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‘It’s high enough, we can even have a beehive,’ says Greg Foxsmith (above) |
Seeing red over Green roof
‘Daft’ plan for capital’s first eco-friendly Town Hall building comes under fire from architect
THE borough’s Victorian town hall looks set to be the first local authority HQ in London to have a fully functioning green roof.
But the plan, which could feature beehives, bats, birds and tomato plants, has angered some critics who want Islington Council to be thrifty with public funds.
And they fear a roof garden will destroy the look of the 1925 listed building.
Architect Chris Roche said: “It sounds like a terrible gimmick and a waste of taxpayers’ money.
“There’s no architectural precedent for putting a green roof on top of a historic building and it would appear ill thought-out and incongruous.
“It’s a daft idea dreamt up by politicians desperate to appear sympathetic to environmental issues.
“They should be putting that money into parks and encouraging people to think about the environment in a sensible way rather than these fantasy projects.”
He added: “You’d think politicians would have learned in recent weeks about abusing taxpayers’ funds to feather their nests. Spending further money on beehives and belfrys for bats is clearly bonkers and they should think again.
“I’m sure the town hall’s a listed building. I’d be surprised if they could get permission for it.”
The council, which has pledged to become London’s greenest borough, wants to lead by example, after using planning laws to encourage residents to become more green.
Liberal Democrat environment chief Greg Foxsmith, who came up with the idea, is hoping the 400 square metre roof could be turned emerald within the year.
Early estimates suggest it will cost in the region of £70,000, but he still needs approval from the council.
Councillor Foxsmith, who has visions of creating a wildlife haven in the middle of Upper Street, said: “There are so many possibilities. It’s not one big flat roof. it’s multi-layered. We could have anything from the Hanging Gardens of Babylon to a vegetable, flower and seeded area. It’s a complex site.
“I’d like to have a traditional green roof.
“It retains some rainfall and attracts insects which feed the bird population and bats. We could be growing tomatoes.
“It’s high enough that we can even have a beehive up there. The bee population is under threat so, who knows, we could be having town hall honey.”
It’s still early days but, he said, the roof has been tested and proven structurally sound.
And Cllr Foxsmith’s hoping that it will eventually be opened to the public.
He said: “I’d like not just to have a secret roof garden but have an open one. But I’m sure there will be health and safety checks and obstacles that I’ll have to overcome.
“We’ve got money in the budget.
“As long as I can get support within the council I don’t see why we can’t get on with it. I very much hope that people can go up on their lunch hour and bring that part of the town hall back to life.
“We’ve set out to be the greenest borough and if we can’t do it on our town hall, we’d be setting a seriously poor example.”
Andrew Bosi of the Islington Society said: “In principle it’s a good idea to reduce the energy loss but it’s an attractive building so it has to be done in a way which doesn’t spoil the look of the building.” |
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