Preston Bus Station

[PR1Berske]

Preston Bus Station has today been listed Grade 2 status.

 

[Lampshade]

Most excellent

 

[PR1Berske]

Great news. Really happy.

Link here- http://www.lep.co.uk/news/preston-bus-station-wins-listed-status-1-6077240

 

[overthewater]

So the bus station is staying?

 

[PR1Berske]

It certainly will be difficult to knock it down now

 

[Nick W]

It's fantastic to see that our culture minister, himself a fan of heritage, has gone against the strong "capitalist" will to demolish and rebuild and instead saved a treasure of a building (and many other similar buildings of lately).

I look forward to seeing what plans will be proposed to make the bus station fit for the next 40 years!

 

[PR1Berske]

In 2008 I took photographs of the station here - http://www.flickr.com/photos/27325559@N02/sets/72157607310570321/


I notice the reaction to the Listing of Preston Bus Station has been very mixed, and not very measured. The Council Leader is being rather disingenuous with his reaction, particularly with regard to funding and costs. I would say that the bias is definitely on support for listing.

 

[Condor7]

It is good news, but as a building it only works if being used for it's intended purpose.

If the council decide to build another bus station elsewhere rather than invest in refurbishing, it could end up looking a bit of a white elephant.

 

[Statto]

Stupid decision the bus station is a complete dump, that needs rebuilding.

 

[Class20]

I notice the reaction to the Listing of Preston Bus Station has been very mixed, and not very measured. The Council Leader is being rather disingenuous with his reaction, particularly with regard to funding and costs.

I'm not surprised, he now has the task of finding enough money to keep the building in a usable condition year after year when clearly its in no fit state to be used. The city is stuck with a building that is past its use by date and needs to be replaced with facilities fit the 21st century.

Surely it would make sense to create a brand new bus station with modern facilities and lower running costs rather than trying to patch up the existing bus station?

I do wonder if any of the people who have been part of the decision to list the building actually use it, or have used it, on a daily basis? If they did then they would soon see that the building is in a poor condition and needs to come down.

 

[snail]

I do wonder if any of the people who have been part of the decision to list the building actually use it, or have used it, on a daily basis? If they did then they would soon see that the building is in a poor condition and needs to come down.

Can a building be listed and put on the 'at risk' register at the same time? Do Preston council actually have to do anything other than not demolish it?

As the County Council would be paying for a new bus station they should get on and build it in a convenient location near the railway station, leaving the eyesore for the Brutalists in an increasingly run down part of the city.

 

[Nick W]

Can a building be listed and put on the 'at risk' register at the same time? Do Preston council actually have to do anything other than not demolish it?

As the County Council would be paying for a new bus station they should get on and build it in a convenient location near the railway station, leaving the eyesore for the Brutalists in an increasingly run down part of the city.

Until the point at which it needs emergency repairs.

Hopefully the council will take a better approach and tap into the newly available sources of funding to improve that part of the city. Talk about dereliction of duty!

 

[Antman]

Stupid decision the bus station is a complete dump, that needs rebuilding.

I have to say that is very much my opinion as well, I'm at a loss as to why anybody wants to save such a 1970's eyesore?

 

[MidnightFlyer]

I wouldn't be bothered so much but oh so often English Heritage pester endlessly for places to be listed and then offer no help whatsoever beyond that. I presume in this instance now Preston City Council are being made to foot the bill for any excess costs keeping the bus station has, or are English Heritage actually providing some funding, you know, since it was actually them who wanted it kept...

 

[Nick W]

Every architectural period has a subsequent period in which the majority don't want to save its buildings. Many great buildings have unfortunately been demolished:

• The original University of Glasgow buildings, demolished in 1870s to build a railway yard.
• The Adelphi Buildings deomilshed in the 1930s
• Euston, demolished 1961-1962
• The London Coal Exchange, demolished in 1962
• The Firestone Building, demolished 1980
• The Derwent Tower, demolished 2012

I wouldn't be bothered so much but oh so often English Heritage pester endlessly for places to be listed and then offer no help whatsoever beyond that.

What do you mean? I suspect if the council approached them to discuss plans, the much of the hard design work would be done for them.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

As the County Council would be paying for a new bus station they should get on and build it in a convenient location near the railway station, leaving the eyesore for the Brutalists in an increasingly run down part of the city.

Thanks for this posting which clearly states the difference between the county council and the city council in the financial provisions that will be required to build a new bus station.

 

[youngboy]

My view is and I've parked on this car park quite a lot, it's a dump, it stinks, and you risk life and limb exiting the bus station. Apart from that it looks great from a distance !!

 

[snail]

Every architectural period has a subsequent period in which the majority don't want to save its buildings. Many great buildings have unfortunately been demolished

It's a shame then that the Bus Station is neither great nor demolished.

@youngboy has it spot on. It looks good from a distance and in photos but is simply too dated to be practical in this day and age. Most people go to a bus station to catch buses not wonder at the architecture. You have to risk life and limb to get into Preston bus station because of the appalling access routes.

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

It's a shame then that the Bus Station is neither great nor demolished.

@youngboy has it spot on. It looks good from a distance and in photos but is simply too dated to be practical in this day and age. Most people go to a bus station to catch buses not wonder at the architecture. You have to risk life and limb to get into Preston bus station because of the appalling access routes.

