Baskerville House

Last updated

Baskerville House
Baskerville House - geograph.org.uk - 1190043.jpg
Baskerville House
General information
TypeOffice
Architectural style Art Deco
Location Centenary Square, Birmingham, England
Coordinates 52°28′48.18″N1°54′27.02″W / 52.4800500°N 1.9075056°W / 52.4800500; -1.9075056
Completed1938 (1938)
Owner Targetfollow
Design and construction
Architect(s) T. Cecil Howitt
Awards and prizes
  • Grade II listed
  • Commercial Development of the Year (Midland Property Awards 2007)
  • Refurbished/Recycled Workplace (British Council of Offices 2007)
Baskerville House, west-facing side, prior to redevelopment BT Tower and Baskerville House.jpg
Baskerville House, west-facing side, prior to redevelopment

Baskerville House, previously called the Civic Centre, is a former civic building in Centenary Square, Birmingham, England. After serving as offices for the Birmingham City Council, it was extended with additional floors in 2007.

Contents

History

Model of the planned Civic Centre Birmingham Civic Scheme.jpg
Model of the planned Civic Centre

The site was originally occupied by the home of John Baskerville. He was buried nearby in the area which was known as Easy Hill. When the construction of a canal through the area was proposed, Baskerville's body was exhumed and found to be in good condition. It was placed on display to the public before being buried at Christ Church. [1] The site adjacent to the canal, on the site of Baskerville House, was purchased by the Birmingham Aluminium Company who constructed Baskerville Basin. Gibson's Basin was also constructed nearby to serve a rolling mill. The city council bought the land in 1919 for a new Civic Centre. Baskerville Basin was filled in but Gibson's Basin remained. However, in 1936, Winfields Ltd decided to relocate to Icknield Port after taking over Vivians Rolling Mills. They abandoned the remainder of Gibson's Basin to Birmingham City Council who filled it in for their Civic Centre plans. [2]

In 1926, the city council organised an open competition for the new layout of the Civic Centre, however, many of the designs were deemed 'Too Ambitious'. As a result, the city engineer was asked to work with the architects of the Hall of Memory, S. N. Cooke, to create a better design. T. Cecil Howitt of Nottingham was asked to design the first building, which was to become Baskerville House. This was approved in 1936 and construction began in 1938. [3] It became the only component to be built from the plan for the Civic Centre which would have covered all of Centenary Square and the Convention Centre, and included the Masonic Hall (192627 Rupert Savage) (demolished 2008) and Birmingham Municipal Bank (recently TSB) building (193133 also T. Cecil Howitt) on Broad Street. World War II halted construction of Baskerville House (hence the rear brick wall, intended to be temporary), and after the war the use of Roman Imperial imagery on public buildings went out of fashion. A 1941 model of the proposed Civic Centre, designed by William Haywood, Secretary of The Birmingham Civic Society, is displayed in the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.

The building is decorated with the coat of arms of Birmingham.

Renovation

Front of Baskerville House during refurbishment in 2006 before work on the Library of Birmingham began Baskerville House.jpg
Front of Baskerville House during refurbishment in 2006 before work on the Library of Birmingham began

Formerly offices for parts of Birmingham City Council, including the Planning Department [4] and Economic Development Department, the Grade II listed building [5] remained vacant for several years after the City Council vacated the property in the spring of 1998. The initial refurbishment plan proposed conversion to a Radisson Edwardian Hotel. [6] A feasibility study into whether it was possible to locate the Central Library was carried out, and the building was deemed to not be suitable as it would not be strong enough to hold all the books. [3]

The building was subsequently sold to Targetfollow who proposed to convert into offices. This was approved and it was completely gutted and extended two floors upwards to provide office space on seven floors, and a health club in the basement. Work started in August 2003 and was completed in early 2007 at an estimated cost of £30 million. There is 195,108 sq ft (18,126.1 m2) of office space [7] within the building with floorplates of 27,000 sq ft (2,500 m2). The two new floors are of steel and glass. [8] A lighting scheme was added to the exterior by Hoare Lea Lighting of the Hoare Lee group who were also commissioned for other aspects of the build. [9]

The building won the Commercial Development of the Year award at the Midlands Property Week awards in July 2007. [10] The building also won the Midlands and East Anglia regional award in the Refurbished/Recycled Workplace category at the British Council for Offices awards in October 2007. [11]

A statue of King Edward VII was moved to a plinth near the South-West corner of the building in November 2010.

