The Glasgow Tenement: Repairing for the Future

The Glasgow Tenement: Repairing for the Future

Ruth Maclennan Year Four 200721574

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Declaration Department of Architecture University of Strathclyde Dissertation 2012/13 AB 420 BSc Honours Architectural Studies BSc Honours Architectural Studies with International Study & Pg Diploma in Architectural Studies.

Declaration “I hereby declare that this dissertation submission is my own work and has been composed by myself. It contains no unacknowledged text and has not been submitted in any previous context. All quotations have been distinguished by quotation marks and all sources of information, text, illustration, tables, images etc. have been specifically acknowledged.

I accept that if having signed this Declaration my work should be found at Examination to show evidence of academic dishonesty the work will fail and I will be liable to face the University Senate Discipline Committee.�

Name: Signed: Date:

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Acknowledgements Andrew Agapiou, for being an excellent and patient advisor, Thank you.

Fiona Sinclair, for showing me the world of Glasgow’s tenements, teaching me about conservation, allowing me to interview you and lending me your books.

Alan McGiilveray, Paul Hughes, John Gilbert, Niall McKinnon and Gordon Urquhart for kindly allowing me to interview you during my research of tenement repair in Glasgow.

Liz, for all the cups of tea!

Mum and Dad, for always supporting and encouraging me in everything that I do.

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Figure 2. View from a scaffold on 2 Buckingham Terrace, Glasgow

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01. Whit you oan aboot? - Abstract “Glasgow is a city of tenements: it is they which set the character of most of its streets.”

(Gomme and Walker, 1968: 183) Unfortunately this can no longer be said of the city of Glasgow where many tenements that had become slums were demolished in the 1960’s in favour of new modern housing that could absorb the density of the tenement quarters. The tenement buildings were thought to be more difficult and costly to repair and restore for modern day use than simply demolishing and building new. (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) This was a period of great change for the city and is looked back upon by some as a tragedy. “…As a result of various social and political pressures, large areas of the city have recently been demolished, without sufficient thought being given to the social and cultural loss which this was bound to entail. After all, not so many years ago, Glasgow could be described as the finest nineteenth century city in Europe, and this solely on the quality of its architecture. That quality was not confined simply to public and commercial buildings, but also embraced the long street-vistas of tenement housing.”

(Worsdall, 1979: ix) The streets of Glasgow would be very different without the humble tenement building and to some the thought of the tenement disappearing from our city is ridiculous; however the city stands today with two very different sides to it. Areas such as the Gorbals in the East end of Glasgow, known in history for it’s tenement slums, have been gutted of all tenement buildings apart from one, 162-170 Gorbals Street, which stands proud and alone with an uncertain fate. In contrast, the West End retains many streets of Victorian tenement buildings and provides a glimpse into Glasgow’s past streetscape mentioned by Gomme. Nevertheless, the cracks in this dense fabric of !

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Figure 3. View from a scaffold over the West End of Glasgow

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tenements have become visible with the appearance of many derelict tenements. A particular example being 19 Lynedoch Street/Crescent, which stands close to Park Circus, one of the most sought after areas of residence in the city centre. It is currently being left to rot through the inaction of Glasgow city council and provides evidence that the future of the Glasgow tenement now lies in a state of uncertainty.

This dissertation will demonstrate that Glasgow’s tenements are reaching the end of their material lives and many are in need of repair and refurbishment work to secure a place in the cities' future. Many people would be surprised that Glasgow’s Victorian tenements are in such a state of disrepair. Through working in an architecture practice and speaking to professionals I have found that the few who know about this are greatly concerned as the works may be required during a confined period of time which could overwhelm the construction industry. Upon further investigation it can be found that a tenement repair project is very challenging. There is a general lack of funding available for privately owned tenements and almost no funding available to housing associations to carry out essential repair works on publically owned tenements.

In addition, the traditional skills and materials necessary to restore buildings to a high standard are in short supply and come at a heavy price. The aim of this dissertation is to research through two case studies how the process works and how it might be made more manageable. What is the future of Glasgow’s tenement buildings? Will it be possible to repair and preserve the Glasgow tenement legacy or will they inevitably fall into disrepair and be demolished in favour of new modern housing?

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02. Aw the bits ae it - Contents Page 01. Whit you oan aboot? - Abstract 02. Aw the bits ae it - Contents Page 03. Photies an’ that - List of Figures 04. Here we go - Introduction 05. Dae ye ken aboot the tenements? - The Tenement Story: History and Origins

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I. In the beginning II. Tenements to Towers III. Tenement Improvements 1968-80 Boarded up windaes - What if we do nothing?

I. Derelict and Rotting II. Derelict Tenement Example 1: 19 Lynedoch Street/Crescent, Glasgow III. Derelict Tenement Example 2: 162 -170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Whit we gonna dae then? - Repairing the Glasgow Tenement I. The Tenement Repair Process Explained - Funding – Private - Funding - Public - The Tenement and the People - Materials - Traditional Skills and Labour - Public Awareness II. The Architects Role in the Process

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08. Dain’ it up - Case Study 1: 28 Ancroft Street, Glasgow 09. Dain’ it up - Case Study 2: 98 Dowanhill Street, Glasgow 10. Lights oot - Conclusion 11. Where its fae – Bibliography 12. Words o’ the people - Appendix I. Appendix 1 - Maryhill Housing Association Interview II. Appendix 2 - John Gilbert Architects Interview III. Appendix 3 - Queens Cross Housing Association Interview IV. Appendix 4 - Glasgow City Heritage Trust Interview V. Appendix 5 - Fiona Sinclair Architect Interview VI. Permissions

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03. Photies an’ that - List of Figures Figure 1. View along Grant Street, Glasgow Figure 2. View from a scaffold on 2 Buckingham Terrace, Glasgow Figure 3. View from a scaffold over the West End of Glasgow Figure 4. View from a scaffold on Cleveden Crescent, Glasgow Figure 5. Dilapidated chimney on the roof of 17-19 Cleveden Crescent, Glasgow Figure 6. Children playing on the streets of the Old Gorbals Figure 7. The Gorbals area of Glasgow, photographed for Picture Post in 1948.

Figure 8. Tenement Slum Figure 9. Hutchesontown Tenements are demolished to make way for Sir Basil Spences High rise Flats. 1960’s Figure 10. Cowcaddens M8 motorway wall clad in the stone of the areas demolished tenements.

Figure 11. View looking down inside Red Road Flats.

Figure 12. New Tenement in New Gorbals area of Glasgow.

Figure 13. Tenement in a desperate state of repair, Martyr St, east side, from Parson St. April 1973 Figure 14. Demolished tenement, Gourlay Street Figure 15. St. Georges Cross, 1970’s Figure 16. “Boarded up windaes” of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Figure 17. A deteriorating window of 19 Lynedoch Street, Glasgow Figure 18. Close up of front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Figure 19. West Elevation of 19 Lynedoch Street, Glasgow ! "#$%!,!

Figure 20. Photograph showing a hole through 19 Lynedoch Street’s stone fabric; a view of inside is visible.

Figure 21. Archive drawings showing 19 Lynedoch Street’s position and proposed alterations to the property for dwelling houses and offices. Dated 1949 Figure 22. Front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Figure 23. Measuring movement of cracks in the walls of 162-170 Gorbals Street, using a crack-monitoring gauge. The walls have moved so much that it has actually cracked in half.

Figure 24. Archive drawings showing the proposed front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street in 1995 by Duguid Design Architects. Unfortunately the works were never carried out due to funding problems.

Figure 25. Photograph showing window repairs to the frontage of a tenement building at 330 St Georges Road, Glasgow Figure 26. Photograph showing No’s 28, 42, 48 and 54 Ancroft Street lying vacant prior to a repairs project.

Figure 27. View on the roof of the Ancroft Street Project during repairs.

Figure 28. View on the roof of the Ancroft Street Project during repairs.

Figure 29. Of refurbishment works being carried out in 28 Ancroft Street Figure 30. Photograph taken of the roof of 98 Dowanhill Street during the repair project.

Figure 31and 32. Architects drawings of roof repair works.

Figure 33. 98 Dowanhill St during the repairs project Figure 34. 98 Dowanhill St during the repairs project Figure 35. Tenement at the end of the day, Glasgow.

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04. Here we go – Introduction

Figure 4. View from a scaffold on Cleveden Crescent, Glasgow

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This dissertation will explore the need for repair to many of the Victorian tenement buildings across the city of Glasgow with particular focus on the process of repairing a traditional tenement. Initially this dissertation highlights the growing number of derelict tenements within the city through the example of two key buildings in Glasgow’s city centre, 19 Lynedoch Street/Crescent and 162-170 Gorbals Street, which have been left to stand at present vacant and in a desperate condition after the required repairs and restoration works have not been achieved. Further investigation of the history of these two tenements will determine what circumstances have lead to the buildings current state of disrepair. This dissertations aim is to draw attention to the importance of this current issue and the necessary immediate action to be taken to ensure more tenements in Glasgow do not suffer the same fate.

In order to fully appreciate the importance of this topic we must review the history of Victorian tenements in Glasgow and understand the significance of this building type.

The tenement building is integral to the fabric of the city and therefore should be protected and retained for future generations to enjoy and appreciate as part of their architectural heritage.

This dissertation will then proceed to study the repair process using two case studies of two contrasting projects both in area, ownership, funding, materials and budget. The first being a tenement in Maryhill, Glasgow owned by the Queens Cross Housing Association (QCHA) that has been lying vacant for over ten years and was approaching demolition, despite its overall good condition. Fortunately QCHA secured a unique funding opportunity for numbers 28, 42, 48, 54 Ancroft Street and 34 Nansen Street allowing a total of five tenement buildings with 44 flats to be brought back into the cities' housing stock. Concentrating on the study of one of those tenements, 28 !

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Figure 5. Dilapidated chimney on the roof of 17-19 Cleveden Crescent, Glasgow

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Ancroft Street, this dissertation will investigate how that funding was secured, its budget and what type of works were carried out to enable the tenement to be used for the future.

The second case study follows a privately owned tenement in the Dowanhill area of Glasgow at 98 Dowanhill Street, which is a very fine example of a tenement building.

The three owners of this property decided to undertake a repair project after the roof began to leak causing the family on the top floor to suffer water ingress. Fiona Sinclair Architect was employed to carry out the works to the roof as well as some stone repairs and decoration. Further investigation of this private repair project details how it was funded, organised, what works were carried out and the issues that arose during its development. This allows us to gain valuable insight into the process of securing a privately owned tenements future.

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05. Dae ye ken aboot the tenements? - The Tenement Story: History and Origins

Figure 6. Children playing on the streets of the Old Gorbals

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I. In the beginning The word tenement may describe any building that can be entered through a common close with flats on either side although when discussing tenements in this dissertation it refers only to Victorian traditional sandstone tenements. The word tenement comes from the Latin– “tenementum” meaning ‘a holding’ and was originally used by the Romans to refer to a plot of land or a steading. The term then grew to be used in reference to a dwelling and was later used to describe a domestic piece of architecture with more than one storey that is entered using a common stairway. (Worsdall, 1979: ix) “Glasgow is the only city in Scotland to have developed a distinctive tenement architecture,” taking much of it’s influence from the Georgian Edinburgh and Glasgow terraces but creating a simpler and tougher building type which could stand the test of time without needing a great deal of attention or repair.

(G & Walker,1968:183) The Glasgow tenement is a product of the industrial revolution in the nineteenth century when there was a great need for an urban housing model which provided density.

Housing was required quickly to cope with the growing population and the tenement was the answer to this. Most tenements in the city were built during a short period of time, expansion and betterment. The nineteenth century was the golden age of tenement development in Glasgow. In the years of 1872-6 the city reached its peak of tenement construction laying out the streets of the Maryhill, Govanhill, Springburn, Dalmarnock and the Old Gorbals areas. In these years alone the Dean of Guild authorised 21,052 tenements to be built to meet the demand for housing the growing population of the working class; the results of this construction boom is still visible in parts of Glasgow today. In the mid-nineteenth century a team of ten men could build a !

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Figure 7. The Gorbals area of Glasgow, photographed for Picture Post in 1948.

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twenty-four room and kitchen tenement dwelling in around nine months time.

(Worsdall, 1979) Many streets are still lined with the repetitive window recesses and stonework of the working class tenements that housed the work force responsible for making Glasgow the second city of the empire. “Cliffs of sandstone tenements lined the major thoroughfares, providing for travellers passing through their enduring image of the city.” (Reed, 1993:106) Traditionally, tenements were built with a central common stairway called a close with three or four flats on each storey stacked on top of each other. Tenements are rarely built over four stories high. The close inevitably became a very important social aspect of the tenement and encouraged neighbours and children meeting in the close to form close relationships. (Faley, Jean. 1990) Ultimately acting as an extension of the street outside the tenement close passageways created tight-knit communities.

Up to the middle of the nineteenth century tenements were a mark of lower class distinction in Glasgow. As the city grew further West and South it gradually became acceptable for people of the middle class to live in a tenement flat without facing social disapproval. The middle class tenement differed slightly and was usually three floors high with larger room proportions. Whereas the lower class tenement had four stories, as people of higher class were opposed to climbing four flights of stairs! Another noticeable difference between the two is that the “middle class flat-dweller goes through a door in the street, rather than a mere hole in the wall.” (Gomme and Walker, 1968: 183) Lower class tenement passageways were entirely open to the street and one could enter the building without having to come through a door of any kind. As the close was open it became an extension of the street allowing it to thrive in social occupancy. !

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Figure 8. Tenement Slum

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Unfortunately after the great construction boom responsible for the development of many tenement schemes the economy fell into recession. At the end of the nineteenth century most tenement building stopped as they were primarily being built by private landlords who could simply not afford to go on building them. (Gomme and Walker, 1968) As a result of people losing work tenements quickly became slums and saw hundreds of people living in impoverished and over crowded conditions. Worsdall talks of the worst slums known in Glasgow during the mid-nineteenth century as the ‘Rookery’ in the Drygate area where around five hundred souls claimed home to a single tenement close in his book, ‘The tenement – a way of life.’ Over population and undeveloped sanitation marked the beginning of the downfall of many of the cities tenements and they continued in use as slums offering terrible living environments for their occupants. (Reed, 1993) The tenement building form became heavily associated with the stigma of slum living and many tenements, which may have been converted to modern standards, were instead demolished.

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Figure 9. Hutchesontown Tenements are demolished to make way for Sir Basil Spences High rise Flats. 1960’s

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II. Tenements to Towers “ ‘Tenement’ these days is a dirty word and is uttered almost exclusively to describe a slum property. It is this attitude of mind which has been responsible for the destruction of so much of our heritage – buildings which could, with a little foresight, have been reconstructed to provide continuing homes for their occupants. The policy of destruction, that something new is always better than something old, is wrong and can be clearly seen to be so in the vandalism, the lack of community spirit, the general hopelessness and the helplessness of life in a high-rise flat or a monster housing scheme.”(Worsdall, 1979: ix) The number of tenement-lined streets in Glasgow fell greatly in the 60’s and 70’s through a mass demolition strategy to modernise the city in conjunction with new housing theories. (Reed, 1993) Extensive areas to the east of Glasgow underwent a mammoth transformation from tenement housing to tower block living and streets were “transformed beyond recognition”. (Reed, 1993: 116) This period of destruction included the clearance of many tenements from land that was in the path of the proposed motorway ring road. The Bruce Plan, an ambitious ring-road motorway system violently punched its way through Glasgow’s Charing Cross at the expense of many tenements and Victorian terraces. The motorway system was designed after the city was already well established instead of being integrated with city street planning and was an attempt to modernise Glasgow in a time where cars became essential to every day life.

(Reed, 1993) The builders of the motorway recycled the stone of the tenements it destroyed in its path and used them to clad the motorway walls in the Cowcaddens area. Leaving visible a reference to what once was there. !

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Figure 10. Cowcaddens M8 motorway wall clad in the stone of the areas demolished tenements.

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Worsdall writes that demolitions of some of the finest examples of tenements in Glasgow such as Abootsford Place were “Senseless acts of vandalism”.

At first tower block living was widely welcomed by the tenement communities and neighbours were broken up and moved outside of the city to schemes. “Now this was all encouraged at first, the people went out, … the condition of the houses and so forth were allowed to go down.” (Faley, Jean. 1990:167) It was widely known that moving from a tenement to a scheme would bring a greatly improved quality of life; and in many aspects it did.“ People had no hankering to go back to the grim living conditions of the tenement houses as they were. They were ready to acknowledge that the new multi-storey flats and housing schemes offered greatly improved facilities: more room, running hot water, bathrooms.” There was an original delight in moving to a scheme, for many this change brought new possibilities and it meant that they were moving up in the world.

It was later realised that tower block living did not condone the communal happy lives which people were accustomed to in the tenements where “they spoke to one another. Now they’re living in these big flats, nobody speaks to one another, just passing one another by.” (Faley, Jean. 1990:166) Many of the schemes were located outside of Glasgow in areas designed for the spill out of the tenements. Families, friends and neighbours were broken up and sent to different schemes. As well as this the new estates lacked essential amenities for community use, “There’s not a place where kids could go, no picture house, nothing, everything’s been taken away. I think the way they’ve modernized things has made the place worse.” “The way it was years ago.

There wasnae so much vandalism. There’s no pictures noo. It was cheaper then, !

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Figure 11. View looking down inside the Red Road Flats.

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tuppence, ye know, matinees.”(Faley, Jean. 1990:166) Bus routes were developed to shuttle people from one scheme to the next but they were expensive. The tower blocks soon felt like prisons for many of its occupants who could not afford to leave. Of all of the multi-storey developments it is Red Road, which attracts the attention. This mammoth 296 feet high scheme was planned in 1962 and erected shortly after. The Red Road Flats as they are commonly called, were designed to house a total of 4,664 people in its 1,350 flats. (Worsdall, 1979) However only seven years after the projects completion it is reported that the lift, which was essential to high-rise living, broke and in result in an emergency “people had to be carried down seventeen flights of stairs” on route to hospital. The conditions of the lifts were blamed on local “vandalism”.

(Worsdall, 1979:148) Boredom, frustration and a lack of community caused crime rates to escalate on the in schemes and gradually tower blocks became widely known for their crime and solitude.

The test of time now shows that the shift from tenements to towers was a mistake. “Well, I’m not the first person to say this. Lots of people say that the sense of closeness in the tenements was something”(Faley, Jean. 1990:165) Unfortunately it was “only later that they didnae realise that instead of tearing down a lot of tenements they could refurbish the tenements that were there” (Faley, Jean. 1990:167) but much of the damage had already been done.

One of the main saving graces of the tenement building form that was over looked at the time is its density and relative simplicity. (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) Worsdall agrees writing, “one of the greatest virtues of the tenement as a building-type is its adaptability. Depending on various circumstances, an ingenious architect could provide a remarkable variety of different house sizes and plans within the same !

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Figure 12. New Tenement in New Gorbals area of Glasgow.

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solid, rectangular framework.� (Worsdall, 1979: 39) It is for this reason that many tenements may have not been demolished and instead re-organised to accommodate whatever was required of it.

Now having realised the mistake the city has began to revert back to building tenement look-a-like modern housing. Many of the attributes of the tenement can be seen in its design such as the communal close, shop fronts on the ground floor, organisation in plan ,and use of a backcourt. However modern housing lacks the proportions and high ceilings of the tenements which were so pleasant to live in. The original tenements have an undeniable character well sought after by many people looking for homes in the city today.

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Figure 13. Tenement in a desperate state of repair, Martyr St, east side, from Parson St. April 1973

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III. Tenement Improvements 1968-80 “Each generation inherits the position of curating the architectural heritage, which serves as a record of the cities progression and achievements through time.” (HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, 1975) Glasgow in particular, is a city very aware of its architectural wealth. It is for this reason that it seems strange that certain travesties committed by planners in the 1960’s were permitted to happen. However in the 1970’s a new generation of people came together to improve tenement buildings in Glasgow which grew into a quiet revolution of repair and restoration works throughout the city. Although tenements had been well built they were “ poorly maintained after decades of rent control and intense occupation, with many of the solid facades concealing small and poorly equipped flats.” (Robinson, 2010: 76) At first this movement “had very little to do with Conservation as we have now came to recognise it since then”(Robinson, 2010: 75) but instead focused on improving the lives of the people still living in tenements, unfit for habitation.

The majority of the tenement flats consisted of a single room, colloquially called a ‘single end’ with an average of only 46 square meters. Many were deficient in one or more of the standard amenities such as bathrooms and kitchens available in more modern properties. As John Gilbert accounts, “Raymond Jones started in Govan in the early 70’s and used the Improvement Act to restore some tenements… I did some drawings for that to show how he amalgamated the bathrooms and got bathroom stacks through and would speak to everybody, get improvement grants and just put toilets in, very basic things.” (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) Earlier in 1957 twenty-nine Outline Comprehensive Development Areas (OCDA)were set out throughout the city’s grounds with two main aims. The first being to demolish the !

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Figure 14. Demolished tenment, Gourlay Street

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worst tenemental properties and build new modern replacements. (Robinson, 2010) Later the modern housing and the decision to replace such tenements was harshly criticised and debated, “It is arguable that if the new architecture and planning of the 1960’s and 1970’s had fulfilled their promise better and had themselves been rather less grim and alienating, there would then have developed much less nostalgia for the elderly city it was beginning to replace. Not only was there disenchantment with the bland modernism of the buildings which were appearing, but there was also a genuine regret emerging about the loss of much that was familiar both as physical landmarks and as a way of life.” (Reed, 1993:167) The second aim was to comprehensively refurbish the remaining tenement buildings which required entire overhaul projects to be back . This entailed stripping existing roofs of Scottish slate and re-tiling the roofs using concrete tiles as well as gutting of the entire interior of the buildings and installing modern kitchens and bathrooms to bring the properties up to the current standards.

The pace of OCDA improvement was slow until nature stepped in on the 14th of January 1968 and unleashed a ‘Great Storm’ (Robinson, 2010) on the city. Hurricane force winds demonstrated the fragile condition of the cities many Victorian tenement buildings which could not withstand the storm. Entire roofs were stripped of their slates and many chimneys fell from buildings crashing onto cars in the street. The resulting damaged landscape demanded action and improvements were stepped up and better organised throughout the city to repair the damage. (Robinson, 2010) Housing Associations began to be formed throughout the city after the passing of the 1971 Housing Act which set up the initial funding structure to repair and refurbish the cities housing stock. The Housing Corporation, which was established ten years prior along !

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Figure 15. St. Georges Cross, 1970’s

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with local authorities distributed funding to the essential works. (Armstrong and Housetalk, 1984) “Initially when I started out funding came from Central Government through the Housing Corporation and they directed the funding locally to community based Housing Associations. Then the Housing Corporation became Scottish Homes and Scottish Homes became something else and now its attached to the local authorities.

So there was always money from Central Government that was fed down to community areas but there were only grants from the local authority for private homeowners. So you had the Housing Associations doing very comprehensive tenement refurbishment where they decanted people and did a very comprehensive job.� (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5)

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06. Boarded up windaes - What if we do nothing?