I guess that taste is always subjective. However, we must learn from the mistakes of the past. As was stated earlier, we tore down a load of Victorian architecture as it was of no merit such as the entrance to Euston station.

There were also plans to bulldoze the hotel at St Pancras, and the fourth trainshed at Paddington. Look at those now and you wonder how anyone with any love of architecture and history could contemplate that.

The other point is that, when someone wants to close/redevelop something, then the costs are often (deliberately) inflated. The Ribblehead Viaduct was supposed to cost £6m to repair in 1984; when the work was actually completed in 1992, it actually cost £3m. That was less than half when inflation is factored in!!

Preston bus station is a gem of brutalist architecture and you only know what you had once it's gone. Instead, you might get some soulless identikit glass and steel affair that could be anywhere

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Preston bus station is a gem of brutalist architecture and you only know what you had once it's gone. Instead, you might get some soulless identikit glass and steel affair that could be anywhere

The problem is, as was stated on the previous thread that was closed some time ago, we know what we have now as it is still here.....

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The problem is, as was stated on the previous thread that was closed some time ago, we know what we have now as it is still here.....

Yes, and as I and an earlier poster noted, this country is littered with examples of where significant buildings are lost because of a lack of vision.

As an example, there's a comparison between the art deco factories in London. Both Hoover and Firestone ended production. The Firestone building was destroyed over a bank holiday by property developers and replaced with a faceless, characterless blob of a building.

The Hoover Building was saved, and is partially used as a Tesco superstore. And as was said, we were busy in the 1960's demolishing Victorian buildings as they were so unfashionable and outdated....and now we wonder why!

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Yes, and as I and an earlier poster noted, this country is littered with examples of where significant buildings are lost because of a lack of vision.

As an example, there's a comparison between the art deco factories in London. Both Hoover and Firestone ended production. The Firestone building was destroyed over a bank holiday by property developers and replaced with a faceless, characterless blob of a building.

The Hoover Building was saved, and is partially used as a Tesco superstore. And as was said, we were busy in the 1960's demolishing Victorian buildings as they were so unfashionable and outdated....and now we wonder why!

The Midland Hotel at Morecambe is a good example of an art deco building that has been saved by a company prepared to spend quite an amount of money refurbishing it.

The problem is that art deco buildings are more visually pleasing than examples of brutalist architecture.

 

[Blindtraveler]

Whilst Im sure that we can all in our heads hear the sounds of council officials having huge tantrums and throwing stuff round there offices Im personally v glad that what is I find a friendly old fassioned bus station has been rescued and I am sure that with a bit of money and some thought it can be made fit for purpose again.

 

[Nick W]

For those who are interested in the reasons for listing:
http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1416042

Worth noting the following: "The pedestrian links, that is the three subways and the elevated walkway, are excluded from the listing, as less successful elements of the structure."
I hope this will deal with the main concerns people have raised in keeping the building.

 

[Blindtraveler]

a very interesting document. Thanks

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

What, if any, are the legal strictures that might apply in the case of any non-compliance to protect a listed building ? Should a building owned by a local authority be granted listed building status, are there any provision for that council to approach Central Government for funds to enable any required building protection ? I ask this as the Central Government financial grants to local authorities are currently in a stage of financial reduction.

 

[Robertj21a]

How ridiculous, the building is a terrible dump. I could understand it being listed if it was considerably smaller, and thereby less of an onerous responsibility, but this is one of the biggest ever built.

Unless a genuinely good use can be found for it then future generations will curse this decision.

Robert

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

How ridiculous, the building is a terrible dump. I could understand it being listed if it was considerably smaller, and thereby less of an onerous responsibility, but this is one of the biggest ever built.

Unless a genuinely good use can be found for it then future generations will curse this decision.

Robert

Do you want another try at that?

The reason why it is listed is because of its size. It is a classic example of brutalist architecture that often relies on imposing designs and sheer size. It also was/is the biggest bus station in Europe so being considerably smaller would mean it wouldn't be listed! (Note: the term "brutalism" refers to the unpainted, unrendered concrete and outward appearance, not the size)

As for future generations, the same was said about the Euston Arch. The "yeah, it's outdated, outmoded, get rid, put something new in its place" mantra was chanted 50 years ago. Now future generations realise the folly of that and are busy trying to retrieve chunks from the River Lea to rebuild it.

Don't get me wrong. I don't have much time for the Prince Charles, chocolate box approach in his model village, and not everything can be saved. However, is Preston bus station a remarkable building? Yes. Has it been neglected, especially when preparing for the abortive Tithebarn development? Yes. Is it a stand out example of brutalist architecture? Yes.

You can have the same glass and steel bus station that Burnley, Chorley, Lancaster, or Nelson have....and Preston will have lost one of the buildings that is actually distinctive.

 

[Whistler40145]

I can't understand why any sane person wanted to have Preston Bus Station saved as a Listed Building. It's a an abysmal dump, which from what I've seen, not every bay is in use.

Can Preston Council be forced to inject cash into the Bus Station because of being a Listed Building?

What would happen if Preston Bus or Stagecoach decided to pull out of the Bus Station because they don't deem it safe?

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Can Preston Council be forced to inject cash into the Bus Station because of being a Listed Building?

Are you asking the same question that I asked in posting # 26 ?