University starts to prepare Stockwell Street site
Archaeological, ecological and geological surveys of the University of Greenwich’s Stockwell Street site are to begin later this spring, and some of the disused buildings there are to be dismantled.
The university hopes to build a new campus library on the site, along with a home for its School of Architecture & Construction, currently based on the Avery Hill Campus. Its architects, Heneghan Peng, are working on an outline design which will be published for public consultation in summer 2010, with a view to an application for planning consent being submitted later this year.
Before construction work begins, detailed studies are planned. Test pits will be dug to look at the archaeology of the site, which has been in use since at least the medieval period. Initial research indicates that building work over the centuries, and war-time bombs, have destroyed evidence from early periods, but the university will pay special attention to what remains of the 19th century maltings, which once supplied ale to the Spread Eagle Tavern.
Another investigation will establish whether there are still old petrol tanks beneath the forecourt of the disused petrol station on the site. If necessary, an expert team will carry out clean-up and remediation works. Greenwich Council has given permission for the removal of the petrol station, along with some other empty structures and hard landscaping. In order to preserve the streetscape for as long as possible, two large blocks on the frontage of Stockwell Street, John Humphries House and the disused storage unit at number 18-19, will remain standing for the time being.
The university aims to meet high environmental standards for the development, much tougher than those laid down by law. It is aiming to achieve a hard-to-win “Excellent” rating for its new buildings, using an environmental assessment method called BREEAM. This is a demanding target, especially for a development on a brownfield site in an urban environment, with all the complexities of working in a World Heritage Site.
Professor Neil Garrod, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Resources) at the University of Greenwich says: “We’re starting as we mean to go on, by putting environmental sustainability at the heart of this project. Instead of a largely disused site, with low quality buildings in poor repair, we will improve this important part of central Greenwich by cleaning up the land, and constructing an inspiring piece of environmentally-friendly architecture that everyone can enjoy and benefit from. Making a start now means that the site can be brought into use as soon as possible.”
The university has already been busy on site. In recent months it has cleared rubbish, surveyed buildings and rationalised services such as water, gas and electricity.
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Picture courtesy of Alan Baxter Associates
For more information, pictures or interview opportunities please contact:
Caron Jones
Head of Public Relations
University of Greenwich
020-8331 8248 (x8248)