The former Reynards/Airspeed site, Piccadilly, earlier this year

Let’s leave Clifford’s Tower and dash across to nearby Piccadilly, to the site of the old Reynard’s garage/Airspeed building, pictured above earlier this year. It has been looking a bit empty and boring since the demolition of that building. Nothing had been planned to replace it, and I thought we might end up with a buddleia forest, as on so many other empty ‘brownfield’ sites. But last week local media reported ‘Bold new street food plan for York eyesore site‘ (York Press) and ‘Shops and street food – inside shipping containers! Bold plan for York city centre revealed‘ (York Mix).

I was at the computer doing something tedious and boring when this news story appeared, and it seemed to brighten a dull November afternoon. ‘Wow’ was my initial reaction.

Comments on the York Mix piece and on Twitter seemed also generally positive. Comments on the Press article seemed mainly negative. There were, as I thought there might be, immediate calls for cladding of some description to make it all look nicer and more in keeping with historic York. (My favourite comment suggested we might go for ‘wattle and daub’.)

The Reynard’s garage/Airspeed site is somewhere I’ve been interested in since first noticing the building on that site in 2004, during my urban wanders. Yes, a whole 12 years ago. So I was really sad to see the building go. But now it’s gone, and it’s an empty site, in a central location, and it needs using, and this seems like a good plan to use it. I’m not quite clear on how the arrangement of shipping containers is going to fit, as it’s a narrow site, but the press reports included illustrations like this:

Proposed for Reynard’s garage site, Piccadilly, from Spark:York

Personally I’m not offended by the idea of shipping containers, or any other ‘ugly’ and functional thing on this particular site in Piccadilly. The plan is for a temporary construction, on an empty site, and therefore involves no obvious harm. In fact it seems like a fairly good fit to the spirit of the place. Piccadilly’s not an ancient York street, it’s relatively new, this bit being an early 20th century construction. It was made to serve the needs of the early 20th century and now needs to fit with the early 21st century.

This part of York, in the Fossgate/Walmgate/Piccadilly area has changed in many ways in the time I’ve been doing this website, both culturally and in terms of its built environment — almost unrecognisable in parts of nearby Walmgate. The same as many ‘York born and bred’ people of a certain age I can’t help but have mixed feelings about all these changes, because there’s a certain amount of loss involved. But I can’t see that anything will be lost in this proposed plan, apart from perhaps a loss of light to some of the nearby properties. But not half as much as when the inevitable tall building appears on the site, at some point in the future.

This isn’t the first mention of the possible use of shipping containers as temporary accommodation for start-ups. A document prepared as part of the UNESCO City of Media Arts bid (PDF on this link) includes a reference to ‘stripped and refitted shipping containers on a 99-year lease’ as part of the York Central development. Also, Googling revealed that Goole got some in 2010, they’re perhaps still there.

The Spark York project website includes a PDF with more background information. It includes an interesting comment from Grace, a student at the University of York:

Having been a student in York for three years, I feel that there’s a need for more social cohesion, namely between the student community and local residents. … Students already contribute great things to York; young talent, creativity and investment but this needs to be harnessed more through a project such as the one proposed.

Grace isn’t alone in feeling that there’s a need for more social cohesion. To hope that this or any project could bridge what appears to be a growing divide between the student communities and local resident communities is perhaps to expect too much, but surely it’s better that the site is used, as soon as possible, and personally I admire the boldness of it. And can’t see, on what I’ve read, any grounds to object to putting functional temporary structures on an unused piece of land in Piccadilly.

Spark York’s proposals for the Piccadilly site are on the agenda of the council’s Executive meeting this Thursday, 24 November. (Agenda on this link, see item 11, and linked PDF for report.)

It’s a packed agenda with many things of interest, one in particular of great interest to me. Should be an interesting meeting to watch on the webcast.

Update

Since this page was written a planning application has been submitted. More info on this link.

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At the Executive meeting on Thursday members voted to proceed with the demolition of the former Airspeed factory building (Reynard’s garage). There will be a planning application submitted for this demolition. As the council owns it and the council also decides on planning applications then quite how that works democratically I don’t know. Basically the council gives permission to itself. And may perhaps get on with beginning to demolish it before official approval, as I was told had happened on ‘health and safety’ grounds with the RCAF hostel (aka the ‘hutments’/Marygate Centre) behind the art gallery. Another bit of 20th century history removed.

Anyway, let’s try to find something positive. Briefly I felt invigorated and inspired, while watching and listening to the speakers at the meeting, via the webcast. Speaking in favour of keeping and repairing the old Airspeed factory were Alison Sinclair, Joshua Taylor, John Gallery and Dave Taylor, in the ‘Public participation’ bit, agenda item 4. You can watch it on YouTube. This link should start at the relevant point, or watch below, move the slider to 16 mins in.

