****ing developers burning down buildings

[arc]

this makes me so angry..

Denbigh Asylum is a now derelict asylum in north wales. It is a beautiful building, and parts of it are protected by a Grade II listing. The owners wanted to develop the site, and part of this was to knock down the main hall (which as well as being grade II listed had rare bats in there too).

Last week there was a protest in Denbigh against the listed parts of the building from being demolished, then today at around 6am - it was burnt to the ground.

What a ****ing coincidence eh. I seriously doubt it was kids setting fire to things at that kind of time in the morning - but the developers can continue on now with their plans, without having to worry about not having permission to flatten the main hall.

Here are some shots of what the roof of the main hall did look like;

and now;



http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/7743397.stm

 

[T14086]

yeah I remember setting fires to listed buildings at 6am on a saturday morning when I was a kid...more like sleeping until swopshop came on

Saying that we have listed buildings near us that are a eyesore because they are so damaged, no one can afford to do them up so they just get worse until one day they will collapse (bits have already fallen off) and kill someone as its a main (high) street.

Arc...what plans have they for the site?

 

[arc]

Last i heard they weren't really sure what to do with it, but it is worth more money to them if the 'difficult' parts have already been taken care of. I've seen this happen with other buildings in the past - it just makes a mockery of what listing is meant to be doing. Hell my mums house is grade II listed and she's not even allowed to put brackets for hanging baskets up, yet these clowns can get away with this stuff!

 

[mark16v]

Saying that we have listed buildings near us that are a eyesore because they are so damaged, no one can afford to do them up so they just get worse until one day they will collapse (bits have already fallen off) and kill someone as its a main (high) street.

We have a few of them devlopers started to work on then to turn them in to flats but have now pulled out so.

 

[Hellcat]

Feel sorry for you and everyone around there who apreciates architecture.

 

[Cian]

'best' (as in worst, but...) excuse I've seen for a listed building being demolished was a builder insisting that "some madman" had gained access to their JCBs and started knocking it.

They were doing it in daylight on a city street the day after a stop order from the council, driver of the JCB bailed and pegged it when the cops arrived. This was only a few months ago.

http://www.archiseek.com/content/showthread.php?t=7193 covers it

Been all sorts of suspicious fires, as well as one developer caught removing all the roof tiles that weren't visible from the road to let a building get ****ed by damp/wet rot - this would have a far slower affect but still end up letting them knock the building under dangerous buildings regs.

 

[Renegade_8]

It takes a certain mindset to be a property developer, but those people will always be with us. It would make more sense for taxpayers money to be used to level the playing field between clean sheet and renovation costs, maybe after a local vote. More likely look for G Brown to spend our taxes on Social Worker reporting/oversight name and shame Czars and single mother (benefit deny) outreach co-ordination offices and other paperwork generators.

 

[Munkul]

now i know how you like your old abandoned buildings arc, and i can sympathise, its a shame, it was a nice place

However, looking at it realistically, there was no way anything was going to happen to it otherwise. These days people dont have money to chuck away restoring buildings up perfectly, and to make it good again would have been a massive ballache both cost wise and work wise - grade II means that everything would have had to be done in a certain way to satisfy regulations.

What, would you have prefered that it stand derelict to the end of time? Deteriorating year after year? Having pikeys break in and slowly remove/vandalise anything remotely of value?

i probably would have done the same myself, put in the developer's place, sorry.

 

[arc]

I accept that there is little use for such sites, but if you buy a site knowing something on it listed - then it is your responsibilty to look after it. Same as when you have a car, if you can't afford to tax/mot/insure it - then you cannot afford it.

 

[Chas Uno]

I accept that there is little use for such sites, but if you buy a site knowing something on it listed - then it is your responsibilty to look after it. Same as when you have a car, if you can't afford to tax/mot/insure it - then you cannot afford it.

:yeahthat:

Well put Arc. I too am shocked at ruthless property developers who buy land/ property and then blatently flout the laws regarding listed buildings/ trees. IMO if the building is destroyed then they should be forced to rebuild it as it was (or better) at their own cost. Either that or they should be banned from building on the area where the building originally stood. The only motivation is greed so authorities should make sure that the developers will never profit from their callous actions.

 

[StevenRB45]

If only the same developers would buy this listed building

Although setting fire to it could be hard

 

[arc]

This happened a little closer to home with a pier up at Fleetwood. Developer buys it, wants to build apartments on the land. It is rejected. A few weeks later (considering this place has been emtpy for 4 years);

 

[puntomadboy]

damn developers... that building is great, but in bad condition.. the entire area is fenced of and most of the rooms are boarded of as they contain asbestos..... been in a few times and can be bloody scary at night... said to be haunted...

btw it could be kids as i have seen many times group's of lads smashing the place up and trying to set fire to it....(tossers)...

 

[herpsuk]

If only the same developers would buy this listed building

Although setting fire to it could be hard

terrorist attack? :chin:

or maybe get the americans over and tell them where realy iraqi's

 

[arc]

It aint haunted, thats rubbish!

scaaarrryyy? no. hehe

 

[punto_matt]

Has been happening for years. My dad is a property developer and knows of plenty of people that do this sort of thing. Its not good as it gives the profession a bad name when the majority of developers who actually care about property will understand the importance of keeping listed buildings.

Saying that all listed buildings arent good and this is one of them, Park hill flats in sheffield:

 

[puntomadboy]

It aint haunted, thats rubbish!

scaaarrryyy? no. hehe

lol i know that but its bloody scary standing in that place in the dark with only a torch hearing things creak around the place...

 

[arc]

If only the same developers would buy this listed building

Although setting fire to it could be hard

but thats awesome

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Hopefully the same will happen to the developers buildings after work has just been compleated :devil:

 

[Cian]

lol i know that but its bloody scary standing in that place in the dark with only a torch hearing things creak around the place...

Do I detect a fellow urbexer?