{"id":753093,"date":"2024-08-28T11:03:19","date_gmt":"2024-08-28T10:03:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?p=753093"},"modified":"2024-08-29T08:33:26","modified_gmt":"2024-08-29T07:33:26","slug":"antony-gormley-slams-coal-drops-yard-pavilion-proposal-as-simply-a-bad-idea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/antony-gormley-slams-coal-drops-yard-pavilion-proposal-as-simply-a-bad-idea","title":{"rendered":"Antony Gormley slams Coal Drops Yard pavilion proposal as \u2018simply a bad idea\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Plans drawn-up by Fathom Architects for the King\u2019s Cross Central Limited Partnership (KCCLP) and Related Argent, the client and developer behind the Heatherwick Studio-designed Coal Drops Yard (2018)<\/a>, were submitted to Camden Council last month.<\/p>\n

The proposal for a single-storey structure made of stained timber and panelled \u2018shingle\u2019 roof would honour the Victorian architecture found across the yard, as well as Heatherwick Studio\u2019s \u2018kissing roofs\u2019, planning documents say.<\/p>\n

However, Gormley, celebrated for his large-scale sculptures, including The Angel of the North<\/em>, has criticised the proposed 307m2 <\/sup>pavilion as \u2018simply a bad idea\u2019. He claims the structure would \u2018compromise\u2019 the open space within the central yard, near where the development meets Regent\u2019s Canal.<\/p>\n

Other residents of King\u2019s Cross have contacted the AJ with similar reservations.<\/p>\n

Gormley said in a statement: \u2018If immediate retail gain should be allowed to compromise the open centre of Coal Drops Yard, it would deny the very thing that the whole site depends on: open space for public enjoyment, access and connection.\u2019<\/p>\n

Gormley, who lives in the WilkinsonEyre and Jonathan Tuckey Design Studio-designed gasholders north of Coal Drops Yard, continued: \u2018To build in Coal Drops is simply a bad idea and a bad understanding of how areas of London need to be reimagined. This depends on allowing\u00a0\u00a0social interaction and occupation to grow in their own way.<\/p>\n

\u2018The respect that has been paid to the industrial heritage, as in the fountains and seating areas of (nearby) Granary Square, is an invitation to linger and associate with others and the place itself. King\u2019s Cross is unique in the way it does this, amplified by the care that has been taken\u00a0\u00a0in planting everywhere.\u2019<\/p>\n

Fathom, KCCLP and Related Argent said in consultation documents that the pavilion would create a new landmark to help visitors navigate the site, which opened in 2018, and provide a more active entrance from Granary Square.<\/p>\n

Fathom\u2019s scheme would \u2018create a more vibrant place with additional landscaping and dwell space, improve navigation in and around Coal Drops Yard and create new accessible retail opportunities, including a grab-and-go offer\u2019, the consultation documents said.<\/p>\n

Anthea Harries, Related Argent\u2019s asset management director for King\u2019s Cross, added in a statement to the AJ: \u2018Every year we welcome a broad range of people into Coal Drops Yard who each have different shopping and dining requirements, from residents, workers and students to those living in Camden and beyond.<\/p>\n

\u2018The pavilion is being brought forward following recent feedback from these customers, who say they want to see more accessible brands, grab-and-go food options and an improved customer journey through Coal Drops Yard.\u2019<\/p>\n

Harries said the structure would add more rentable units and help shoppers \u2018navigate their way round the central yard area more easily\u2019.<\/p>\n

She went on: \u2018Over the last six years, Coal Drops Yard has become the best of the British high street and the best of the British side street. [\u2026] We must continue to adapt and diversify the range of shops to serve an evolving community of residents, workers and visitors who come to King\u2019s Cross.\u2019<\/p>\n

According to the consultation documents, issues raised by the public about the existing Coal Drops Yard include the \u2018daunting impediment\u2019 created by wide distances between shops at ground level and the resulting \u2018unclear natural navigability and a compromised legibility of what the retail offer is\u2019.<\/p>\n

\"Heatherwick

Heatherwick Studio’s Coal Drops Yard on completion<\/p>\n\t

Source:Hufton + Crow<\/p><\/div>\n

Coal Drops Yard is part of Allies and Morrison and Porphyrios Associates\u2019 wider masterplan for the regeneration of King\u2019s Cross, which is shortlisted<\/a> for the 2024 Stirling Prize.<\/p>\n

Publisher Martin Rynja, who lives nearby, believes the central space of Coal Drops Yard was one reason why the King\u2019s Crosss masterplan was shortlisted, in comments echoing Gormley\u2019s.<\/p>\n

Rynja said: \u2018It is very sad to see a proposal that seeks to cover the Coal Drops Yard, which won the national RIBA Award 2019 for its successful balance between conservation, design, and commercial development as a unique win, win, win.\u2019<\/p>\n

He continued: \u2018Its high architectural quality is the reason why the area has turned out to be so amazing. To see that masterplan undermined is disappointing. The Coal Drops Yard is already currently used as a hub of constant activity, as it would have been when built, and why one of the few empty spaces in the area need to be filled in with permanent buildings is not really clear.\u2019<\/p>\n

Work on the pavilion is expected to get under way in January 2025, subject to approval.<\/p>\n

\"\"

Fathom Architects’ pavilion proposal for Coal Drops Yard<\/p>\n\t

Source:Fathom Architects<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Plans drawn-up by Fathom Architects for the King\u2019s Cross Central Limited Partnership (KCCLP) and Related Argent, the client and developer behind the Heatherwick Studio-designed Coal Drops Yard (2018), were submitted to Camden Council last month. The proposal for a single-storey structure made of stained timber and panelled \u2018shingle\u2019 roof would honour the Victorian architecture found …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131789,"featured_media":753116,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"categories":[681],"tags":[6222,3917,1270,6221],"yoast_head":"\nAntony Gormley slams Coal Drops Yard pavilion proposal as \u2018simply a bad idea\u2019<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Artist Antony Gormley has spoken out against a proposed retail pavilion at Coal Drops Yard in London\u2019s King\u2019s Cross\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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