Industry and Genius

Industry and Genius, 1990, by David Patten, sculpture outside Baskerville House Baskerville - Industry and Genius.jpg
Industry and Genius, 1990, by David Patten, sculpture outside Baskerville House

A sculpture of the Baskerville typeface, Industry and Genius, in honour of John Baskerville stands outside the main entrance to Baskerville House in Centenary Square. It is by local artist David Patten and was created as part of the 'Percentage For Art' scheme in 1990. The letters spell out Virgil, the name of the Roman poet whose works were printed by Baskerville, in his typeface, in 1757. [12] Made out of Portland stone and bronze, it is 150 centimetres (59 in) high, 100 centimetres (39 in) wide and 650 centimetres (256 in) long. [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Baskerville</span> English businessman

John Baskerville was an English businessman, in areas including japanning and papier-mâché, but he is best remembered as a printer and type designer. He was also responsible for inventing "wove paper", which was considerably smoother than "laid paper", allowing for sharper printing results.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Broad Street, Birmingham</span>

Broad Street is a major thoroughfare and popular nightspot centre in Central Birmingham, England. Traditionally, Broad Street was considered to be outside Birmingham City Centre, but as the city centre expanded with the removal of the Inner Ring Road, Broad Street has been incorporated into the new Westside district of the city centre due to its position within the A4540 road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centenary Square</span>

Centenary Square is a public square on the north side of Broad Street in Birmingham, England, named in 1989 to commemorate the centenary of Birmingham achieving city status. The area was an industrial area of small workshops and canal wharves before it was purchased by the council in the 1920s for the creation of a grand civic centre scheme to include museums, council offices, cathedral and opera house. The scheme was abandoned after the arrival of World War II with only the Hall of Memory and half of the planned Baskerville House complete. After the war the scheme was revived in a simpler form however the council never managed to implement the design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birmingham Central Library</span> Former main public library in Birmingham, England

Birmingham Central Library was the main public library in Birmingham, England, from 1974 until 2013, replacing a library opened in 1865 and rebuilt in 1882. For a time the largest non-national library in Europe, it closed on 29 June 2013 and was replaced by the Library of Birmingham. The building was demolished in 2016, after 41 years, as part of the redevelopment of Paradise Circus by Argent Group. Designed by architect John Madin in the brutalist style, the library was part of an ambitious development project by Birmingham City Council to create a civic centre on its new Inner Ring Road system; however, for economic reasons significant parts of the master plan were not completed, and quality was reduced on materials as an economic measure. Two previous libraries occupied the adjacent site before Madin's library opened in 1974. The previous library, designed by John Henry Chamberlain, opened in 1883 and featured a tall clerestoried reading room. It was demolished in 1974 after the new library had opened.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hall of Memory, Birmingham</span> Public sculpture by Albert Toft

The Hall of Memory is a war memorial in Centenary Square, Birmingham, England, designed by S. N. Cooke and W. N. Twist. Erected 1922–25 by John Barnsley and Son, it commemorates the 12,320 Birmingham citizens who died in World War I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brindleyplace</span> Mixed-use development in Birmingham, England

Brindleyplace is a large mixed-use canalside development, in the Westside district of Birmingham, England. It was named after Brindley Place, the name of the street around which it is built. It was developed by the Argent Group from 1993 onwards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Square, Birmingham</span>

Victoria Square is a pedestrianised public square in Birmingham, England. It is home to both the Town Hall and the Council House, and directly adjacent to Chamberlain Square. It is named in honour of Queen Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Digbeth</span> Human settlement in England

Digbeth is an area of central Birmingham, England. Following the destruction of the Inner Ring Road, Digbeth is now considered a district within Birmingham City Centre. As part of the Big City Plan, Digbeth is undergoing a large redevelopment scheme that will regenerate the old industrial buildings into apartments, retail premises, offices and arts facilities. The district is considered to be Birmingham's 'Creative Quarter'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big City Plan</span>

The Big City Plan is a major development plan for the city centre of Birmingham, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">V Building</span> Building in Birmingham, England

The V Building was a proposed 51-storey residential skyscraper approved for construction on Broad Street on the Westside of the city centre of Birmingham, England. The tower was part of the larger Arena Central development scheme on the former ATV / Central Television Studios, closed in 1997. The entire development site covered an area of 7.6 acres (31,000 m2). On completion the development was set to include offices, shops, restaurants, cafes, leisure/entertainment, fitness centre and hotel. It was to have been built on the site of a multi-level underground car park next to Alpha Tower, one of the tallest buildings in Birmingham. The total cost of the entire scheme was expected to be £400 million and of the tower, £150 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Haywood (architect)</span> English architect and urban planner

William Joseph Haywood was an English architect, urban planner and Secretary of The Birmingham Civic Society for twenty-nine years, being a founder member in 1918.

This article is intended to show a timeline of events in the History of Birmingham, England, with a particular focus on the events, people or places that are covered in Wikipedia articles.

