UK magazine The Fence has selected this year’s winner of the Carbuncle Cup competition. The magazine has resurrected the competition for Britain’s ugliest building after six years. This time, the award went not to a building, but to a larger project. The redevelopment of the eastern frontage of Lime St. in Liverpool by the Broadway Malyan studio was considered a failed example of interference with the historic fabric of the city. Several townhouses, a historic cinema and restaurants were demolished for the construction of a long hotel and student accommodation. The competition jury understood the demolition of deteriorating buildings. However, the Broadway Malyan project proved to be a nightmare alternative.
In 2016, various companies demolished a section of Lime St. in Liverpool. The deteriorating tenements were not listed buildings. In addition, it is difficult to see clearly whether their architecture was outstanding enough to save them. Small shops and restaurants were embedded in the ruins of the cinema and deserted tenements.
This gap in the street was decided to be ‘patched up’ with one long building. Broadway Malyan created a building consisting of two stepped blocks. The height of the façade was adjusted to the level of the other townhouses. Also noticeable are the graphics alluding to the former buildings on the street. However, the drawn signs of shops, restaurants and a cinema do not compensate for the lost history. The taller block duplicates the layout of the facade. Inside, there is a hotel, a student house and a grocery shop.
‘Greed has rarely looked so greedy’.
The judges of the Carbuncle Cup competition used somewhat harsher words. One committee member accused the building of being banal and bland. The design is simply ‘without soul’. Moreover, according to the jury, ‘greed has never looked so greedy’. These words refer in particular to the demolition process initiated by the developers. The street looks as if the developer wants to cover his project with a sheet on which he has drawn the former buildings. There could hardly be a more blunt explanation of the committee’s verdict.
‘The Fence’ also points out that the problem is not with the demolition of the ruins. Despite local attempts to save the buildings, their condition did not allow for meaningful renovation. Residents particularly regret the demolition of the former The Futurist cinema. The Georgian-style building was built in 1912. The cinema barely survived the intense bombing during the war. The building was rebuilt in a classicist style. The rise in popularity of videotapes and the general crash of the cinema market led to the closure of The Futurist in 1982. Plans to redevelop the building and turn it into a club failed. Back in the early 2000s, residents launched a campaign to renovate the landmark. However, the city council decided that the building was in danger of collapsing and should be demolished along with the deteriorating tenements.
Studio speciality
Broadway Malyan has been in business for more than 66 years. The studio has won 240 architectural awards. The studio is active in many countries and sectors. Some of the more recognisable developments include the Porto Office Park in Porto, the BP Campus in Sunbury and Galeria Młociny in Warsaw. In addition to shopping centres and offices, the architects also design entire districts and estates of cities such as Singapore and Abu Dhabi.
The competition resulted in a total of six buildings being nominated for this not-so-honourable award. In addition to the Broadway Malyan project, buildings from London, Glasgow and Edinburgh were also ‘recognised’. Liverpool University Hospital was also among the nominees, but compared to Lime Street it is not such a nightmare project.
It’s hard to tell if it was the greed of the developers demolishing a section of the street that led to this failed development. After all, it was an experienced studio with one of its offices in Liverpool that created a mismatched, boring design for the area. Worse still, we are talking about a street in the historic city centre. Liverpool survived one of the worst bombings in the country’s history. Today, however, the city has a problem with the ‘raid’ of bad architecture.
Photos: Barnabas Calder
Source: The Fence
Also read: Architecture | The Fence | Curiosities | UK | whiteMAD on Instagram