Figure 16. “Boarded up windaes” of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow

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I. Derelict and Rotting The question must first be asked, what if we do nothing? If we do nothing to attempt to repair the tenements of Glasgow what will be their inevitable fate? Already glimpses of the answer to this question are discernible from existing precedents that can be found throughout the city. It has become a common site in Glasgow, a city which is in a constant state of architectural flux and change, to frequently see historical buildings such as tenements boarded up and detached from the existing building fabric around them. Their only difference from neighbouring buildings being the fact they are unoccupied and currently without purpose which has allowed the physical state of the building to deteriorate. However, the strong presence of these buildings can be felt and has been in no way lost. The sight of boarded up and derelict historical buildings reverberate a great sense of injustice to any person who pauses to appreciate not only the building in its current state but its history of service to the city, abominably repaid in abandonment. “There is a compelling fascination about old buildings – how else can one explain the vast throngs of tourists who travel all over the world to look at and to admire the work of architects and craftsmen of every age and culture? Yet many people, including, one presumes, a good many tourists, take their own surroundings for granted and only get upset when a familiar landmark disappears to be replaced by something new and strange.� (HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, 1975:v) Tenement properties are today widely considered desirable places to live, whereas tower blocks have an attached social stigma and are greatly unwanted currently housing the poor. Many tower blocks have already been knocked down and most of !

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Figure 17. A deteriorating window of 19 Lynedoch Street, Glasgow

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the remaining blocks are in planning to also be demolished in future. Many remaining high rise properties are currently undergoing refurbishment in order to pro-long their lives from 30 to 60 years, (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) a short period of time in comparison to the humble tenements current working life span of 100-120 years. “Judging by the indiscriminate destruction of old buildings and their replacement by socially and aesthetically disastrous structures in recent years, it suggests a quite remarkable degree of disregard for lessons painfully learned in previous generations.�

(HRH the Duke of Edinburgh, 1975:vi) Surely there is a lesson here in the un-moveable character of the tenement in the city of Glasgow.

Originally tenements were built to house the lower classes in large numbers, but now the tenement has risen above its original status and has throughout the years been adjusted to meet what ever has been asked of it. So why then do derelict tenement buildings exist in the city? This is often due to financial circumstances. The current practice in Glasgow of the City Council as well as owner individuals is not to demolish tenements but to abandon them and leave them lying derelict to rot. (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) Upon first glance it seems like a very foolish way to deal with such buildings but after investigation it can be seen in many instances that the council or owner have a strategy for doing this. Due to the value of historical buildings to the city and its people many buildings are listed or sit within a conservation area. Listing is a system that protects structures, spaces and landscapes that are felt to be important to the country on a national, regional or local level. Buildings of interest are categorised and protected from proposed changes that may compromise the building’s rarity. (Historic Scotland, 2012) !

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Figure 18. Close up of front eleveation of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow

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This system is very effective in protecting our built heritage but unfortunately has also become the reason for many listed buildings falling into ruin. In order to alter a listed building, or a building which sits inside one of Glasgow’s 23 Conservation areas, the owner of that building must apply for planning permission; a long and difficult process.

Despite the systems good intentions, as a result of this difficult and expensive process many owners simply cannot afford to repair or refurbish a building to the level of quality that listing dictates.

The focus often turns away from giving the building new purpose to the plot of land it sits on and the money to be made from what could be built there if the building was demolished. As many tenements in the city stand in key real-estate areas and occupy large plots of land, it can be tempting for developers and individuals alike to develop an agenda that seeks to reap the profit of demolishing the existing structure and building modern housing, often containing twice the number of dwellings within the site footprint. (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) This is a particularly brutal way to kill off a building that could be refurbished for future generations to enjoy but what makes this option so attractive is that it can be achieved by doing absolutely nothing. If the building is left derelict for long enough and falls into such a terrible state that it is deemed to be dangerous it is given permission more easily to be demolished, freeing up the potential profit of redevelopment. It is true that most “people have a deep-seated desire to preserve our links with the past and to give them a new role in the future. It is the next generation who will judge our success or failure.� (Department of Environment, 1975: xii) However in the present state of the Scottish economy and with very little public funding available to buildings in crisis, economics alone is driving property decisions. (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) !

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Figure 19. West Elevation of 19 Lynedoch Street, Glasgow

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II. Derelict Tenement Example: 19 Lynedoch Street/Crescent, Glasgow One such example of a derelict tenement in danger of being left to rot can be found at 19 Lynedoch Street in Glasgow’s city centre. 19 Lynedoch Street sits in a very important part of the West End of Glasgow, very near to Park Circus, one of the most sought after areas for residence and office space. I have chosen to examine this building because it serves as an example of a tenement being left to rot due to the arguably deliberate inaction of its owners. (Derelict Glasgow:2012) Designed in 1845 by the Aberdeen born architect George Smith, the building is a rather plain three storey blond tenement with a basement; most recently used as the office of an engineering firm. It sits in a very prominent position on the street occupying the corner of Lynedoch Street and Lynedoch Crescent as part of a stylar Italianate B listed terrace in the Park Circus conservation area of Glasgow. The building also benefits from rear access through Woodside Terrace Lane that leads down on to Woodlands Road.

The lane itself is occupied by several mews cottages that are used as office and studio spaces. The prime location of this property is undeniable, so why does it sit empty and in a rapidly deteriorating state?

A planning application to repair and restore the category B listed building and create 8 flats was granted only to be counter-acted with an application in August 2010 by Carrick McCormack Architects on behalf of Ashlar Estates Ltd. to demolish the property and build a modern tenement look-a-like containing 14 new flats instead. Ashlar Estates have stated that the tenement is beyond repair and the building if left in its current state is at risk of structural collapse. (Urban Realm, 2010) In 2010, 19 Lynedoch Street ! "#$%!)/!

Figure 20. Photograph showing a hole through 19 Lynedoch Street’s stone fabric, a view of inside is visible.

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was added to the Buildings for Risk Register of Scotland, which is a register operated by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland on behalf of Historic Scotland. The register was created to highlight the neglect of buildings like 19 Lynedoch Street that are listed or within a conservation area lying vacant or in a state of disrepair. The website in particular is a very important forum for people to raise concerns over their built heritage at risk and many buildings have been saved through this publicity.

The planning application for the re-development of the 19 Lynedoch St site was granted subject to conditions and promises to use materials like natural stone and slate to match the existing terrace. Although the fact that the project would provide almost double the amount of flats in comparison to the existing tenement is a sure sign of the monstrous scale of the proposed development.

At present the building is vacant and continues to deteriorate. Upon external inspection of the Victorian tenement it is very apparent that the stone faรงade requires urgent attention. The polished ashlar has degraded to an alarming state where several holes through the entire wall reveal views to the interior and are allowing a dangerous amount of water ingress into the structure. The cast iron pipes that cling to the building are loose in places and have a great deal of staining on them. Although at some time all of the sash and case windows were boarded up, many of the boards have come away, the windows have been broken and the property is now lying entirely open to the elements. The condition of the roof is also desperate; all of the chimney pots are missing, several of the slates have slipped allowing water ingress. The West corner of the roof is particularly distressing as it seems the structure has collapsed inwards leaving the !

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Figure 21. Archive drawings showing 19 Lynedoch Street’s position and proposed alterations to the property for dwelling houses and offices. Dated 1949

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corner blatantly unprotected to the elements.

The building is a shocking case of neglect by the owner, which continues to go unpunished. The refurbishment of this building in its present state would be very expensive and the owner’s application for planning approval of a new development does nothing to conceal their intentions. It is for this reason that one may conclude that this building is being deliberately left to rot and collapse in a prestigious area in order to grant planning application for its demolition and the erection of a new development that may be greatly profited from.

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Figure 22. Front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow

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III. Derelict Tenement Example: 162 -170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Numbers 162- 170 Gorbals Street is a very unique tenement that stands in what is known as the Old Gorbals area of Glasgow. One hundred years ago this area was lined with streets of tenements that housed mainly the lower class south of the River Clyde. Due to impoverished conditions, over-crowding and poor sanitation the Old Gorbals area was later known for it’s terrible slums. Much of the blame for the terrible conditions fell on the tenement building type and in the 1960’s a massive redevelopment project saw the demolition of the tenements in favour of tower block housing. 162-170 Gorbals Street is now the only tenement left from this time in the entire area and is in a vacant and constantly deteriorating state.

It is not for this reason alone that this tenement is very special, it is a “magnificent highly individualised”(Derelict Glasgow:2011) example of a tenement. “On the whole the wellknown architects did not build tenements, or if they did the fact is not recorded.”

(Gomme and Walker.1968: 183) Despite this, the architect for 162-170 Gorbals Street is known to be the famous Glasgow architect James Salmon Jr. and stands as a fourstorey, six bay, red sandstone tenement built of polished ashlar and displaying many unique features. The composition of the tenement is made up by its detailed stonework and sculpture in an art nouveau style. The building’s ground floor was originally a branch of the British Linen Company Bank, an originally Scottish company that operated out of Edinburgh. The company’s first intention was to support the linen industry but later became a bank. 162-170 Gorbals Street is one of the nine branches that were opened outside of the capital city and were later acquired after the First World War by Barclays Bank. The tower which rises vertically from the main entrance ! "#$%!*+!

Figure 23. Measuring movement of cracks in the walls of 162-170 Gorbals Street, using a crack-monitoring gauge. The walls have moved so much that it has actually cracked in half.

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door of the bank projects outwards from the tenement highlighting this part of the façade. The several different styles of windows are unusual and form an arts and craft like style when placed all together.

Tragically, this building has been un-occupied for over 20 years; despite several attempts to restore it. In 1995 the Southside Housing Association (SHA) were granted Historic Scotland funding to refurbish the building into flats and some preventative works were carried out to the building to keep it wind and water tight. Sadly in 1998 the project had not yet got underway and the funding allocated to it lapsed. Later that year the building appeared on the Buildings at Risk Register for Scotland and the SHA stated they would sell the building at a low price to anyone who could fund its restoration. The building continued to be inspected regularly by the SHA and John Gilbert Architects carried out a feasibility study of the tenement for the Glasgow Building preservation Trust in 2002. Unfortunately it was not financially viable to restore the building at that time, “It doesn’t seem to stack up financially because of the amount of conservation requirement in it, in terms of putting back what you would want to do in terms of restoring it as a unique building. And what you are getting is fairly small flats so who do you sell those small flats to? On the market they might only reach, you would be lucky to get £100,000! Whereas you are going to spend more than that on things like the joinery work and putting in floors, services, it takes a lot of money. Reslating the roof is not the biggest problem, although there is a steeple there that has been removed and it has been asked if it can be put back.” (John Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) Since then the building has continued to deteriorate under the watchful eye of its owners, the Southside Housing Association who continue to work towards securing its future. !

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Figure 24. Archive drawings showing the proposed front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street in 1995 by Duguid Design Architects. Unfortunately the works were never carried out due to funding problems.

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Unlike the previous example, this building has been protected through temporary works by replacing its’ slate roof with a profiled metal covering which aims to keep it watertight whilst it stands waiting to be re-furbished. The windows have been boarded up and the openings to the shop below have been bricked up to protect it from break-ins and vandalism. Some of the boarded up windows on the rear elevation have come away and there are a few broken windows that are allowing water ingress. Inside this special tenement the decorative timbers have been entirely gutted out or rotted but the building is structurally stable and could be restored. (John Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) It is apparent that this tenement has not been deliberately abandoned in the hope that it falls down but rather has yet to find a suitable occupation for itself which would merit its refurbishment.

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07. Whit we gonnae dae then? - Repairing the Glasgow Tenement

Figure 25. Photograph showing window repairs to the frontage of a tenement building at 330 St Georges Road, Glasgow

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I. The Tenement Repair Process Explained It is evident through the tragic examples of 19 Lynedoch Street and 162- 170 Gorbals Street that if tenements in Glasgow are not repaired correctly they will eventually lose their occupancy and become derelict and deteriorate. To keep a building alive it must be occupied, buildings are simply not designed to suffer the neglect, cold and damp that dereliction brings. Unfortunately we are not always able to control the circumstances that surround our built environments fate. In order to avoid the cities tenement stock further deteriorating we must gain a better understanding of the challenging repair process so that we may implement the necessary works. There is a very real danger that if Glasgow does not repair its tenements it “will be a dying housing form. There is absolutely no doubt.” (Paul Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) Why is the tenement repair process a difficult one?

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There is a lack of private and public funding available to repair, refurbish and restore tenement buildings.

A repair project requires the organisation and cooperation of all of the buildings co-owners. Acquiring their cooperation and particularly getting all eight to agree to pay for the works is a difficult undertaking that may take years.

The materials required to repair a Victorian tenement are no longer available to supply the demand.

The traditional labour and skills required to carry out the works are few, specialised and costly.

There is not enough public awareness of the subject. "#$%!+'!

Funding - Public It is widely known throughout the architectural industry that funding any type of construction project in today’s economy is difficult. Although the Scottish Government has introduced funding available for new build projects in an attempt to kick-start the current dilapidated industry there is very little funding available to existing buildings in comparison.

Due to the present economic climate many private owners do not have the money to pay for what is often an unforeseen expense and become very interested in applying for any funding available. Much of the funding of existing buildings comes through the Scottish Government and is placed in the hands of Historic Scotland and local authorities such as Glasgow City Council. They then distribute it through organisations such as the Glasgow City Heritage Trust (GCHT) to grant-aid select privately owned projects. (Urquhart, 2013: Appendix 4) This is a fantastic resource for any homeowner who lives in a traditional or A-B listed tenement within one of Glasgow’s 23 conservation areas. A GCHT Building Repair Grant can provide up to 40% of external repair work costs, provided the works being carried out are to a high standard using traditional materials such as lead and Scottish slate. (Urquhart, 2013: Appendix 4) A conservationaccredited architect must oversee the grant-aided works and it should restore the buildings like for like. Most owners are very grateful to the GCHT for the 40% grant which allows projects to get underway and be carried out using high quality materials, which they could otherwise not afford. Often owners find it hard to justify restoration works of conservation standard without this grant aid assistance. Particularly when there are builders that can cover the roof with concrete roof tiles for half the price.

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Funding - Public In comparison publicly owned tenements that are owned by Housing Associations are funded in a very different way. Whereas in the 1970’s – 80’s there “was a housing action grant, it was called the HAG Grant for a lot of housing associations and local authorities to refurb tenement flats and that was how the process worked. But, again, that money has dried up. We don’t have that money anymore. We have other HAG funding for various different things but not for tenement rehabs…” (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) Currently, Housing Associations in Glasgow are governed by the Scottish Government and rely directly on their Association to put forward a life cycle costing which takes into account the annual repairs and maintenance a tenement property requires over time.

These costing’s generally work over a 30 year time period in accordance with the Associations predicted pay back period. (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) The association makes required funds available through its rental income of the property in question as well as other investments the Association may have.

Housing Associations are driven by economics and the financial viability of their actions.

Renovations to properties are carried out only if the Association can viably expect their financial investment to be returned. In the case of tenement housing which is very expensive to repair and refurbish on a 30 year basis it may not always be financially acceptable for a Housing Association to continue to invest in a property which can not possibly return the investment over 30 years. Shockingly, Maryhill Housing Association in Glasgow have stated that as their tenement buildings are more expensive to refurbish than modern housing “…there will be hard decisions getting made over the next wee while whether we should demolish some of these.” (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) !

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Most people would be shocked to think that there could be another wave of mass tenement demolition in the city of Glasgow echoing the 1960’s. Following the example of Falkirk Council which recently demolished 40-50 tenemental properties in favour of rebuilding rather than renovating the existing. (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) MHA have hinting that they may consider demolishing their tenements which are too expensive to continually repair. “It would probably be cheaper long term to demolish and re-build as it would be to renovate again. The costs of renovation would be horrendous.” (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) However this is due to the way in which Housing Associations work, drawing up renovation plans using a 30-60 year defined period which does not suit the tenement building. Tenements which are repaired using traditional materials such as lead, slate and stone would be more likely eligible for a 100-year costing period. It is because Housing Associations require to cost things on a 30 year basis that the figures are currently not adding up in regard to MHA’s tenements. The Association’s 30-year budgets do not permit the use of traditional materials because they are too expensive and the Association would have problems “getting the money to do it at this point in time”. (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1) Economics are driving all of MHA’s decisions so instead materials such as concrete roof tiles and uPVC windows are generally installed.

These materials are not designed to withstand a period of more than 30 years and will inevitably require to be replaced more often than traditional materials.

In response to MHA saying that it may be better to demolish tenements and rebuild modern flats rather than refurbish the existing, John Gilbert states, “You are still going to want in an urban situation a dense population so if you knock them down you are still going to want to build houses to a similar density. Would this be better? Well they might ! "#$%!+*!

have lifts, you know, but I don’t know how long some of those new houses will last anyway. There is something quite robust about older tenements, which I think will last and I think in 30 years they will certainly still have them. I will be surprised if they start demolishing lots of tenements but there are plenty of other areas to build stock on. They have been demolishing 1960’s houses basically in the last 30 years, they didn’t last for hardly 30 years. What makes you think that new houses are going to be so good?”

(Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) In terms of internal renovations, the Housing Association requires to keep their properties to a relatively modern standard. These renovations could be carried out when required at a fraction of the cost in comparison to the common repairs to the tenement building fabric.

The Tenement and the People Many buyers are simply not aware that in purchasing a flat in a tenement they are required to pay for a share of repair works to the common building fabric as set out in the buildings title deeds. Often buyers fall in love with the tenement charm and do not even go as far as to inspect the roof before purchasing. “The problems of joint ownership remain, and there are few signs that tenement owners truly realise the need to form stair associations or even inspect and maintain the common property at regular intervals.” (John Gilbert.1992) It is under these circumstances that many owners find themselves in the un-pleasant situation of having to repair their home.

Tenements are owned by a large number of co-proprietors which all must agree on the repair work needing done and then pay for it. Many architects agree that securing cooperation from the owners over the works and price is the most challenging part of a !

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tenement repair process. (Urquhart, 2013: Appendix 4) “Surely you mean that it is difficult dealing with the owners of tenements? It’s not actually difficult to repair tenements. It’s managing eight different owners, or sometimes sixteen.” (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) Architects currently working in the building industry in Glasgow believe that it is difficult because people do not recognize the cost of their built environment. The public is unaware of the maintenance and repairs that buildings require, “because a building is permeable and doesn’t change they think, but obviously it does.” (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) The architects who have been involved in a tenement repair project often account that there is a trend of how the project begins and the process of bringing all of the coproprietors on board. Most tenement repair projects begin with the co-proprietor living on the top floor flat is first to raise the alarm that there is a leak in the roof. They then face the challenge of gathering the other occupants of the building and convincing them to pay for a repair project. There is usually a trend in this where the owner of the top floor flat becomes the most enthusiastic client and the basement flat owner is hesitant to pay for a problem, which does not affect him!

“The thing about co-owners working together is that inevitably there is one co-owner that has to be hugely persuaded of the benefits and they some times take a really long time to bring on board.” (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) Although tenements work well as an architectural building form that provides density in an urban context it is unfortunate that it is this same quality which makes them so difficult to repair in a privately owned situation. This is not as evident in publicly owned tenements where in comparison they do not require the organisation or financial ! "#$%!+,!

commitment from the occupants and therefore the Association that owns it can make decisions regarding any repairs or maintenance with more ease.

Materials Victorian tenements were built using the traditional skills of stone masons, joiners, salters and lead workers who took pride in their work using stone quarried locally and slate which was in abundance. The architects at the time chose these raw Scottish materials not only for their aesthetic and feel but also for their hardwearing quality and long material life spans needing little maintenance.

More than a hundred years down the road and many of the roofs of Glasgow bear the same lead and slate they were first clothed in. Now the materials lives are up and the rain is beginning to come through the cracks and be noticed by its occupants. Further years of shanty repair work using tar and felt has been exuberated and we need to repair our tenements properly and with respect if we want to ensure their survival for the next one hundred years.

The first instances of tenement rehabilitation can be traced back to the 1970’s. It was then that people realised that the very nature of the tenement does not lend itself easily to being helped and that accessing the traditional materials at a low price was a problem. As there were so many comprehensive refurbishment projects happening within a confined period of time traditional materials such as stone and slate were rejected in favour of cheaper alternatives such as concrete roof tiles and stone rendering products like Linostone. Now that many of the tenemental improvements from the 1970’s and 1980’s which were intended to last around 30 years, have came to the end of their lives another wave of repair works has slowly began. In many cases !

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replacing the roofs and windows which were installed in the 1970’s by the very same architects who first made repairs to the property. John Gilbert points out, “we are working in Govanhill at the moment putting in windows into Victorian tenements. So I started doing work there and I’m back there, nothing changes!” (John Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) Gordon Urquhart agrees stating, “We are now looking at a lot of repairs done in the last big wave of repair grants schemes that were done on the cheap. Tiled roofs, linostone and things that are now all peeling off, cracking and flaking. Windows from 30 years ago were pretty lousy, they looked fine for a few years, and so we are having to re-do a lot of things that were already done when I started which wasn’t that long ago.”

(Urquhart, 2013: Appendix 4) Unfortunately in the current financial market it is very difficult to fund these works resulting in properties deteriorating and becoming more and more run down. Once this process has began it is much more difficult for individuals to see potential in the property and invest in its repair at all. “The quality drops and then people don’t want to invest, it’s really hard to get money out of them to repair and then more of the quality goes down…” (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) If tenemental properties are repaired using materials that are not traditional we cannot expect to achieve any more than 30 years material life span. Whereas a project which uses the traditional materials of Scottish slate, lead and natural stone can be expected to last another 100 years. The traditional materials the tenements deserve are no longer being quarried in great numbers, but there is nothing to stop the country supporting more stone and slate quarries in order to make these materials more readily available and less expensive. ! "#$%!+.!

Traditional Skills and Labour The traditional building trades we need to do the work are few, specialised and expensive. Making traditional repairs difficult for people to access on a budget. At present Scotland is in the middle of an economic recession where there is little investment in creating jobs in the construction industry. “Historic Scotland were trying to create apprenticeships and you do read a lot, in the Evening Times in particular, about City Building taking on apprentices but they are training them to be plumbers and electricians. It is not historic building repairs, it is not leadworkers.” (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5)

Public Awareness There seems to be a problem with the general public thinking in that they expect buildings to last without maintenance or money being spent on them. This is a problem which may be fixed through providing better public awareness of the cost of conserving our built heritage. Organisations such as the GCHT have already began to better educate the public through lectures, work shops and drop in sessions which “get people interested in their buildings, streets and townscapes.” (Urquhart, 2013: Appendix 4) More educational programmes such as aimed at the public and in particular younger generations could inspire people to take a greater interest in the care for their buildings. More awareness could lead to more money being saved towards regular building maintenance, neighbours may greater understand the financial obligation of owning a traditional property and take pride in its care. This may be key in extinguishing the present lack of knowledge and care towards our existing built environment in public minds. !

