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 Whitestone Pond |
Is there a case to be made for building ‘Whitestone Point’?
Centre Point fountains under threat from Crossrail ‘would fit nicely’ in Hampstead
THE iconic Grade II-listed fountains at the foot of Centre Point could be moved from their traffic-choked position in the West End to the heights of Hampstead.
The water feature, which has sat at the foot of the tower block on the corner of New Oxford Street and Charing Cross Road since 1962, were designed by one-time Hampstead resident Jupp Dernbach-Mayen.
But with a new station being planned for the Cross Rail project underneath the site of the fountains, architects say they have to go. And unless a new home can be found for them, the fountains will simply be crushed.
With Whitestone Pond the centre of a redesign in time for the 2012 Olympics – it will be on the route of bike road races – and an art market planned for weekends, campaigners say the fountains would fit there perfectly.
Mr Dernbach-Mayen’s daughter, Mireille Bruton, who lives in Kentish Town, said there had been discussions about the fountains being relocated to a development in the East India Docks by the Thames in east London – but Whitestone Pond would be a more fitting destination.
“We are open to any ideas,” she said. “It would be very good to put them in Whitestone Pond. They would fit very nicely. It would be the right kind of space for them. We would certainly back that.”
However, Mrs Burton has not completely ruled out the fountains being saved in their current spot.
“We still don’t see why there is not the space for them around Centre Point,” she said, “but one of the crucial things is to make sure they are not simply broken up.”
Her father’s art ranged from paintings in watercolours and oils to metalwork friezes. He built furniture and was behind a mosaic that graced the 1951 Festival of Britain.
Supporters of the idea that the fountains could be moved to NW3 say they could be part of a celebration of Hampstead’s long-standing links with European emigres.
Many who fled oppression made their way to the area – including Mr Dernbach-Mayen.
Although not Jewish, he was disgusted by the treatment of German Jews in his home country and he came to the UK before the war.
Gordon McLean of the Heath and Hampstead Society said: “We have been keen on placing a sculpture somewhere in the Whitestone Pond area and this could be the answer. It is something we will discuss. The fountains certainly should not be demolished. They need to be carefully stored until we find an answer.”
Camden’s Conservative deputy council leader Councillor Andrew Marshall said: “I would not want to see them thrown on a skip. We could consider Whitestone Pond but we’d need to talk with people living in the area. However, these fountains have a relationship with Centre Point and I’d like to see if we can make the architects think again.”
Hampstead Town councillor Chris Knight said the borough had plenty of possible sites, including Whitestone Pond.
He also suggested that developments at King’s Cross and the canalside project at Hawley Wharf in Camden Town could offer them a new home.
Architect Roger Hawkins, who is overseeing the Cross Rail development at Centre Point, said: “I do not think there is space for them in the redesign. Our designs will much improve the area.” |
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