Shoebury Garrison Officers' Mess
[ Community Planning Projects ]Shoebury Garrison Officers’ Mess 2nd Public Exhibition
4pm – 7pm, Tuesday 21 September 2010
Roslin Beach Hotel, 10-12 Thorpe Esplanade, Thorpe Bay, Essex SS1 3BG
The community was invited to comment on the revised plans for the renovation and extension of the Shoebury Garrison Officers’ Mess. Following the public exhibition in August we have considered the community’s comments and propose to revise the scheme by removing the office use and redesigning as residential. We intend to submit a planning application in the end of September 2010.
Shoebury Garrison Officers’ Mess 1st Public Exhibition
4pm – 7pm, Wednesday 4 August 2010
Roslin Beach Hotel, Thorpe Bay
Garrison Developments have commissioned JTP to develop a plan for sensitive reuse of the Shoebury Garrison Officer’s Mess as houses and offices to save the buildings which are undeniably at risk. To give the local community an opportunity to view and comment on our plans for the renovation and extension of the Shoebury Garrison Officers’ Mess, we held a public exhibition on Wednesday 4 August at Roslin Beach Hotel. You can view the exhibition in the PDF's located in the right-hand side.
Our plan allows the existing accommodation to be used with minimum alteration and demolition. In keeping with the historic development, minor subservient extensions are proposed to the Mess Road elevation. To allow the building to provide necessary accommodation for the new use, as previous historic extensions in the C19th did. They will also complete and enhance the character of grand buildings set behind an avenue of trees. Conversely the uniform appearance of the east elevation will be retained with minor, in keeping, alterations allowing access out to gardens facing the sea.
The Officers' Mess complex will be restored to its former glory. This involves private investment resulting in a private use and the user will provide local employment allowing many local employees to have continued use of the splendid rooms. The public will therefore be allowed to continue to understand the sense of the historic buildings and the importance of the place.
A beautiful piece of British heritage can be brought back into use providing homes and employment in a beautiful setting. This sensitive and carefully considered plan will ensure protection of a historic artefact which can subsequently enjoy many more centuries of varied uses whilst retaining, in bricks and mortar, the story of the men of the Royal Artillery.
Background
The Officers Mess at Shoebury Garrison commands an unparalleled view over the mouth of the Thames Estuary. The site has been a place of historic importance for many centuries as a defensive emplacement. In the mid C19th a permanent station was set up for the gunners of the British Army. As the Royal Artillery Barracks expanded they built Mess Halls for ceremonies with Grand dining rooms and extensive kitchens. The long symmetrical range alongside was subsequently built at the turn of the C20th as dormitories to house the single infantrymen.
Since the barracks was decommissioned a development brief was written for the site which was followed by an outline planning application for reuse of the entire Garrison as a residential community. In this application the Grade II Listed buildings of the Officers mess were given allocated a possible use as a hotel. The application proposed that the scheme could exploit ‘public overlooking of the foreshore’ and would include ‘possible extensions to mess road elevations’.
Since then extensive marketing has proved that hotel use is not viable due to prohibitive costs associated with renovation and constraints of the site. In August 2009 the building was sadly set on fire, reportedly by arsonists, leaving extensive fire damage especially to the accommodation wing. The whole building is in a very dilapidated state due to lack of use and the formerly glamorous dining halls have pigeons roosting, graffiti and flaking paint and a severe case of fungus and mould. Due to structural damage by the fire and disuse parts of the building had to be demolished to make the building stable and the Accommodation wing is still unsafe to access.
Garrison Developments
For further information contact contact Paul Miller at pm@jtp.co.uk or 020 7017 1780.
