A decision to give four electric cranes on Bristol harbourside listed building status could have a knock-on effect on a 'landmark' development proposed at Wapping Wharf, according to the former mayor of Bristol. However, the man leading the plans says the new block would 'sit comfortably alongside' the iconic cranes.
George Ferguson, who led an emergency campaign to save the cranes almost 50 years ago, said he was pleased that they had been given Grade II listed status by Historic England, and said this should now help stop ‘damaging’ plans to build a big residential development on land nearby.
Bristol Live revealed in June this year that Stuart Hatton, managing director of Umberslade, the man who created the Wapping Wharf development on old industrial land between the M-Shed and the Gaol Ferry Bridge during the 2010s. Plans for 'Wapping Wharf North' include a 'landmark' of up to 12 storeys high, with shops, restaurants, takeaways, flats and workspaces. Businesses currently at CARGO's shipping containers would be moved to a new, permanent home.
Read next: Bristol's famous harbourside cranes get listed building status
Mr Ferguson said part of the protection given to a building or structure when it is listed by the Government was that its ‘setting’ should be protected too - and that meant the cranes should be clearly visible and prominent on the skyline around this popular part of the Floating Harbour.
“I know they are not St Mary Redcliffe Church spire, or the Clifton Suspension Bridge, but it’s probably as strong an image of Bristol than those two landmarks - the cranes lined up on the harbourside,” said Mr Ferguson, who was mayor of Bristol from 2012 to 2016. “It’s absolutely right that they are listed like this and it should now mean extra protection not just for them but for their place on the harbourside and the skyline,” he added.
“We’re now wrecking other parts of the city with tall buildings coming up everywhere, but the harbourside has managed to avoid this happening, and is all the better for it - it’s now one of Bristol’s jewels, and attracts people to come and live, work and visit,” he said. “If you put tall buildings behind the cranes, as is planned, you smother them, you won’t be able to see them, they will be lost - the cranes should stand against the sky and that is the character of the harbourside.
“It would be fine to have new buildings there that are roughly the height of the M-Shed roof extension and Wapping Wharf. What they’ve done at Wapping Wharf has been brilliant and the scale is great - it’s high density but mostly six or seven storeys and is a traditional ‘place’ but in a modern way.
“What I hope is that the listing of the cranes gives Historic England a much stronger hand - the listing should be protecting the cranes and the silhouettes of the cranes, there’s no point having a listed building like that next to a 12-storey block of flats, it would wreck the character of the cranes,” he added.
There were once cranes all along the historic industrial docks but the last ship was off-loaded there in 1974. Mr Ferguson led a team of volunteers in the mid-1970s to raise £3,000 in a week to buy two of the cranes when they were being sold off for scrap by the council.
“We had a week to do it, and it was the start, really, of realising that the docks could be turned into something that preserved as much as possible the industrial heritage there, but be an attractive place for people to come and visit and live.
“People thought we were mad, the council were basically just treating it as a car park, and there had been plans to fill the harbourside in and turn it into a motorway, effectively. We bought the cranes off the scrap dealer, before he came to dismantle them, and then eventually sold two back to the council, once they had come round to the idea of keeping them.
"We used the money we got back to buy the old Pill Ferry and put it to work as a harbour ferry. That was the very start of people seeing the leisure potential of the harbour,” said Mr Ferguson.
After announcing the plans for the new development at Wapping Wharf, Mr Hatton described the plans as creating a 'new harbourside landmark', a building with 'cascading plant-filled terraces, fronting onto Museum Square and facing Bristol's Harbourside' to create a 'landmark for this prominent location and leisure destination on the city's docks'.
"Over the years, the Harbourside area has changed beyond recognition," he said at the time. "Our intention is to contribute to the successful evolution of the area as a leisure destination with a development that brings something new and exciting to Bristol, whilst also creating much-needed homes for people and independent businesses, as well as green, biodiverse spaces for everyone to enjoy," he added.
Developer's response
In response to the former mayor's comments, Mr Hatton said he also welcomed the listing of the cranes but disagreed with Mr Ferguson's view, saying his plans for a 12-storey building nearby would 'sit comfortably alongside' the now-listed M-Shed cranes.
“We welcome the listing of the cranes on Bristol’s harbourside, which provide an important reminder of the area’s industrial past as well as helping to make the harbourside the major tourist and leisure destination it has become today," he said.
“Wapping Wharf has enhanced the reputation of this part of harbourside with its popular array of independent shops, businesses and restaurants and strong sense of community. Our vision for the final phases of development is to build on this success and complete the neighbourhood by providing a permanent home for the independent businesses, where they can flourish, together with much-needed new homes, including affordable, workspaces and facilities for the community.
“We believe that high quality contemporary architecture can complement our city’s industrial heritage and that our well-designed buildings will sit comfortably alongside M Shed and the cranes, make a positive contribution to the harbour’s ever-changing skyline and bring an exciting new attraction to the harbourside. We are currently refining our proposals following public consultation in the summer and will, of course, continue to consider any potential impact on important heritage assets," he added.
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