Coventry, City of Culture 2021 (4 Viewers)

[Otis]

But it is not doing a lot, they can't sell it, can't find a use for it, has no parking & that dodgy Rois Ali failed in one of his business ventures.

Maybe I'm being a Philistine here but I think it would be better if they flatten pool meadow, the old fire station, Sainsbury's & the rest of the lower half of Trinity St and build something useful.

They made the stupid decision to separate the top and bottom floors and that's why upstairs is never quite a success. You could walk past and not know there was a restaurant there. What they need really is a place that is one entity and is a cafe downstairs a then a restaurant up. A single flow unit.

When you get upstairs it is lovely, but most people never get that far.

 

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[Otis]

Isn't the fire station being turned in to apartments?

It was considered, but I believe it is still up for sale with all options open.

 

[shmmeee]

It's a nice buiding but it's another one in Coventry that's on a dead street, the street being dead due to the ridiculous Ring Road. I agree about flattening Pool Meadow, think the council were on the right lines when they stopped using it. If we must have a bus station it should be an interchange with the railway station.

Not the ring roads fault, that section is the quietest, it’s the fact there’s bugger all there for people that drive. It’s students and bus users.

Agree about Pool Meadow. Completely pointless now, much better to use the planned one by the station.

 

[Otis]

Hell hole? Grow up

That's Grendel all over. You talk about one thing and he has to go and denigrate something else. Never known anyone with such a deep hatred of the city.

We all know Pool Meadow is crap, but I was talking about the fire station and posted a picture of the fire station. Why the need to bring Pool Meadow up?

Pool Meadow is awful.

 

[fernandopartridge]

Not the ring roads fault, that section is the quietest, it’s the fact there’s bugger all there for people that drive. It’s students and bus users.

Agree about Pool Meadow. Completely pointless now, much better to use the planned one by the station.

The Ring Road has created dead streets and odd plots of land all around the city. Such a shame the plan to remove that elevated section never came to fruition.

 

[Otis]

The Ring Road has created dead streets and odd plots of land all around the city. Such a shame the plan to remove that elevated section never came to fruition.

Nowhere worse than by the lovely Whitefrairs. Such a lovely ancient building and slam dunk next to the ring road. No idea what they were thinking there.

It now sits there isolated.

 

[Captain Dart]

Nowhere worse than by the lovely Whitefrairs. Such a lovely ancient building and slam dunk next to the ring road. No idea what they were thinking there.

It now sits there isolated.

There were probably a few Civil Engineers who got chartered status out of that job. I've heard tell of similar being done*.

* but that was in Nigeria.

 

[tommydazzle]

Agree about the elevated ring road but maybe problems should be seen as opportunities and I've always thought what a great circuit for competition racing. A prestigious cycling event (which echoes the city's heritage) - an annual event easily followed by helicopters as not lost in streets like the Tour, with barriers - spectators could line certain sections and of course, the popularity of cycling is at an all time high. I know it's obvious and not a new idea and the Motofest attracted big crowds and like I say probably been talked about before but sometimes things can gain their own momentum and become part of a region's heritage - just look at the Great Northern Run and how that's grown. I could imagine club races and time trials along with individual races (if there were big money prizes) attracting big names.

It's always puzzling to me how the Midlands gets so little attention. You would never know that Brum is our second city and if it's not London, it's Manchester or Liverpool or anywhere in Yorkshire that seems to get disproportionate attention. My friends in Norwich always tell me I'm from 'up north' and are always surprised when I tell them that Coventry is actually a little south of Norwich. Such is the knowledge of the Midlands to outsiders!

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

Nowhere worse than by the lovely Whitefrairs. Such a lovely ancient building and slam dunk next to the ring road. No idea what they were thinking there.

It now sits there isolated.

I know that's why I said on another post demolish the Brittania and move whitefriars there plus the student block that goes over the road. Rebuild the bus station. Whitefriars could be used for so many things and part of the cost of moving it would be by selling the land to the university.

 

[martcov]

I know that's why I said on another post demolish the Brittania and move whitefriars there plus the student block that goes over the road. Rebuild the bus station. Whitefriars could be used for so many things and part of the cost of moving it would be by selling the land to the university.

We were one of the first cities with a pedestrian zone and one of the first if not the first, with a ring road. Everyone learned from our mistakes. A problem with being the first. We wanted a city built for motor cars as we were a city of motor cars. That was what I remember being the priority at the time.

I remember that that the slip roads on to the Ring Road were said to be too short.

Things like White Friats didn’t come into it. Unfortunately.

 

[pusbccfc]

With the council wanting to get rid of those green escalators, what is going to happen to the shops in that already quiet part of the centre?

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

With the council wanting to get rid of those green escalators, what is going to happen to the shops in that already quiet part of the centre?

It's not the council it's the new people who run the precinct who are also getting rid of that stupid ramp

 

[pusbccfc]

It's not the council it's the new people who run the precinct who are also getting rid of that stupid ramp

Ah, okay.

Totally agree with getting rid of it but will be interested to see what happens to the shops above.

 

[Captain Dart]

I know that's why I said on another post demolish the Brittania and move whitefriars there plus the student block that goes over the road. Rebuild the bus station. Whitefriars could be used for so many things and part of the cost of moving it would be by selling the land to the university.

No way. It would fall apart.

 

[Captain Dart]

Ah, okay.

Totally agree with getting rid of it but will be interested to see what happens to the shops above.

