A list of the year’s ten biggest news stories by readership
Controversy is never too far away in the world of architecture, and so it proved in 2023.
Herzog & de Meuron seemed to take the brunt of criticism over the past year, not just for its proposals to redevelop Liverpool Street station but across the channel, too. The practice’s design for a triangular tower in Paris proved so unpalatable to city authorities that tall buildings in the French capital were banned.
The industry also lost many big names and veterans this year, from architects Michael Hopkins, Rafael Vinoly, Balkirshna Doshi, Bill Hellmith and Michael Squire, to historian Elain Harwood and Peabody chair Bob Kerslake.
Below are the top ten most read news stories of the year.
1. Sir Michael Hopkins dies aged 88
Published in June
Sir Michael Hopkins, one of the most respected and influential figures in British architecture, has died at the age of 88.
He was widely recognised as one of the most significant figures in British architecture over the past 50 years.
As a pioneer of high-tech architecture in the late twentieth century, Hopkins founded the acclaimed architectural firm Hopkins Architects alongside his wife, Patty Hopkins.
2. Paris bans tall buildings after Herzog & de Meuron tower backlash
Published in June
Paris has banned tall buildings for a second time following a backlash against Herzog & de Meuron’s controversial 48-storey Le Triangle tower.
The city council passed a height limit of 37m for new buildings across the French capital yesterday evening as part of a new urban plan which aims to reduce the city’s carbon emissions.
The rule, which is being backed by Socialist party mayor Anne Hidalgo and her Greens party partner, will revive the same 12-storey limit that was imposed on the traditionally low rise city in 1977 following the construction of the much-maligned 210m-tall Montparnasse tower.
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3. Manchester City reveals new pictures of Populous-designed Etihad stadium expansion
Published in April
Manchester City FC has unveiled new pictures of its Populous-designed plans to expand Etihad Stadium.
A planning application submitted by the reigning Premier League champions for the £300m scheme includes a host of previously unseen images of how the stadium would look.
They show detailed views of the steel framed canopy arching over a covered fan area, known as ‘City Square’, brick-clad interior spaces and close-ups of office buildings faced with what appear to be jagged metal fins.
4. Green light for Grimshaw’s redesign of Aston Villa stadium expansion
Published in October
Birmingham council has approved revised plans by Grimshaw to expand Aston Villa FC’s North Stand and convert a neighbouring warehouse into an events space.
Two applications backed by councillors at the end of last week sought to accelerate the club’s £100m expansion of its Villa Park stadium by shelving plans for a newbuild events space called Villa Live.
Instead, the club will refurbish an existing building which currently contains the Stumps Academy to house the multi-purpose community and entertainment space, which will be called ’The Warehouse”.
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5. Elain Harwood dies aged 64
Published in April
The highly regarded architectural historian and campaigner for the preservation of modernist architecture, Elain Harwood, has died at the age of 64.
Harwood was born in Beeston, Nottinghamshire in 1958 and studied history at the University of Bristol. She began her career in architectural conservation at English Heritage in 1984, where she initially took a temporary position. It was to become her principal workplace for the rest of her career.
Her knowledge of the sector grew through her attendance on a part time course on historic building preservation at the Architectural Association. From 1996 to 2004 she was responsible for making most of English Heritage’s listed building recommendations for the post 1945 period. She continued to work for the organisation, in its guise as Historic England, up until her death.
6. Developer forced to dismantle AHMM modular homes due to defects
Published in July
Developer Legal & General’s troubled modular business has been forced to dismantle homes at one of its largest developments after uncovering defects with the foundations.
Around 12 properties are believed to be affected by the issues at the 125-home Bonnington Walk scheme in Bristol, designed for the local council by AHMM. The practice says it had no involvement in the project after it received planning approval in 2020.
Buyers with reservations for homes that are being dismantled have been handed £4,000 in compensation but are now facing a 12-month delay as existing modules on the factory-built homes are removed so the foundations can be fixed.
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7. Northern Powerhouse Rail safeguarded as HS2 bill set to progress despite cancellation
Published in November
Legislation to underpin the final phase of the planned route for HS2 could become law despite the cancellation of the project.
The High Speed Rail (Crewe – Manchester) Bill, which among other things includes the powers necessary for compulsory purchase of properties along the route, has been included in the government‘s legislative agenda for the year ahead.
The move has prompted celebrations among advocates of another planned rail scheme – Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) – which was set to share a stretch of the proposed HS2 route between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport.
8. Herzog & de Meuron unveils new visuals of £1.5bn Liverpool Station plans as application is finally made public
Published in October
Sellar and Network rail have unveiled dozens of new images of the highly controversial proposals for a £1.5bn redevelopment of Liverpool Street station.
The highly detailed visuals come as the Herzog & de Meuron-designed scheme’s huge planning application is finally made public, nearly six months after it was submitted to the City of London Corporation.
A City of London Corporation spokesperson said the delay in making the application public was due to the “complexity” of the scheme and not because technical issues had been uncovered following planning submission.
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9. Sheppard Robson dragged into £47m cladding row over Woolwich Central scheme
Published in March
Sheppard Robson has become embroiled in a war of words over alleged cladding defects in a £250m mixed-use scheme it designed in Woolwich.
Willmott Dixon filed a suit last month against five firms in an effort to recoup more than £47m from those it claims are responsible for problems with the external wall system (EWS) on the 17-storey Woolwich Central scheme, on which it was the main contractor.
Last summer, the firm’s chairman Colin Enticknap used his statement in its latest report and accounts to rip into the supply chain and others on the job, accusing them of trying to “escape” paying up and promising that it would use the courts to recover what it reckons it is owed.
10. David Adjaye ‘absolutely rejects’ claims of sexual misconduct against three women
Published in July
David Adjaye has said he is “deeply sorry” to have entered relationships with three women who worked for him in London and Accra but rejected claims of alleged sexual misconduct.
The 2021 RIBA Gold Medal-winning architect said he was “ashamed” to have entered relationships with the women and was seeking immediate professional help in order to “learn from these mistakes”.
A report in the Financial Times today detailed a series of claims by the three women of sexual assault and sexual harrassment by Adjaye, which they say disrupted their careers and left them in a precarious financial position.
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