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II. The Architects Role In most cases of publically and privately owned tenements, an architect’s advice is sought on the condition of the building prior to a repair project. It often falls upon an architect who has experience in organising similar projects to navigate what can be a very difficult and sensitive situation. The very nature of the tenement designed to offer mixed use living with several residents up stairs and a commercial owner of the ground floor presents a group of people with varied means and experience. This greatly adds to the difficulty of convincing the owners of the building to unite and most importantly agree to pay for the proposed works.

“Repairs projects aren’t difficult, it's persuading the owners, it's actually the payment process. Its getting people to part with a sizeable sum of money” (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) Once an architect is engaged with the project it is customary that a small or very detailed conditions survey be carried out to highlight all problem areas of the building.

The final report is then distributed to the multiple owners of the tenement and includes photographs and the architect’s findings. Depending on the condition of the property, an entire roof restoration may be required as well as stone repairs and the installation of new gutters and pipework. Once the buildings condition is highlighted many owners opt to also replace or restore the existing windows at the same time, which saves on later scaffolding costs. The architect should also suggest that the roof be insulated in order to comply with modern building regulations. The buildings occupants usually welcome this if it means that energy bills in future will be lower. In future there may be an increase in demand for energy conservation (Gilbert, 2013: Appendix 2) as currently ! "#$%!,&!

the environmental performance of existing buildings such as tenements is under scrutiny.

The architect will proceed by preparing the tender documents and drawings of the existing building and proposed works. If the co-owners intend to apply for grant assistance Glasgow City Heritage Trust require the project be put out to tender to a minimum of three contractors. Once tenders are received and opened the coproprietors select a contractor usually based on the price the contractor has stated they will carry out the project for. GCHT then offer each co-owner a grant on the basis of the accepted tender and their share of the costs for the building as set out in the title deeds. This part of the process must be carefully timed as GCHT grant funding often runs out quickly due to a high demand and projects are driven by when money is available. GCHT grant aid funding becomes available at the beginning of each financial year in April and often is gone by August. If this window of opportunity is missed the project must wait till the following year to gain funding.

Before works begin on site a Pre-start meeting is called between all parties involved to outline the works and positions of all involved. Shortly after this the scaffold is erected and works begin on site. The length of time the project may take is dependant on the contractor and weather conditions. The architect should visit site regularly to maintain a high level of quality of work. Directly prior to the projects completion the architect will begin snagging the entire project. This is a process where every part of the works is carefully checked over to ensure the works have been carried out correctly before signing off the project.

Lastly the building is cleaned and scaffold is disassembled. Co-owners by law are entitled to a 1-year rectification period under the Standard Scottish Building Contract.

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08. Dain’ it up - Case Study 1: 28 Ancroft Street, Glasgow

Figure 26. Photograph showing No’s 28, 42, 48 and 54 Ancroft Street lying vacant prior to a repairs project.

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The area of Maryhill located to the northwest of the city is steeped in history and is a former burgh. In 1872 the Maryhill Barracks was opened, home to the Highland Light Infantry and the Scots Greys. Many tenements today in areas of Partick, Govan and Maryhill are owned by housing associations and house a range of people including people claiming benefit, the elderly and students.

Queens Cross Housing Association (QCHA) are one such Association, known for their good reputation in Glasgow in regard to restoration and re-development projects alike.

Two streets along from the QCHA offices lies numbers 28, 42, 48, 54 Ancroft Street and 34 Nansen Street which for the most part has been derelict and near inevitable demolition for the past ten years. The position of these tenements is central to QCHA’s current re-development centre and in 2010 a unique opportunity came about for the Association to bring the 44 flats back into the working housing stock.

Out of the five properties two of them have been vacant dating back to 2001 when two separate fires broke out. Although the damage was minimal, Glasgow Housing Association who at the time owned all five properties, decanted the two tenements residents, repaired the damage in 2003 and for an unknown reason never moved anyone back in! (McKinnon, 2013: Appendix 3) It is also unknown how No. 28 became vacant, “ I suspect it might be because of the size of flats, which I will show you.

Because it’s on the corner there are three flats per landing and they are all fairly small. It might have just become hard to let because the actual condition internally were reasonably good.” (McKinnon, 2013: Appendix 3) Whilst the other two tenement properties were purposely vacated due to anti social behaviour taking place in them such as “drug dealing and a couple of families trying to rule the neighbourhood type !

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Figure 27. View on the roof of the Ancroft Street Project during repairs.

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thing.” (McKinnon, 2013: Appendix 3) This tenement example is especially interesting because of the story behind the entire row of tenements falling away into dereliction.

Numbers 28 – 54 Ancroft Street consist of a rather plain but enduring traditional resandstone tenement. Judging on its decoration and rather small size of flats it was most likely built the local work force of the Wellroad Weaving Mills which worked in wool and cotton. The mill lies directly at the western foot of Ancroft Street which was originally known as Kerr Street. The architect responsible for its design was John Grant Sharp who operated out of the architectural practice, Sharp & Fairlie. There is little known about Sharp, and even littler known about his partner Fairlie.

In 2007 the Ancroft Street properties were still in the ownership of Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) who were attempting to give the five tenement buildings to QHA for re-development after the flats had been derelict and without occupation for a few years. However, as GHA had recently became a charity the transfer of the buildings from GHA to QCHA at little or not cost was not allowed to go ahead. This is because a charity may not be seen to give away its assets; it must get the best possible price for them. Once the five tenement properties were valued it was clear that QCHA could no longer afford to be involved, as they could not buy the properties at their valued price and afford restoration works to them. It was “going to cost you £110,000-120,000 per unit and the flats are only worth around £100,000 so its not going to be viable; so they just lay there.” GHA attempted to sell the five tenements but had no interest due to the current financial climate. The tenements lay empty for a few more years before GHA concluded that the properties could not be sold. In years previous GHA “had them approved by their management board for disposal but their phrase was demolition or disposal.” Strangely, although GHA could not “give away” its assets it was decided that !

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Figure 28. View on the roof of the Ancroft Street Project during repairs.

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it could knock down its assets. Fortunately, it was this phrase that provided an important loophole which saved these tenements from demolition. As the flats could not be sold, it was decided that they should be disposed of through demolition, which was estimated to cost around £300,000. As it happens, QCHA were in the process of taking over old GHA housing stock in the area and the properties were transferred to QCHA before demolition could take place. Lastly, and most bizarre of all, not only did QCHA get the tenements they wanted but GHA actually paid the Association £300,000 to take the five properties. This money was given to QCHA to cover the proposed demolition works of the five properties.

“So we could have bought them for £10,000 each and it would have cost us £500,000, 44 flats. They gave us £300,000 to demolish them!” (McKinnon, 2013: Appendix 3) Thankfully, QCHA had no intention of demolishing the Ancroft St tenements and ironically included the GHA demolition money into its restoration budget. (McKinnon, 2013: Appendix 3) The rest of the project was funded by a loan and a very special, one off funding package from the Scottish Government in the form of a HAG (Housing Association Grant). Prior to this it had been reported that tenement HAG funding had entirely dried up (Hughes, 2013: Appendix 1), this is obviously one very lucky tenement which seems to have, despite the odds, fought its way back into occupancy.

The works on site of the project began in May of 2012 and are expected to come to a full completion in May of this year, 2013. The works are in the style of the Comprehensive Tenement Improvements Projects of the 1970’s, probably the last of its kind! (McKinnon, 2013: Appendix 3) Works to the properties include a full roof over haul and re-tiling, stone repairs using lithomex, new timber windows are being installed. The interior of the flats has been completely gutted and due to some very strange existing ! "#$%!,-!

Figure 29. Photograph of refurbishment works being carried out in 28 Ancroft Street

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flat layouts, the Associations architect, Campbell & Morris Associates have designed new layouts. The Association plans to sell two of the tenements aims at first time buyers at a starting price of £90,000. The remaining three tenement buildings are to be let by the Housing Association. The combined profit of which will repay the Associations loan for the project.

This is clearly an example of where two Housing Associations have moved things around in order to save a set of derelict tenement buildings which were in a relatively good condition. More projects and funding like this is required if we are to In order to highlight the difference in budget with the coming case study of 98 Dowanhill Street the roof and stone works of one of the five Ancroft Street tenements was calculated at approximately £35,000. In comparison Dowanhill Street’s roof and stone works cost is nearer to the £90,000 mark. This only emphasises the difference of cost when using traditional skills and materials in a tenement repair project. It is for these reasons that grant assistance must remain available and increases in order to cope with the current tenemental demand.

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09. Dain’ it up - Case Study 2: 98 Dowanhill Street, Glasgow

Figure 30. Taken of the roof of 98 Dowanhill Street during the repair project.

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The bulk of the tenements that have survived today can be located in Glasgow’s West End. The use of the tenements and the scale and design varies greatly depending on the specific area of the West End. In areas such as Hillhead, Hyndland and Dowanhill some of the finest existing tenement examples may be found, 98 Dowanhill Street is an example of such a tenement.

98 Dowanhill Street is part of a beautiful Edwardian tenement that sits on the corner of Dowanhill St and Highburgh Rd. The tenement is a red sandstone ‘B’ listed property which boast grandeur. The plans for the tenement began in 1901 as part of the “great age of tenement building, the forty years or so before the First World War.” (Reed, 1993: 116) David Barclay is the architect responsible for this beautifully designed tenement along with Lindsay and Miller Builders who were charged with developing the local land at the time. “Dowanhill, tenements were among the first buildings to be erected, and here they appeared in the normative form of the foursquare tenement block located in a grid…These tenements, some incorporating the two-floor house, were built uniformly to three storeys and to spacious standards.” (Reed, 1993: 108) The tenements three-storey design comprises of one apartment on each floor with a cloakroom, dining room, parlour, three bedrooms and ancillary spaces. The tenement also has a full height basement in which the washhouse and cellars were located.

These luxury and spacious dwellings would have been the home to wealthy solicitors, merchants, doctors, and shipyard owners and their families. The building has some very fine leaded stained glass in the top sashes of the five light bow windows to the front elevation and interior stair cases and close are decorated with coloured leaded glass and timber wall finished are very grand indeed. The roof is slated with conical caps, which have terracotta ridges at the bow windows. There is always a large roof light !

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small area of rebuilding where stone has shifted at top corner

replace existing aluminium gutters in new cast iron ogee gutters

Re-point 100% joints to red sandstone chimney DETAIL E

Ubbink roof ventilator DETAIL A

Roof safety anchorage bolt

rwp - replace uPVC branch in cast iron DETAIL A

DETAIL B stone repairs to inner and outer faces of chimney

carefully remove caps and haunching and brick cope and replace cope in 2-part stone and concrete to match other outbuilding chimney: reinstate caps

DETAIL B DETAIL E

DETAIL K

wvp - replace top length in cast iron

expansions

sloping gutter with lead abutment cover flashing dressed up face of stonework and terminated under slates in a welt

allow for new lead slate pieces to all expansions, overflows and pipe terminals DETAIL H

DETAIL D

vent

tank overflow (extended in plastic)

svp

re-point wide risband joint full height building

replace cast iron skylight

cast iron stays DETAIL G

svp (cast iron) rwp (cast iron)

lead slate pieces

retain lead rainwater pipe from outlet belonging to adjoining property

re-point wide risband joint full height building svp rwp

overflow

new cast iron pipe discharging onto adjoining property replace existing aluminium gutters in new cast iron ogee gutters

DETAIL K

expansion stopend on gutter new broad lead-lined gutter over copper pipe inc. T-Pren joint DETAIL L

replace existing aluminium gutters in new cast iron ogee gutters

vent DETAIL E new lead overflashings and glazing to stairwell light

DETAIL A

replace cast iron skylight DETAIL A re-point all joints to top of stone skew

DETAIL G re-point all joints to top of stone skew

DETAIL B

DETAIL A

vent roof slopes to be re-slated

new glazed light extending across 4 no. rafter spacings and constructed in timber with new glazing and lead overflashings DETAIL J

stone repairs to be carried out to upstand

Front Elevation from street

DETAIL D

new lead ridge stone repairs to be carried out to upstand and chimney

lead abutment flashing DETAIL A

stone repairs to be carried out to upstand and chimney DETAIL B

full lead covering to skew DETAIL F

DETAIL A DETAIL A terracotta ridge and finial to be reinstated with fail-safe wires

DETAIL E terracotta ridge and finial

new lead pitched valleys DETAIL C

vent

retain rainwater outlet from adjoining property

timber fascia on timber brackets

rainwater outlet to cast iron rwp with decorative brackets

98 Dowanhill Street, Glasgow project

98 DOWANHILL STREET, GLASGOW

title

ROOF PLAN AS PROPOSED

scale

1:50

date

JUN 2011

FJS

uPVC pipe discharging into neighbouring gutter to be replaced in cast iron

98 DOWANHILL STREET, GLASGOW title

GENERAL VIEWS 1

number

DOWANHILL/11/201

Figure 31 and 32. Architects drawings of roof repair works.

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General Views 1

98 Dowanhill Street, Glasgow project

notes tel: 0141-357-3553! fax: 0141-5357-3556! e-mail: firemaster27@btconnect.com

drawn by

cast iron ogee gutter to be renewed

Roof Plan as Proposed

fiona sinclair architect!

48 Keith Court!

Glasgow!

G11 6QW

View of existing uPVC pipe to front (south) discharging onto roof of 92 Dowanhill Street

fascia and brackets to be repaired

fiona sinclair architect 48 Keith Court Glasgow G11 6QW

tel: 0141-357-3553 fax: 0141-357-3556 e-mail: firemaster27@btconnect.com

scale

date

drawn by

number

NTS @ A3

JUN 2011

FJS

DOWANHILL/11/307

notes

which provides light to the stairway and there would have originally been very large cast iron gutters to the building as one of the co-proprietors has kept part of the original gutter from which to reference.

The roof of 98 Dowanhill Street became a problem when it started to leak and prompted an architect to be employed and works to be carried out on the roof. Fiona Sinclair Architect has been previously employed to carry out similar works to 92 Dowanhill Street in previous years and was selected by the co-owners for the job. When first surveyed the roof was in a terrible condition and clearly needed some attention. It was decided that the roof required restoration works including re-slating, some chimney repairs, areas of new leadwork, gutter and partial rainwater pipe replacement as well as some small stone repairs and decoration works.

The co-proprietors of this property have a good relationship and easily agreed to have the works carried out on the building, which provided a smooth start to the job. The owners were interested in applying for grant-aided assistance from Glasgow City Heritage Trust in order to carry out the works to a high standard and using traditional materials. They “were all fairly pro-active and they had been in that house a long time and it was a huge investment. They know that their building is a beautiful building and it is partly about protecting their investment but also I think they were genuinely interested in doing it properly, but they aren’t all like that.� (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) After the architect had prepared the necessary drawings and tender documents the project went out to tender and an initial contractor, Firwood Ltd, won the job. The scaffolding was erected around the building and works were due to begin in early 2012 but unfortunately the contractor never appeared to start the works (Sinclair, 2013: !

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Figure 33. 98 Dowanhill St during the repairs project

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Appendix 5) and after communicating with the contractor by email, a 14 day notice was served by the architect who was then forced to terminate the contract. Unknown to the architect and clients at the time, Firwood later went under during what would have been the course of the project. By terminating the contract the clients were spared the trauma of having a builder go bust on the job. (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) The client then employed the contractor which provided the second lowest tender to take over the works. It took many weeks for the scaffolding to be changed over into the name of the new contractor, John Fulton Plumbers Ltd. This entire process of changing contractor was not only time wasting for the co-proprietors but also cost them a percentage of their grant as they had been given a grant from GCHT based on the lowest contractors pricing and the grant was not changeable. This reduced the overall grant-aided percentage to around 35% (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) which proved to be a costly but unforeseeable decrease in grant funding. As this was entirely unavoidable the co-proprietors took it well and were very understanding of the processes and risks involved with construction.

The new contractor, in comparison, started the job promptly and progressed with the works without any major problems. Some rot was found in the cupola of the building which halted works for a short period of time. John Fulton Plumbers employed a rot specialist sub contractor to carry out rot treatment to the affected areas. Unfortunately a price was not agreed for these works between themselves and the subcontractor resulting in problems later on “they have had huge trouble settling the final account with the contractor John Fulton Plumber Ltd.� (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) !

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Figure 34. 98 Dowanhill St during the repairs project

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Dowanhill St had an initial budget of ÂŁ112,000 + VAT for the stonework and roof works.

The final account was closer to 125,000 because rot was found and had to be treated.

The owners also opted to take advantage to the use of the scaffold by employing separate contractors to do some puttying, decoration and repairs to the leaded glass on the existing sash and case windows.

What can be learned from this case study is that currently a good and viable model exists today in Glasgow for repairing privately owned tenements. However this model is only reachable if the tenement in question is listed or within a conservation area.

Unfortunately if a privately owned tenement does not meet the grant aid criteria it is unlikely that the necessary repairs will be carried out at all. Patch and repair works will be owner’s only financially feasible option (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5) to a tenement which requires an altogether more sophisticated repair approach. Without funding available most bog-standard tenements cannot aim to be overseen by a conservationaccredited architect who is key in the process of understanding the tenement building, its worth and how best to repair it. Overall, it can be seen that the only way to make this process more efficient and allow other tenements in the city to be open to it is to increase funding. (Sinclair, 2013: Appendix 5)

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10. Lights oot - Conclusion

Figure 35. Tenement at the end of the day, Glasgow.

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As seen through the evidence gathered in this dissertation the future of the Victorian tenement building is falling in danger of becoming lost. This is due in large to an alarming amount of tenement buildings in the city being in a state of blatant disrepair, becoming derelict and eventually being demolished.

Although in reality we may not be able to save every tenement in danger due to the many different issues that effect our built environment, securing the future of our tenement buildings is simple. If we don’t start repairing the cities tenements soon there will be a great number of them falling into disrepair and dereliction. Economically, It is much more worthwhile to restore our existing tenement buildings rather than demolish and rebuild buildings that will not last as long as the refurbished tenements would. What is required is more funding to be made available to carry out these repairs to a high standard which will preserve the buildings for a longer period of time.

In future, if tenements in the city of Glasgow were to be demolished it is somewhat comforting to know that the building form will remain. (Gilbert, 2013. Appendix 2) It will be retained in the modern tenement housing forms which have been built since pre war times that are visible throughout the city.

However, It is entirely possible for our generation to submit more funding and energy towards this current issue in order to repair and preserve the Glasgow tenement legacy for future generations.

In conclusion, writing this dissertation has opened my eyes to the realities of tenemental architecture in the city and the key factor aiding its deterioration; money. Both in public and private situations, current economics and the money available within the city is !

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simply not supporting the tenements desperate repair needs. This dissertation’s research into this real and growing problem serves as a warning against further ignorance of this subject, but also as a calling for people to stand up for their tenement buildings, realise the value of them and to not allow this disgrace to continue.

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11. Where its fae - Bibliography Armstrong, Dave and Housetalk. 1984. Miles Better, Miles to go: the Story of Glasgows Housing associations. Glasgow: Housetalk Date Accessed: Feb 2013 Christopher Woodward. 2001. In Ruins. London: Chatto & Windus Date Accessed: Sept 2012 Faley, Jean. 1990. Up Oor Close: Memories of Domestic Life in Glasgow Tenements 1910 – 1945. Oxford: White Cockade Publishing Date Accessed: Jan 2013 Foreman, Carol. 2001. Hidden Glasgow. Edinburgh: John Donald, and imprint of Birlinn Ltd. Date Accessed: Nov 2012 Gilbert, John and Flint, Anna.1992. The Tenement Handbook: A Practical Guide to Living in a Tenement. Edinburgh: RIAS Date Accessed: Sept 2012 Gilliland, Norrie. 2002. Glasgow’s Forgotten Village: The Grahamston Story. Glasgow: Grahamston Publications.

Date Accessed: Dec 2012

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Glasser, Ralph. 1986. Growing Up in the Gorbals. London: Chatto & Windus.

Date Accessed: Jan 2013

Gomme, Andor and Walker, David. 1968. Architecture of Glasgow. Lund Humphries Publishers Ltd. Date Accessed: Sept 2012 Gregory, Neil: 2011. Architectural Heritage XXI : Mirror of Modernity. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

Date Accessed: March 2013 Historic Scotland.

2010.

19, Lynedoch http://www.buildingsatrisk.org.uk/details/915706 Date Accessed: March 2013

Street,

Glasgow.

Edinburgh:

Historic Scotland. 1998. British Linen Bank (Former), 162-170, Gorbals Street, Glasgow.

Edinburgh: http://www.buildingsatrisk.org.uk/details/915706 Date Accessed: March 2013 Horsey, Miles. 1990. Tenements & Towers: Glasgow Working Class Housing 1890-1990.

London: HMSO Date Accessed: March 2013

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Joe. 2012. British Linen Company Bank, 162-170 Gorbals Street: British Linen Company Bank, 162-170 Gorbals.

Glasgow:http://www.derelictglasgow.co.uk/derelict.britishlinen.co.bank.html Date Accessed: March 2013 Joe. 2012. Sandstone tenement offices - 19 Lynedoch Street/Terrace Glasgow.

Glasgow: http://www.derelictglasgow.co.uk/derelict.lynedochst.offices.html Date Accessed: March 2013 MacFarlane, Colin. 2007. The Real Gorbals Story: True Tales From Glasgow’s Meanest Streets. Glasgow: Mainstream Publishing Company.

Date Accessed: Jan 2013 Orbasli, Aylin. 2008. Architectural Conservation. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.

Date Accessed: Dec 2012 Reed, Peter. 1993. Glasgow: The Forming of the City. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press Ltd. Date Accessed: Nov 2012 The Department of Enviornment.1975.What is our Heritage? United Kingdom achievements for European Architectural Heritage Year 1975 - photographs of restorations and improvements done between 1972 and 1975. London: London Her Majesty’s Stationary Office Date Accessed: Sept 2012 ! "#$%!.*!

Urban Realm. 2010. Demolition request made for listed Park Circus terrace. Glasgow: http://www.urbanrealm.com/news/2527/Demolition_request_made_for_listed_Park_Cir cus_terrace.html Date Accessed: March 2013 Urquhart, Gordon R. 2011. A Notable Ornament: Lansdowne Church An Icon of Victorian Glasgow. Glasgow: Four Acres Charitable Trust and Glasgow City Heritage Trust.

Date Accessed: Nov 2012 Worsdall, Frank. 1979. The Tenement a Way of Life: A Social, Historical and Architectural Study of Housing in Glasgow. Edinburgh: W & R Chambers Ltd. Date Accessed: Nov 2012 Worsdall, Frank. 1981. The City that disappeared: Glasgow’s Demolished Architecture.

Glasgow: The Molendinar Press, Richard Drew Publishing Ltd. Date Accessed: Nov 2012 Watson, John. 2007. Once Upon a Time in Glasgow: The City From the Earliest Times.

