Better Bristol The Bristol Civic Society magazine - Issue 09 Autumn 2016 This beautiful listed building is boarded up and unused – why? l Ferguson, Concrete and Gentrification l Conservation at Tyntesfield l Plans for Castle Park l Speeding up the Buses an independent force for a better Bristol The Bristol Civic Society, Registered Charity No. 244414 Chairman’s piece CHAIR Contents Shouting with a louder voice 3 t our AGM I was The Society is playing a leading role in struck by the very establishing the Bristol Heritage Forum, an initiative aimed at championing 6 strong message the heritage of the City. At the launch, 20 from members that earlier this year, I recall a number of Athe Society has far too low a the audience identifying the need for particularly well-designed buildings. profile in the City. Our past the Forum to have a ‘loud voice’ if it is to be successful. We haven’t achieved Learning from experience in 4-5 19 history has often been one of other towns and cities, there is an News UWE Student this yet! However, we have been busy high profile campaigns against organising our annual Conference – to opportunity to use social media in Front Cover: Award 2016 order to involve a much larger number The Grand Spa Pump Room, horror developments, yet today be held on 27 October – which has the 6-7 theme ‘The Future of Bristol’s Historic of Bristol’s citizens in nominating Clifton – See page 30 many residents probably know A Unique and 20-21 Estates’. The event will cover parks, developments and even in voting transformational little about us. gardens, buildings and a range of other for favourites. We will be trialling A Garden for the innovative ways of raising the profile of In strategic terms, we must surely be building for the City Three-Cornered Trade our Awards, and of the Society, in next an independent voice fighting for the The Society is playing a leading year’s Award process. CHAIRMAN future of Bristol as a leading UK and role in establishing the Bristol 8 22-23 European City, fighting for quality of What do you think? Would you like Simon Birch Heritage Forum, an initiative ’Fares Please!’ – Ferguson, Concrete design across all aspects of the urban to get involved in the three projects aimed at championing the I’ve described above? If so, please do EDITOR Speeding up the Buses and Gentrification fabric. Turning to specifics, we have heritage of the City. get in touch. Are there other initiatives Tim Mowl identified three initiatives where we intend to make a bigger splash. that you would like us to consider? 9 24 historic structures. Such estates are We are always keen to welcome fresh DESIGNER It’s been great to see scaffolding on The latest planning Bristol Walking complex and potentially very expensive ideas and proposals and to welcome Tracey Feltham St Michael-on-the-Mount-Without to maintain but are cherished by local additional volunteers. Looking to application proposals Alliance – a new church, which has been boarded up and communities, and there is scope for the next few months our priority will EDITORIAL PANEL seemingly abandoned for nearly twenty force for good? significant community involvement therefore be to gain a higher profile, to Alan Morris, Simon Birch, 10-11 years. Working with the Diocese, we in their future. Again, this is a great shout with a louder voice, and to put Eugene Byrne, Jeff Lucas Castle Park –The Broken are putting together a profile-raising opportunity for the Society to drive an the Society firmly in the spotlight in 25 campaign to find and secure a sustainable Heart of Bristol those areas where we feel we can really The future of historic future for this wonderful building. In important new initiative which would CONTRIBUTORS make a difference in fighting for the my view, practical action of this sort is have a very positive and wide impact. Simon Birch, Peterjohn Smyth, estates in Bristol future of Bristol. James Freeman, John Payne, 12 a tremendous way of publicising the Our Design Awards have been in John Frenkel, Willie Harbison, Major Sites Group 26-27 Society’s commitment to making positive existence for many years and are a Maurice Fells, Peter Floyd, improvements in the City. well-regarded way of celebrating Simon Birch 13 Conservation Matthew Montagu-Pollock, at Tyntesfield James Gray, Alan Stealey, Reviving the Lost Quarter Eugene Byrne, Alan Morris, of the Mediaeval City Susan Hayward, Dan Tyndall, 28 Anna Farthing, David Martyn 14 Roundabouts, The Lavatory Attendant PHOTOGRAPHY Renewal and Redcliffe Jeff Lucas, who cared for Prostitutes Contributors 29 15 Open to Ideas DISTRIBUTION TEAM Post-War Planning for Led by John Payne Bristol’s Future 30 WEBSITE In the Spring Issue www.bristolcivicsociety.org.uk 16-17 The Lost City at 31 PRINTERS River’s Mouth Bristol Civic Society Sebright, Bristol John Nash’s forlorn Orangery at Blaise Castle House Another unused garden building at Blaise – the Dairy Membership Articles are the opinions of individual 18 authors and do