The public participation is always worth watching. Passionate and well-informed people making their case. On this occasion I knew in advance about three of them, as we’d been in touch by email before the meeting. I didn’t know about Joshua Taylor’s contribution but I liked what he said (at 20 mins 8 secs in the recording). I asked him if he could send me the text. Here it is, as a PDF, if you’d prefer to read it.

There was something very heartening about hearing all these people speak up for a building many other people just view as an inconvenient eyesore. The fact that they could see it as something else in the future shows imagination and sensitivity to what heritage is and what it means. At the heritage event last weekend the point was made during discussions that heritage is about the future as well as the past – the choices we make now about what we want to preserve for people in the future to experience and appreciate. It’s not backward-looking, it’s future-enhancing. Or could have been. Not in this case.

I was thinking a lot about the councillors and their responsibilities, particularly after having a brief chat with Chris Steward last weekend, at the heritage event. The event had been cheering as it brought together many different perspectives, and decision-makers with people who try to influence those decisions, the ‘heritage brigade’. I went away feeling like much more was possible, feeling cheered and heartened. I also went away from it realising that the Airspeed/Reynard’s building had so much support, having been mentioned many times by various speakers. And because of that, wanted to encourage the many people I know who read this site and care about the building to put their views across.

As the building had so much support for so long from so many people from so many different backgrounds and perspectives I really thought the council would choose to save it, and undertake the necessary repairs.

I’m sorry that they didn’t and I hope that those of you who responded to the earlier page don’t feel like you wasted your time. I feel like I wasted mine, on this and many other cases where buildings on the draft ‘Local List’ have been under threat and then demolished. As most of them have been cleared out of the way already there’s actually only one threatened bit of industrial heritage still standing that I really care about. I wonder if any of you can guess what it is. I doubt I’ll be trying to save it. Such efforts seem increasingly pointless really, don’t they, and I’ve got better things to do with my time, as I’m sure you have too. Let’s just let our elected representatives get on with it, like we did back in the old days.

The post Notes on the Airspeed/Reynard’s garage saga appeared first on York Stories.

Thanks to everyone who emailed and shared this page, even though we didn’t achieve the desired result. The decision was made at last night’s meeting to proceed with demolition:

Exec agree recommendations to seek planning permission to demolish the former Reynards Garage under advice it poses a danger to the public

— City of York Council (@CityofYork) June 25, 2015

More later. (Here it is, added 28 June)

. . .

Photo: Andy Marshall

On Thursday a group of councillors may take the decision, on behalf of the residents they represent, to demolish this building. That would be a short-sighted and wrong decision. It might not look pretty, this building, but that’s not the point. Heritage isn’t always pretty. Especially when it has been neglected for years.

How to object to the proposed demolition

Send your objection as soon as possible, preferably immediately after reading this, and before the meeting at 5.30pm on Thursday 25 June. Below is a list of email addresses, of the councillors making the decision on Thursday. You can cut and paste it into your ‘To’ line in an email. Put ‘Airspeed/Reynard’s building, 17-21 Piccadilly, item 14, Executive meeting, 25 June‘ as the subject, and then state that you disagree with the proposed demolition, and think the building should be preserved. That the council should continue to work to ensure that the Yorkshire Air Museum is fully supported in its plans for the building.

Send your email to:

cllr.nayre@york.gov.uk, cllr.kaspden@york.gov.uk, cllr.csteward@york.gov.uk, cllr.crunciman@york.gov.uk, cllr.awaller@york.gov.uk, cllr.igillies@york.gov.uk, cllr.dcarr@york.gov.uk, cllr.jbrooks@york.gov.uk

Members of the public can attend Thursday’s meeting. For details of the time and venue etc see the first link under ‘Further information’, below.

Background

The former Reynard’s garage/Airspeed factory/Megazone/trolleybus depot on Piccadilly has managed to survive years and years of neglect, and an arson attack. And for years the Yorkshire Air Museum has proposed turning it into a visitor attraction to celebrate its history, to mark the fact that for 2 years in the early 1930s Airspeed was based here.

This ‘asset’, which belongs to the City of York Council, actually belongs to the city, ie us. Which means we are entitled to express our views on what happens to it.

Though I’ve never pretended to be a heritage expert, I’m an expert when it comes to my own website and Twitter and email conversations, and I know that this building has provoked more interest and more comment than any other under-threat heritage asset I’ve included on these pages. It has many supporters, including knowledgeable and respected heritage experts like Peter Addyman and Alison Sinclair. It was mentioned many times at the event on Saturday, when it became clear that even more people cared about its fate than I’d realised before.

