Fitzroy Place | City of Westminster | U/C

[Luke]

(Note these renders show the original scheme before the design alterations that got the scheme approved)

Candys' Middlesex hospital gets green light
15:01 | 07.09.07

The Candy brothers' CPC Group were last night given planning permission for their 891,000 sq ft scheme at the site of the former Middlesex hospital.

Westminster City Council unanimously approved the scheme after it was reported on propertyweek.com last Wednesday that the application was likely to pass through with ease.

The development, designed by Ken Shuttleworth of Make Architects, will provide 273 new homes and 355,000 sq ft of offices in London’s West End.

Candy & Candy founders Nick and Christian Candy toasted the achievement and applauded staff when they heard the news at 10.30pm last night, at the Royal Parks Foundation fundraiser they were sponsoring in the name of their other project, One Hyde Park.

Nick Candy, said: ‘Ken Shuttleworth and his team at Make Architects have created an exemplary design which will now rejuvenate the existing area and offer a fresh aspect to the whole experience of city living.

‘It is a remarkable achievement to have gained planning approval for such a major scheme in such a short amount of time.’

A decision had been deferred on the mixed-use development, which will be known as Noho Square, because of concerns about its height and bulk.

Make subsequently revised the plans and among the changes made was a re-pitching of the roof at a shallower angle, reducing the size of the scheme on the top floors.

Savills director Simon Stone, who advised on the scheme, added: ‘We are obviously delighted with the Westminster’s resolution to grant consent for this important project. ‘The team has found a great solution for the site which will transform this part of central London.’

http://www.propertyweek.com/story.as...de=3094941&c=1

From Make's site -

This 1.2 hectare Middlesex Hospital presents an opportunity to create an exemplary mixed use urban block in central London. The scheme replaces an accumulation of 1920s hospital buildings with three blocks of accommodation enclosing a green space that provides a new public amenity for the area. The divisions between the buildings extend adjoining streets as routes into the garden, where hospital’s Grade II* listed Victorian Gothic chapel is preserved. The northern and western buildings house the residential accommodation, offices are housed in the eastern building and retail units are located along the southern perimeter at ground level. Exterior elevations reflect the surrounding urban fabric, featuring red sandstone cladding and slate mansard roofs. By contrast, the interior elevations employ a palette of white opaque and clear glass accented by colour, ensuring that the garden area has a distinctly different character and aspect. In addition to the efficiencies offered by creating a dense mixed used scheme in the heart of the city, the scheme generates its own energy using a CHP central system. Biomass boilers are used throughout, and green sedum roofs limit rainwater run-off.

[Luke]

From an article posted in the main forum by London Lad which contained further detail on the changes -

The 69-page document says the design of the mixed-use scheme at Mortimer Street, Soho, has been changed in two ways.

The document says: ‘First the footprints of the buildings have been reduced and the gaps between them enlarged to provide wider, and greener, access to the site.

‘This would give a greater perception of space around the structure which would reduce the impression of bulk and officers consider this to be a welcome improvement.

‘Second, in part, the buildings have been reduced in terms of height and bulk.’

The reductions in height and bulk involve pitching the top floor of the proposed building at a shallower angle the council said would remove bulk and improve the visual impact on the surrounding area.

[mulattokid]

That poor little church

[DarJoLe]

It's the mortuary I think.

[Manuel]

I so hate the rooftops. Looks like a chinese development trying to mimic european architecture.

The internal public space and the façades there looks much more interesting.

[NothingBetterToDo]

This is absolutely dreadful - it is replacing the rather grand Victorian hospital with an overbearing pile of crap.

Yet again London has been let down by planners, developers and English Heritage, who were obviously too busy trying to stop skyscrapers replacing 80's eye sores to lodge an objection to this hulk of a building

[El_Greco]

Progress?No not really.

[jayo]

Originally Posted by NothingBetterToDo

This is absolutely dreadful - it is replacing the rather grand Victorian hospital with an overbearing pile of crap.

Yet again London has been let down by planners, developers and English Heritage, who were obviously too busy trying to stop skyscrapers replacing 80's eye sores to lodge an objection to this hulk of a building

lol. I know what you mean

[ill tonkso]

its kinda crap isnt it.

[LDN_EUROPE]

Nice court yard. Could have been a nice spot for a skyscraper.

[PresidentBjork]

Originally Posted by NothingBetterToDo

This is absolutely dreadful - it is replacing the rather grand Victorian hospital with an overbearing pile of crap.

