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It’s been a relatively quiet six months at the bridge since we last reported on it. LBHF announced the award of a 9-month stabilisation contract to deal with cracks in the cast-iron pedestals, at a cost of £8.9m, and there’s been some to-ing and fro-ing on who’ll pay (finally equally split LBHF, TfL, DfT), setting aside the cost of the future major repairs necessary, still undecided. The stabilisation will enable the main repair and renewal of other components of the bridge to follow in a separate contract.
During the stabilisation contract cyclists will not be allowed on the main carriageway but must wheel their bikes on the walkway – hoardings have gone up to that effect, though social media suggests that the dismounting instructions have yet to reach all quarters!
We noted late last year that the council had observed planning niceties by applying to itself for permission for the stabilisation works under ref 2021/03680/LBCHF. which it formally approved at the end of February. We understand similar has happened on the South side with LBRUT. Subsequently, an application has been lodged for temporary removal of sections of the handrail to allow pedestrians/cyclists to still cross while bypassing the pedestal housings, under 2022/00786/DLBC.
Concrete infill from 2021/03680/LBCHF
We remain a little disappointed that the plan still involves pouring concrete into the now infamous cast iron pedestals – not recognised bedfellows – but this is an old comment that has so far been met with a tin ear. We must hope the thermal effects and regular bridge vibration which have been written about at length, and even reported by a concerned member of the public last week, don’t gradually separate or crumble this unusual mixture. If it was a recognised and tested process, a standard method statement would be referenced, but instead the designer has listed an array of materials and notes on the drawings, the word “suitable” signposting a degree of conjecture. We can find no risk assessment to cover the effect of the additional mass, in the light of concerns about the strength of the pedestal footings noted during earlier investigations. The figure mentioned was 6 tonnes per pedestal, and it would be sensible to properly address this risk.
The documents state that Historic England is satisfied that the proposal respects Bazalgette’s design because the pedestals are not visible, which was precisely the point we made last year. If invisible, then remove them and do the job properly as a self-respecting engineer such as Bazalgette would do, having recognised a design or material weakness, and with the existence of better modern materials. Replacing them with something stronger, lighter, maintainable, and built offsite, allowing a quick like-for-like replacement (12 bolts), and future bearing maintenance, without all the onsite paraphernalia and disruption now planned, is the right thing to do, and also cheaper – especially long-term. The existing plan falls into the unfortunate category of being neither fish nor foul – not comprehensive enough to improve function, future maintenance and de-risk the structure, not quick or cheap enough to say it’s a disposable fix until major repairs can be undertaken.
The repair and renewal contract involves replacing 172 hangers, repairing the bearings at the top of the four towers and dealing with defects in many other components to restore the bridge to its former glory, strength and usefulness. There are two options for providing a temporary crossing for the public during this repair work:
The Foster scheme on which we reported last year, involving a ’tube’ structure within the Heritage bridge passing between the towers and allowing the progressive replacement of bridge sections and components.
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The temporary cycle path or Safer Cycle Pathway as the council denotes it, is not without controversy. At the extremes, Cycle Twitterati heap praise on the council for going though with it, and at the other end of the scale, there are a couple of petitions with well over 3000 signatures asking for it to be removed, along with its accompanying scheme in Hounslow (currently being made rather more permanent at the cost of felled mature trees). The good news is that cycling has increased by 7 – 22% since the pandemic, though the maths dictates that this represents an increase from only around 2% to somewhere less than 3% of journeys.
The route now constructed follows the TfL scheme which was issued for public consultation in 2017. TfL encountered widespread opposition to their ideas for high street cycleways both in Hammersmith and elsewhere, and were probably pleased to agree to the LBHF proposal to design and build the scheme, paid for by TfL – and to potentially include King Street improvements at the same time. The idea of a shoppers’ cycleway in King Street and a cycle by-pass on the A4 was agreed to after feedback from the public, and this Society around the time of the 2018 local elections. These ideas failed due to the very public funding problems at TfL, added to by the pandemic, resulting in this ‘temporary’ scheme.
Here we are, stuck in the middle, seeking an equitable solution for the majority of Hammersmith. We have skin in this particular game through participation in the cycle commission last year as we described before. Unfortunately many of the concerns raised by the commissioners, and by ourselves in recent articles have come to pass, and it’s a little concerning to see the “safer” moniker applied – and rewarded on social media with statements such as “I feel safer” – when feeling is not actually demonstrably safer, more a testament to a lack of awareness of the issues, with around £3M spent on this social media-inspired scheme.
