Former mayor George Ferguson has slammed proposals to demolish the Debenhams store in Broadmead and built a 28-storey block of flats in its place, describing it as a ‘f***ing insult to Bristol’.
In an expletive-laden reaction, the architect, who was Mayor between 2012 and 2016, said the proposals for the site between Horsefair and the Bearpit were ‘more monstrous cr** architecture’ which he said was ‘wrecking our fine city’.
Mr Ferguson’s reaction to the news broken by Bristol Live yesterday of the plans for the former Debenhams site was certainly among the strongest of a huge response, and it wasn’t all negative either, the proposals for 520 new ‘build-to-rent’ flats was mixed, with some people supportive of the idea.
Read next: Plans for Bristol Debenhams building in city centre unveiled
Bristol Live revealed yesterday that the owners of the Debenhams site, and two buildings either side along the Horsefair, want to demolish it all and create a new development that would see a ‘landmark’ 28-storey block of flats next to Primark.
There would also be a series of other buildings, between nine and 12 storeys, on the other side of a newly-recreated Barr Street, which would be a new pedestrian and cycle route connecting Broadmead with the Bearpit roundabout, on the same spot as the original medieval street that dropped from St James Barton to the Horsefair.
The flats would not be explicitly for students - more student accommodation is being proposed across the road on the site of what is now the Premier Inn - but would be ‘build-to-rent’, with the developers themselves managing the building and renting the flats out to tenants. There was a mixed reaction, with many commenting on the designs of the tower blocks, others commenting about the loss of the Debenhams building and the changing face of city centre retail, while others questioned the impact of the proposal on the city’s housing crisis, and in particular the affordable housing crisis.
Mr Ferguson, who has been a vocal critic of the plethora of tall buildings being designed, proposed and built in the city centre, said: “It’s a f***ing insult to Bristol, more monstrous cr*p architecture wrecking our fine city.
“There are infinitely better ways of housing people by learning from the best of European cities, not from the worst of the US. Please, please, let’s plan for people, not for profit,” he added.
One commenter on the Bristol Live website echoed those concerns about high-rise developments. “Whatever you think of Marvin's planning aspirations, and the build them high, cram 'em in approach, can we at least have a building with some architectural merit,” they asked.
“In my opinion, our city has been given over to the developers at any cost by the mayor. We are ending up with a piecemeal approach to development with no overall vision or cohesion. An approach to housing provision by way of high rise that doesn't build community but rather advances isolation.
“I find it quite sad that the landscape of our city is changing in the way it is. The current direction of travel offers little added value to the unique qualities, perspectives and vistas of Bristol. At worst they undermine it. The mayor will be gone soon but sadly the planning policies will continue to cast a long shadow for decades to come,” they added.
Jose Rodríguez said that all the tall buildings being built or proposed in the city centre looked the same. “Is this not just exactly the same tower than the one at Castle Park?” he asked. “I love highrises but why is no one building a tower that can actually become a landmark for Bristol? All the new buildings look exactly the same all around the city,” he added.
Sustainable transport expert Jon Usher, who worked at Sustrans before now working at Optibus, echoed that concern about piecemeal development. “Someone needs to look at the cumulative impact on these tall buildings,” he said. “It's all very well showing us a render of what's proposed here, but add it to the Premier Inn site, the Castle Park sites - significant changes to our skyline aren't being assessed in the round,” he added.
The architectural merits of the Debenhams store building, which was purpose built as a department store for the Bristolian store Jones, back in 1957, also sparked comment. “That looks truly awful!” said Alex Melbourne. “Why do developers always think they have to destroy something first and then build something, often inferior, in its place?
“The Debenham's building is surely worthy of keeping and converting into something else? My comments could also refer to the former Debenhams in Taunton too - an interesting existing building now empty, with plans to possibly demolish it and build flats,” they added.
But not everyone was against the idea, with many commenting that the era of large city centre department stores appears now to be over, with Debenhams and Marks and Spencer closing in recent years.
“Broadmead long ago outlived its usefulness,” said Bristol Live commenter ‘Table for Two’. “If the council had any sense they’d demolish the whole thing and start again, and develop something like you see in the centre of European cities like Seville: Car-less, shops, restaurants at ground level and 3 or more (storeys of) flats above. It would take time, but anything would be an improvement on the degrading, grubby concrete mess we now have,” they added.
A commenter called Bristol Doctor said they liked the proposals. “This will be great for Broadmead, inject life into the high street and is a step towards making it a real community,” they said. “Being too dependent on shops leaves it very empty in the evenings - hopefully something like this will support a more balanced mixture of businesses to open up.
“People do live in the city by the way, not just visit it by car, and a very central large modern apartment building is bound to have dwellings that are highly desirable for many people currently struggling to rent here,” they added.
And Chris Brown was also a fan of the design. “Broadmead as a shopping destination has had its day, the only way forward to breathe life into the centre of our city is housing and dare I say it, student accommodation. At least this looks like a clean and modern design - onwards and upwards I say,” they said.
Of the 520 flats proposed, the developers said they aim to meet the minimum requirement for having those rented flats ‘affordable’ - which at the moment is 20 per cent. That would equate to 104 flats that could be let out by a housing association to people currently on the HomeChoice waiting list.
One of those is Kevin Gore, who said he feared the demand for a flat in the new block would be huge. “I bet the people like myself who have been on the council housing list still don’t get a look in,” he said. “As a single gay man over 60, when I go to bid on the nine eligible properties, I get to bid on with over 100 people bidding for a property. I stand no chance,” he added.
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