Glasgow: Neil Wilson Publishing Ltd. Date Accessed: Jan 2013

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IMAGE REFERENCES Throughout my dissertation and as part of my research process where ever possible I have visited the site and taken my own photographs. However this was not always possible where I have produced historic images etc. The following is an account of where all images that were used in this dissertation came from.

Figure 1. Macdonald, Katie. 2012. View Along Grant Street, Glasgow.

Figure 2. Maclennan, Ruth. 2011. View from a scaffold on 2 Buckingham Terrace, Glasgow Figure 3. Maclennan, Ruth. 2011. View from a scaffold over the West End of Glasgow Figure 4. Maclennan, Ruth. 2012. View from a scaffold on Cleveden Crescent, Glasgow Figure 5. Maclennan, Ruth. 2012. Dilapidated chimney on the roof of 17-19 Cleveden Crescent, Glasgow Figure 6. Wood, Maggie. Date Unknown. Children playing on the streets of the Old Gorbals, Glasgow. Glasgow: http://maggiesscribbles.wordpress.com/tag/carmunnock/ Figure 7. Bert Hardy/Getty Images. 1948. The Gorbals area of Glasgow, photographed for Picture Post in 1948.

Glasgow: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/picture/2013/mar/25/eyewitness-hardyspeople Figure 8. Urban Glasgow. Tenement Slum. Glasgow: http://urbanglasgow.wonko.myfastforum.org/archive/the-glasgowtenement__o_t__t_1481.html Figure 9. Skyscrapercity. 1960’s. Hutchesontown Tenements are demolished to make way for Sir Basil Spences High rise Flats. 1960s Glasgow:! http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=446021&page=3 ! "#$%!.,!

Figure 10. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Cowcaddens M8 motorway wall clad in the stone of the areas demolished tenements.

Figure 11. Mcknight, John. 2012. View looking down inside Red Road Flats. Glasgow: http://urbanglasgow.wonko.myfastforum.org/archive/glasgow-from-up-on-theroof__o_t__t_3015.html Figure 12. NCL Urban Design Blog. 2011. New Tenement in New Gorbals area of Glasgow. Glasgow: http://nclurbandesign.wordpress.com/category/uncategorized/ Figure 13. Urban Glasgow. 1973. Tenement in a desperate state of repair, Martyr St, east side, from Parson St. April 1973. Glasgow: http://urbanglasgow.co.uk/sutra27303.php Figure 14. telemetry9. 2008. Demolished tenment, Gourlay Street. Glasgow: http://www.flickr.com/photos/telemetry9/2183977582/ Figure 15. The Hidden Glasgow Forums. 2007. St. Georges Cross, 1970’s. Glasgow: http://www.hiddenglasgow.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5491&p=103748 Figure 16. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. “Boarded up windaes” of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Figure 17. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. A deteriorating window of 19 Lynedoch Street, Glasgow Figure 18. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Close up of front eleveation of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow Figure 19. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. West Elvevation of 19 Lynedoch Street, Glasgow Figure 20. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Photograph showing a hole through 19 Lynedoch Street’s stone fabric, a view of inside is visible.

Figure 21. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Archive drawings showing 19 Lynedoch Street’s position and proposed alterations to the property for dwelling houses and offices.

Dated 1949 Figure 22. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street, Glasgow !

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Figure 23. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Measuring movement of cracks in the walls of 162170 Gorbals Street, using a crack monitoring gauge. The walls have moved so much that it has actually cracked in half.

Figure 24. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Archive drawings showing the proposed front elevation of 162-170 Gorbals Street in 1995 by Duguid Design Architects. Unfortunately the works were never carried out due to funding problems.

Figure 25. Maclennan, Ruth. 2012. Photograph showing window repairs to the frontage of a tenement building at 330 St Georges Road, Glasgow Figure 26. McKinnon, Niall. 2011. Photograph showing No’s 28, 42, 48 and 54 Ancroft Street lying vacant prior to a repairs project.

Figure 27. McKinnon, Niall. 2013. View on the roof of the Ancroft Street Project during repairs.

Figure 28. McKinnon, Niall. 2013. View on the roof of the Ancroft Street Project during repairs.

Figure 29. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Photograph of refurbishment works being carried out in 28 Ancroft Street Figure 30. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Photograph taken of the roof of 98 Dowanhill Street during the repair project.

Figure 31and 32. Sinclair, Fiona. 2011. Architects drawings of roof repair works.

Figure 33. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. 98 Dowanhill St during the repairs project Figure 34. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. 98 Dowanhill St during the repairs project Figure 35. Maclennan, Ruth. 2013. Tenement at the end of the day, Glasgow.

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12. Words o’ the people – Appendix 1 Maryhill Housing Association Interview I initially choose to interview a representative of Maryhill Housing Association, as I was interested in finding out if they had a project, which I could use as a possible case study in my dissertation. This was the starting point of my research in publicly owned tenements and housing associations.

This interview with Paul Hughes and Alan Mcgillveray of Maryhill Housing Association took place on the 13th of February 2013 between 10am – 11am at the office of Maryhill Housing Association at 45 Garrioch Rd, Glasgow G20 8RG. A brief description of my dissertation was given and Paul and Alan before the interview began.

Persons Present Ruth Arlenne Maclennan - RAM Paul Hughes - PH Alan Mcgillveray – AM

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PH: There was a housing action grant, it was called HAG Grant for a lot of housing associations and local authorities to refurb tenement flats and that was how the process worked. But, again, that money has dried up. We don’t have that money anymore. We have other HAG funding for various different things but not for tenement rehabs so it will be interesting to see where Queens Cross are getting their cash from for doing that.

RAM: I know that private owners can get money from Glasgow City Heritage Trust, things like that for various types of repairs.

PH: I think they would struggle to, for example on Sandbank Street I think the owners would be very fortunate to get money as a bank of owners to upgrade the property.

RAM: That’s the other interesting thing because in order to get that funding you have to be in a conservation area or the building has to be listed. Are there many listed tenements in Maryhill?

AM: Not that I am aware of; I don’t think there are very many. When you were talking about your project, I lived in a listed building in Anderston. We had considerable problems; we had the Evening Times involved etc. trying to get a chimney repaired.

Then as the bank down below, or what is now an art house, paid 80% of the entire shared bill so it was so much that they were just like, well we are not going to pay.

Then they had to get everybody else’s share as well. The factors were holding out and they did not want to do anything to help.

PH: Money is the issue. !

AM: It took at least 11 months to get it sorted and get the chimney rebuilt on this listed property and even then we sidetracked all the planning conditions and everything just to get away with it.

These properties down here at Queens Cross at Ancroft and Nansen Street are tenement properties that were going to be demolished but they are in such good nick as a red sandstone property--and they are big sized flats so they are refurbishing them just now. That might be an ideal project to see if you can get involved in.

PH: The thing is with that is they will be doing internal work.

AM: Its everything! Roof works, stonework, the lot because they were all boarded up, all the kitchens were ripped out. There were drug addicts in them; there were mesh screens on the doors and windows for years. There was bad water penetration getting in to them. So they re-roofed them all and they are putting new windows in, doing all the stone repairs, controlled entries, new kitchens, and bathrooms. The whole lot – so it might be ideal.

RAM: Brilliant.

AM: The guy to speak to is Jim Starrs; I think he will be involved with that particular project.

PH: So that might be ideal, to be fair there is nothing here that has been new to us that would be of interest to you. They will be historic, the properties that have been developed here. We certainly do have new build on site and various other things at the moment. !

AM: Queens Cross have done a lot of new building lately and because it was right in the middle of their new build site they took the decision to refurbish them and I think they got a grant as well.

PH: It would be interesting to see how they are getting the grant for that because HAG is pretty much done away with for refurb works and certainly on tenemental works.

That was the big thing in the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s. The funding for this was there, we now no longer have that so when we get to the next 30 years cycle which we are pretty much getting to now we are saying how are we going to fund the re-development or refurbishment of these again? What everyone has had to do was go through a process of putting in life-cycle costings for these and budget for them in a sense. So, when we had the funding 30 years ago we should now be in a position that we have sufficient funding or go through a process of replacing items within a tenement, kitchens, bathrooms, entry systems etc. Through the life cycle of the property, but we will see how that goes as well in the long term.

RAM: So what do you do if you have a tenement that is under your care that needs repaired if you haven’t got the funding for it at the moment?

PH: Well again, if you are a housing association etc. We are governed by the Scottish Government so ideally we need to have or show that it is financially viable to carry out these works. So we have quite a lot of tenemental properties, on Maryhill Road as an example, that have been refurbed over a period of time. We will have put forward a life cycle process costing for these. So over that 30, 50, 60 years cycle we will have costs in-built to carry out major repairs annually, planned repairs, whatever you want. So we will say next year that we will be replacing bathroom suites on Maryhill Road because !

they are due to be replaced. We make sure that we have those funds available. We do this through rents and various different things and capital investments. It’s down to us to finance that. We are not looking at any grant process to do that, we have to stand on our own two feet and do that. Then once you get it renovated you’re going to get the rent for it and it starts the line rolling. Hence there are very few tenemental refurbs, the majority will be either down or they will be getting to the stage now where even after 30 years they will have been renovated dependant on the clients and various different things. They then will be in a condition again that they are not necessary viable so there will be hard decisions getting made over the next wee while whether we should demolish some of these.

RAM: Really?

PH: Maybe we take them down and re-build them, more community projects for new build projects, whatever the case may be. Again, it’s all funding related and funding at the moment is a big issue. We are quite fortunate as an organization at the moment to have a relatively healthy development programme but how long that is going to be sustained, God only knows. We just don’t know how funding is going to be in the future. It’s becoming more difficult to get funding to do this.

RAM: It’s interesting that you have said that because of funding you may have to demolish tenements?

PH: Every possibility. Yeah, it’s a possibility in the future, depends because if the money is not there to do them! !

RAM: And are they more expensive to keep in a good nick than say, modern housing?

PH: It would probably be cheaper long term to demolish and re-build as it would be to renovate again. The costs of renovation would be horrendous.

RAM: Really? When you say renovation, is it mainly internal works then?

PH: Predominantly. You’ll do elements of the external. Again, you have to think of the infrastructure here as well, drainage and things that have been standing there for 100 years, there might be a lot of work to do with drainage. Pipe work internally, externally, roofs. When you start opening up a roof to see if you need to repair a roof or re-do a roof; before you know it you can be replacing the whole roof. When you actually start taking these costs up to demolition and re-build its quite a difficult one to take, but it does happen. I recently just came from Falkirk Council and we demolished 40-50 flats and are re-building new flats.

RAM: So they were tenement flats?

PH: Yes, they were sandstone, tenement flats. They thought the costs to renovate as opposed to rebuild were just not viable.

RAM: This is very interesting to me because I started off my dissertation talking about what would happen to Glasgow if we didn’t repair the tenements. And the number of tenements in the city has slowly decreased. I think that the numbers would all start going towards the West End and Hyndland, where my other case study is. It would be a dying housing form. !

PH: It will be a dying housing form. There is absolutely no doubt. You are already seeing that, you are already seeing that, you’re even seeing!

AM: Where I stay in Anderston you will see it because I’m in a Grade A listed building which is now going to be in an island of modern housing. In the old Anderston Savings Bank Building, James Salmon and at the minute Sanctuary Housing Association are building properties all over and all the way round me is getting developed just now. I’m in a sea of demolition. St Vincent Terrace, they are all coming down so I’m going to be surrounded for years in demolition.

PH: It may be worthwhile for your own benefit seeing something that is physically getting done on site.

RAM: It would be great to get some pictures.

AM: I’m sure that Jim will have some.

RAM: My other case study is going to be 98 Dowanhill Street that I worked on last year with Fiona Sinclair. It’s a privately owned beautiful tenement. I just want to compare and look at the opposite ends of the scale to see where we are going to end up.

PH: You will see a big difference, for example, in Alan’s property the woodwork and different things will be stunning. When you look at the work that goes back into some of these other properties it will be new but it’s not as stunning. You won't have ornate fittings, fixtures and woodwork paneling. It will just be square walls painted white. !

AM: We went to the trouble with GHA one time where we had to put security-designed doors on to bring properties up to the current standard and the properties were the tenements at St Georges Cross and the St Georges Mansions, well GHA have a lot of the properties in there that are their own stock and when we were re-furbishing the doors it looked daft to have a standard door like this so what we did was we got the doors made as big as we possible could. On the outside there was going to be just a straight flush paneling, it didn’t look right at all so we got the contractor to use OG curved moldings, special moldings and we put special moldings on the doors and it made all the difference.

PH: It does make all the difference but then again what happens is it increases your costs. So when you start to look, that’s when viability comes in. when you start to look at the cost to bring them up to a standard that would be acceptable rather than bringing them up to a bare move in standard with flush paneling, you have to balance that with what the cost is going to be.

RAM: Do you think it would be better if tenements were owned privately so that the owner could receive funding and do repairs or refurbishment to a high standard?

PH: The problem you have, certainly within areas in Glasgow, it’s the sheer costs.

Although there are the whole host of legislation now cover that, in the likes of the Scottish Housing Social Charter and the Tenement Scotland Act. What that does is kind of force people to take responsibility for their own actions and not necessarily do works through a factor or make sure the factor is doing their work. But the processes for doing that are horrendous; this is the point I make. You could have a lot of water penetration coming in through a chimney head and it might only be affecting the top !

two properties, someone is getting water in running down their walls. The rest of the properties are not necessarily affected from it. So you then try and get someone to buy in at the very bottom who owns a business who’s got an 80% share of the taking. So if your talking about saving £1000 to replace the chimney, which it wouldn’t be double that. If you are asking someone to pay 80% of that and they say, well it doesn’t really affect me; I’m not using that chimney. Its unlikely the chimney will be in use as a chimney, it will be a feature of the property more than anything else. So it’s a lot of money to put out when you are trying to run a business and you're only just making ends meet. And someone says we need £8000-£10,000 off of you to repair a chimney that really has nothing to do with you. That’s where you start to have problems and it becomes a bigger issue when you try to get legal professionals involved to change things around so that they then buy into it. It’s very very difficult to take someone through a court. If they don’t have money to pay it, they aren’t going to pay it.

AM: What happened as well is the factor doesn’t insure our building because its listed so every actual owner has their own insurance. We then had to get loss adjusters out and we each had to wait until they all agreed they were going to pay.

PH: So that is the problem when you have owners; it's that you need everyone’s buy into that. It’s ok for minor repairs but when it comes to a substantial repair or a big issue! That’s why sometimes the decision is taken to say, you know what? Demolish it. Take it down and we can build something else that is going to have a 50-60 year cycle. Another problem is that as the property gets older the actual skills involved to carry out repairs get more expensive so if you are trying to get a slater, stone mason, lead worker or someone doing valley guttering, you name it; it just becomes more and more expensive. !

RAM: And the materials!

PH: Absolutely.

AM: My neighbors and I have all stayed in the property for over 20 years and we have all been refurbishing the properties for over 20 years. It’s an ongoing process because in the 60’s they didn’t care about picture rails or panel doors, so they paneled them all over and ripped off the picture rails. They ripped out the fireplaces from what is now a Grade A listed building. So you try putting it back! It costs a fortune!

PH: It becomes a love affair.

AM: A nightmare you mean!?

PH: It does become a nightmare, and you’re hearing that first hand. If 20 years ago if you had moved into a new house you may have re-wired it, done something to the heating but maybe not gone through the same amount of costs as he has possibly done at this point in time. That’s the harden fact reels of it. So it will be interesting to see (Ancroft Street), one where they are getting their funding? And how are they bringing these properties up to a tolerable standard to reach Scottish Housing Quality Standards for that type of property. Because you will have issues, insulation, energy efficiency in a sandstone property. It will be thermal plasterboard and various different things you can use, but that cuts down spaces as well.

!

RAM: Do you think that if you refurbished a tenement closer to a conservation standard, slate, lead, stone, all the traditional materials. They would last a lot longer and therefore be more financially viable?

PH: The point is, it’s getting the money to do it at this point in time. If you are going to demolish 8 flats, as an example, and rebuild it as 8 flats, you’re talking for the demolition, say 1 million pounds. Your going to average maybe £100,000 a unit roughly. To renovate that property to existing standards so if your talking about not necessarily doing manufactured makeup stone repairs, so if you are actually cutting stone and re-facing it with stone, putting in sash and case windows with all the ornate fixings you can start saying maybe 1.5, 1.6, 1.7million pounds. Then you are asking, well how long is that going to last because technically the structure is still the same.

Are you still going to be doing further structural repairs during that period? Whereas if you are going to take it down and put new builds in at £100,000 a unit you’re not going to touch them for 30 years! You’re not going to have to do anything to them for 30 years, maybe general upkeep!

RAM: But that’s like passing on the problem to the next generation though isn’t it?

PH: That’s what we have been doing for years, that’s all the construction industry can do. Tenements are just a phase!

RAM: They are a pretty big phase though.

PH: A huge Phase. Then you start to look at post-war all of the tenements coming down, four in a blocks getting built. In my lifetime I remember places like Arden on the !

South side of Glasgow, a huge development. Maybe in your studies you will have heard of the H-blocks in the Gorbals. These were all properties, rows and rows of tenement slums were taken down in the 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and these properties were built as a replacement for them; and they are now gone after 20-30 years!

AM: The life-cycle costs of a tenement, like my tenement is 110 years old. A lot of tenements, like the butteries down from me; they're a bit older and the Anderson, William Street Church, it’s been there for over 100 years. All of that is sandstone, everything else is falling to bits and getting demolished and they have only been up 2030 years. See the now when architects are designing new build housing down in the Clyde, for instance, they have a lifespan maintenance of 30 years. They are then telling them when they buy them that folk are taking a mortgage that lasts longer than the actual viability of the property.

RAM: See that’s what doesn’t really make sense to me.

PH: In effect, what we are saying is when I’m talking about life cycle costing is, ideally you should be building into your life cycle costing’s the fact that when you get to year 30 you should be looking at either full refurbishment or demolition and rebuild. So you should be factoring these costs in long term.

RAM: Say the government said, we are going to take care of the future of tenements; we are going to give funding to refurbish them to a good conservation standard and it would last another 100 years. All you would need to do is internal upgrades. What would happen then? !

PH: It would be great, but its not going to happen.

AM: You can have a look round, if you go to the Bridgeton area there are corner blocks that are red sandstone that have been boarded up and have been standing for absolutely years with water pouring into them, with ownership issues, usually with pubs underneath them. The pub will be standing but the rest is all derelict. With my particular building there is a sister building in Govan, which is still occupied, but there is another one in the Gorbals opposite the Citizens Theatre, which has been derelict for years and years.

RAM: The Linen Bank?

AM: The Linen Bank, yes. That’s the sister building to mine.

RAM: That’s one of the examples in my dissertation.

AM: Well that particular building, architects have done feasibility studies and it was millions it was costing. The refurbishment of every flat was something like £300,000!

PH: And 9 in it!

AM: It didn’t make economic sense for the housing association to do it!

PH: If you use a broad figure of £100,000 per unit to build and then £300,000 just to renovate, you times what you would be doing by 3 and asking if it is financially viable, its not! That’s the problem you encounter as far as housing is concerned. Housing and !

building move in 30-year cycles so you have a process where you go through! this is the type and standard of unit we are going to build now. In 30 years time that unit is not going to be a viable option; and somewhere in between you get this transformation to a new modern style of what we are going to be doing.

RAM: Cities can’t change their fabric every 30 years! That’s not feasible either. You would think in the long run it would be cheaper to!

AM: Say the Merchant City, they went in there and they kept the facades of the buildings and built in behind. Well the stuff in behind is now starting to fall to bits.

PH: No one is disagreeing with what you are saying in the sense that, should we have looked at these things in a separate way, absolutely. But it all comes down to cost and the funding. You are driven by what you can viably afford and also what is required. If you have a large population where you can renovate nine flats for £300,000 each or demolish it and re-build 27 flats in their place, that makes more sense for the community! Again, it’s a life cycle and how we deliver things; it’s as simple as that.

RAM: But when did this change, when did the 30 year lifespan come about?

PH: When the tenement areas started to become slums and you started to bring in new legislation for the Scotland NHS and they were looking at TB and all the health issues that were in and around the tenemental properties. It’s different by legislation not necessarily by the property. So people started to say we can't have six people living in a one bedroom flat, we need to make sure that we can build bigger houses.

We need to make sure they have running water, electricity, heating, and are wind and !

water tight. When we start to say as human beings, we desire something better then that has an impact on the government to say, ok we have to do that but how do we do that? They don’t then look at the property and say, it would be great to have the same property and then only have a family of two in there. Where are we going to put these six people? Here’s a great idea, we will build all these new properties, build high-rise properties and whatever the case may be, villages in the sky etc. to house all the people coming from these. It’s just that the concepts were maybe wrong at the time.

There are good examples of where high-rise properties work.

RAM: But they are demolishing them all now.

PH: Well a lot of high-rise properties are getting renovated as well, which will give them another 30 years. Where they were maybe not designed for 30-40 years and now they are maybe going to get 60-80 years out of these properties.

RAM: But do people like living in them?

PH: Well I’ll give you a good example, I came from Falkirk Council they have something like 12 high-rise flats and technically they are 12 sheltered housing complexes’. There are very few that are in use for other than that. They are used for medical needs and the elderly. There are very few young people in them at all and they are one of the most popular properties. When they come up for let they are away. They are 14 storey high tower blocks. So there is scope in and how you use them to make them work but again it just needs buy in from a lot of people. You're never going to get back to big mansion houses and estates; the money is not there. It’s all linked to the economy; it’s as simple as that. The first sign of the economy coming out of recession !

is when the construction industry kicks back in. There is nothing else that drives it other than the construction industry.

RAM: Wouldn’t a funding process for refurbishing our existing buildings in cities kick start the construction industry?

PH: Yes it would kick start it but its just not financially viable. You need people with money coming in that want to see a building get saved to do that.

AM: Certainly, look at the Ancroft tenements because I didn’t think they would be saved, I thought they would be demolished a long time ago because they were in such a bad nick. GHA had looked at them, but Queens Cross (Housing Association have obviously got a funding package together to be able to turn these into two bedroom flats. If you go along Argyle Street the tenements there are a maximum of three or four storeys high but when you see a new build either side of them they will either be four, five, six storeys high, they never ever tie in with the property line because they can get more on that floor space.

RAM: I know, but don’t you think its wrong to be squishing as many people as you can into that modern type of housing. Everyone loves the high ceilings!

PH: Yes is the answer to that, however its about the cost. If your building a property with an eight foot high ceiling then even if you just take into consideration the number of bricks, the additional plasterboard etc. as opposed to going down to a 7 foot high ceiling. !

AM: Or heating it!

PH: Absolutely, heating and energy wise. It just becomes unrealistic in modern day circumstances. I’m not saying modernization is a great thing, I spent some time on renovations and it broke my heart to see what was actually taken out as opposed to be putting back in. But for all intensive purposes that’s progress. I don’t agree that it is progress; I think what they we’re providing is a better quality and affordable housing for individuals by doing what we were doing. We weren’t making the properties nice. When you go back to Victorian standards it’s a totally different ball game. Britain was!