Yet again London has been let down by planners, developers and English Heritage, who were obviously too busy trying to stop skyscrapers replacing 80's eye sores to lodge an objection to this hulk of a building

It's so bloody true, look at the hell something as grand and beautiful as the shard has had to go through, yet it seems any mediocre low rise can make it. Is it because of that architectural two fingers to the surrounding area that mansard roof makes? Looking like its deliberately doing a bad impression of the surrounding buildings as a tease.

What goes through the minds of architects that get off with designing these trollops?
"OOO - lets put in some curves, that makes it modern! oh wait we need to pay lip service to English Heritage um.... I know! stick some shitty half arsed mansard roof on it, and to top it of, some nice 80's brutalist windows. Man, - we're good."

[DarJoLe]

What would you design then? Keeping in mind you have a developer who wants a substantial profit from the scheme, and a building that conforms to all the latest sustainability and safety laws.

[PresidentBjork]

Originally Posted by DarJoLe

What would you design then?

Something better.

[Bob]

I like it. I never much loved the hospital. I think it's good the fact it's mixed use. I think it is a bit of a pity the outside is not as exciting as the courtyard in the middle (which better be open to the public??? Anyone know?).

[BenL]

The interior is quite nice, rather reminds me of Albion Wharf in Battersea and I generally love Shuttleworth. However, the post-modern facade facing the road seems a real cop out and a bit cowardly.

[johnnypd]

Originally Posted by DarJoLe

What would you design then? Keeping in mind you have a developer who wants a substantial profit from the scheme, and a building that conforms to all the latest sustainability and safety laws.

tart up the hospital, keep most the facades, redevelop some of the interior, turn it into offices, apartments, a hotel, lease out part to nearby UCL, put in some ground floor shops and so on. would be commonsense in most places, but not london sadly.

[randolph]

The street facade looks dreadful - dull - dull - dull - I can't believe MAKE are behind this - what a let down!

[Jack Rabbit Slim]

Has anybody got any pictures of the building/buildings that's currently situated there??

I'm not sure about the whole scheme, but, contrary to what everyone else here thinks, I actually quite like the roof of the building on the second pic. It looks interesting and unusual. Put it this way, would I rather have a dull, bland, no-one-gives-a-shit-about glass box with a flat roof that looks like a million other such buildings, or would I rather have something that is quite unique for modern architecture, with a bit of nostalgic grandeur about it, that looks imposing and different and that people might actually look up at...whether to complain or admire I don't know, but at least it will get noticed and spark people's interest, which cannot be said for any number of corporate low-rise sterile boxes going up around the UK.

'trying to mimic European architecture' with the mansard roof....sure, I guess they are. Is it as good as the original examples...no, of course not, no-one would ever suggest it is. But as I said, the choice these days is do you either design a CW, i.e a glass box, that no-one cares about, or do you at least TRY to add a bit of european style and class to the design? After all, London IS a European city, and why shouldn't it want to occassionally re-create a bit of the good-old stuff, with a modern twist to it? Most people I've heard on this forum always slate me whenever I suggest sometimes building classical buildings, as though it is unheard of and downright illegal to bring back old styles of architecture (something people have been doing for many hundreds of years). When I look around at the large majority of modern architecture (skyscrapers usually being the exception) I don't see a lot that I like, so why not bring back some of the better architectural pieces, such as mansard roofs? This project is deffinitely not the best example of how to re-create such buildings, it does have elements of cheapness and halfheartedness about it.

I'm not saying knock down the current building, I do not know anything about it. Some on this thread have said it's a nice looking victorian hospital, in which case I'm not in favour of its demolition, nor am I saying I love this proposal and and it all looks great, but what I am saying is that given the choice (if it was knocked down) between a 'box' and a quirky, interesting building that (I think) would make people take notice of it....I know which I'd choose! I can't see all of the building from that rendering, and I'm not sure exactly how the actual facade will appear, so I could be wrong about it.

Ok, who's ready to take their first shot at me? Don't mess up my hair, it's one of my best features! remeber, it's an oppinion. An oppinion based solely on 3 rather obscure renderings.

[NothingBetterToDo]

These are all the pics i could find, it may not look it in the pics, but it is a rather impressive building. I remember walking down that road a couple of years ago and my friends (not interesting in buildings at all) even commented on it looking good.

(Also, its not actually victorian, oops..its more modern that that...1920's from what i could find, but still very much worth saving i think)

[El_Greco]

Originally Posted by johnnypd

tart up the hospital, keep most the facades, redevelop some of the interior, turn it into offices, apartments, a hotel, lease out part to nearby UCL, put in some ground floor shops and so on. would be commonsense in most places, but not london sadly.

Yes.