'States has poor record with listing buildings'
IT IS important that even governments should have to work with listed buildings, architect Andrew Dyke has said.
The States is one of the biggest landowners in island, and within its estate is a number of historic buildings.
Mr Dyke said in the past there had been some poor decisions made when it came to redeveloping these sites.
‘The States – in particular the old Board of Administration – had a really poor record for dealing with important historic buildings,’ he said.
‘We can’t really trust them. It’s important that buildings should be listed, when you look at other buildings they have messed up.’
One example of a building with a narrow escape was St James. Built in 1818 for the British garrison, it fell into disrepair in the 1970s.
‘The States wanted to knock St James down,’ Mr Dyke said.
Fortunately the building was listed in 1970 and was restored by an association was formed to manage the building, which is now a successful concert hall.
Another site with a more contentious outcome was the renovation of the market buildings in the early 2000s.
‘The Board of Administration did more damage to Guernsey’s heritage than the German Occupation,’ he said.
‘When the market was being redeveloped, they wanted to knock down the market, except the facade facing the Town Church.
‘The Island Development Committee and the Heritage Committee fought tooth and nail.’
While the markets were gutted, main structure of the buildings were saved and today house an array of shops and businesses.
The site was listed in 1974.
However not all sites survived the States.
Mr Dyke said he believed the loss of the former prison in St Peter Port was one of the great tragedies. After a long period empty, the site is now an office block, home to Grant Thornton.
‘The BoA was responsible for the loss of the old Town prison, which was one of the last Georgian prisons that was intact in Britain. That is why Guernsey’s was so unique.
‘It was of national importance,’ Mr Dyke said.
‘The BoA managed to persuade the Heritage Committee that they did not need to list it, as the BoA would treat it as if it was listed. But then it was demolished. That was a great shame.’
One of the only parts of the 1811 prison to survive was some of the granite, which was reincorporated into arches, which now line one side of the court reception.
Mr Dyke said while the current States had not been so 'destructive', he was concerned that politicians could have their own political agenda and be under pressure to be seen to be taking action.
‘Through their own ignorance, they do not understand the site,’ he said.
‘It’s ignorance rather than malevolence. Thank goodness for the DPA, as they had the guts to list the buildings.
‘They have done the right thing and we should all be grateful to them.
‘We are doing this for our children and grandchildren, so they can understand their heritage and culture.’