RAM: Tenements were built for the workers during the industrial revolution; they weren’t for people with money.

AM: Yeah they were single ends some of them, so they only had one bedroom and you had a bed recess with six people sleeping in it. It just doesn’t work.

RAM: That’s true.

AM: There are families these days with six kids and they will all have their own room.

PH: When you go back to Lanark or wherever there were coal mines if you go down and look at the properties that were built for the workers, they were great but they are tiny. Compared to what the owners and senior managers had, they were the ones that were getting built with big high ceilings and grand rooms. Not the common people that were actually making the money for them. Although they had their merits and they were certainly better than the conditions they may have been coming from at that time !

the quality was way below what was getting built elsewhere. I admire your enthusiasm and I have a love of old buildings as well and probably Alan does because he lives in one. But we will never get back to that standard.

RAM: It’s really sad to hear you say that!

PH: Totally.

RAM: It’s terrible, why cant we?

AM: I said exactly the same as you when I was a student.

RAM: I know I’m a bright-eyed student and whatever but I did work in the industry last year and I know it’s a lot of money. It just seems worthwhile to me to be keeping this heritage for the future rather than knocking it down because we are in some kind of financial 30-year cycle.

PH: I’ll give you a scenario. You have finished studying and your working and earning a decent rate of living and you are offered an old classic Austin Martin car and you think that would be great I’d cherish and take care of that. But to keep that Austin Martin on the road is going to cost you £3,000-4,000 a year because of all the work that needs done to it to keep it running. But you see that you can have a brand new Mini just now and you wont have to pay anything for the next 6-7 years.

RAM: And then I’ll just throw it away when I’m done with it! !

PH: Throw it away when you’re done with it! Yes. RAM: See that’s exactly the mentality that I hate! I don’t want to throw things away when I’m done with it!

PH: See when you get your pay packet at the end of the month and you sit and say to yourself Austin Martin or Mini! It makes more sense to have that Mini because you cannot afford to have that Austin Martin. Then unfortunately what happens is as much as you like it, you’ll make that decision and take the Mini. As you get older you will say I would like to buy an older car or an older house, its going to take individuals to do that rather than governments because governments don’t have the money to do it.

Governments are always going to say Mini.

RAM: But that just fuels our consumer, throw away, new is always better society!

PH: Absolutely.

AM: It’s the economics that are running everything just now. Even in the architecture business it’s the economics. I mean, these things that we are throwing up. I read the Evening Times regularly and it criticise how bad the modern architecture is but there is just nothing you can do. Anything that is a box is going up, with flat roofs! We have still not learned that flat roofs are absolutely rubbish and we are still doing them!

RAM: There seems to be the architecture world and the real world.

AM: You will get a big shock. !

PH: You will.

RAM: I know.

PH: And I don’t want to disillusion you in any shape or form but I’m being realistic. I would love to see us going back and building properties that are substantial and spacious and!

RAM: It’s not that I want to build the tenements again; I know it would be very difficult to build a tenement now a days.

PH: It wouldn’t be any more difficult than building anything else it would probably take longer.

AM: The nearest thing that happened would have been Page and Park when they built the tenement next to the Province Lordship but it then got turned into a museum because the funding, again, ran out for it. It was meant to be private houses but it’s now the St. Mungo’s Museum. Because they were using ashlar stone outside it just cost a fortune! So the developer pulled out or went bust or something like that. It sat there empty for ages. So there are all these schemes, people have tried it. If they can refurbish a traditional tenement and its economically viable then they will do it. But the majority of the time it isn’t. They will keep the façade!

RAM: So what do you think will happen to Glasgow and all the tenements? !

AM: There will be pockets of fine buildings around Glasgow and then they will have historic plaques on them, like mine. Saying this building was built in the eighteen! and whatever.

PH: It’s already happening, its been happening for 50-60 years. All of these properties are coming down and they are getting re-built and some of the properties that have replaced them are coming down and being re-built. And that will continue to happen.

Eventually it will start to eat away at the various others. God forbid a major drain would collapse under your building or a fire but there will come a time when someone will say, you know what? A Grade A building regardless, its not economically viable, we are going to have to take it down. There’s been loads of listed buildings come down, it happens all the time.

RAM: But it seems like to me that the way they do it, especially with tenement buildings like 19 Lynedoch Street is that they are left to rot.

PH: Correct.

RAM: To the point where they can say oh, we can’t do anything here; lets knock it down and build twice the number of flats on the same site. So that is basically the council’s way of working isn’t it?

PH: Its not just the councils way, again its about finances. If they thought for a minute they could get!

RAM: But how are they getting away with letting things rot under peoples noses. !

AM: Well there is meant to be new legislation now that is to stop that. That says tenements can’t be allowed to rot but it’s finding the actual owners. The building that you are talking about 19 Lynedoch Street is the old Fairhurst & Partners property. I can’t believe folk are breaking in and ripping bits out of it, stealing some of the old features. Eventually there will be nothing left. There was another one on Corunna Street next to the Ben Nevis pub and it lay derelict for absolutely ages and somebody bought the old Ben Nevis pub, done it up and turned it in to a viable pub again and then after that the properties above were falling to bits so they have all been refurbished just recently and the one next door, they have knocked one part down and refurbished the rest. There were people living on the ground floor flat and they had tarpaulins on their ceiling from the flat above!

RAM: That’s a beautiful example where somebodies come in and seen potential in it and changed the whole thing around!

PH: But it takes an individual to do that.

RAM: But why can’t we have individuals in councils and housing associations doing that?

PH: Money. It’s as simple as that, money.

AM: It's private enterprise that saved that property.

PH: That’s where you will get disillusioned; it’s the fact that money will be your driver.

Even if you go and do anything for any client that comes in to you and say my budget !

is £200,000. If you say I can build you this for £400,000 they will say no, my budget is £200,000! What can you build for £200,000? If you feel like your going to go out there and make a big difference, yeah good! If you can! And you can make all your private clients go into their pocket and spend their money you will enjoy working in architecture and the building industry for the rest of your life. Other than that you are going to just join in the band wagon and say right ok, I’ve got a project I need to do and my client has £1 million pounds to spend and I want to maximize that to 10 units or whatever the case may be. That’s what I’ve got to deliver and you’ve got to deliver that in budget.

AM: Or get into a firm that concentrates on refurbishment work like that. Certainly there are a few firms where that’s all they do, they specialize in tenemental refurbishments.

PH: A good thing to do is maybe get a hold of someone in Historic Scotland as well.

Speak to them to see how they are managing to keep some of their properties up to date and modernized to a certain extent to keep some of the older buildings alive.

RAM: I know that Historic Scotland and the National Trust use their buildings for events and things now; like Holmwood House, they are now having weddings there and funding it though things like that.

AM: They are certainly changing all the legislation in Glasgow to do with the tenement property and there is a new group set up specifically to look at problems that factors and owners have in tenement properties. That’s just went through and it’s the Maryhill MSP, she is certainly the one that is at the forefront of this. Also our colleague in here on the factoring side; he is quite heavily involved in it. I certainly don’t want to disillusion you in any shape or form but I think! and I really admire your heart and go !

for it as long as you can!but you will find to earn a living and have a life in architecture you will either have to find clients that are willing to spend money or you will have to get on the bandwagon. You can do your private stuffRAM: Yeah, I understand that.

AM: There are an awful lot of conservation groups in Glasgow that fight the buildings coroners like your Alexander Thomson Society and the New Glasgow Society. All these different places try to look after the city; there is a West End group and a whole body of organizations. Fighting for Otago Lane and all of that kind of thing.

RAM: So, years from now, when lots of tenements in Maryhill have been demolished and people are crying out asking why did we demolish these tenements? They are such wonderful buildings and they could be used for so many things, they are so flexible. What are you going to say, why did we demolish them? What do you think?

PH: Economics.

AM: It probably will be that at the end of the day. See we’ve got problems just now, not just with tenemental style properties although it may happen. But with red sandstone properties that are four in a block like semis because at the moment they don’t meet the thermal standards so we are talking about this, because we can't over clad them on the outside we are talking about lining them on the inside. Which makes all the rooms smaller and if there is any cornicing it ruins it.

RAM: That could be done. !

AM: People don’t want their rooms to be any smaller.

RAM: I think if you spoke to people and you said either we need to tear down this wonderful building or we need to add like 300mm on to the inside of your walls...

PH: Can I say to you as well, don’t be thinking that! See if you went to a hundred of our properties that are tenemental properties and you say to them would you rather stay in here or a new build property that is maybe a little smaller but front and back garden! they would bite your hand off to move.

RAM: Really?

PH: Don’t be disillusioned. There is a big difference between here and Hynland; there are some nice tenements and some beautiful buildings!

AM: We can take you to Bilsland Drive just now where the secure entry door doesn’t work and the off license is next door to it.

RAM: That’s like my flat.

AM: And the kids are going there every day urinating in the close and spray-painting the walls, it’s not nice.

PH: And that’s why in the pockets where tenements will survive they will survive for a reason, because they don’t get treated as badly as they do elsewhere. Other than that the ones that do get treated badly are the ones that will be targeted in the future for !

removal. Taken down, rebuilt, whatever the case may be; because people don’t want to live in them.

AM: It’s like some of the modern stuff we’ve got like Cumlodden Drive, which is deck access type blocks with flat roofs. The people that live there have lived there for 30-40 years and absolutely love it and don’t want to move and yet you or I wouldn’t want to live there!

RAM: Well it’s where you call home isn’t it.

AM: That’s the thing, that’s where they call home. They are so happy there, its so central for them and they have been there when it was tenements originally and they moved into the new housing that got put in and it was a new house. Ok, it’s now had problems with the flat roofs and that, but they still love it and they still want to stay there. I would never move there.

PH: So it’s all about issues, issues in relation to the property, the style, the construction, and what it costs to repair it. That’s what it comes down to. There is a huge gulf and a void here and you’ve got social housing which is government funded, whatever way you want to look at it. And you’ve got private landlords and developers whatever the case may be. The private developers will be looking to maximize as much on their units sizes to get as many properties on to a site as possible in order to maximize their profits. If you have private clients that are willing to spend money they maybe will spend more but bear in mind they are maybe trying to flush out the high-end market and get people to pay exuberant amounts of money for something that is not necessarily worth that. It’s all driven by economy and what we can viably do. Glasgow, !

as far as tenements are concerned, if they are run by housing associations or local authorities, through time they will go because they are not viable. The ones that will stay are the ones that people are putting money into, like Alan. It’s a labor of love or a commitment to maintain that standard and that quality you are feeding out all the time.

That’s a choice thing, if you give people a choice and if their aspirations are different from yours or mine, everyone wants to be on the next stage up. If your economy is not like that then unfortunately people start at the bottom, there are people in the middle and people at the top and somewhere in between- that’s what happens. Where it's social and public money that is getting driven in to it you will not get a standard that is any better than what is known as a tolerable standard. You will get a tolerable standard and you will maximize your unit’s capacity and drive that through and that’s what always happens.

AM: The other problem these days with tenemental properties is the cost of a mortgage to buy a decent tenement property. I’ve got a young couple that just recently moved in to the top flat in my building and their mortgage is so high that they can’t afford to run their car.

RAM: Why is it different for a tenement rather than a normal property?

AM: Well its even if you buy a new house, it’s just the same thing. The cost is extortionate its three or four times your salary. Whereas when I bought mine it was nothing like that.

RAM: Its that and council tax. !

AM: Council tax as well, yes.

RAM: When I started off in this, I thought that it was a good topic and as I look more and more into it, I just see that there are more and more problems and it's really interesting to hear that Paul has said that tenement buildings are definitely going, they are definitely going to be demolished in the future. I just can’t imagine!

AM: I think the properties along Maryhill Road will last several years. See with GHA and Maryhill, our investment plan is looked at on a stock conditions survey and they look at the condition of the properties and they agree that its worth safe guarding and worth putting new windows in if we can guarantee that they will still be there in 30 years time.

RAM: But 30 years is nothing!

AM: 30 years is nothing but that’s the game, its 30 years in property and it’s already been there 100 years. It won’t last forever.

RAM: I know but it could definitely last another 100 years!

AM: Mine has been there 100 years and last January in the high storms a chimney that is at least eight feet high by six foot wide came down through the roof and that chimney had been there for 100 years, we are now worried about all the other ones.

RAM: When was the last time that it was looked at? !

AM: One hundred odd years ago!ha!

RAM: Right see that’s the thing I start off saying in my dissertation, the last time that many of the tenemental buildings have been looked at was at construction! The lead that is still on some of them is the same lead that was first put on!

AM: Correct.

RAM: I have heard of a man that is looking into doing a building MOT and I first came across him at a lecture in the Lighthouse. What he says we should have is like a car MOT where somebody checks buildings and fabric regularly and estimates when repairs are needing done so that owners can save for future repairs. Instead of having the full refurb, which is a great deal of cost you would fix the areas that need to be fixed when they need to be. Every building has to be to that MOT standard and pass.

AM: What you need is to have somebody like I’m hoping this new body that they are setting up, for instance we have had the chimney fixed which took a year. We’ve had a gutter leak at the back of our Grade A listed property for over two years which we have reported to the factor and because it isn’t affecting them and its just staining the back of the building and ruining the flat.

RAM: And then the stone will degrade!

AM: Yeah, they aren’t bothered, so it’s still leaking. We cannot get everyone to buy in to that so we still have a leak. Now our title deeds say we need to get a majority decision but our factor says he’s not bothered about the majority decision, he wants the !

money upfront. So although four of the people in the tenement are worried about it and want the work to go ahead, and that’s four out of eight, because the bank downstairs wont pay their money it doesn’t go ahead.

RAM: So what you need is some kind of piece of legislation to come in and say no, we need to take care of the buildings and have a different way of making it financially sound.

AM: Correct. Well even if you have to force the people to pay for it, I don’t mind paying for the building.

RAM: I know but you can’t force people can you.

AM: We want a new controlled entry in because we have a lot of trouble with kids coming in.

RAM: I’d love that too, people keep kicking my door in!

AM: Well we have a controlled entry but its up 16 stairs sitting on a landing so we want one right down the very bottom. It’s taken us two years to get that because none of the neighbors would buy into it. We also have absentee landlords, which is an absolute nightmare! Because they are away they don’t see the problems.

RAM: Do you think factors are doing their jobs right?

AM: No. I think factors are absolutely useless. !

RAM: I’m kind of coming to that conclusion. I don’t understand what their role is because they don’t seem to do anything!

AM: They charge you an awful lot of money, supposedly they are supposed to maintain the property and come out twice a year and survey it like your saying about the building MOT and say you need this, this and this done; but they don’t do it!

RAM: So maybe what it is that is really needed is a working factor.

AM: Factor is written into your title deeds when the property is built. So our property required that we had to appoint a factor.

RAM: Thank you so much for all your time.

Interview Conclusion This interview was the first in my research and possible the most interesting and inspiring. I was very surprised to hear that Paul and Alan agreed that many tenement properties in the Maryhill area were going to be demolished in future due to the surrounding circumstance. I was also very interested to find out that money and economics are the single drivers in most housing association decision processes. This along with the lack of public funding available for traditional tenements repair and refurbishment under their care leaves them with little or no choice when it comes to their buildings' future. !

12. Words o’ the people – Appendix 2 John Gilbert Architects Interview John Gilbert is one of the most experienced architects in relation to the Glasgow tenement. John Gilbert is the co-author along with Annie Flint of the Tenement Handbook, an essential guide for owners and tenants living in tenemental properties. It gives detailed descriptions and illustrations drawn by John Gilbert on how to maintain and repair a tenement. It also provides information on the repair and maintenance processes and how to deal with architects and builders. This is the only book of its kind and is a very important resource.

Since beginning my dissertation I have been very interested in interviewing him and asking his opinions on todays stock of tenements in Glasgow and the wide range of issues that surround their future.

This interview with John Gilbert of John Gilbert Architects took place on the 26th of February 2013 between 4:30-5:30pm at the office of John Gilbert Architects, 201 The White Studios Templeton on the Green 62 Templeton St, Glasgow, Glasgow City G40 1.

A brief description of my dissertation was given to John Gilbert before the interview began.

Persons Present Ruth Arlenne Maclennan - RAM John Gilbert – JG !

RAM: While working with Fiona Sinclair last year I became very interested in tenements and tenement repair. There seems to be a lot of difficulty repairing tenements; it seems like a very difficult process.

JG: Surely you mean that it is difficult dealing with the owners of tenements?

RAM: Yeah ha!

JG: It’s not actually difficult to repair tenements.

RAM: No, its pretty straight forward!

JG: It’s managing eight different owners, or sometimes sixteen.

RAM: So that got me interested in the subject and I have picked this subject for my dissertation. I have started out by looking at the repair processes. I am going to have two case studies, one being a privately owned tenement and one publically owned, so a housing association. I have now set up those two case studies and what my email was getting at was that I had an interview with the Maryhill Housing Association.

Initially, a man called Paul Hughes and an architect called Alan McGillveray told me that it is easier to and cheaper to knock down tenements and build other housing and build other housing that will last around 30 years because they work in 30 year financial cycles, and that would be better than keeping the tenements and repairing them. So that kind of blew me away!. !

JG: Well that’s their view of it, it depends what tenements he is talking about. In Maryhill we have actually done master plan studies of Maryhill where we were agreeing that some of the tenements should be demolished but they are post-war tenements not necessarily Victorian tenements.

RAM: Well he was mainly talking about Victorian tenements. So I started looking into how it is difficult for housing associations or people that are not living in conservation areas or that don’t live in a listed tenement to get funding; and so a lot of tenements may be demolished. That’s lead me, in the space of the last two and a half weeks, to look at how many tenements may be being demolished and if there is going to be another wave of tenements slated for demolition in the city. I know that no building lasts forever but Its more about, what ones are we going to keep? Are they going to be privately owned tenements that private individuals repair that have the money or can get funding for?

JG: I don’t think that people go around saying which ones are we going to keep. What happens is that an area gets so bad it gets blighted and no one wants to live there and then houses go empty. Look at those tenements up towards Greenock, it’s a whole row of tenements, which had started to be sold to private landlords and then be rented out.

It’s an interesting area, largely flat roofed but I’m sure they are turn of the century tenements. They had nothing strictly wrong with them but now that they have gone in the way of private landlords, there is definitely a decay and things are beginning to be boarded up and no one wants to live there. The only solution apparently is to demolish them because it is not a viable community any more. It's not just the housing fabric that you are retaining it is the population, it is the neighborhood and the people that are wanting to live there. If you go to other places in the West End of Glasgow, fairly !

popular, people would give their hind legs for some of the properties because that’s a great location, we want to live here, this is what is available, we want to invest in it and we want to maintain it. So it is maintained but it is very difficult to maintain properties in terms of getting agreement from everybody because people don’t really recognize the costs of doing it, they always think they are being cheated. What, because they have to pay money and they don’t expect to pay money for a building because a building is permeable and doesn’t change they think, but obviously it does. It needs gutters cleaned, very basic stuff and slates slip and all sorts of things decay with weather and time; this is natural and it will happen to all buildings. I do think that a lot of tenements could be upgraded to twenty-first century standards, there is a potential for that because the space is not bad in them. You are still going to want in an urban situation a dense population so if you knock them down you are still going to want to build houses to a similar density. Would this be better? Well they might have lifts, you know, but I don’t know how long some of those new houses will last anyway. There is something quite robust about older tenements, which I think will last and I think in 30 years they will certainly still have them. I will be surprised if they start demolishing lots of tenements but there are plenty of other areas to build stock on. They have been demolishing 1960’s houses basically in the last 30 years, they didn’t last for hardly 30 years. What makes you think that new houses are going to be so good?

RAM: They basically said that they know that new housing might not be as good but their funding works in 30-year cycles and they cost everything based on a 30-year cycle. They only have funding for that so they don’t really invest in using slate or materials that are going to last. In the next 30 years they might not have the funding to do the repairs again because the life of the materials they choose to use will have ran out. There is a tenement on 19 Lynedoch Street up by Park Circus that I am using as !

one of my examples along with the Linen Bank building in my dissertation of tenements that have been lying derelict.

JG: Was Lynedoch Street not largely offices?

RAM: It is, yeah. It was last occupied by an engineering firm but its completely derelict and it's in a really really bad condition.

JG: So its got a parapet and presumably it has a lot of rot in it or do you think its!?

RAM: Well there are holes through the stonework that you can see straight inside, whole windows are gone, and water is just gushing in.

JG: Well then it’s in a single ownership maybe?

RAM: I haven’t found out who owns it yet.

JG: Or why has it got to that state?

RAM: There was a planning application to refurb it that was then withdrawn and an application went in to demolish it. So that’s quite interesting because...

JG: It’s a conservation area isn’t it?

RAM: I think they want to demolish it and build, because it is on a corner plot, a new build of much denser offices. !

JG: Hey, hey there is a bigger agenda there isn’t there!

RAM: That is exactly it, that’s all I’m learning!

JG: That’s not typical and even the British Linen Bank is not typical, I wondered if you were interested in typical tenement stock, which houses people.

RAM: Yeah I am.

JG: Neither of those are what I would call typical tenements, the British Linen Bank has been empty for ages and is a listed building and its had temporary works on it but the most of the internal timbers have been gutted or rotted. It is structurally stable and it could be restored, it’s a fascinating building because it has a more art nouveau character to it. It doesn’t seem to stack up financially because of the amount of conservation requirement in it in terms of putting back what you would want to do in terms of restoring it as a unique building. And what you are getting is fairly small flats so who do you sell those small flats to? On the market they might only reach, you would be lucky to get £100,000! Whereas you are going to spend more than that on things like the joinery work and putting in floors, services, it takes a lot of money. Reslating the roof is not the biggest problem, although there is a steeple there that has been removed and it has been asked if it can be put back.

RAM: My other case study, other than 98 Dowanhill Street, is on Ancroft Street which is right now being refurbished by Queens Cross Housing Association and its an example of a typical tenement that has been lying derelict for years, structurally sound, big size flats and they have got money from the Scottish Government to refurb them !

and its right in the middle of the development area right now. I’m interested in looking at all the different aspects. When did you first start working with tenements?

JG: Well, Raymond Jones started in Govan in the early 70’s and used the Improvement Act to restore some tenements. He has just written a publication called Annie’s flat, which is being launched next Wednesday at the Lighthouse. I did some drawings for that to show how he amalgamated the bathrooms and got bathroom stacks through and would speak to everybody, get improvement grants and just put toilets in, very basic things. That lead to the government Housing Association being set up and Assist had an office there. Then I joined in 1976 and I was working with Govanhill Housing Association in Govan because that was the next one and then it expanded to what they are now driven by the community using Government Improvement Act legislation to improve stock. Initially it was basic individual improvements for owners, you got a grant, or environmental backcourt improvements.

