Heritage Led Regeneration in Kingston Town Centre Appendix B
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Heritage Led Regeneration in Kingston Town Centre Appendix B RESPONSE AND RECOVERY COMMITTEE 13 MAY 2021 STRATEGIC OUTLINE BUSINESS CASE APPENDICES This pack contains the following surveys referenced in the report & Outline Business Case: Appendix 4 - Heritage Report Appendix 5 - Made in Kingston - Cultural Strategy Appendix 6 - Kingston Cultural Infrastructure Needs Assessment NOTE: Appendices 1 (Redloft Viability Business Case), 2 (KKP Leisure Facilities Need Assessment), 3 (LASR Emerging Findings Report) and 7 (Development Advice - Guildhall Kingston) considered exempt from publication on grounds of commercial confidentiality. Guildhall Redevelopment Programme Preliminary Heritage Advice Note Prepared for the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames April 2021 Page 1 of 21 1936/40/JWi 16 April 2021 Guildhall Redevelopment Programme Preliminary Heritage Advice Note 1.0 Summary This is a rapid initial assessment of the potential heritage risks and opportunities of the Guildhall Redevelopment Programme. Its findings are subject to more detailed analysis at the next stages of the project. The assessment finds that there are considerable opportunities to enhance the historic environment of Kingston Town Centre, for example in the public realm and setting of Kingston Guildhall, the Hogsmill River and Coronation Stone, and in the relationship of a leisure centre and other development on the Kingfisher site to the Public Library and Museum and adjoining streets. The options in the Feasibility Stage Report: Guildhall Masterplan (EPR Architects, February 2018) and the Kingfisher Leisure Centre: Concept Design Report (Faulkner Browns Architects, April 2021) also contain elements of risk. Some of these, such as alterations to the interior of the Guildhall and possible rooftop development, are medium risks that can be addressed through design development. The impact of taller buildings – over c. 12 stories – may carry a higher risk because of the potential for impact on views from Hampton Court Palace, Richmond Park and Bushy Park, sites of exceptional heritage significance to which Historic England has afforded considerable importance in discussions over similar schemes in Kingston Town Centre. Further design development and engagement with Historic England and others will be necessary to better understand the degree of risk in this case and implement mitigation measures accordingly. 2.0 Introduction Alan Baxter has been appointed by the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames (RBKuT) to undertake a heritage Feasibility Study to inform the Guildhall Redevelopment Programme (GhRP) business case. The GhRP envisages a comprehensive redevelopment of three Council- owned sites within Kingston upon Thames, namely: • The Guildhall Campus, comprising a series of civic buildings and public spaces including the Grade II listed Kingston Guildhall and Grade I listed Coronation Stone, to the south of the town centre; • The Kingfisher Leisure Centre site, comprising a 1980s leisure centre, Kingston Public Library and Museum (both Grade II listed), and an adjoining public open space, to the east of the town centre; • The Cattle Market Car Park site, comprising a surface-level car park with two basement levels, lying immediately north of the Kingfisher Leisure Centre site. This Preliminary Heritage Advice Note has been rapidly prepared to inform early-stage discussions regarding the options for the future redevelopment of the Guildhall Campus and Kingfisher Leisure Centre/Cattle Market Car Park sites. It provides a summary of the heritage assets (both designated and non-designated) which could potentially experience impacts on significance as a result of development of these sites, and summarises the key design considerations and project heritage risks and opportunities. Page 2 of 21 Guildhall Redevelopment Programme – Preliminary Heritage Advice Note The note is informed by an initial desk-based review of the existing site conditions and outline options for the sites set out in the Feasibility Stage Report: Guildhall Masterplan (EPR Architects, February 2018) and the Kingfisher Leisure Centre: Concept Design Report (Faulkner Brown Architects, April 2021). Because of Covid restrictions and programme constraints, no site visit has been undertaken and the advice given is subject to this caveat. The heritage assets discussed in this Note have been identified following an initial review of the strategic context of each development site. It is possible that further heritage assets that might be affected by the proposed development will be identified in the detailed assessment of the baseline heritage context that will inform future stages of the GhRP. Page 3 of 21 Guildhall