Interest in its history has grown over the years as more people have read about it.

This council administration is supposed to be making wiser decisions than the previous one did. Please help them to do that.

Send your email to:

cllr.nayre@york.gov.uk, cllr.kaspden@york.gov.uk, cllr.csteward@york.gov.uk, cllr.crunciman@york.gov.uk, cllr.awaller@york.gov.uk, cllr.igillies@york.gov.uk, cllr.dcarr@york.gov.uk, cllr.jbrooks@york.gov.uk

More information

Information on Thursday’s meeting, on the City of York Council website. See item 14.

The CYC report on the condition of the building (PDF) written by a City of York Council officer, for Thursday’s meeting, recommending the demolition option, is on this link

Structural survey report (PDF) from 2009,  survey carried out by Wm Saunders Partnership at request of CYC

Structural survey report (PDF) April 2015 survey, as above

Surveyors report on work required (PDF)

English Heritage advice report (PDF) – EH rejected listing the building, but notes its importance, and includes detailed architectural information

All my previous posts on the Airspeed/Reynards building

And below, a few ‘related posts’ to remind us of just some of the other buildings demolished in recent years.

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Back in 2004, when not quite so derelict-looking

The Press and York Mix have both reported today a press release from the council on the former Airspeed factory building (aka Reynard’s Garage/that old eyesore on Piccadilly/derelict tram shed, etc).

It is, to use that rather odd phrase repeated often in the Press, under threat of being ‘torn down’ (as if demolition is undertaken by an angry mob of rioters using their bare hands, rather than being a carefully planned operation tackled in a completely unemotional way, with machinery).

Anyone interested in this should probably read the original press release from City of York council: here it is, the factual version, without the inflammatory language.

I’ve got nothing much to add, as I’ve written about it many times, for years. I first took a photo of the building in 2004, when I knew nothing about it – the photo at the top of this page. It captured my interest, seemed to illustrate a period in the city’s history, seemed … and I realise this looks daft but I can’t think of any other way to put it … seemed to ‘speak to me’. In a way that many of the city’s more famous bits of heritage never have.

Since then it has suffered from an arson attack and from the council not knowing what to do with it, and I’ve written about it many times.

I was interested to see the building appear on Twitter recently in a photo by Andy Marshall. He doesn’t live in York, he’s a professional photographer specialising in architecture, and was passing through the city. He didn’t know about the building’s history, but noticed its character, charm, and dilapidated state. It’s interesting that a building like this speaks to some of us and captures our attention, to others it’s just an eyesore and they wonder what all the fuss is about and why it’s still there.

If you are interested, there are many pages on this site, tagged ‘Airspeed’. And if you are interested, go and stand by the doorway pictured and look at the bulk of it and the size of the opening and think about what was built inside it and brought out from it, and what that would have been like at the time, how exciting it all was.

And then perhaps accept that York isn’t very good with industrial heritage, doesn’t know what to do with it, doesn’t think that its 20th century history is important, unless it’s about chocolate.

Here’s Andy’s photo.

Do you know that the stucco is peeling? Do you know that the heart will stop? From those y… http://t.co/gudNk8T0AB pic.twitter.com/FRGYnUrK8o

— Andy Marshall (@fotofacade) May 25, 2015

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Demolition of Burnholme Club

In January, demolition work began on this ‘fantasy villa’, aka Burnholme Club. We already knew this was going to happen, but I was still really shocked to see this photo.

Demolition of former Burnholme Social Club begins http://t.co/qaPn1CJece pic.twitter.com/oEk3XER4Jj

— The Press (@yorkpress) January 28, 2015

Looks wrong, doesn’t it. Like something from the 1960s.

Over the course of the last decade or so I’ve seen other buildings demolished, and some buildings saved and remodelled for new uses. It’s always nice to see buildings reused, and generally in the 21st century it seems we try hard to do that, where possible. So what went wrong here?

This landmark building, confident and handsome, with prettier details, could have been a desirable residence, if turned into flats.

Not economically viable, apparently. But still really very shocking to see it destroyed in this way. Really is like going back to the 1960s, and not in a good way.

See earlier pages on Burnholme Club for more background information.

Reynard’s garage/former Airspeed factory

This is really interesting. I’ve been banging on about this building for years, and I know I’m not the only one, and that many other people find it of interest and think that it should be preserved. The council, who own it, had apparently sold it, which, the available information suggested, meant it would be demolished and a hotel built on the site.