Then it was common repair improvements, all of which you got a grant for. Grants were for below tolerable standard stock which most of it was. Nowadays it might not meet the Scottish housing Quality Standard which is another standard for rented properties on social landlords. So everything has changed since then but I’ve been doing it since 1976 and we are working in Govanhill at the moment putting in windows into Victorian tenements. So I started doing work there and I’m back there, nothing changes! I still think that with the character of the area, new building comes and some of the properties will have to be demolished eventually but I think it will be gradual where the community is intact. But there are stresses in that community which is typical of other areas where you get private landlords taking over cheaper flats and then sub-dividing and doing ghastly things to them. The quality drops and then people don’t want to !

invest, it’s really hard to get money out of them to repair and then more of the quality goes down!

RAM: There are so many things that effect this isn’t there?

JG: Yes. If you just take a typical tenement and you’ve got eight owners, getting eight people to agree to put any money into the building is really really difficult. We always say whomever you have, it’s good to have a factor. Its good to set aside money every month for your maintenance and really get everybody used to paying in a regular sum; they don’t do it!

RAM: Yeah.

JG: They don’t carry out regular inspections themselves. What they will do is, oh so and so has a leak, oh well that’s your problem, you're on the roof.

RAM: Yeah and the person in the basement never wants to pay.

JG: Yeah, no one wants to pay. Or get Jimmy down the road, he’ll see what he can do about it, its frightful really. So there is a great need for good communication and the carrot and stick approach to maintaining properties. I am really concerned in Edinburgh where the council is because of all the withdrawing their compulsory procedures, and Glasgow used to do it and say take action that is in disrepair. You have to do it, get it done. If they don’t do it now in Glasgow; they are not going to do it in Edinburgh except for extreme structural cases, which is terrible because people aren’t going to! People should learn about their responsibilities but they are not really tied into it. In a way I !

have always loved the idea of having the common ownership which would ideally be a separate element and when people sell their house they are just selling flat and not the common part, which would still be retained, in the common landlord. That is a bit radical, I don’t see that happening; where there are other administrative things done to make sure people have regular inspections carried out that would be good.

RAM: I have heard talk of a building MOT in a lecture where it would just be like a car MOT which would promote regular inspections and tell owners what they need to have done in the way of regular maintenance. That way it would be more organized and people would have to keep things in a good state of repair.

JG: But how do you insure that, how do you register that people have got to have the building MOT every 5 years or when? Is it when you're going to sell the house when you need a common MOT for it and when it has to be done?

RAM: I think he wanted to make it more like legislation.

JG: Yes I know you can legislate it but how do you actually enforce it?

RAM: Yeah, maybe that’s why he was having difficulty.

JG: I also think actually there isn’t, I know we wrote the Tenement Handbook yonks ago but there isn’t much information for people if they have a problem about how they can go about sorting it. There was a tenement working party that Anne Laird set up with volunteers that was a good source for other tenement owners who were wanting to do something, I’m not sure if it is still going but Anne is quite vocal. !

RAM: So you think that main problems are not the buildings but the people?

JG: I do yes. I’m not saying there aren’t problems with the buildings but generally speaking they are surmountable to some degree. In terms of what would you change about the building; you would always want better energy conservation. The windows can be changed, that’s not a problem we are doing it all the time. Kitchens and bathrooms can be changed; it’s not a problem. The roof can be replaced, even with concrete tiles it will give you 30 years, not that I like them but that’s all manageable.

What does cause problems are peoples concern over heat loss. In that respect Matt here has been working on a document to show what can be retrofitted and obviously it can be more difficult to retrofit Victorian tenements than even, well maybe its not that much more difficult, but 1960’s tenements are difficult to retrofit. Nearly more difficult to some degree but the advantage there is that you can over clad them on the outside.

That’s the easy way because you are not disrupting people, as long as they agree, that’s another difficulty, but insulating inside is more difficult. Roger Curtis has written various things on Historic Scotland’s website about retrofitting but Matt’s book Passivhaus will be published fairly soon, you can have a copy of it. So that’s how to make it Passivhaus, that’s extreme. I don’t expect that!

RAM: Yes, I was going to ask, how do you make a tenement Passivhaus?

JG: Very difficult and expensive to do it, but its just to know if it could be done really.

And of course we haven’t done it so it’s hard to know but we are just calculating what has to be done to make it. There are plenty of things that you can do to improve the heat loss in a tenement in terms of insulation and that’s where Roger Curtis has done !

some basic studies. I’m sure actually that the fabric isn’t so bad as people make out. I think you have a conflict with double glazing and conservation but you can still put secondary windows in and there are different approaches you can make to save energy. So I still think they’ve got a life even though apparently, people think they are not as energy effective as new buildings. I think their density is one of their saving graces, and relative simplicity actually.

RAM: Definitely.

JG: Acoustic standards can be improved as well.

RAM: I just think that they are lovely to live in; I live in a tenement right now at St Georges Cross. It’s my first experience of a tenement and I love it. We had terrible sash and case single glazed windows and we just had double-glazing put in. My landlord has installed double glazing sash and case and it has made a massive impact, such a simple thing. So I think there is a lot that could be done but people have to see that and its individuals that are going to do that. I’m not convinced that housing associations are interested in anything but getting the most amount of rent. I’m afraid that they are going to demolish ordinary tenements that could be used for the future and later people will cry out, what have you done!

JG: I think, yeah I’m never really sure whether the demand is not just financial but the fact that people think that tenements are ‘old’ and what people want are family housing, terraced housing. There is a requirement for that in certain areas if you are having children and there are plenty of areas in Maryhill where they are building new family housing so fair enough to have it. I still think that with tenemental type property, its !

making it fit for today really. You can't compulsory improve them, you are meant to be able to compulsory repair, we can’t even do that now!

RAM: So how would you see it happening in the future? Can you see it happening?

You are doing studies into making tenements Passivhaus and can you see them being implemented?

JG: I think there will be an increase in demand for energy conservation. I don’t think there will be a demand to make all tenements Passivhaus, no. They couldn’t afford it!

The simplest way to do it is to overclad a lot of the tenements and you could do that at the rear of tenements where you don’t have sandstone but I think most people would like to keep the sandstone. Although if the sandstone is so bad you could overclad it on the front. This is what the Germans do, they overclad on the front and they make the moldings really to bring out the character of the building so they don’t loose that. They always were rendered buildings so it’s slightly different. We like our stone, that’s the thing. How would you do it? I think would I would have encouragement for people, some sort of incentive. We can't afford it but as a society I’m not sure that we can 'not' afford it because we are going to pay money to demolish tenements; we are going to pay money for the dereliction that it causes and we are always going round and sweeping up afterwards and if we can prevent that, that’s what we should be doing. In that respect, encouragement for MOT’s and that sort of thing would be a good start.

That would be a simple thing to do. I would maybe tie it in with other energy studies and you can give incentives to go and retrofit, they already do it under the green deal.

You can focus that in on particular tenement areas or focus in and say we are going to do a report on the whole of this street and try to encourage awareness of the maintenance of things. !

RAM: I wasn’t sure what my conclusion was going to be in my dissertation but it’s where the research is leading me and I’m running out of time because I keep researching! I’m getting more and more into it. I had a supervisor appointment today because I think its all changing and going more along the lines of is the tenement as a building form going to disappear from the city if we don’t look after it and upgrade it, so I’m getting more interested in that. How do you see the city in 100 years time?

JG: Its not so much the tenements as to do with the social spaces and where people want to live!because they are brought together for the provision of service to make something viable which was shopping, commercial activity and access to things. That’s all changing!

RAM: Its all going online.

JG: It’s all going online, yeah. How that is going to affect the city or the common areas, public area that surrounds that cityscape, I’m not sure. I think cities will probably survive because they will be social spaces, places where people are meeting other people. Whether it’s tons of Starbucks coffee bars, what will take place of shops? It might be more social spaces and places where people can interact and that’s why they want to be there, it may not be buying things, but smaller towns will be the ones that suffer that don’t have that population. In many respects cities could actually grow and the towns could suffer, I don’t know. Its very hard to predict what the shopping experience will have on the density because the density came about as a result of needing to be near things. Well, your work as well but if you are working from home you don’t need all that then. I think there are still services and entertainment, there are !

places you want to go to and meet people, it’s the convenience of things one would like to think. In that respect, it’s not just an investment in the building but in the fabric outside the building and that can be the backcourt but also the street. What kind of pleasant space that is, is it a nice space to be in? A nice area to be in? We don’t give enough credence to the public areas of our streets! We sort of get used to them but we don’t really care about them, we think they are sort of residual. I think you can tell the quality of a place by those public streets, those public areas. I think I would like to see more public investment in pavements and streetscape or making things more accessible to people to walk about or cycle about. That whole access is being badly served, particularly in Glasgow, which is such a car-orientated city.

RAM: What is the most successful tenement repair project that you have been apart of in your opinion? Or are they all the same?

JG: No, no. Every one is different; every one has had particular problems. We are doing stuff over in Shettleston to overclad lots of 170 houses there and that will make a huge impact on peoples running costs and the way the tenements were organized were back to front. We’ve done individual listed buildings and we have built new houses within the context of tenements. I did that with my old practice, ASIST Architects. Actually, the one that I am proudest of is a new build scheme but its new build tenement and it went against the grain of modern architecture. Because at the time it was fitting into a conservation areas and it was pastiche, it was good pastiche!

So we did that at West End Park Street at Woodlands, not far from Lynedoch Street.

You look at it and think, that’s Victorian isn’t it? No, its not!

RAM: Oh ok! And it was most successful why? !

JG: Because I think it fitted in to the urban context and it wasn’t in your face, it wasn’t saying ‘hey I’m new’. It was as if it had always been there somehow and that’s what I wanted. At that time when that was built 25 years ago people were very reserved about new building, the shock of the new. If that site went today it would be a brand new building but I think it would have detracted from that whole context of the conservation area. So I quite like that but no architects would like it, all architects would say oh pastiche! We don’t do that now but that was right for the time. Rehab, there has been very little rehab over the past 10 years. Mainly just replacing doors and kitchens and upgrading things but not full tenemental upgrading work like we used to do. Where you have an empty property and your gutting it out, I cant remember the last time I did it!

RAM: There are so many different opinions on this.

JG: Yes, indeed. You will have to make your own opinion eventually.

RAM: I am, I am! I’m forming it!

JG: I think the management of the tenements is quite an issue and I think. The quality of the tenement stock obviously varies. In the West End you will get some lovely properties. We did the Caledonian Mansions on Great Western Road, but that’s now what I call tenement refurbishment because it was only the common fabric, the roofs and leadwork and things like that.

RAM: That was a job though! !

JG: That was, that took 10 years! And that was because they couldn’t get agreement from all of the owners and the shops. It just took so long to get everyone to sign up to.

RAM: Has it become part of your responsibility to work with the owners?

JG: Yes, well to some degree but I think that is the most wearing and time consuming bit of it. That’s why you don’t voluntarily take it on; you always want to get a factor or somebody, one person responsible for getting everybody together. It’s horrendous working for eight individuals! They all think something different and they all will be asking you the same things. So if you communicate with one and then they communicate it around, unless you have a factor involved. Its just too time consuming, its bad enough doing the technical side of it, leave us to do that.

RAM: So in your opinion, if housing associations started to demolish tenements in the city in areas like Maryhill and Queens Cross- all of the more working class areas what would you think of that?

JG: I think that would be possibly short sighted but your really have to look at each area and the needs of those areas, and the quality of the tenemental stock. I’m not saying that it shouldn’t be done in a lot of areas but some areas its just overkill. I don’t think demolition is automatically the answer. Its too open a question, I think I would always look at the tenement or neighborhood in question and there’s a lot of issues before saying what is right or wrong, to demolish or not to demolish.

RAM: I started off thinking about preserving the legacy of the tenement for the city but it’s very apparent that there are so many issues. !

JG: The form will stay. Sharing a common stair and access and having your flat on the level, I think that form gives you density but all the things that go with it will be with it in a new building as well as an old building. You wont get quite the same density with terraced housing so I think the form is important and the traditions that go with the form; the traditions of maintaining it and managing it. Unfortunately those traditions have fallen by the way side; there were things about cleaning the close and everything.

I’m not saying it always worked but you need to create new traditions for maintaining properties and somehow properties need to be pushing that. If you build a new house you will need traditions for maintain that. And the skills to maintain them, that's the other thing you know.

RAM: So maintaining is key. Thank you very much.

!

Interview Conclusion This interview was the second in my research in talking to professionals about the subject of repairing tenements. John Gilbert pointed out to me the importance of maintenance and management in the repair process; and that at the moment in Glasgow many buildings are not being maintained properly. I was also very interested to find out that John agrees that the most difficult part of the repair process is getting the co-owners of a property to agree on the works and pay for them. Perhaps the biggest thing that I have learned through this interview with John is that although the tenement legacy should be preserved for the city each tenement and area is different and sometimes demolition may be required. Saving Victorian tenement buildings cannot be justified purely on the architectures' worth but the effect it has on its surroundings and the people using it. John pointed out that the form of the Victorian tenement would survive because the form gives density but that with preserving the form we may encounter the same problems of repair, maintenance and management.

It is therefore very important to understand these issues more and be more prepared in future.

!

12. Words o’ the people – Appendix 3 Queens Cross Housing Association Interview As a result of my interview with Paul Hughes and Alan Mcgillveray of Maryhill Housing Association I was made aware of Queens Cross Housing Association’s current tenement refurbishment project at Ancroft Street in Glasgow. I then secured this project as my second case study in my dissertation and I was put in touch with Niall McKinnon who is the Head of Development at QCHA. Niall then agreed to be interviewed as well as supplying me with any necessary material I required to facilitate this case study in my dissertation.

This Interview with Niall McKinnon took place on the 1st of March 2013 between 3:004:00pm at the office of Queens Cross Housing Association, 45 Firhill Road, Glasgow G20 7BE. A brief description of my dissertation was given to Niall McKinnon before the interview began.

Persons Present Ruth Arlenne Maclennan - RAM Niall McKinnon - NM

!

RAM: I wanted to have two case studies, one that is privately owned in the West End and another that is publicly owned, so a housing association is perfect. I have been looking for this case study and when I went to see Maryhill Housing Association they told me about the Ancroft Street project and I’ve read up a bit about it.

NM: Yeah, we have done a bit of publicity.

RAM: Yeah, there is quite a lot online actually about the sales of the flats, so it’s great.

NM: Well, it could be the last of these tenement repair projects.

RAM: That’s what really interests me!

NM: Its just the way that funding is going. I spent ten years at Govanhill doing these all the time, that’s how I got interested in housing in the first place. I started working for Glasgow city council doing a research project trying to pull together all their information on repair grants for, at the time, roof and window replacements. Then I got used to tenements and I went to work for the housing corporation and funding at the time and that when most of the housing association programme was all tenement improvements within Glasgow, so I got quite into it and then I went to Govanhill which was really in to it! That was all we did!

RAM: Well Maryhill has flagged it up that its too expensive for them to keep their tenements basically. They said its cheaper to demolish and re-build housing that will last 30 years. !

NM: Yes, 60 years. New builds should last 60 years but it is a 30-year pay back period.

Which is what the Associations traditionally use if they borrow money. What we have to do now is borrow money to finance the project and its pay back through the events and they do a 30 year cash flow that highlights all of the repairs to be done. Roofs have to be renewed after 30 years and the windows have to be renewed after 15 years, and how much that is going to cost and it gives you your net present value. Housing Associations were formed in the mid 70’s and started by doing tenements and improvements that were owned by absentee landlords and private lets. A lot of tenements from the beginning as an investment were all let out and due to the decay and the great storm in the 1960’s, the condition of the stock were damaged; a lot of chimneys coming down. Inner city associations started and were what we called community based, all of the Queens Cross, Govanhill, Shettleston, Parkhead and Partick. They all started looking at tenements and improving them and they started buying up all the absentee landlord properties and improving them. As things moved on, property prices increased dramatically and buying the flats and improving them became very expensive. At Govanhill we started off paying £10,000-15,000 and when I left we were paying £30,000-35,000 before you even did anything with it. You had to spend another £50,000 doing the works and fees and VAT on it so the government said they can’t afford to give you a grant to do this, so it became a private thing.

Associations tried to keep more and more owners got involved and they got repair grants from the City Council. The government had said that they were putting far too much into repair grants for Association projects so they changed that grant system.

Now there is little to no grant to fund it in what has been the traditional sense.

RAM: So tenement is basically the subject of people trying to get grants to repair them and slowly they are just all being cut off? !

NM: Yes, it became too expensive to do, to buy up and for then people to afford it.

This is what we called Comprehensive Tenement Improvements, CTI, where you gutted it as opposed to doing a patch and repair job. This was obviously more expensive but it had a long-term future and we didn’t have to go back and address it again and again, patching roofs. It becomes self defeating in a way but the government is basically saying that we aren’t going to fund Housing Associations to do it and if owners want to do it its more about them finding a means to fund it themselves as opposed to just giving us a grant.

RAM: Its quite interesting because the city has this legacy of tenements and really the city should be preserving that legacy as much as possible not trying to actually make it easier for people to not repair their buildings and have to just knock down older tenements, which is strange.

NM: It is, there are always some tenements that have some sort of structural fault like the back wall collapses or something like that but the majority its just a slow decay and what will happen is it will go full circle and all the owner occupiers will get kicked out.

People will, maybe not in the current market, but people will come in and buy them and just rent them out to students and wont care about the condition of the properties just as long as they are getting their income in from the rent. So it’s back to where we started from in the 1970’s again!

RAM: Yeah!

NM: Associations are struggling to manage that but they improve and still own their own properties with a mixed tenant within the flats. They then are trying to manage !

maintaining their own stock with having to recover their costs from owners of the common works, be it roofs or stone repairs.

RAM: So Housing Associations are trying to keep occupants trying to keep occupants in the loop?

NM: Yes. RAM: Do you have tenements where some of the flats are privately owned and some are rented out?

NM: Yes, Most of ours are like that because there always was a number of owners that wanted to stay and you would encourage them to stay because mixed owners living in the area was seen as a better way of having more vibrant economics. It just made it more sustainable long term.

RAM: So if you need to repair something, do you then have difficulty getting the money out of the private owners?

NM: Yes. RAM: That’s something that’s really evident in my research. It seems that the hardest part of repairing privately owned tenement is getting all the owners to agree to go through with the works and to pay up. It’s always the person on the top floor complaining of leaks and no one else wants to do something until it affects them. !

NM: Yes, that’s true. What most Associations do with tenements is they have their own factoring business, we have our own. We have actually got a fairly commercial factoring business, where as a lot of Associations will only do the tenements where they have mixed ownerships. We cover a lot of other properties as well. The factoring company then takes the lead and they will factor the property and also act in the interest of the housing association who will often have the majority ownership in a close and they own five or six of the eight flats up a stair. So we can push things through regardless, but there is always a risk that you have to recover that money from the owners at the end because we can't be seen to be subsidizing them, at least it minimizes the numbers. There are other tenements where we own, whether through the right to buy or through the natural ownership at the time when the tenements were improved, we don’t have majority ownership.

RAM: So its very different how it all works with a Housing Association.

NM: Yes, we have a kind of scale and we do have majority ownership in most tenements that we improve so we do have a bit of clout. We still have to bring the owners along and recover the costs from them.

RAM: Has Queens Cross Housing Association had any tenements demolished recently or in the past 10 years?

NM: No, I can’t think of anything in the area that’s been demolished. Only inter-war three storey tenements that were been built in the 1920-30’s, nothing sandstone. A good location but they were almost all one bedroom flats, 650 flats, so it wasn’t a great mix. They had very cheap rents so they were popular but because of the size of the !

properties it only attracted a certain kind of people; it was always single men and it didn’t have a great community as such. Also because of the rents they couldn’t afford the costs of upgrading them so it was decided it was better to demolish, that’s what Maryhill were saying. This is the kind of tenement that is generally cheaper to demolish and re-build. That may be what Maryhill are referring to as well.

RAM: No, they were talking about sandstone Victorian tenements. They said because it costs so much to repair them and there was no funding available for that housing type it would be better to build new. Do you think Queens Cross Housing Association feels like that as well?

NM: I don’t think so. One because a lot of our tenemental stock is in a conservation area, Kelvinside conservation area. Two because we have an awful lot of owners scattered about so we would need to buy out all of them if we were going to demolish.

If your buying tenements in this area near the West End you are easily talking £60,000 a unit dependent on the size of flat. So to demolish it would be a significant cost.

RAM: So I think what it is then is actually the area that makes a big difference.

NM: Yes. It’s probably the area and the size of the flats as well. Small one-bedroom flats, which you always find, tenements were built with single ends. Smaller flats were built in the poorer areas and then as you get to better areas flats get bigger and bigger.

I worked in Govanhill, big iron works down there at the Gorbals and all the tenement flats nearest there were all slum one bedroom, even single ends. The East End is all smaller flats and the West End is all bigger flats because the industry was all East End and the winds came from the West End and blew all the smoke to the East! So !

different areas have smaller flats because of some historic reason and small flats are difficult to convert into modern day current standards, as we will demonstrate in Ancroft Street to a certain extent.

RAM: So tell me about Ancroft Street, how long was it actually vacant?

NM: Well its five tenements and there was a fire in two of the end properties in 20012002 and Glasgow City Council owned them all. So they weren’t huge fires but enough fire damage in the close. The City Council came and repaired the roof damage but they just moved everyone out after that.

RAM: Oh really? So they repaired it and moved everyone out?

NM: They made it wind and watertight and I think people moved out first. They repaired the roof but never did any internal work I suspect because they then transferred on to the GHA in 2003 and they just never moved people back in. So these two lay empty because of fires.

RAM: So it was two separate fires?

NM: Yes, and then this one, I’m not sure why this one became empty. I suspect it might be because of the size of flats, which I will show you. Because it’s on the corner there are three flats per landing and they are all fairly small. It might have just become hard to let because the actual condition internally were reasonably good. So these three tenements were just lying empty and here there was some anti-social behavior issues i.e. drug dealing and a couple of families trying to rule the neighborhood type !

thing. So no one else wanted to stay up here other than the families. Eventually we just got these cleared and the families moved on to someone else’s patch. The idea was then that this would give us a whole terrace of tenements. So we cleared those two tenements in 2010 and the idea was to pull all of these into the one.

RAM: That’s quite interesting, the wee story of how the whole row fell away!

NM: Yes, it is! Ultimately we made the conscious effort to vacate these so we could do all of them. The idea was that we would buy them off GHA and do them up for sale in 2007 because the market was buoyant and we would have no problem in selling them.

When GHA became a charity and one of the rules of charity is that you cant give away your assets, you have to get best value, best price. They were going to give us these four for nothing or next to nothing. Then they said that they had them valued and it was going to cost us £50,000 a unit. We said we cant get them at that price, you cant get anything to stack up because by the time you add the works on top of it its going to cost you £110,000-120,000 per unit and the flats are only worth around £100,000 so its not going to be viable; so they just lay there. GHA were looking to sell them they had them approved by their management board for disposal but their phrase was demolition or disposal. So when it became clear that they weren’t going to dispose of them by selling so their only other option was demolition.

