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Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Tue Mar 09, 2021 5:31 pm
by YouaremyCardiff95
cardiff is a small compact city that is absolutely punching above it's weight and that's fantastic . cardiff is a capital city and with limited amount of development space :/ so when an opportunity such as guildford crescent arrises it really should be of highest of design and quality ..it looks piss poor to me atm and looks dated and cheap the guildford crescent frontages where colourful and full of character it's why I'm assuming they where kept for something exciting and different that the city needs and hasn't seen yet. This looks complete opposite to me ffs lol no colour and looks like it's connected to a building that's looks from the 60's ..it was mentioned they want it to be of similar colour of the admiral and design..the admiral is nothing special and for a street like churchill way looking to get a trendy redevelopment done soon well I'm just unhappy with the wasted opportunity for a stand out piece of architecture to compliment the area. 3 sections to this building and I think at least 1 section of it should of resembled the premier inn building nearby with a full glass look and then the rest of the building being a splash of colour . This building should be setting the benchmark for stand out high quality architecture as potentially another 2-3 very high rise buildings close by will also be developed soon and nothing looks and feels special about it atm . Does anyone else agree then please voice ur opinions and dnt follow the crowd. I've been following developments for over 15 years in the city I was born and with the ffew potential sites left there's needs to be something amazing and eye catching !!!!.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Tue Mar 09, 2021 6:59 pm
by Peiriannydd
Whilst I admire your enthusiasm and ambition for Cardiff (something sadly lacking in most Welsh people) I think you are a little wide of the mark in a number of areas. Cardiff is absolutely nowhere near punching above its weight when you consider the metro population it serves.

When I think back to what Cardiff looked like c.2004 (when I came back from overseas and found a complete dump!), then I think we are a good 10 to 20 years away from developing any serious critical mass that will attract more high-quality developments, investment and jobs. We’ve got a long way to go!

The redevelopment around the station, including the Brains site is definitely in the right direction. There are a considerable number of developments planned for Cardiff, not all of them will come to fruition, but that goes for any city. I do get the sense that things are changing and it is exciting. Moreover, if the Metro does live up to expectations, it will be a game changer for Cardiff. Then we can have a more serious discussion about demanding high-quality or novel architecture. By then, a lot of 70s, 80s and 90s buildings will be ripe for redevelopment. Cities constantly evolve.

Back to Guildford Terrace, I like this design because it’s relatively simple and reminds me of the original scheme for British St Exchange (I can’t remember if they were made public). It has clean lines with quality materials which mean it’s much less likely to value-engineered to death. It’s far nicer than similar towers proposed for Curran Road or the student accommodation just off Newport Road and it is lightyears ahead of Ty Pont Haearn!!! I also think it will age relatively well.

I do agree with your comment about colour, however, you have to remember that this backs onto a railway line, so colour is pretty much banned as it can interfere with the sight of the drivers. That said, I don’t see why they can’t keep the current painting on the existing façade.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Tue Mar 09, 2021 7:40 pm
by YouaremyCardiff95
Thankyou for the response , I should of been more clear about cardiff punching as a whole for it's size and it's a major events capital Which leads to millions of visitors most of the high rises are on the mainline and it will give a massive first impressions on the city entering central :) just needs a little more imagination and money thrown at these developments is all I'm saying ..ty point hearn is embarrassment also I know it might not be relevant to this forum page but does anyone see the car park opposite south wales university not so ffar from guildford crescent as a huge potential development site with real possibility for some very big towers ..

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Tue Mar 09, 2021 11:56 pm
by jones4891
Yeah absolutely that car park is prime real estate. I think it's owned by the Rapport family. They closed down and bulldozed the Vulcan for a few extra measly parking spaces. I'm sure if they think they can make money off the site they'll sell it. I'll never forgive them for what they did to Guildford Crescent in 2019 but like it or not they hold a lot of city centre land and will play a big role in shaping the centre over years to come.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:28 am
by LRcardiff
When I first moved to Cardiff five years ago I thought Ty Pont Haearn was a relic from the 80's not something designed and built in 2005!!

I quite like the plans for the tower in Guildford Terrace but I am concerned about all the city centre apartments with no provisions for parking (I support the push to use public transport and invest in the metro) But are disabled people who need a car to get around not in the target demographic for these buildings? What about people who travel for work or use their own vehicles? I'm thinking people who work in regional sales and tradespeople - all need their own vehicles.

But on a practical level how do 300 people move into a block of flats when they can only unload on the street and how do you make trips to ikea to buy big bulky furniture and not use your own vehicle? (the second question is kind of rhetorical) guess we shouldn't reply on convenience of car as an excuse for having one - but Cardiff should look into zip cars, they're great in London!

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Wed Mar 10, 2021 10:57 am
by dazplott
It’s interesting to note that this is an all rental building being financed by an institutional investor. I think we are going to see more of this type of development as the big banks and other financial institutions try to diversify their income streams due to the low margin on lending. I think we’ve probably hit the peak for purpose built student accommodation and will probably see some of those buildings converted.

The lack of parking spaces would likely put off many private buyers, but I think it’s going to become increasingly rare to expect a parking space with a city centre apartment unless you are willing to pay a high premium. I even wonder whether these apartments will be rented out fully or partly furnished. As the buildings is all rental, you’d expect the occupancy churn to be higher than a traditional block and wouldnt want large pieces of furniture being moved in and out all the time.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:25 pm
by Peiriannydd
dazplott wrote:It’s interesting to note that this is an all rental building being financed by an institutional investor. I think we are going to see more of this type of development as the big banks and other financial institutions try to diversify their income streams due to the low margin on lending. I think we’ve probably hit the peak for purpose built student accommodation and will probably see some of those buildings converted.


Absolutely and it's telling that Watkins Jones (student accomodation specialists) are moving into this area with several schemes around the country. I think RPS schemes are going to fuel a boom in tall buildings across the country, especially in London and Manchester.

Personally, I like the concept. The entire building is owned, managed and mantained throughout its life by one central body. So when the building comes to the end of its life or needs a major refurbishment, it's much easier to do. I've been living in such a scheme in London for about 4 years and its fantastic. I'm surrounded by professionals (no housing commission tenants), there's a concierge, security patrols, and a very efficient maintenance and cleaning team that sort stuff out very quickly. Much better than dealing with small-time landlords who ignore you and give you the run around through agents.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:21 am
by Simon_SW17
What are 'housing commission tenants' can I ask?

I live in a huge build to rent building in London and have found that it's expensive, the landlords have been nothing short of appalling when it comes to repairs and the maintenance of the building has been beyond shoddy. Nice apartments but a bad experience overall.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Thu Mar 11, 2021 3:25 pm
by amp
I think he means people on benefits.

Re: Guildford Terrace

PostPosted: Fri Mar 12, 2021 9:08 am
by Brian62
Always difficult to tell from these early pictures what something will finish up looking like. Hope they do make proper use of the saved building frontages rather than just having it as some weird frontage that doesn't gel.