Thomas Cecil Howitt, OBE was a British provincial architect of the 20th Century. Howitt is chiefly remembered for designing prominent public buildings, such as the Council House and Processional Way in Nottingham, Baskerville House in Birmingham, Newport Civic Centre, and several Odeon cinemas. Howitt's chief architectural legacies are in his home city of Nottingham. He was Housing Architect for the City Council, designing municipal housing estates which are often considered to be among the finest in terms of planning in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snowhill</span> Hotel, residential, office and retail in Birmingham, England

Snowhill is a mixed-use development in the Colmore business district, known historically as Snow Hill, in Central Birmingham, England. The area, between Snow Hill Queensway and Birmingham Snow Hill station, is being redeveloped by the Ballymore Group. The £500 million phased scheme has been partly completed on the site of a former surface car park adjacent to the railway station and West Midlands Metro terminus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birmingham city centre</span> City in the West Midlands, England

Birmingham city centre, also known as Central Birmingham, is the central business district of Birmingham, England. The area was historically in Warwickshire. Following the removal of the Inner Ring Road, the city centre is now defined as being the area within the Middle Ring Road. The city centre is undergoing massive redevelopment with the Big City Plan, which means there are now nine emerging districts and the city centre is approximately five times bigger.

Targetfollow is a property investment and development company in the United Kingdom, established in 1992 and specialising in city centre buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Library of Birmingham</span> Public library in Birmingham, United Kingdom

The Library of Birmingham is a public library in Birmingham, England. It is situated on the west side of the city centre at Centenary Square, beside the Birmingham Rep and Baskerville House. Upon opening on 3 September 2013, it replaced Birmingham Central Library. The library, which is estimated to have cost £188.8 million, is viewed by the Birmingham City Council as a flagship project for the city's redevelopment. It has been described as the largest public library in the United Kingdom, the largest public cultural space in Europe, and the largest regional library in Europe. 2,414,860 visitors came to the library in 2014 making it the 10th most popular visitor attraction in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Crescent, Birmingham</span>

The Crescent was a part-completed Regency-style terrace in central Birmingham, England. The scheme was first proposed in 1788, construction started in 1795 and was discontinued the same year. The partially-completed terrace was finally demolished in the mid- to late 1960s. Like other late 18th and early 19th century crescent terraces in Britain and Ireland, it took its inspiration from The Crescent, Bath, designed by John Wood the Younger and built 1767 to 1774.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paradise, Birmingham</span> Area in the city centre of Birmingham, England

Paradise, formerly named Paradise Circus, is the name given to an area of approximately 7 hectares in Birmingham city centre between Chamberlain and Centenary Squares. The area has been part of the civic centre of Birmingham, England since the 19th century when it contained buildings such as the Town Hall, Mason Science College, Birmingham and Midland Institute buildings and Central Library. The site was redeveloped from 1960 to 1975 into the present Paradise Circus based within a roundabout on the Inner Ring Road system containing a new Central Library and School of Music. From 2015, Argent Group will redevelop the area into new mixed use buildings and public squares.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">One Centenary Square</span> Grade A Offices, Retail, Restaurant in England, UK

One Centenary Square, is a 55 metres (180 ft), eleven storey building between Alpha Tower and the former Birmingham Municipal Bank headquarters on Broad Street in Birmingham, England. The building serves HSBC Bank as their UK headquarters for the personal and business banking operations.

References

  1. Chris Upton (1993). A History of Birmingham. ISBN   0-85033-870-0.
  2. The Birmingham Canal Navigations Society: BCN Branches and Bye ways by Ray Shill - 6.. Gibson's Arm
  3. 1 2 Original construction of Baskerville House
  4. Adrian Salt; Henry Brown (1998). Planning Applications: The RMJM Guide. Blackwell Publishing. ISBN   0-632-04117-X.
  5. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1271414)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  6. BirminghamUK: Landmarks around Birmingham (1)
  7. New Year’s Present for Birmingham’s Office Market Archived August 6, 2007, at the Wayback Machine - Locate Birmingham, January 23, 2007 (Accessed October 7, 2007)
  8. Targetfollow: Developments - Baskerville House Archived January 21, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  9. Baskerville House reaches completion Archived July 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine - Building Services and Environmental Engineer, April 24, 2007 (Accessed October 7, 2007)
  10. Baskerville House scoops top gong at awards evening [ permanent dead link ] - Baskerville House press release, July 27, 2007 (Accessed October 7, 2007)
  11. Baskerville House one of top offices in the UK - Birmingham Post, October 5, 2007 (Accessed October 7, 2007)
  12. Birmingham.gov.uk: Industry and Genius
  13. Noszlopy, George; Jeremy Beach (1998). Public Sculpture of Birmingham. Liverpool University Press. p. 25. ISBN   0-85323-692-5.