RAM: That’s crazy! So they were going to give them to you, they couldn’t give them to you, and you couldn’t afford to buy them!? So they were going to knock them down! So they aren’t allowed to give away their assets but they are allowed to knock down their assets?! I don’t understand that at all! !

NM: No, it’s the perverse of the way things are, how accountants and other things work. So as it happens this whole area was GHA stock and we were in the frame to take over it all anyway. It turns out before they demolished it, it got transferred over to us and they actually gave us money as part of the deal, they gave us money to allow us to demolish them.

RAM: What!? So then they paid you to take them?

NM: It’s complicated, but its just part of how the value of the stock is. These are all derelict, they are not worth anything and in theory you are going to have to demolish them so it’s actually going to cost you money if we give them to you.

RAM: Ok. NM: So we require giving you money to pay for their demolition.

RAM: That’s so strange.

NM: It is, I know. So we could have bought them for £10,000 each and it would have cost us £500,000, 44 flats. They gave us £300,000 to demolish them! That’s the way that property things work sometimes.

RAM: Sounds like a lot of moving and shifting of rules!

NM: Yes, its just that you're allowed to do one thing and not allowed to do another thing even though it makes financial sense. The rules say, you can do it! So that is how !

they were lying empty and we got them at nil value which has made a great difference and that gave us the scope to look at them and say we can do major work to these.

Before, we were going to do a patch and repair job initially.

RAM: And if you sell some of the flats that you do will be you recuperating that cost?

NM: Yes, so it’s basically cost us £4.5 million to do everything for the 44 flats. There is no acquisition, so no legal costs and the works cost was £3.6 million and the VAT was reduced because a lot of them had been lying empty for ten years under the VAT rules.

Normally on works to an existing building, that’s another reason why existing buildings are not economically viable because you have to pay 20% VAT whereas with a new build there is no VAT on it.

RAM: Oh, ok. So they don’t come under repair, they come under something else?

NM: It’s a just rule I think it’s trying to encourage buildings to be brought back into use.

So its 5% but there’s some things that don’t count so VAT was an estimated 71/2%. So if it had been 20% it would have been three times that, £650,000 probably, say £500,000 saving and then another £500,000 saving on the acquisition costs so that’s £1 million we have saved. So that’s how we managed to then cover other costs like fees for consultants etc. How its funded is that we get grant from the Scottish Government at £40,000 per unit, so there are 44 flats so almost £1.75 million in grant in total.

RAM: That’s a massive grant! !

NM: Its actually tiny now, we used to get a lot more than that. When I did tenements in Govanhill individuals used to get grants of £40-50,000 and that was a 90% grant! We decided that we would sell 16 flats; two of the tenements, eight flats in each and that would bring in £1.5 million sales income. From our rental income of the other 28 flats we reckon that we could borrow just over £1 million so that would be paid back over the 30-year period. Taking all of that in, it almost comes to £4.5 million but it didn’t quite, so we decided that we could use some of the money that GHA had given us to demolish the flats. We used some of that money to top up our funding and then that would match up to the £4.5 million there and that’s how it’s being funded.

RAM: Ok, so how did you get the grant?

NM: You just apply for it, well the Scottish Government used to run it in Glasgow but now the City Council now operates it on behalf of the Government. Its called Housing Association Grant or HAG. RAM: Yeah, I’ve heard about HAG from Maryhill but they said that all the HAG money for tenements had dried up.

NM: Yes it has really; this was actually a special one off. One year they did a investment and innovation fund which was a way of, call it challenge funding, which is a competition to see who can make the best bid for money, provide best value for money. So that’s why you had to hit under £40,000 a unit grant and then you had to meet other criteria, you were doing mixed tenders, meeting certain housing needs. We submitted a bid and the council looked through all of the bids and decided which gave !

best value for money and which best met their priorities for the city. So that’s why we were fortunate for whatever reason.

RAM: Those flats had been empty since 2001 you said, is that right? So when was the grant secured?

NM: End of 2011, we went on site Easter 2012 by the time it had taken to get a contractor tied up and everything organized and started.

RAM: What exactly have they done to the flats? What’s been the works?

NM: We got grant for these projects because they were lying empty and going to be demolished so we were bringing them into the housing stock. I think Maryhill are right in saying that the grants have dried up where they have existing properties that are still occupied and owned so there is no money to improve them. This is quite unique compared to most tenement improvements.

RAM: That’s quite interesting because when I think about tenements I think, if you don’t maintain them and you don’t repair them regularly or at all then they are going to become derelict. Its interesting that you cant get money to help you repair or maintain them but this is a special one off where money has been granted for something that’s been derelict so!

NM: Yeah. Originally the tenements were three flats per landing and at some point, I’m not quite sure when, the city council must have came along and split them up. So basically it was a room and kitchen and when the council came along in 1974, this !

must have been the very early days of tenement improvement; they knocked this door through and gave you two bedrooms, a living room and a very large kitchen. It’s very very badly done. So that’s what they did in the 70’s, these three flats on Ancroft Street were all the same layouts and then the two corner ones are slightly different. I’ll show you what we are doing, again very small bathroom and kitchens; these are our current drawings showing these now. This is what we bought and what we have done is go back and split the close almost in half so you get two flats the same, we’ve managed to provide a separate kitchen here, albeit small galley kitchens. Then two reasonably sized bedrooms and a separate complete lounge with a bathroom, we have done a lot of structural work; we have taken down the spine wall so that whole are was rebuilt with steel frames to support the load.

RAM: It’s the only way you would get a decent size bathroom in!

NM: Yeah, so that’s what we’ve done. The others which are corner close, so three flats per landing and its much more limited as to what we could do with it so we have had to keep it!

RAM: Wow, that’s really strange!

NM: That is really tiny, that’s the worst flat. We actually haven’t changed that much.

RAM: Wow there is only two windows!

NM: I know, you quite often get this in a tenement on the ground floor because of the close and there is just nothing that you can do with it and it’s very restricted. It’s not !

uncommon to do this kind of approach. We have actually changed that kitchen so its not dissimilar to that but hopefully its better designed. It’s still a pretty tight flat, its by no means ideal. All of these flats are like that, we are trying to create a bigger bathroom in there and a decent size bedroom but not huge. Then the kitchen is going in to where the kitchen and the bathroom was fitting in to that recess in there. This is the close that I said they might have been left because they couldn’t let it because the flats were so small and that may still be the case. When you see that flat on the ground floor you see how the close influences things. If you look above we can get a separate kitchen over where the back close is so it’s a better livable living area, still a pretty small bedroom.

On the upper floors we can get a better!

RAM: Yeah, that’s a really nice flat!

NM: Yeah, because we don’t have the close to account for.

RAM: So are you going to be renting the corner flats?

NM: Yes, we are going to be renting the corner flats. There were three flats per landing here and what we have done is actually amalgamated two of the flats to make one larger flat. Its difficult because of this chimneybreast wall here, ideally you wanted this to come over but it became impossible to get the benefit. So we have one flat that’s a wee bit too small and one flat that’s a wee bit too big but that’s just unfortunate trying to marry it in. So that’s generally what we have done. With tenements, you work with them for a wee while and you realize that there are only a certain number of solutions to things and its just matching the right one to the existing layout because with !

tenements you are always trying to maintain as much of the existing structure as possible if you can.

RAM: These flats have been all over the place!

NM: Well yes, they have! Well it just shows you the various layouts. I actually thought its quite good to see how things evolve over time. So these two, 48 and 54 is what we are selling, this is our marketing stuff.

RAM: Oh yes, I saw this online. £90,000?

NM: Yes RAM: Which is quite a good price.

NM: Yes well we were fortunate; we just managed to keep it under £100,000 so it feels affordable.

RAM: It’s mainly for first time buyers?

NM: Yes, that’s the idea. The deposit for mortgages is a 10% deposit so people still need to find £9-10,0000 plus their legal fees if they are going to buy. We have completely re-roofed them. It was originally re-roofed in the mid 1990’s and we did think that it didn’t really need to be re-roofed although one of the corner closes had suffered a lot of water ingress because of the detailing so were going to have to re-roof it anyway and we thought, we can afford it. !

RAM: Do it now rather than later.

NM: Yeah.

RAM: What have you used on the roof?

NM: Its just modern Marley roof tiles, its not slates or anything fancy. It’s not in a conservation area.

RAM: Something I first noticed walking up the hill was that the windows are white. Very white! Why did you choose to have white windows?

NM: They are timbre windows, the rest of the other properties are all white UPVC so there are a couple of reasons, one because internally because the rooms are not huge, white windows will make the rooms look better and also being white on the outside it would then match all the other surrounding windows. So they wouldn’t stand out quite so much as being a different, we are trying to integrate them into the surroundings.

RAM: I noticed some structural work under the bay windows as well.

NM: Yes, that’s just fairly standard really. A lot of tenements need the bay windows to be tied in now, the rods are fixed to the joists and then they are pulled in. If you look at 28, that bay window there has actually slipped and we have had to rebuild that. For whatever reason during the works when they were doing the down taking it has actually moved and twisted it out. It had to be all propped up so we could save the upper floors but the first floor level has had to be rebuilt with a lot of steel and concrete !

and then the rest of it will be tied in with steel and pulled back into the building. When you go in you can still see the structural makeup, its nearing completion but this close at 28 is the last close we will finish as its been held up a bit because of this so there is still scope to see some of the works.

RAM: That’s great, thank you so much.

NM: That’s ok, it is a bit unique but it probably will be the last of this type of project because the grant is just not there.

RAM: Do you think there will be a turn round where more money and funding will be available? It does seem like Maryhill were saying that it is almost the end of their 30year period and they are looking at a few things at the moment and they said to me that they were going to have to make a few hard decisions.

NM: No, I always think about the Viking township that was found, roman houses found twenty feet under and everything is built on top and you think well what’s going to happen to all current day housing? At the time was obviously so cheap that people didn’t want their house as such so the houses were just left to rot probably when people moved on, cut down some more trees and built something somewhere else.

Well what’s going to happen now because all of these tenements were built in the 1880’s-1890’s, what is going to happen to them? They can't last forever! Is someone going to come along in 100 years time and demolish them all and re-build them? Who is going to pay for that? So it makes you wonder what is going to happen to all of the housing in general. !

RAM: I think there is something about the tenement that is very special, they are so flexible. Looking at the plans you were showing me, there is so much that you can do with them. I think what’s going to happen is that in areas where there is not enough money to sustain them the groups of tenements in the city will move towards the conservation areas and that will be the only place they are left.

NM: Yeah, you might make somewhere like Govanhill a conservation area. You’re right you think that’s the only way they will have enough money.

RAM: Or it’s up to individuals who can come in and have lots of money.

NM: I can see that happening in the private sector because you know individual house plots, newcomers will come round and say ill buy this and then demolish and build something new there. Tenements are the problem because you can have seven or eight owners and you have to get all of their agreement or you have to compulsory purchase and you have to offer them a fair deal or they aren’t going to move for nothing. It just makes everything else unviable to re-build.

RAM: I guess what is interesting here is that if you haven’t had any owners involved in the process, you can do whatever you like!

NM: Yes! Exactly! With tenants you always have to spend ages, evening meetings going out and telling them what is happening. Having to pay for them to be decanted out or rehoused somewhere else and moved back in.

RAM: Is that mainly for internal works? !

NM: Internal works yes. That’s when Associations were doing all of this CTI work and basically stripping everything and doing structural and rot works.

RAM: Did you find any rot in these?

NM: Oh aye, quite a bit. It wasn’t huge amounts because they were fairly watertight; it was one close that suffered from it. They were fully structurally sound as well, which is why we always thought they should be saved. It wasn’t a structure problem that caused them to be emptied so we felt they could be saved at a reasonable cost.

RAM: But then you never know with a tenement as well, you open it up and there could be so many problems lurking.

NM: Yes, well again we were lucky because they were empty and we were able to go in and open up some areas to have a look. We had experienced consultants who knew what to expect and made an adequate allowance for it. I think we had more stone repairs on the front elevation than we thought and on the back elevation, which we thought was worse, we didn’t actually have to do so many; so it balanced out.

RAM: Thank you so much for your time.

!

Interview Conclusion Through speaking to Niall McKinnon from Queens Cross Housing Association I was able to learn more about the Ancroft Street project and I thereafter decided to make this my second case study in my dissertation. As this is a very unique project, which has been funded through a one off scheme and is a terrace of five tenements that have come together through circumstance I thought that it has a very interesting story and would add a different perspective to my dissertation. It was very interesting to hear that QCHA do not share MHA’s views that many tenements in the near future may need to be demolished but Niall did agree through his own experience that the most difficult part of tenements projects rests with the owners finding agreement and paying for the works. It was also interested to learn about the way that Housing Associations work and the way that the budget for this project came about. I find it quite amazing that GHA could not give QCHA the flats and then ended up paying QCHA to take the tenements off their hands!

!

12. Words o’ the people – Appendix 4 Glasgow City Heritage Trust Interview As a result of my research and experience working at Fiona Sinclair Architect on my placement year I realized it was important to interview Gordon Urquhart who is the Grants Officer of Glasgow City Heritage Trust which is a registered charity supported

by Glasgow City Council and Historic Scotland. GCHT was established in 2007 and gives advice and offers grants for repair projects in Glasgow providing that the building is listed or located within one of the 23 conservation areas of Glasgow.

Gordon Urquhart has extensive experience of repair projects throughout Glasgow that the GCHT has been involved in as well as the funding that is available to historic building owners.

This Interview with Gordon Urquhart took place on the 5th of March 2013 between 3:00-4:00pm at the office of Glasgow City Heritage Trust at 54 Bell St, Glasgow, G1 1LQ. A brief description of my dissertation was given to Gordon Urquhart before the interview began.

Persons Present Ruth Arlenne Maclennan - RAM Gordon Urquhart – GU !

GU: Tenements are normally pretty serviceable and people studying the subject more than I have always praise the Scottish tenement and in particular the Glasgow tenement for being a functional, recyclable building. It’s a building type that lends itself to being able to be repaired and improved as needs be over generations. Whereas a lot of these buildings that went up in the 80’s once they get to a certain point, people will not want to restore them. I don’t think they are well built enough and it would cost too much to restore them as we restore tenements now. Most Glasgow tenements were reasonably well built, it depends what materials they were using and a lot of the stone that was used in Glasgow was pretty poor quality and that’s true for a number of reasons. One of these reasons was, in terms of the quality of material coming out of the ground that may have been rejected by the builders if there was not so much pressure to build so many buildings quickly in Glasgow’s boom periods. This is not always the case, you do get like the Hyndland tenements, that were wonderfully built out of red sandstone which was reasonably cheap because there was plenty of it coming from Ayrshire and!Dumfriesshire. For the most part Glasgow buildings were pretty well constructed and that is one of the reasons why they lend themselves to being refurbished, minor elements of stone repair and not much else to keep them for another 20-30 years. The roofs that went on lasted 80-100 years until the building repair grants era of the 70’s and 80’s. Windows if they are maintained may last 80-100 years and I don’t see that in buildings today. PVC windows generally if they break they have to be thrown out and that’s what worries me, what would you say the Maryhill windows are?

RAM: They are timbre sash and case look-a-like windows and they are white.

GU: What’s the quality of the timbre? What’s the quality of the construction? !

RAM: I haven’t really had a chance to look.

GU: These tilt and turn windows have been going in over the last 20-30years, they are generally falling apart. We do a lot of replacements of these windows and they are only 20-30 years old. That’s abysmal compared to what the old sash and case windows lasted. It also begs the question, if they are going to demolish housing on a 30-60 year rotation on a revolving basis what does that mean in terms of environmental impact?

The carbon footprint of demolition and reconstruction in new, there are a lot of materials being put in landfills and a lot of materials being shipped up and down the M6. If you have the bare bones and you strip the roof and re-slate or even re-tile it, it’s a minimal amount of material that you have to ship in and minimal amounts are going to a landfill.

RAM: It’s all about preserving the legacy of the tenement because Glasgow was originally the city of tenements.

GU: Well the character is a whole different issue but in terms of the economics and environmental angle there is a lot to be desired with that sort of policy, its not sustainable really to keep building new every 30-60 years. Is that value for money?

Well, its economics. It depends on how they get their money, when they get their money and what they need to show off to their funders. Maybe they find themselves getting more grants if they have shiny new buildings that go in their annual reports. As opposed to a bunch of tenements that are old already but then they got them and they are tarting them up. It doesn’t look so attractive as some of the brand new buildings that grow very old very quickly. !

RAM: What I’ve found out so far is that it depends on the area largely and the people in that area and what they want. Maryhill Housing Association were saying that they have people living in tenements now that would give their leg to live in a modern property with a front garden, which if fair enough. But that is also one of the reasons why they felt that they could justify moving things on to more modern housing.

GU: Well then you have issues of density, if everyone has their own house with a front garden it will be like Knightswood or Mosspark, which will be fine, but you have to walk 100 meters to get a loaf of bread. Whereas if you live in a tenement there will be a good chance if not directly underneath you, on the corner. It’s one of these urban vs. suburban quandaries. You can’t have both, you can't have a house and a garden and be five minutes from town unless you’re a millionaire and you can afford a big Villa.

RAM: How long have you been working with Historic Buildings?

GU: Altogether, since I left University in 1981, so 31 years in the heritage industry I would say. I didn’t start working in the architectural side of things until a couple years after that, so I’d say 30 years.

RAM: Was it heritage and preservation type subjects that interested you at first? Or what was your first interest in historic buildings and why?

GU: Well, I grew up in a town north of New York City that was a Victorian suburb of New York around the commuter railway line of the Hudson River and I was raised in a post-war building and I grew up surrounded by old Victorian mansions and my best friend lived in a carriage house of an old Victorian mansion that had been demolished !

for our primary school to be built in the 50’s. So there was a lot of built heritage around us, that kind of trained my brain and I used to get dragged round historic sights with my parents. It wasn’t until I finished my first degree and I was working for a spell that I realized that there was potential in terms of architectural conservation as a career. I learned about the course that I eventually did a few years later, a postgrad at Columbia University in New York City, which was the first Historic Preservation Postgrad degree in The States which was founded I think early 60’s. For other reasons I moved over here and I’ve been working here ever since.

RAM: How long have you been working with the Glasgow City Heritage Trust?

GU: Since it started in 2007 and before that I was with the West End Conservation Trust, which is along similar lines but just for the West End Conservation area.

RAM: Why and how did the GCHT start up in Glasgow?

GU: It all dates back to the 70’s when various architects and movers and shakers in Edinburgh decided that the Georgian New Town was looking pretty tatty and on the brink of disaster, really, if buildings weren’t repaired. So the Edinburgh New Town Conservation Committee was formed with the support of the predecessor to Historic Scotland and the Edinburgh District Council. They formed the model of having a charitable organization getting public money and stringing it towards private property.

This in a targeted way to support certain key projects and certain key streets and neighborhoods inside the New Town Conservation Area. About ten years after that was going, some people along the same lines in the West End of Glasgow, including various professors, academics and architects, said well, if Edinburgh can do something !

for its New Town we should be doing something for our West End which is almost equally as important architecturally if not more so although in a different era. So the City Council and Historic Scotland got together and said we will fund this organization and see how it goes. It got to a point where we had been running in the West End for fifteen years and a lot of the other neighborhoods were asking why we don't have a conservation trust so it was decided to close that one down and restart on here with a brand new remit, staff and premises in the city center with a shop front so we can be visible. On the same lines, maybe more so than was ever done in Edinburgh in terms of publicity and public encouragement of heritage matters. We tried to combine both the practical repair stuff that I do and the softer heritage stuff, get people interested in their buildings, streets and townscapes. Edinburgh did a very good book called The Care and Conservation of Georgian Houses which is still used and that was the first good building bible that was ever put together in Scotland although it was only really for Georgian buildings. Based on that at the West End Trust we put out the West End Conservation Manual, which was more towards Victorian era buildings. Historic Scotland has been developing bodies along the same model in other cities. So once those were up and running they decided to set up something that was Glasgow-wide.

So now there are seven groups around the country, which is pretty good going because we don’t have anything like this down South.

RAM: Do you often have people coming to you about tenement buildings? Is there a lot of grant money being given to tenements or is it mainly terraces and villas and other bigger projects?

GU: It really depends on how you define tenements, in terms of traditional tenements in a colloquial sense of the word, maybe 1/4 of our projects might be traditional !

tenements. A majority maybe 2/3 will be tenemental properties including terraces and converted villas. Only a few per year will be a stand alone house or a self contained dwelling.

RAM: How many projects does GCHT have on roughly in one year?

GU: It varies from year to year, this past year was on the low side number wise because we have had quite a few very big schemes getting approved early in the year.

The year before it was quite a lot number wise, maybe twice as many. For this year we have maybe 38 or 40, something like that. The year before was 65-70 but we had tons of little schemes. So it does vary with an average of 60. We have the same budget pretty much every year but there is no strict pattern, it's really serendipity as to what application in what year. Sometimes I go out for an initial inspection and see schemes one year and I wont hear anything from them for two years and I suddenly have an application coming in with quotes. Other people come to me and they virtually have a scheme ready to go and have been working on it quietly because they have a good architect pulling everything together and know what we need. So within a couple of weeks of meeting them for the first time I will have a valid application I can put to committee so there is no strict pattern at all. It depends on the individuals and how organized they are and how many people are involved. Sometimes you have a big scheme but you can't get everyone on board.

RAM: What is the most difficult part of the process of obtaining a grant?

GU: Difficult for me or difficult for the applicant? !

RAM: Difficult for the applicant.

GU: If it’s a tenemental property its usually getting all of the neighbours together.

Getting everyone to meet, agree what needs to be done and getting everyone to pay for what needs to be done. As you can imagine for every person in the building there will be a point of view as to what needs to be done, whether it should be done, whether it's affordable, whether it's good value for money, whether it should be done now or put off till next year and so forth. No matter how many people you have in the building there’s always someone who is about to retire, about to have a baby, about to get married, about to lose their job! that’s what makes things difficult.

RAM: So life really!

GU: It’s life, yes, life gets in the way. So yes, it’s the nature of things. It depends on how organized people are, how pro-active they are, how well they speak to each other.

It depends if the neighbours are owners or if the neighbours are tenants and the absentee landlord lives near or far away and is not that interested.

RAM: So the tenement as a building type is something that is very flexible and robust.

GU: Physically, yeah.

RAM: But actually its people cause it to harm its self in a way.

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GU: Yeah, very much so. The number of projects that I have had come to me where you have seven of the owners dead keen and one just isn’t interested, can't be contacted, would like to join in but can't afford it!there is always one.

RAM: So in order to get a grant from the GCHT you would need to live in a listed buildings or a conservation area, is that correct?