I spoke to them when they had an info. session on in a disused unit in Cathedral Lanes a few months back.

They reckon they already have full occupancy on the South side as far down as the old BHS.

The intention on the North side was to incorporate some Cafe/Restaurants to bring trade to that side and I think they hoped to get M&S to move their restaurant into the upper level of the old Virgin place. They were also going to build some apartments on the upper levels (though it would be a nightmare to live in a place like that, even for students)

The whole thing was a bit bland, they were only thinking of the commercial aspect and their ideas had no architectural merit other than removing the godawful escalator and the jewellers shop that blocks the view.

 

[Otis]

I spoke to them when they had an info. session on in a disused unit in Cathedral Lanes a few months back.

They reckon they already have full occupancy on the South side as far down as the old BHS.

The intention on the North side was to incorporate some Cafe/Restaurants to bring trade to that side and I think they hoped to get M&S to move their restaurant into the upper level of the old Virgin place. They were also going to build some apartments on the upper levels (though it would be a nightmare to live in a place like that, even for students)

The whole thing was a bit bland, they were only thinking of the commercial aspect and their ideas had no architectural merit other than removing the godawful escalator and the jewellers shop that blocks the view.

Yeah, the south side plans are a lot more impressive.

 

[Otis]

No way. It would fall apart.

My thinking too. To move such an ancient building with cost multiple millions and could be a disaster for the structure of the place.

Don't think it would be given more than half a second's consideration, if that at all.

 

[fernandopartridge]

My thinking too. To move such an ancient building with cost multiple millions and could be a disaster for the structure of the place.

Don't think it would be given more than half a second's consideration, if that at all.

Somebody has submitted a plan to extend the Express Diner building and at the same time bring it more in keeping with its neighbours.

Coventry City Council: Planning Application Details

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

No way. It would fall apart.

Piece by piece just like they d

My thinking too. To move such an ancient building with cost multiple millions and could be a disaster for the structure of the place.
Don't think it would be given more than half a second's consideration, if that at all.

So we leave it there and watch it crumble. Not used for anything but storeage. Why were the buildings moved to Spon Street? Was it because somebody had a vision of what could be? And how much did that cost?

 

[AVWskyblue]

Piece by piece just like they d

So we leave it there and watch it crumble. Not used for anything but storeage. Why were the buildings moved to Spon Street? Was it because somebody had a vision of what could be? And how much did that cost?

It's a shame there isn't a quite large plot near to the city centre, the council then (with some form of funding) could move some of these attractive old buildings and create some form of visitors museum, like the black Country living museum. I'm certain it would attract massive tourist interest and provide lucrative funds to save other historic buildings as time goes on.

Sent from my 5010X using Tapatalk

 

[Captain Dart]

Piece by piece just like they d

So we leave it there and watch it crumble. Not used for anything but storeage. Why were the buildings moved to Spon Street? Was it because somebody had a vision of what could be? And how much did that cost?

They were wooden framed buildings not 12th century sandstone and mortar ruins. Besides as has already been pointed out on this thread the Spon St buildings were those callously removed from their original settings by the Corporation when they built the ring road. Best not repeat that error.

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

They were wooden framed buildings not 12th century sandstone and mortar ruins. Besides as has already been pointed out on this thread the Spon St buildings were those callously removed from their original settings by the Corporation when they built the ring road. Best not repeat that error.

Whitefriars is hardly a ruin it's very well preserved at the moment

 

[Captain Dart]

The historical ruins next to building need to be preserved.

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

They can be moved as well. After all if we didn't move things we wouldn't have the Old Grammar School would we.

 

[Otis]

Whitefriars is hardly a ruin it's very well preserved at the moment

Is it? Hope that's right, because it WAS crumbling.

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

The historical ruins next to building need to be preserved.
View attachment 8546

Looks so sad there

 

[Broken Hearted Sky Blue]

Is it? Hope that's right, because it WAS crumbling.

Of course some parts are not their best but can be repaired/replaced just like the middle cathedral plus other buildings.

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

Of course some parts are not their best but can be repaired/replaced just like the middle cathedral plus other buildings.

It makes you wonder about the architect who thought it as a good idea to put a road as ugly as the ring road that close to a beautiful historic building. Hopefully at some point the ring road will be removed.

 

[Otis]

It makes you wonder about the architect who thought it as a good idea to put a road as ugly as the ring road that close to a beautiful historic building. Hopefully at some point the ring road will be removed.

You would have thought it would have been the perfect place for an underpass. Could have done that with much of the ring road and have it going under rather than over.

 

[Captain Dart]

You would have thought it would have been the perfect place for an underpass. Could have done that with much of the ring road and have it going under rather than over.

Impractical idea if you look at the topology.

 

[Otis]

Impractical idea if you look at the topology.

At the time?

 

[wingy]

Impractical idea if you look at the topology.

Think you mean topography CD.

 

[dadgad]

The ring road is an abomination....and a symbol of domination by the motor car...nothing to do with access, human scale and interaction through and within public spaces. Ultimately this is what makes urban spaces cohere, the ring road is a barrier to community.

 

[Otis]

Think you mean topography CD.

Ha! Never spotted that! Thought he HAD written topography.

As a side note, I had no idea what the word topography meant until Yes brought out the album Tales from Topographic Oceans. I had to look it up in the dictionary.

 

[dadgad]

Isn’t geology more relevant?