not necessarily Architects and developers 32 Not already a member? Why not join TODAY! represent those of Bristol Civic Society – come forward! Events See page 31 for more details... BRISTOL CIVIC SOCIETYSOCIETY www.bristolcivicsociety.org.ukwww.bristolcivicsociety.org.uk NEWS Peterjohn Chatterton’s House Restoration Clifton village’s mini NEWS Ashton Smyth Project – Chatterton’s Café shopping precinct Gatehouse 4 of ESHA Michael Doble, Chairman of the Thomas Chatterton Society, Ashton Gatehouse on the edge of 5 reports on the restoration of the poet’s birthplace. to be redeveloped Ashton Court, which was featured in the last issue, is on track to Architects commercial accommodation over three or some time now the open at the end of this year. The floors, together with a setback attic storey. reports on a 1960s concrete former plastic covers were removed shopping precinct on The brutish angularity of the building in July to reveal this stunning and its towering form would dwarf Campaign Clifton Down Road Regency Gothic lodge. Stonework completely the homely and varied has been repaired and cleaned, Fhas remained undeveloped, ranges of shops in Boyce’s Avenue new windows, modelled on the for Better alongside, and in Kings Road to the rear. an eyesore in the heart of one remaining original, are now The character of this area, unlike the in place.Huge glass panels encase Planning and Georgian Clifton. stony uniformity of the great terraces of In 2015 the Council rightly refused an Clifton, is loose knit and humanly scaled, the Gatehouse entrance giving Design application to develop the site because with mixed buildings dating from the the sense of a void while creating the design was not good enough for eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. a new indoor space. The upper room, with its ornate roses, is It has been clear for some time that such a sensitive part of the Conservation Its small streets have a particular charm plastered ready for decorating. the quality of the great majority Area, bordered, as it is, by many listed and intimacy, which would be totally Whether the original green walls of later twentieth- and twenty- buildings. Now THAT CLIFTON shattered by such a loutish block. Why first century buildings and urban COMPANY LTD has come forward is it that such proposals fail to take any and yellow ceiling is reinstated environments are of very poor with a further proposal to demolish and account of the aesthetic environment or an alternative colour scheme quality, especially when compared redevelop the precinct to create mixed in which they are to play an important adopted, is yet to be decided. with their predecessors. So action www.ashtongatehouse.org Michael Doble at the opening, with the Lord Mayor future role? How does such a brash, to substantially improve this could overweening mass signal its suitability Chatterton’s House, a small cottage City Council, the cottage owners, hardly be more urgent. for classical Clifton? in the shadow of St Mary Redcliffe employed John Perkins Construction The reasons for the decline seem to Church where the poet was born as the primary contractor and the New buildings must respect their be as follows: in 1752, had been allowed to fall overall project cost £150,000. Sadly, the neighbours and actively enhance an area rather than muscle in on it like some • The loss of good craftsmanship into disrepair and consequently a wonderful foreman Grantley Parker, renovation project was undertaken. heavyweight architectural bully. The following the Industrial who worked so passionately on the This included replacement of the Council must reject this proposal out of Revolution renovation died during the project chimneys, the repair of the roof hand and encourage the architects and • The use of poor quality materials structure and wall plate, while and did not see it to completion. developer to think more intelligently by developers whose sole motive retaining the original timbers, the However, Chatterton’s House is now about the urban streetscape they would is profit tying together of the front and ‘Chatterton’s Café’ run by a Bristol wish to infiltrate. To reiterate our family with every indication that it Chair’s rallying call, and to paraphrase • The loss of design quality back walls, and re-rendering with Ashton Gatehouse (Nick Church) arising, at least partly, from breathable lime render. Bristol will be a great success. John McEnroe, ‘They cannot be serious!’ the introduction of Modernist architectural design • The introduction of planning control leading to the Green Flag News New homes for South Bristol inappropriate segregation of The University of Bristol has been awarded of well-managed parks and gardens that ristol City Council is different uses in housing estates, its first ‘Green Flag’ for the Royal Fort are biodiverse, safe, clean places in which currently undertaking business parks, leisure parks, etc gardens at the centre of the main campus to study and to live.