Cyclists? It’s well documented by ROSPA, TfL and the DfT crash data that 75-80% of accidents happen at junctions, (as illustrated by the crashmap above), and there are 23 of those to navigate along the route from the Broadway to Goldhawk Road, only a handful of which are protected by the new wands or other lane segregations. However well-intentioned, arguably it’s disingenuous to encourage the inexperienced and unwary using the word safer when mostly it’s not (more evidence below). Main roads, especially their junctions, can be dangerous for all sorts of reasons, especially when HGV’s are involved, but are essential for the many forms of transport that we all rely on. So why campaign to use them when there are better and safer alternatives nearby ?
The A4 route, has just 2 junctions over the same distance as King St., with just 2 minor incidents in 10 years, admittedly with fewer cyclists, but still a significant number – including regular use by members of the cycling commission – making a comparison worthwhile. Together with with adjacent cul-de-sacs approximating modern LTN’s, caused by the creation of the A4, they provide a measurably safer and less polluted route. We’ll wait to see how the untested slalom in the middle of King Street, and well-documented issues with bidirectional paths fare with all those junctions, but a significant number of cyclists are observed voting with their pedals, and still using the North side of the road Eastbound from Goldhawk Road.
The safety of pedestrians at bus islands/bypasses arises again, and we refer to the dismay of the charity for the blind NFBUK, after reviewing our commission advisers’ chosen reference Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow during visits last year, which rather undermines their advice. By way of confirmation, bypasses are such a hazard to pedestrians – particularly those less able – that TfL buses now need canned announcements which start at the Broadway, warning passengers of the dangers of the cycle lane when disembarking.
Latterly, the council has deployed these rather scruffy temporary signs, tacitly acknowledging the dangers the scheme has created. With significant modifications already ongoing in Hammersmith’s main shopping area, upheaval on the Broadway and in Hounslow, one has to wonder if there’s been a little too much speed and not enough haste. It’s regrettable that the scheme which you see today proceeded without commission review.
There are number of problems in King St., many at at the Western end, as highlighted by the photo adjacent.
Members using buses East-West in the borough report what a poor experience it’s become. Let’s be clear, other than walking, according the TfL data (adjacent), buses carry more passengers than any other transport mode in London, and carry the most disadvantaged members of society. Erosion of bus routes and infrastructure recently (AKA multipurpose peak-time bus lanes replaced by exclusive 24h cycle lanes), mean bus speeds remain at an all-time low having recovered briefly in lockdowns, and are in the bottom 25% of 15 major world cities to the shame of TfL. Belatedly TfL have woken up to this issue, and proposed a solution – banning other road users, and putting in new bus lanes !
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Over the recent years we have seen the transformation of the buildings alongside The Lawn, the original name of the road on the west side of Shepherds Bush Green: the reconstruction of the site where the post office used to be will soon be complete, another new hotel, in a contemporary style building which might sit uncomfortably in the distinguished streetscape it shares. Its immediate neighbour is the Grade ll listed Dorsett Hotel, in the building which was once the Shepherds Bush Pavilion: this started life in 1923 as a palatial cinema, suffering war damage in 1944, restored in 1955, and becoming a bingo hall in 1983 – which closed up in 2001, leaving a derelict, lifeless heavyweight on the streetscape. It was spotted by Dorsett Hospitality International in 2008, and given a new purpose with an imaginative and ingenious conversion to a luxury hotel, bringing life and style but retaining the gravitas and history of the original building, and winning our Environment Award in 2015.
Next to the hotel is another piece of Shepherds Bush history, a building recently known as the Walkabout, which started life in 1923 as a 760 seat cinema – Pyke’s Cinematograph Theatre; this was enlarged and upgraded, introducing the front arch and pediment which is retained today, to become the New Palladium Cinema.
The venture proved short term, and changed hands to become the Essoldo, then the Classic, and finally the Odeon 2, which closed in 1981. Derelict for some years, it then became the Walkabout pub, which provided a popular and noisy venue until it, too, closed in 2013, leaving a diminutive, shabby building struggling to survive between its distinguished neighbours. The Dorsett Hotel came to the rescue, recognising the potential of the building with a wholesale reconstruction, led by the designers of the Dorsett Hotel conversion.
