C O N T E X T 1 1 6 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 0 25 IHBC Annual School 2010 IHBC Annual School 2009 IHBC Annual School 2010 Kings Cross goods yards – was shown as a large blank area, except for a nightclub in some railway arches and the Europe’s largest indoor go-carting circuit. Our tour would illustrate just how far the area had come since then. We assembled in one of the first buildings to be rescued. The German Gymnasium of 1865 is a purpose-built gym where some of the indoor events of the National Olympian Games took place. Here Natasha Skinns from Argent (property developers) and Charlotte Mathews of Pre-construct Archaeology guided us around the enormous model of the development area, which covers 67 acres. They showed us examples of the archaeological work, including plans for three of the railway turntables that will appear, after conservation by Dorothea, in the hard landscaped areas. One gasholder frame is to be dismantled and reused to create a public square, while others will have residential blocks inserted within them. Our tour then took us north up the side of St Pancras to visit the railway water tower of 1872. It was moved to this site in three large sections and now forms an ideal viewing platform of the area. From here we could view the main railway lines running out from St Pancras, the Regents Canal (1820s) and St Pancras Lock and lock house (formerly a back pumping station). Between the two main-line stations, new office blocks are proposed. A major pedestrian street will lead from the stations to the new London University of the Arts campus for 4,500 students.This area north of the canal was of most interest to us, as it included the majority of the 20 listed buildings on site (including the Lewis Cubitt Granary and transit sheds behind). The Coal and Fish building provided a good viewing point over these buildings. North of the campus, 2,000 residential properties are to be built. This area will be served by a combined heat and power station, which will supply the whole site. The long-term aspiration is that it will eventually to be fuelled by renewables. The visit was ably led by Florence Salberter of the IHBC London branch, a British Waterways heritage advisor, and Jon Finney. Salberter told us about the ‘innovative deal’ that British Waterways had negotiated with Argent. In addition to one-off section 106 contributions, British Waterways will benefit from a proportion of the ground rent allocated for the maintenance of the towpath and canal adjacent to the new developments. David Blackburn Church of St Martin-in-the Fields tour ‘The most significant ecclesiastical building in the English-speaking world of the 18th century.’ Terry Friedman, James Gibbs,Yale University Press, 1984. After a 12-year renewal project costing £36 million, James Gibbs’s landmark church on the east side of Trafalgar Square stands gleaming and in good fettle. Many of the benefits of this extensive project are hidden from the view of passers-by, not just within the four walls of the church but deep beneath it. Bob Kindred entertains delegates outside St Martin-in-the-Fields. (Photo: Jon Finney)
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