Redevelopment Programme – Preliminary Heritage Advice Note 3.0 Guildhall Campus 3.1 Introduction The Guildhall Campus lies in the southern part of the town centre of Kingston upon Thames, and contains a series of buildings and public realm bound by the High Street to the west, Bath Passage to the north, St James’ Road to the east and Kingston Hall Road (A307) to the south. The Hogsmill River, a tributary of the River Thames, passes through the site, running on a dog- leg path from its north-west corner and curving to the south-east. Within the site there are a series of public buildings and structures, including the Grade II listed Kingston Guildhall (built in 1935), two further Council office buildings known as Guildhall 1 and Guildhall 2 (built in 1975-78), and the Grade I listed Coronation Stone (of Medieval origin, bounded by railings and piers of 1850). The greater part of the site (excluding Guildhall 1 and 2) lies within the Kingston Old Town Conservation Area. 3.2 Heritage context The table below outlines heritage assets that may experience a degree of change to their significance and/or setting through the redevelopment of the Guildhall Campus. Heritage asset National/Local Designation(s) Location in relation to the site Within the site boundary The Guildhall Grade II Within the red line Coronation Stone Grade I Within the red line Clattern Bridge Grade I and scheduled monument Within the red line Kingston Old Town Conservation Area Conservation Area Within the red line Immediately adjacent to the site 4 Eden Street Grade II North 8-18 High Street (evens) Locally listed North-west 43 Market Place (Financier & Firkin Locally listed North PH) 6 Eden Street Locally listed North 14 Eden Street Locally listed North 18 Eden Street (Eagle Chambers) Locally listed North In the vicinity of the site Heritage assets on the east and west Grade II and II* West sides of Kingston High Street Locally listed Page 4 of 21 Guildhall Redevelopment Programme – Preliminary Heritage Advice Note Heritage assets within and around the Grade II, II* and I North Market Place Locally listed Further afield – RBKuT Fairfield/Knight’s Park Conservation Conservation Area East Area Contains listed and locally listed buildings Grove Crescent Conservation Area Conservation area South-east Contains listed and locally listed buildings Riverside South Conservation Area Conservation area South-west Contains listed and locally listed buildings Riverside North Conservation Area Conservation Area North-west Contains listed and locally listed buildings Other heritage assets within the town Grade II listed West and centre north Locally listed Further afield – London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Hampton Court Palace and Park Grade I listed palace West Grade II, II* or I ancillary buildings and structures Scheduled monument Grade I registered park and garden Conservation Area Bushy Park Grade I registered park and garden West Grade II and I listed buildings and structures within the park Conservation Area Hampton Wick Conservation Area Conservation Area West Hampton Court Green Conservation Conservation Area West Area Richmond Park Grade I registered park and garden North-east Listed buildings and scheduled monument within the park Conservation Area Ham House Grade I listed house North Grade II* registered park and garden Grade II, II*, I listed ancillary buildings and structures Conservation Area (LBRuT) Page 5 of 21 Guildhall Redevelopment Programme – Preliminary Heritage Advice Note 3.3 Design considerations, opportunities and risks The development site contains some of Kingston’s most significant heritage assets in both a local and national context. In addition, there are many designated and non-designated heritage assets within the immediate vicinity of the site, particularly to the north and west, within the historic core of Kingston. The redevelopment of the Guildhall Campus should therefore place great weight on positively responding to the rich historic built environment within and around the site. The Guildhall Campus is an opportunity for heritage-led regeneration in the heart of Kingston, with opportunities to enhance the significance and setting of some of Kingston’s most prominent heritage assets as part of a wider programme of townscape improvements. Nevertheless, redevelopment within a sensitive heritage context always carries a degree of planning risk, due to the potential for harmful impacts upon the significance and setting of heritage assets both nearby and further afield (such as Hampton Court Palace). The following sub-sections outline the key heritage opportunities and risks associated with the redevelopment of the Guildhall Campus. The current proposals for the redevelopment of the Guildhall Campus are understood to break down into two interrelated aspects: • the conversion of the Grade II