London - Full Summary of Projects 21

[delores]

Proposals for London's high line competition

http://londonist.com/2012/09/green-i...g-london-2.php

[gravesVpelli]

[QUOTE=Bowater;95944356]Because it's from the 80's means it's not Edwardian like the rest of the circus, so it does not contribute to the uniform feeling of the circus. Also without the aid of a better picture it means the facade is not the same quality as you might have imagined.

So what I'd it does have a Portland stone facade? I'm sure when it was built it was for £££ too. QUOTE]

I think you’ll find that most if not all the buildings in Finsbury Circus are of the 1920s and not Edwardian. They just happen to be in that style that was popular at the time. Britannic House certainly is of the mid 20s. The grand scale here is very much inter war.

I’m not sure that repetition is necessarily a good thing. Many street frontages in Haussman’s Paris are monotonous due to repetition. The current River Plate House raised the previous roofline to equal that of Lutyen’s building.

One of the partners of architects responsible for the 1980s building has written:

Quote: The project was given encouragement by the City planning officer Tony Tugnutt who accepted that the smaller early Victorian building on the site could be demolished provided its replacement reflected the proportions and scale of Britannic House. The current River Plate House is a strong design and I fully agree with the comments you have made about it.

The thickness of Portland stone to the lower floors is 900mm, as the façade is in itself loadbearing. (The building behind is steel-framed of course).

The building was the winner of the 1988 Natural Stone Award major projects division.

We covered the site to its extremities, built it to the maximum height and provided the internal offices with a small atrium. It is difficult to see how one could justify knocking it down and certainly the loss of the facade, which cost £1m in 1988, seems unsustainable by anyone’s standards. Interestingly, as it is loadbearing, with some lateral support at floor levels, it would not be too difficult to retain. Conversely, floor space generates the rent, so the thicker façade on the lower floors comes at an on-going price.

Lutyens’ building is a very original composition with excellent detailing and workmanship; it is as subtle as buildings get. Its neighbours should acknowledge and respect that. Unquote.

I am not advocating that the present River Plate House is above remarkable but I maintain that visually it is a better ‘fill-in’ than what has been put forward. Conversely, from the only image I’ve seen, I like the Wilkinson Eyre replacement and a straightened version would work well on Moorgate for example. But with what appear to be stripped vertical piers, I find the style inconsistent with the remainder of Finsbury Circus. That's all!
　

[DarJoLe]

This is a bit of a shame, I was hoping for OMA who would have really understood this building and I imagine would give a real sense of place to the outdoor 'rooms' of the original structure. Obviously waiting to see what the proposal will be but I hope it isn't just putting glass doors on and a Pret and Starbucks in the base.

Feilden Clegg Bradley win Southbank contest
http://www.bdonline.co.uk/feilden-cl...043522.article

[Douglas Quaid]

Another Tower approved for Vauxhall

Green light for 32-storey London student block
Aaron Morby | Mon 1st October | 14:14

North West developer Downing has gained full consent to build a student skyscraper scheme in Vauxhall, south London

The tower will be built on South Lambeth Road to house 553 student bedrooms, a gym and a 25m swimming pool which will also be open to the public.

Downing’s construction arm expects to start on site next year to have the project finished by the end of 2015.

The site has been identified in the London Plan and Vauxhall Nine Elms Business Opportunity Area as being suitable for tall buildings.


Designed by architect Feilden Clegg Bradley, the Vauxhall scheme will be Downing’s first foray into the London development market.

Paul Houghton, development director at Downing, said: “We are delighted that the scheme has been approved by the London Borough of Lambeth. The scheme represents a significant investment in the area, not only through the £4.5 million swimming pool and leisure facility, but also through the in excess of £1.5m of contributions that will benefit the local area.

“The proposals will redevelop a brownfield site and provide a major boost to local businesses through the increased spend that the students will deliver. We will continue to liaise closely with site neighbours and the council during the construction period to ensure we deliver the scheme as quickly and smoothly as possible.”

Downing has already completed a 23-storey building for Leeds Metropolitan University known as Broadcasting Place and is eyeing up more sites to add to its 6,000-bed student accommodation portfolio.

http://www.constructionenquirer.com/...student-block/

[Ebeneezer_Goode]

Will need a closer look at that. Looks like something from Equilibrium on first glance.

[delores]

Looks promising and using masonry from what it seems.

[ferge]

That looks really nice from what can be made out on the small image. Plus, if it is anything like Broadcasting Place in Leeds in terms of quality, then there is nothing to worry about.

[gothicform]

here we are... larger images. the cladding is light coloured metal panels apparently. it's hard to make out from these images but the tower itself is actually triangular, not square. height is 96.5 metres. construction is to start almost immediately, and it should be finished about august or sept 2014.



this is a slightly older rendering. the podium section above the glazed street frontage has brick now (at least i think it's brick).

[vank]

Damn!!! Really student housing? It's brilliant!

[delores]

very art deco, what about a few more.

[ill tonkso]

Depends on the cladding, London doesn't need a Sky Plaza. Will still be better than its neighbour though.

[Ebeneezer_Goode]

Those pictures look a hell of a lot better. The small one made it look like concrete.

[gravesVpelli]

This looks very acceptable and I like the soar factor. The smaller image made it look like brick cladding. Never good to rely on small indistinct impressions. Brick would have made a pleasant change and something London doesn‘t experience in its high rises.

[ferge]

Either way (regarding cladding) certainly a lot nicer than Nido.

[jonnyboy]

the vauxhall cluster will be on the other side of the railway in the second picture?

[gothicform]

Originally Posted by gravesVpelli

This looks very acceptable and I like the soar factor. The smaller image made it look like brick cladding. Never good to rely on small indistinct impressions. Brick would have made a pleasant change and something London doesn‘t experience in its high rises.

i really like it. it's just a pity it's not something like limestone and the building parapets are so horizontal rather than a bit more textured. it actually looks like a new york tower.

[gravesVpelli]

Originally Posted by gothicform

i really like it. it's just a pity it's not something like limestone and the building parapets are so horizontal rather than a bit more textured. it actually looks like a new york tower.

Limestone? Wonderful. Think Rockefeller Center! I don't think London has any limestone buildings apart from Credit Suisse at Canary Wharf.

[gothicform]

that's the sort of thing i was thinking of. with those lines, it's crying for limestone and a bit of detail on the parapet.

[Octoman]

That looks brilliant. There are some nice projects that have avoided the sea of glass syndrome floating around at the moment. This, Clapham one and the proposal for euston road for example. I think they look great.

[Core Rising]

It would look somewhat brutalist if the lime stone cladding was dropped for 70s concrete cladding..