But no … I was rather pleased to read in the Press recently that all that had fallen through/been abandoned.

Why? Could it be that those with the power to affect such things realised it doesn’t look good demolishing interesting buildings, local heritage assets?

Perhaps there was some shame and embarrassment that the demolition of the Burnholme Club building was waved through with so little fight to save it.

Perhaps the new leader of the council read Nevil Shute’s autobiography Slide Rule and realised that this building is really very interesting and worth preserving.

Who knows. But there are now ‘new plans being drawn up’, according to the Press.

Do these involve the Yorkshire Air Museum? That would make sense.

Interest in 20th century history and industrial heritage is growing all the time. As is our awareness of place and local heritage. And the Yorkshire Air Museum wants to create a visitor attraction in the Reynard’s/Airspeed building, based in a particular place where at a particular point in the 20th century a particularly interesting venture got off the ground.

It’s kind of obvious what should happen, isn’t it.

Or if not that, how about today’s young entrepreneurs occupying it, instead of the Guildhall buildings, as that idea doesn’t appear to have massive popular support?

Background: all pages on this site on the Airspeed/Reynard’s building

Former White Swan Hotel, Piccadilly: looking good

Ah, the White Swan. I’ve never been inside the place, but feel as if I have, having read so much about it, written so much about it, over so many years.

I had a wander past a month or so ago, and it was quite remarkable, the transformation.

I love to see what people who know what they’re doing can do with old buildings seen as ‘eyesores’. This building, because of its prettiness and its copying of older styles, was seen as something worth preserving and renovating, despite its shabby appearance from decades of emptiness. It’s so good to see it rescued from its sad and useless boarded-up state, after so long.

See earlier pages on the White Swan, Piccadilly for more background.

Meanwhile, over in Holgate …

Perhaps the rather less pretty but particularly interesting Reynard’s/Airspeed building will also be rescued and remodelled for a new use after years of dereliction. And meanwhile, over in Holgate, I’m hoping that this significant reminder of our industrial and cultural heritage hasn’t yet gone the way of the Burnholme Club building, but I guess it won’t be long before we see photos of it being smashed to bits.

Carriageworks canteen, Holgate Rd, 27 July 2014

Not widely appreciated, generally forgotten, but the character area statement for this area — part of the Historic Environment Characterisation Project — recognises the significance of this former canteen, once part of the entrance to a busy workplace, and an important part of York’s story for many York residents:

The carriage works still function for the repair and maintenance of railway equipment and represent a significant survival of railway structures. The canteen buildings (1888) at these works have been nominated for inclusion on the Local List of Heritage Assets as the last remaining social building in the carriage works complex. Some buildings have unfortunately been recently demolished by Network Rail for health and safety reasons.

… Those buildings that have been recommended for inclusion on the Local List of Heritage Assets add significant value to the character of this area. The majority are intimately connected with the railway. Every effort should be made to ensure that these buildings are retained and kept in productive use. Their loss or inappropriate alteration would have significant impacts on the character of this area. Remaining historic railway and industrial structures should wherever possible be retained and sympathetically converted to practical uses. Many could be successfully integrated into modern development.

Source: PDF download from this page on the council website

Will York ever find a way to respect and preserve this building, as it found a way to preserve the White Swan on Piccadilly and may yet find a way into the future for the Airspeed factory? It is 2015 after all, it’s not the 1960s, we’re wiser now about ‘heritage’ in all its forms.

For more on the meaning and significance of the carriageworks canteen, see the other pages on this website.

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‘Meet Amy Johnson’ – brochure for proposed ‘Airspeed: a 1930s adventure’

Have a look at this brochure if you haven’t already seen it:

Brochure for ‘Airspeed – a 1930s adventure’ (PDF, 1.55MB)

This is what we could have in the old Airspeed (Reynard’s) building in Piccadilly. I first included the brochure on here back in 2011, and as there’s a lot more interest now than there was then, I thought I’d mention it again.

The Yorkshire Air Museum plan is being referred to as an ‘Airspeed Museum’. Which makes it sound a bit dull. Like it’s going to be glass display cases with bits of old aircraft in.

It’s far more interesting and wide-ranging than that, as the brochure shows. About conveying the spirit of the times. And with more glamour than you might have expected.

The Yorkshire Air Museum haven’t just popped up now because the building is under threat of demolition – they’ve been trying to arrange its reuse for years. Previous councils didn’t help them and this council wants to demolish the place to build a hotel.

This looks far more interesting, doesn’t it.

If you like the look of ‘Airspeed: a 1930s adventure’, email cllr.dwilliams@york.gov.uk, or tell him on Twitter.

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