LBHF planning played a significant and positive role in guiding the design process, together with the involvement of the Historic Buildings Group who provided the plaque wording as part of its advice, alongside the Hammersmith Society. The Dorsett magic has successfully transformed the Walkabout into such a handsome building, which now comfortably fills the space between its two important neighbours. The triumphal arch and classical pediment, retained and restored from its cinema days, anchors the 7-storey high frontage, with a crisp vertical geometry of brickwork and stone fins rising above. The design brings a confident stature to the building and comfortably earns its place in the streetscape, a visual resonance with the corner tower of the decorative Shepherds Bush Empire alongside and with the brick entrance pavilion to the Dorsett Hotel.
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The third iteration of this project has been submitted to council planners for approval under ref 2021/03561/FUL. After the closure of the courts in 2017, the usual procedure of retaining the site in public ownership to provide facilities for public benefit was set aside, and the site was sold for around £45M to the Dominvs Group, a major hotel developer. We commented on the latest proposals formally, (see our letter at the foot of this article), here we present a summary.
The first planning application in January 2019 proposed a luxury hotel and a tourist hotel, together providing over 800 bedrooms in a development area exceeding 37,000 sqm including buildings over 70 metres high. These proposals were endorsed by LBHF despite vehement public opposition, especially from the residents south of the site and the Friends of Margravine Cemetery. Hammersmith Society comments to LBHF concluded that the application offered ‘… a very substantial and visible development offering so little to the Hammersmith streetscape.’
In the light of this opposition, the developer generously agreed to reconsider, but on the notable condition that there would be no compromise to the very substantial area and height of the first scheme. So a new design team was appointed, and a planning application followed in April 2020. This second scheme provided the same accommodation, in an imaginative design, a transformation after the disappointments of the first proposal.
Hammersmith Society comments and analysis were submitted in April 2020. While the proposals were developed in consultation with the neighbouring residents, bringing about the relocation of the taller elements to the back of the site, furthest remote from the neighbouring housing, residents’ concerns remained unresolved, to a degree which was not appreciated until later in the process. The scheme received planning approval in December 2020.
With the change in market conditions brought about by the pandemic, the project had to be changed again: the luxury hotel has been replaced by a purpose built student accommodation block (PBSA) with 730 rooms, maintaining the same development density as the first two schemes, but in a form which was to be acceptable to the residents south of the site and the Friends of Magravine Cemetery.
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The former Royal Masonic Hospital site, recently marketed by Savills as “a landmark development opportunity”, is currently under offer. Sitting in a conservation area, surrounded by listed housing and overlooking Ravenscourt Park, the Grade II* hospital building and its later additions occupy a plum site in the heart of Hammersmith.
Opened by King George V and Queen Mary in 1933, its steel-framed modernist architecture by Tait & Lorne famously won an RIBA Gold Medal as the best building of 1933, while its interiors, fixtures and fittings were custom designed throughout in the same Art Deco style.
But times changed, and after a controversial sale in the 1990s, although its Art Deco interiors continued to make frequent appearances in films and in television series like Poirot, subsequent owners proved unable to find a viable healthcare use. And after standing empty for 15 years, the main building will need considerable investment in refurbishment and restoration.
A short promotional film made in 1970 gives us a fascinating glimpse into the hospital in its heyday. Fifty years ago, it was a self-contained organisation with its own kitchens, laundry, laboratories and a nursing school and staff accommodation, all set in 10 acres of immaculately kept grounds.
Following discussions with Council planners, the agents, Savills, are now saying that ‘medical use’ covenants need no longer apply and suggest a range of alternative possibilities for future development. Only the main building, with its twin entrance pillars representing Healing and Charity, is listed. The site also contains several smaller buildings which are described as targets for demolition and redevelopment – even “possible upward extensions”.
Any development on this scale and in this location will have a significant impact both on the park and the local community, so it is vital that we should all have a say in the future of this important part of our Hammersmith heritage.
Anyone living near Olympia will be all too aware of the scale of the building works going on. When we first looked at the plans in late 2017, we couldn’t envisage the true scale of the project. At that time, the visualisations showed mezzanine decks added to the halls to increase floor area, and the rest were just outlines. We’re now told that the mezzanines are not going to be built as exhibitors have shown a preference for more open floor area. There are, after all, existing galleries around the halls.
Recently, the developers Yoo Capital/Future Olympia have invited the public to visit and overlook the site via the roof, as we advertised in our diary, the featured tour being led by construction director Tony Palgrave. From Hammersmith Road one can see the huge steel structure supporting the Art Deco frontage, but what’s not so obvious is the size of the hole behind it. The original building as you can see is now gone, but it had limited value having been chopped about for decades as previous owners tried to make it relevant, even becoming the “UKAY Olympia” furniture shop in the 1980’s. The concrete is being ground up and recycled for the new buildings, a modern way to reduce waste, but not perhaps as green as some might have it, due to limited re-use of the embodied carbon.