GU: In any of the 23 conservation areas you need to be in a traditional building, in other words a pre-WW1 building. We can also grant-aid category A and B listed buildings out with the conservation areas; there are quite a few of those ofcourse, a church or a tenement that just happen to be on their own. For those projects we need to have approval from Historic Scotland directly. However anything within a conservation area doesn’t have to be listed, just of a certain age, certain quality of build and that sort of thing and we have free reign in conservation areas but outside there’s a lot of politics to that. There were a lot of issues when we first set up if we should even fund buildings that aren’t in conservation areas but that’s Historic Scotland’s money for us, comes from their budget that is designated by the treasury for conservation areas which is quite different from the listed buildings budget. That is one reason why we don’t fund internal repairs because our money comes from the conservation area budget; in other words the townscape, external appearance of the character of the building etc.

RAM: Have you ever had anyone actually go and get their building listed to then become eligible for grant funding? !

GU: Not as such, it’s not easy to do that. They have to have both the local authority and Historic Scotland on board. We have had people trying to get their properties ungraded perhaps to enhance their chance of getting a grant. Some of those have been quite valid.

RAM: Do people mainly find out about grants online? Is that how you find most people coming to you? Through emails or are they coming in to the office?

GU: Both yeah, they see the window and come in and they get a leaflet. They might have come to a lecture or a walking tour or something, or through word of mouth.

Traditionally the council has always been the first port of call when you are looking for money, a grant for your lead pipes or wiring, or all the things we used to do in the 60’s and 70’s. So they will call the Planning Department or DRS and then they will be bounced to us. They might sometimes call Historic Scotland but the Internet has helped.

RAM: Do you know of any other funding available for, I’m going to say, bog standard tenement buildings in Glasgow. Say there are people living in a tenement and the building is in a really bad condition, what is there for those people to do? Other than try and scrape together their money and tile the roof and do patchwork repairs?

GU: Well, for repairs of a quality closer to our standard, not exactly to our standards of lead work and Scottish slate and things like that? There is a budget in DRS in the private sector housing. The people who used to run it I think have both since retired or might be retiring this month. One chap retired certainly last year called Brian Carr, also a lady called Liz Dickson. They have a very limited budget, it is not publicized, not on !

the website and its used generally to firefight schemes where there is a project that may or may not involve us; it's usually not, which otherwise would not get on site that is of some necessity. They will come in and part fund it and claw back the money once they sell. They will come in if it’s a scheme that should normally be getting on site that is having problems because of an owner or two that wont pay. Then they will pay that share and put a charge on the deeds so that when they sell the council gets their money back plus the 15% or whatever it is. Its not like a grant, its an emergency budget because it is limited; people come to them as a last resort, saying, I know you don’t have any grants but is there any way you can help? Well, we do have this budget that we don’t tell many people about. Its for problematic schemes it's not open to all comers because the budget would go in an instant. If you look at an area like Govanhill there is obviously a lot going on with tenements there and I don’t know who is paying for that to be honest. There are occasionally special regeneration funds that come directly from Scottish Government which probably go to Housing Associations; we don’t live in that world. We rarely deal with Housing Associations so we are not in the loop as to what’s going on.

To make matters worse, collectively we are now looking at a lot of repairs done in the last big wave of repair grants schemes that were done on the cheap. Tiled roofs, linostone and things that are now all peeling off, cracking and flaking. Windows from 30 years ago were pretty lousy, they looked fine for a few years, and so we are having to re-do a lot of things that were already done when I started which wasn’t that long ago.

RAM: After a repair project does the GCHT check up on properties or do any follow up work to see how repairs are holding up? Do you hear from co-proprioters? !

GU: We genereally hear when things go wrong. We really have too many projects and not enough staff resources to go out methodically and check projects. Because I am out and about quite often I do go by schemes and so I do keep a watch and brief.

There have been some cases where some repair has not worked out and contractors have had to come back. The owners are obliged to maintain the property so if we go by and see that something has not been repaired we can ask for the grant to be repaid within 10 or 15 years.

RAM: So if they are not maintaining the repairs you can ask for the grant back?

GU: Yes, they have to keep it in good shape otherwise we can ask for out money back, that is one of the conditions of grant.

RAM: That’s very good.

GU: Likewise if they sell they have to pay the grant back. So there are various conditions of contract in fact, for any individual grant to an owner over ÂŁ25,000 the contract is 24 pages long. Within 2 years if you sell you pay back half of the grant, 3 to 5 years, 20%. and between 6 and 10 years 10% of the grant, after that you can walk away from it.

RAM: How do you see the city of Glasgow in 100 years time? Can you see there being less tenements in the city with pockets of tenements surviving towards the West End? GU: Well, I see in the areas where ground conditions are good and neighbourhoods are a reasonable status socially, economically and demographically - those buildings !

will still be surviving like Dowanhill Street and areas like that. Those buildings have always been well maintained, they were well built, they have always had middle class people living in them so they have never went down in desirability and have had to be restored. So I think that areas like that will always be there. You can say that some areas like Govanhill, which has been redone so many times and occasionally you get buildings that have to be taken down for ground conditions problems; we will probably lose quite a lot of those over the next 100 years, it's hard to say. Where buildings are maintained or restored with good materials they can last forever. We have castles in this country that have been lived in for 1000 years! We have houses that have been lived in since 1169 or something and you have sash and case windows that have been in use for 300 years, no problem. There is no reason why bar any environmental change- if the climate stays the same and we stay in the same realm of economic stability and social cohesion- there is no reason- bar the occasional fire, disaster, or problem owner that takes over a good building and lets it rot for ten years, which once in a while; I can imagine whole neighbourhoods changing. I think we have passed that in terms of traditional buildings because as long as the neighbourhood is reasonable traditional buildings will always be desirable. There will be marginal areas that will be chipped away at like Maryhill but a lot of it boils down to ownership. I think unlike the days of comprehensive compulsory purchase of buildings or comprehensive redevelopment, we won't see that again unless something happens like the ground conditions change. We may end up with a gap tooth here and there but I can’t imagine whole streets going, I think of all the streets that have already been swept away.

RAM: Thank you very much. !

Interview Conclusion This interview was important to do in order to fully understand the stance and workings of Glasgow City Heritage Trust as well as the funding that they offer to people in the form of grants to owners of historic buildings including tenements. During the interview I found out about how the GCHT was founded through a history of conservation awareness and individuals coming together to the good of restoring our built heritage. It was very interesting to find out about the DRS emergency grant that is available to problematic schemes, which I did not know about before. When asked how he sees the city of Glasgow in 100 years time Gordon expressed that in his opinion we are past the time of sweeping away streets of our built heritage and that buildings that are well built and maintained can last for a very long time.

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12. Words o’ the people – Appendix 5 Fiona Sinclair Architect Interview Fiona Sinclair is one of the most experienced architects in relation to the Glasgow tenement and has worked with tenements repair and refurbishments for years. Fiona is a conservation-accredited architect who has a wide range of experience with historic buildings and is an expert on the Glasgow tenement.

I first became interested in Glasgow’s tenement buildings during my placement year working at Fiona Sinclair Architect and decided to base my dissertation topic on tenements and repair. Fiona Sinclair was the architect employed to carry out the repair project of my first case study of 98 Dowanhill Street and therefore has detailed information and experience in relation to it. Fiona agreed to be interviewed as well as supplying me with any necessary material I required to facilitate this case study in my dissertation.

Since beginning my dissertation I have been very interested in interviewing Fiona and asking her opinions on todays stock of tenements in Glasgow and the wide range of issues that surround their future.

This interview with Fiona Sinclair of Fiona Sinclair Architect took place on the 13th of March 2013 between 11:00-12:00pm at the office of Fiona Sinclair Architect, 48 Keith Court, Glasgow G11 6QW. !

A brief description of my dissertation was given to Fiona Sinclair before the interview began.

Persons Present Ruth Arlenne Maclennan - RAM Fiona Sinclair - FS

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RAM: How did you first become interested in Glasgow tenements?

FS: My first year of practical training was with Holmes & Partners, who are now Holmes Miller. At that time they were doing a lot of tenement refurbishment and almost all of the year out students were there, they had a series of first year out and some second year out students and most of them were working on tenement refurbishment projects. The bulk of the work was for Govanhill Housing Association, one of the earliest Housing Associations. I wasn’t enormously interested in it at the time because it was very much a case that they repaired the tenements rather than comprehensively refurbishing them. Then I went to work for Mike and Sue Thornley Architects. Their office was in Springburn and it was in the top floor of a tenement that was scheduled for a complete refurbishment. Like John Gilbert, they had been part of a movement to establish Housing Associations and they were effectively doing very little other than tenement refurbishment. They had just won a contract for seven or nine closes in Bridgeton and they had no one to work on them so that was the first thing that I was assigned, surveying all of those tenements. They were on a really interesting part of Bridgeton Cross, very very different. Two were old Glasgow Savings Banks that had been built as bank buildings with housing above them. There was a tenement that went around a curve on Bridgeton Cross and they latterly got some down along Glasgow Green. So they had a very long association with Bridgeton and Dalmarnock Housing Association and I did probably about 90% of that work. Every tenement was different so it wasn’t like tenement refurbishment it was a really really interesting time. What work we weren’t doing ASIST and John Gilbert were doing. So most of the work for that Housing Association was mopped up by these two practices because most Housing Associations were very loyal to their architects. So I got quite interested in the tenements at Bridgeton Cross which were really interesting buildings. !

RAM: What is special about Glasgow tenement buildings?

FS: Oh, where do you start? Chapter 8 or 9 in the Architecture of Glasgow by Gomme and Walker pretty much describes what is special about Glasgow’s tenements. I just think they are part of the social life of the city. The thing about tenements is that they were built in order to allow people to walk to work. So wherever you have got a shipyard or a foundry or a big industrial works any major source of employment you get a series of tenements. Working class tenements were built largely just to house people that could walk down the road to employment. The tenement was developed as a model for slightly more sophisticated living so the further you go up Dowanhill St the larger the tenements get and the less working class and more inclined to be middle class. But the actual proto-type is the same, the room size just got bigger and the layout just got spread out a little bit.

RAM: With more ornate fixing and things.

FS: Exactly, that’s what is very interesting about Dowanhill Street. If you were to start walking from the bottom to the top you would get the history, the sizes change, the heights change, the colour of the sandstone changes, the materials so from bottom to top you get the whole history of the Glasgow tenement. It’s a very easily adapted urban model and of course most of the Gorbals has been rebuilt using the tenement form.

The entire tenement is is a common close and a series of houses stacked one on top of the other. It’s a pretty suitable urban model that to the large extent relies for its success on people getting on with one another.

RAM: How many years have you been working with tenement buildings? !

FS: Since I left University, which was in 1981.

RAM: What is the most common way for co-proprietors interested in repairing their tenement to approach you?

FS: By recommendation from Glasgow City Heritage Trust, if they are considering applying for grant assistance, so that’s in the case of private homeowners. That’s one of their few vehicles for actually being able to afford doing major repairs.

RAM: What do you think about the current practice of repairing tenements, is it efficient?

FS: It depends on the extent of the repair. If you are talking about carrying out stone repairs, window repairs you are going to pro-long the life quite considerably of the building, you are also going to increase the value. That’s relevant only as far as encouraging people who have actually got enough money to be able to buy a flat in a well-refurbished building in co-ownership. It encourages people to purchase that sort of property and they usually have the means to look after that sort property. In terms of private homeowners, repairing it allows them to move on and give a new lease of life to a building and allow other people to move into it so there is this constant turnover of ownership. Something like a roof repair prolongs the life of the building dramatically! It reduces the incidence for rot, it reduces damage to the interior, and it reduces the damage to the exterior as well. It can do a lot for an area, you hope that one group of co-owners might encourage another. It has this kind of knock on effect! !

RAM: Of people taking pride in their buildings?

FS: Exactly. You hope that repairing tenements has that kind of knock on effect. It draws attention to the ones that haven’t been done up, that’s not to say that everyone can afford to properly repair their building.

RAM: Do you think there is any way of making the repair process more efficient?

FS: I think if there was more money available to the bodies who were giving grants then it would be faster. So it would be more efficient in that respect. Its inefficient for a couple of reasons, one, most of the work that I have been involved in is external so it's hugely hampered by weather in this country. The only way to accelerate that is to encapsulate the building, which is hugely expensive. Its also inefficient in terms of the lag time between when grants become available. Then there is this very long process where co-owners have to sign up to a grant and they are given something like a month to accept the offer but most of them consult their solicitor and it drags on. It can be a year between surveying the building and putting it out to tender because you have missed the point where grants have ran out. It takes an unbelievably long time to pull every one together and of course the thing about co-owners working together is that inevitably there is one co-owner that has to be hugely persuaded of the benefits and they some times take a really long time to bring on board.

RAM: What would you say is the most successful tenement repair project that you have been a part of and why? !

FS: Well if we use the word tenement to describe a building that is in multiple ownership, I think they are all very different. You have some projects where there are structural issues and it made a huge difference carrying out the work. There are some where the building had lost all of its decorative features and they were re-instated as part of the grant process.

RAM: That must be really satisfying.

FS: That is. There are some where the actual physical work made a difference but the process was so painful that you wouldn’t class them as being a success at all. I’d like to think that Moray Place will be once it's off site; I think Moray Place might be the one.

Yeah they are all very different, I’m not sure which one I would class as being the most successful. You like to think the ones that are a success are where the owners at the end of the process thought the money was well spent, particularly if it was a lot of money.

RAM: What is the most difficult part of a repair project?

FS: Repairs projects aren’t difficult, it's persuading the owners, it's actually the payment process. Its getting people to part with a sizeable sum of money and actually getting their head around that they are getting public money and they ought to be incredibly grateful for that. Some of them aren’t and it’s very frustrating. That’s the difference between public and private, its really interesting, some people have never owned a property in their lives and they don’t have to pay for anything beyond rent. They have insulation, double glazing, lifts are being refurbished, heating is being done and they get the choice of kitchens and bathrooms and actually don’t really understand what its !

like to have to pay for that yourself. That’s a mindset that some people have taken with them into private ownership, which is why should I pay? It’s a listed building. The repair elements are not difficult at all.

RAM: John Gilbert said the exactly the same thing, it’s the owners that make things difficult not the building.

FS: Its quite different with Housing Association properties because the architect does not communicate directly with the end user, which is the tenant and is completely different.

RAM: Yes, and they have control because they can come in and do whatever they like.

With Ancroft Street the buildings are completely empty so they are going in and doing the work and don’t have to worry about re-housing people, so it's easy. Most Housing Associations cant find funding so they cant do that anymore but private owners can find funding but the project can be very difficult.

FS: They can be very demanding because its their money.

RAM: Without the funding available from Glasgow City Heritage Trust what do you think would happen to many Glasgow Tenements?

FS: Well not so much tenements as the sort of properties that grant assistance is given towards, I think you would find that they would be patched and repaired on an ongoing process that can work if you have a very good factor or a very good pet builder. If you do not have a factor who is prepared to go up and check that the works have been !

done properly you could end paying a lot of money for repairs that actually don’t get to the root of the problem. Ultimately people would just keep doing what they are doing which is repairing what they have got.

RAM: But it takes the individual to take the interest; I’m finding that as well. That it is all about individuals coming in that want to save buildings its not about bodies or associations.

FS: It is, for instance, the projects that I showed as part of a talk I gave a couple of years ago, what they had in common was one person in each project who really moved the project along. Certainly, Dowanhill Street, the three families there were all fairly pro-active and they had been in that house a long time and it was a huge investment.

They know that their building is a beautiful building and it is partly about protecting their investment but also I think they were genuinely interested in doing it properly, but they aren’t all like that.

RAM: Has there always been funding for tenements?

FS: Initially when I started out funding came from through the Housing Corporation from the Government and they directed the funding locally to community based Housing Associations. Then the Housing Corporation became Scottish Homes and Scottish Homes became something else and now its attached to the local authorities.

So there was always money from Central Government that was fed down to community areas but there were only grants from the local authority for private homeowners. So you had the Housing Associations doing very comprehensive tenement refurbishment where they decanted people and did a very comprehensive job. At the same time you !

had private homeowners, particularly in Govanhill who were actually able to get money to carry out common repairs. So they could get grants for anything that they all collectively owned like the roof, stonework, structural work but they didn’t get grants for their individual homes and that was quite hard work. I think you will find that a lot of architects and Quantity Surveyors did them and they found them quite difficult to do.

RAM: If you do structural work it’s going to affect the interiors surely?

FS: Yeah! I had a job in Shawlands, it was amazingly done, where people had to stay in their homes while we took the back wall down. So what we did was we erected a stud partition in their back rooms, they couldn’t use their back rooms! They didn’t have kitchens or bathrooms so we had a little mobile kitchen and mobile shower room in the street! This was years ago and it was a common repairs scheme and the building has settled quite badly and there was a lot of structural work but they couldn’t be decanted, they had to stay in their homes. So they had to live in the front half of the building, without kitchens or bathrooms, unbelievable. It was hard work for people doing those common repairs.

RAM: What do you think will happen in future if funding for tenements dries up?

FS: I think it will go back to patch and repair. Its going to be bad for people who didn’t get their act together and apply for a grant.

RAM: It seems like GCHT is a lifeline for private owners that makes projects possible!

What do you think of the modern tenement architecture that is replacing some of the old Victorian tenements? !

FS: Some of it is very very good, in the Gorbals I think there is some really exciting stuff being built! The difficulty nowadays is that most tenements are four, maximum five storeys in height and most new build housing is all about density so you tend to find that they are much higher and they stop looking like tenements. Then if it's not going to look like a tenement you might as well do something that is completely different, even if its tenement on plan, where is the point in mimicking a tenement? There has been some pretty decent stuff built in the city. John Gilbert was the first person to address how to actually build something that looks like a Glasgow tenement; it’s the one on Woodlands, a very important project.

RAM: Were there any particular issues with the Dowanhill Street job?

FS: It was pretty straight forward up to a point, it was almost a repeat of 92 Dowanhill St, so from my point of view it was relatively straightforward pulling together the tender documents and putting it out to tender. But we had to terminate the contract with the lowest tenders because they simply wouldn’t start the works. Communication was everything for the co-owners and they needed to have a response to their emails and be able to speak to someone face to face.

RAM: I think they were a group of very professional people and they wanted to be treated right and that’s fair enough.

FS: They did, and we terminated the contract with Firwood who as it happens went under so they would have gone under on that job if we hadn’t terminated that contract.

That meant that we ended up with the second lowest tenderer so the issues were that they had already been made an offer of grant based on the first tender and they !

couldn’t alter the grant sum so that 40% went down to nearer 35% and they have had huge trouble settling the final account with the contractor John Fulton Plumber Ltd. RAM: Why is that?

FS: They are not interested in negotiating, they just want to say that’s what it costs, give us the money. The co-owners are asking why did it cost this and why did it cost that. The difficulty was that it wasn’t properly managed on site. They brought on board joiners that they had never used before that dismantled the cupola, they didn’t get a cost up in advance, they just let them get on with it. Now the bills have come in and they are much higher than expected.

RAM: Was that not in the quantities at the beginning?

FS: No, because they didn’t expect the rot.

RAM: I remember the glass was also a problem.

FS: The glass was an issue because the glazier broke three out of five panes of glass and they had to get the glass remade and they just went for plane, didn’t bother getting it etched in the end.

RAM: How do you see the city of Glasgow in 100 years time? What in your opinion will happen to tenement buildings? Will the number of them decrease in some areas? !

FS: You are still going to get the odd building that has to come down, perhaps not a tenement actually. The beauty of tenement is that you generally find that they provide places for people to live that are quite desirable. I would like to think that most of the tenements that were in danger have already came down but you just don’t know. All it takes is one person to do a little of ‘do it yourself’ and part of a wall collapses and you can do a lot of damage to a building, that still happens. Plus I’m not sure that we have got to the bottom of where all the mine shafts, drains, sewers, subways, contamination is, you don’t know. As a matter of course you are supposed to carry out a survey but there was a Glasgow Savings Bank out in Shettleston that John Gilbert was involved in and they thought they had done all the due diligence and they found a big mining shaft under the building and it had to come down. It wasn’t on any of the maps. Glasgow also has a lot of fires, so that’s the other thing. Are people looking after their electrics?

RAM: Do you think if we had more tradesmen skilled in traditional building skills it would help things? Today in society there are no jobs for young people but if contractors took on more apprentices and held workshops for stonemasons, plasterers, decorators it might help things don’t you think?

FS: Historic Scotland were trying to create apprenticeships and you do read a lot, in the Evening Times in particular, about City Building taking on apprentices but they are training them to be plumbers and electricians.

It is not historic building repairs, it is not leadworkers. I think I mentioned to you before that I was talking to the director of Hunter and Clark years ago and he said that you could have an apprentice for four years, in the first year you will lose money because you are paying them and they are not producing anything useful. The second year they might get a bit better but you are still losing money. Third year you might break even, in !

the fourth year they have picked up the skills and you are actually making a bit of money out of them and at the end of the fourth year they leave.

RAM: Yeah, they go start their own business.

FS: Exactly. So the difficulty is that economics means that the only kind of company that can take on an apprentice is the kind of company that is otherwise very efficient to allow them to slow them down. The only folk that can take on apprentices are the ones getting grants to take on apprentices and there are no such things as far as I’m aware.

Or it’s a case where people are very committed to the notion of apprentices and the only ones that can be committed are the ones that are very profitable and there are not many of them out there.

RAM: Thank you very much.

Interview Conclusion This interview with Fiona Sinclair the architect of the 98 Dowanhill Street project, which I am using as one of my case studies in my Dissertation, was a very important source of information on the project. I was fortunate to observe the works of this project whilst working for Fiona during my year out between 2011-2012 and this is one of the projects that inspired me to pursue my current dissertation topic. I found it very interesting to find out that Fiona agrees with every other person that I have interviewed in that the most difficult part of the repairing process is dealing with the owners and getting them all to agree and pay for the works and that if more money was available the entire process could be more efficient. !

12. Words o’ the people – Permissions CMA ARCHITECTS LTD. REFERENCE EML-OUT/1370/537 For the attention of Ruth Arlenne Maclennan Student Dissertation Ruth, thanks for your email. The Ancroft Street project would be a very interesting one for a dissertation. Number 28 in particular necessitated a unique engineering solution to reconstruct the corner oriel which destabilized when works got underway. If you need any assistance I would be happy to help with more drawn or specification information.

Regards, Sean McLaughlin CMA Architects Ltd Suite 11, Firhill Business Ctr., 74-76 Firhill Road, Glasgow, G20 7BA. w: http://www.campbell-morris.co.uk e: s.mclaughlin@campbell-morris.com t: 0141 946 0202

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FIONA SINCLAIR ARCHITECT Dear Ruth This is just to confirm that I am happy that you reproduce drawings generated by this office as part of your thesis.

Best Wishes Fiona Fiona Sinclair Architect 48 Keith Court Glasgow G11 6QW t: 0141 357 3553 f: 0141 357 3556 e: firemaster27@btconnect.com

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