Tag: demolition

#365daysofbiking A maintained tradition

Christmas Day, Friday December 25th 2020 – There’s normally a short ride on Christmas Day – maybe over to Shenstone, or Hints; more often than not it’s up to Castle Ring and that’s where I headed on a frosty, sharp Christmas lunchtime.

There were one or two people about. The roads were quiet. The message not to hold gatherings seemed largely to be heeded.

I love Castle Ring – it’s an ancient hill fort, and a Pagan place. Sadly, the views it has commanded for the last 20 years are now slipping away as the woodland planted below it gets taller. I suspect it will soon be coppiced again and visibility restored.

I know the derelict cooling towers at Rugeley are due to come down in January: Those coming up here to watch the spectacle may be disappointed – the station is barely visible from Castle Ring right now.

There was one tradition I could not maintain – that of having a swift Christmas lunchtime pint in a pub on the way back – all the pubs are shut.

Never mind, it’ll wait a year more. Merry Christmas, everyone!

from Tumblr https://ift.tt/3hHKqXq
via IFTTT

#365daysofbiking The thrill of The Chase

July 14th – Working in the morning, I slipped out late afternoon for a fast ride over Cannock Chase and back through Rugeley via the canal and Longdon.

The sun, canal and golden hour were just the tonic after a hectic day, but my energy was low.

I don’t often visit the Chase in summer, as it’s usually crowded and bikes and dogs don’t really mix, but this evening – probably due to sporting excitement on TV – it was very quiet and away from the centres at Marquis Drive and Birches Valley I saw hardly anyone.

I note Rugeley Power Station is looking forlorn now: The desulphurisation plant has been removed and demolition continues with most of the ancillary plant no gone. It won’t be long now before the huge icon and photographic muse will be nothing but a memory.

It was a long, slower haul home but a lovely ride.

This journal is moving home. Find out more by clicking here.

from Tumblr https://ift.tt/2kbkKZE
via IFTTT

#365daysofbiking An end to Police brutalism in Walsall

January 24th – There is a madness afoot in the country, and possibly the broader western world in the last 10 years or so, and I can see no solution in sight.

Governments come to power on the promise of austerity and cutting spending, yet close used and needed public facilities that took decades to be obtained – in a flash. And so we lost the police station in Walsall on Green Lane, built in the Brutalist period of the 60s, which was closed in response to spending cuts in 2016. Police now have to take suspects to Oldbury when arrested, which is impacting officer availability and causing great inefficiency.

The building itself – an unremarkable modernist structure – was sold to developers and is currently being demolished.

We will need a police station again. The situation as it is is not working.

And it will cost us far more than closing this one saved to sort the mess out.

And when some politician grasps the nettle and does it, they will be derided for financial profligacy.

But the real crime is cutting things communities need, in the interests of short term political gain.

It takes years to build communities, and days to destroy them with cuts. The recklessness seems in the axe-hand to me.

This journal is moving home. Please find out more by clicking here.

from Tumblr http://bit.ly/2TjyVbL
via IFTTT

August 21st – Back in Darlaston, the building behind the town hall – for all the world nothing but a small, brick-built, ornate garage – had had more masonry removed, and scaffolding erected.

This is a sad state for what was the town’s fire station in the earliest days of the service to be in.

The site has been cleaned out and is tidy, and the further demolition seems too neat and level to be part of a total removal, so I’m hopeful this is the start of a full restoration.

I still have no idea what happened here, I’d be interested to find out.

August 17th – A sad, regrettable tragedy unfolds in Rushall at the moment as the former Rushall Mews care home, an 80s-built single level facility that once housed many vulnerable old folk will soon be no more.

After four or more years of lying unused, the demolition crews have moved in.

There was nothing wrong with this place; the features were modern and it was well staffed by caring people and loved by the community. Closed by a council desperate to save money like so many others, we are now left with a care crisis, but the land will soon be new homes, probably beyond the reach of first time buyers.

Like other lost care homes – Narrow Lane, St, James, Greenwood House, Scotch Orchard – the gradual erosion of our social state makes me very sad indeed.

June 23rd – I had to nip to the Holford industrial estate in North Birmingham on the way home from work – I was going to go to Walsall and hop on a train, but it was quicker just to head straight there. Making my way to the station on my return, I spotted this curious sight on the corner of Brookvale Road and Deykin Avenue in Witton.

I can’t make much sense of this – why remove a key part of a building like that? I was particularly taken with the fireplace and chimney still clinging on for dear life.

I sense there’s a story here. If anyone knows, I’d love to hear it.

April 19th – A tired commute and weary day at work as a result of the exertions of the previous day, and I had the camera stuck on some poncey ‘artistic’ mode so all the photos came out unusable, except this one: Passing the former Boat pub at Bentley Bridge, Darlaston green, I noted it was finally razed.

The demolition has been long and protracted as contractors stripped carefully anything of worth from the decaying building.

Good to see such care taken to reclaim the materials, but the overwhelming feeling of sadness at the loss of a one popular pub remains.

A small, encapsulated tragedy and tale for our times.

April 3rd – Another job I thought would be well and truly over by now that wasn’t is the demolition of the former Boat pun in Darlaston Green. Derelict, burnt out and plagued by antisocial behaviour, it was measure for it’s coffin years ago, and last week when I saw demolition crew here I thought it would be only hours to go before the landmark was lost – but this is clearly a thoughtful, reclamation demolition where the material removed are salvaged for resale, and for a while at least, this sad husk of a building remains.

A sad but fascinating sight.

March 27th – Over at Bentley Bridge, near Darlaston Green, mixed feelings as the former Boat Inn pub is cleared for demolition.

Derelict for years, long-time site of a car wash, the building had been long since targeted by arsonists, flytippers and ne’er do wells. The Boat had outlived it’s useful life, and the last beer was supped here years ago. But it’s very sad to see a pub lost, and in an industrial area with loads of vacant land already, it’s hard to see what, if anything, might replace this building.

January 10th – It seems the old Oak Park is finally coming down – after a sizeable fire in the derelict building last week, the council have at last acted decisively and it seems we will soon be rid of the old building and the antisocial behaviour it’s encouraging.

Built in 1974, it’s a bland, post Brutalist structure in pale block, but like many, I have memories here, and although we have a great new centre not 100 yards away, the change is tinged with just a little sadness.

It’ll be interesting to watch the building come down.