The music venue at the rear of the site (shown adjacent in the distance with white crane alongside) is now built to it’s final height and the foundations for the theatre in front if it are now being built (far right of the main panorama); this will be followed by the foundations for the offices that will appear behind and above the Deco frontage over the next year or two. The proposed phased opening will be in 2024-5.
The model on display in the Pillar Hall where the tour started, which we first saw at our AGM in 2019, shows the scale of the development, with the theatre frontage onto Hammersmith Road to the left of the office block behind the Deco frontage. Committee members have been active in helping to improve the theatre frontage and public realm by meeting periodically with the developers over the last 2 or 3 years.
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We mentioned the government’s long-awaited Heat and buildings strategy in the article about Zero carbon homes a couple of months ago. Now published ahead of COP26, the direction of travel is a little clearer. Here we summarise what it says, looking at how it will affect you and your decisions as your existing heating system reaches end of life – we’re not looking at standards for newbuilds here – they have their own paths. A third-party summary written by Building Design is a useful primer along with a cautionary reader comment from Finland highlighting the intricacies of vapour barriers when adding new insulation inside or out. A recent Guardian article usefully lays out the “hydrogen landscape” and the ongoing tests.
The strategy says many good things, with good aspirations, but the thing that really stands out for existing homeowners is that a hydrogen infrastructure remains a work-in-progress. The issue is still: Can it be made economically and ecologically “at scale”, and deployed using existing gas mains? The government has said it needs more time to run research projects and decide – another 5 years. Can the climate wait ?
As we said previously, the heat-pump route is more involved, and has more finely tuned parameters for success. You might therefore want to nurse that old boiler gently into its dotage until the infrastructure research is done, because a replacement hydrogen boiler (already designed with prototypes available from, for example, Worcester-Bosch, with a negligible cost premium) would be a trivial replacement by comparison, especially in a typical Hammersmith period home. Installation of so-called hydrogen-ready boilers could be a way to prime the pump for a national switchover, like the switch from town gas from 1967 – 77.
If you’re interested in a no-nonsense discussion between a boiler manufacturer involved in government-sponsored hydrogen trials, their ins and outs, plus heat pumps, and someone who’s actually installed both in the real world, then the video adjacent is for you. It should open your eyes to most issues homeowners are about to grapple with, and discusses many of the points here in more detail.
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Our vice-chair, Melanie Whitlock and her family have recently decided to move to Edinburgh after living in Hammersmith for a long time, Melanie has been a stalwart of the Society for at least 38 years. She has been on the committee since the 1980’s, chairing the Society twice, with a long stint from 1984-1990 during which she created our Awards, and again from 2009-2012. She has in many ways been the backbone of the Society for nearly 40 years, a fact recognised in a civic honour in 2019. We wish her the fondest of farewells.
You can read more about her time as Chair in two sections of the 50th anniversary review written at the end of her second tenure in 2012. Our President, Prof. Hans Haenlein said a few words of appreciation at her recent leaving party, which are reproduced below:
Many thanks to Annabel for hosting the ‘Farewell to Melanie’. I am sure we have all come here with very divided emotions. For me there are 2 in particular: 1. Back in the late 50’s my tutor, Arthur Korm, who knew about my musical obsession, persuaded me to design a new Edinburgh Festival Centre for my final diploma project. My first exploratory visit to this city caused me to fall in love with it beyond redemption. 2. Shortly after qualifying as an Architect I moved to Hammersmith and was persuaded by Gontran Goulden, the founder of the Hammersmith Society, to join him in his new enterprise in 1963. You will have guessed where this is going. Melanie joined the Hammersmith Society in 1983, since when we have never looked back. The growing Environmental Awareness in the 1980’s, Melanie’s love for Hammersmith and its people, her way of thinking and communicating, as well as her boundless energy, supported by her husband John and family, have been the greatest gift she has so generously shared with us for nearly 40 years. Our emotions are overwhelmed by the thought of losing her. However, Melanie’s & John’s decision to set up home in my favourite city of Edinburgh makes me better understand the power of Goethe’s concept of Transformation as it applies to Melanie, John and their family, which will enable them to move effortlessly ‘Onward & Upward’ from London to Edinburgh in accordance with the famous C.S. Lewis ‘Narnia’ quote. HH 18.10.21 |
Chairman Richard Winterton writes:
Melanie Whitlock has been one of the driving forces of the Hammersmith Society for over 30 years.
