought a different focus to the practice.

“I don’t think there are many architects who are also project managers in Birmingham so I think this gives us a different outlook on how we organise projects,” he said.

“What it enables us to do is form a better partnership with clients rather than the more traditional architects. It gives us a better understanding of how processes work and so the whole thing is a little more seamless.

“I think this is a different vision from Kinetic. This is a lot to do with delivery and making sure we follow the projects through from start to finish. There are projects you will take to planning and then hand over to the client and I think some architects are comfortable with this as it is less risky but we are interested in the overall quality of the finished product so we now want to take the project right through.”

Already employing a team of 11, the company has this month moved into its new home, a Grade II listed building at 122 Fazeley Street in Warwick Bar in Digbeth and work is progressing on a number of high profile projects, both at home and abroad.

In Birmingham the firm has recently submitted plans for a £30 million scheme to bring back to life the Grade II listed Central Fire Station at Lancaster Circus which is set to go before planners at the city council in the coming weeks and K4 has also been employed by the Colmore Business District to upgrade the footbridge that runs from Embassy House across Great Charles Street to the Jewellery Quarter.

The pair were originally appointed as masterplanners on the Warwick Bar project in 2007 by ISIS Regeneration and as well as locating the business there, the company has also been appointed to make further improvements to the scheme.

Mike Finkill, regeneration director with ISIS, said: “We are excited to welcome K4 Architects not only as a new tenant to Warwick Bar, but also as a partner who will be working alongside us in planning and shaping the future of the scheme.

“We aim to create a distinctive quarter, which links to the existing cultural community in Birmingham through the development of a lively and creative neighbourhood. K4 Architects will be integral to both the design and realisation of these ambitions.”

Mr Shakeshaft added: “We’ve taken a 10-year lease and are planning major works to the interior and surrounding site, including the introduction of gallery space and a new research garden for experimental urban growing.”

Other schemes within K4’s portfolio include new build apartments in Smethwick, the conversion of a former post office to a boutique hotel in Wolverhampton, a Hindu centre in Coventry, a £2.5m private residence in Belgravia and a multi-million dollar residential tower in Taiwan.


Read More http://www.birminghampost.net/dailyb...#ixzz1PWChvth5

[GrAfiK_248]

i wonder if they have any part 1 openings. might be able to change the design for you guys

[Ecological]

Glad to help Birmingham Post.

[hoody]

Hmmmm not a fan.

Seems a bit Trellick Tower to me.

[woodhousen]

the more i think about it, if those petruding boxes we taken off and maybe dotted across the front and the back, it would be so much better and sleeker!!

[Erebus555]

I've just realised that the boxes aren't even centred to their elevation, they look quite skew-iff. I agree with Woody that the building will probably look better if they were on the other sides - they're flat and featureless.

I still stand by my suggestion in the old thread for turning this into 2 towers, rather than one huge slab. They could widen the space between the two wings more with no real detrimental impact to Aston University at all. Might do a quick mock-up later (yeh, I know I still haven't done my first one....)

[Ecological]

If they could split the tower into 2 and stick those protruding pods together to make bridge walkways/landings adjoining the two it would look a million times better.

III
-IIIIII-
-IIIIII-
-IIIIII-
-IIIIII-
-IIIIII-
IIIIIIII------IIIIIIII


I I
II---II
II---II
II---II
II---II
II---II
IIIIIIII------IIIIIIII

[woodhousen]

the problem being that one big building is much more efficient... ie the need for only one core.....

[woodhousen]

it does so pain me to say it but look at the manchester proposal for a similar height tower for student accom....

take this building...



take the big blocks off the side and make a bigger difference in height between the two wings and look what you get....



problem being the manchester scheme contains 550 beds, ours contained over 800

[Erebus555]

The materials on the Manchester one look set to be much higher quality also. Who designed the Manchester tower?

[woodhousen]

Hopkins architects i believe

[Soul_13]

IMO the brum one looks much better.

[Elizabeth Kinoke]

looks pretty good

[Ecological]

Someone I know went to the grand opening of K4 architects yesterday.

Apparently they've more or less been told this is going to gain planning permission.

Their offices are quite swish too, although from the outside they look rough as.

[joshwebb]

will this be council funded? how tall is the manchester one?

[Erebus555]

Originally Posted by joshwebb

will this be council funded? how tall is the manchester one?

No it won't be council funded, it's a private development.

[Brum X]

Manchester tower is 107 metres i believe and our tower will be 107.5 metres, Lol