In the heart of Glasgow sits the Lion Chambers, a building which completed construction in 1907 - and has sat mainly empty since 1995.
A combination of Scottish baronial and early-skyscraper design, the Lion Chambers have towered over one of Glasgow’s busiest streets for over one hundred years. Built right at the turn of the century, the stunning white tower was groundbreaking for its time.
James Salmon and John Gaff Gillespie were commissioned by William George Black, a successful lawyer and writer from Glasgow, to construct the building. Black was an established member of the Glasgow Art Club, and included plans for artists' studios for the top floors of the Lion Chambers - with lawyers chambers below, as well as retail space at the ground level.
James Salmon, commenting on the building the following year, said: “The Scottish style, I mean especially that of the old rough-cast castle, is eminently adapted to a development suited to reinforced concrete construction. The simple corbelling, the small cornices, the straight lines, the rarity of arches and other details are difficult to construct: above all, the freedom to do anything you like.”
Glasgow City Council were known to have a good relationship with the club which Black was a part of, and it was suggested that the approval for construction may have come from this. The now A-listed building was constructed with the patented “Hennebique Ferro-Concrete” system, which uses iron encased in concrete to build the structure.
This process, which helped the building stand out at the time, is a main factor in preventing any restoration - with the estimated cost of £1.5million far outweighing any revenue that restoring the building would make. By 1991, the co-owners of the building were served with a Dangerous Building Notice.
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In April 1991, water-pooling, cracking, and spalling affects were reported - and the co-owners decided to pursue demolition, though the approval to demolish was quickly denied due to the building's category A listing. The building has kept its outer stone work over the years, showing a lion’s head, as well as the upper bodies of some Judges of the court.
In 1995, it was reported that the cost of restorations would only extend the Lion Chamber’s life by an additional 20 years. Glasgow Building Preservation Trust announced plans in 1997 to develop a centre for young designers, including workshop and training spaces, though these plans never came to fruition.
The upper floors of the building were all deemed unfit for use in the mid 90s, though the retail space and basement was used until 2010. It is possible that the Lion Chambers are destined to disintegrate, but they could survive - for a certain price.
Glasgow City Council, Historic Scotland, and Glasgow Building Preservation Trust have all been involved in attempts to push the project along - though with high restoration costs, finding a buyer has proved difficult. In 2000, the scaffolding that surrounded the chambers were replaced with wire mesh.
According to reports, Glasgow City Council had offered the property to sellers for £1 to allow restoration, yet the deal fell through. In 2019, a visit to the Lion Chambers from Historic Environment Scotland revealed the dilapidated state of the interior.
With crumbling walls, water damage, boarded up windows and leaking ceilings - it’s hard to see how the structure could get back to its former self.
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