The Hammersmith Society is a community amenity society which strives to protect and enhance the urban environment of Hammersmith: this ambition needs vigilance to keep abreast of the continual changes proposed for the borough, requiring time, tact and patience to meet with participants from the developer teams to negotiate the best way forward.
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We were pleased to announce our 2021 Awards at the AGM at Riverside Studios on Wednesday 29th September, introduced by committee member Derrick Wright and presented by our patron, Cllr P J Murphy, Mayor of Hammersmith & Fulham. The large number of members and supporters present were provided excellent hospitality in the River Room. Full details and a narrative are posted on our 2021 Awards page; more AGM photos and administrative documents are posted on our 2021 AGM page.
(AGM Photos: Louisa Whitlock. Click for full-size versions)
Our Guest Speaker was Sherry Dobbin, from FutureCity, who spoke about unlocking the potential of city places with some fascinating ideas for how this might work for Hammersmith Town Centre. She showed several existing examples from around the world and an installation opened at The Shard on the same day.
Our Environment Award was given to The Quaker Meeting House in Bradmore Park Road. We first visited as it was completed in October 2020, and were immediately impressed with the quality of design and construction, its environmental credentials, and the feeling of serenity. Our original article is here
The Tom Ryland Award for Conservation was given to the Mission Hall in Iffley Road which has now been given a new lease of life through a major conversion and refurbishment to provide office, meeting and community facilities.
The Nancye Goulden Award was given to the landscaping of 245 Hammersmith Road. The unusual stairs & inclined lift immediately set it out as something different. The landscaping and recreational benefits provided by this very substantial development set a great example of how we can restore people priority in the bustle of traffic and commerce which makes up the town centre.
Wooden spoons were awarded to two utilitarian horrors – 5G masts and their associated street clutter, and the ugly Thames Water fountains.
After the Awards, we turned to our usual AGM business, including Chairman’s report. Finally we reminded all present that in 2022, as our new banner and anniversary logo shows, the Society turns 60. We are seeking ideas to celebrate the occasion next summer – please send us your thoughts.
The bridge reopened on the 17th July to some small fanfare. This was after the council’s appointed engineers had blast cleaned the cast iron pedestals so that they could be fully examined for cracks, and the case for continued safe operation could be made.
There are cracks evident in all pedestals to a lesser or greater degree, but they are now assessed as not being critical to structural integrity, provided that the pedestals are not overstressed, which means minimising the movement of the chains that run over them.
The temporary solution, which allows the current limited use by pedestrians and bikes, is to heat or cool the chains that run over the pedestals to maintain temperature, so as to keep them in approximately the same place avoiding excess pedestal stress. This is obviously a 24×7 energy-intensive business, a least-worst solution for the time-being. It’s worth noting that even with only pedestrians and bikes crossing, the bridge still sways a little, it is very much a live structure. The current and much reduced-cost proposal for shoring up the bearings on top of the pedestals (“stabilisation works”) is to replace them with elastomeric sliding bearings, at a total cost of around £6m as widely reported, a figure that doesn’t seem unreasonable. Others can judge whether this is a good enough solution for the long term. We’d prefer to be without the nagging doubts of the hidden cast iron bolted-in parts in critical structural positions, to allow the engineering of a robust 100-year + solution using easily replaceable bearings. This wouldn’t be expensive in the scale of the total repair bill, and as we described early this year, fixing the recurring problem effectively for good.
Without going into further exhaustive detail, which can be found in the references listed below, the main issue remains who will pay for the repairs. The most sensible option is to substantially dismantle the existing bridge with the COWI-Foster structure, or other temporary bridge in place for the duration. This would allow it to be properly repaired to a higher quality than can be achieved onsite, including replacing the troublesome cast iron, and might be quicker overall. Consideration should also be given to lightening the structure via a lighter/improved roadway as we’ve mentioned before, so as to lower bridge loadings, potentially raise capacity a little, and we’d very much like to see wider pathways for pedestrians & bikes.
The latest update from the Task Force shows that our council leader and the newly re-appointed government minister responsible, Baroness Vere, are again at loggerheads, this time over the relatively small sum of £6m for stabilisation works, which is why they haven’t started. If they can’t agree on this, how ever will they agree on the £100m+ full repair bill ? We call for a ceasefire and end to hostilities by letter.
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