Should demolition of buildings be used as entertainment?

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
14 April 2014 Last updated at 14:59 Magazine Monitor A collection of cultural artefacts One of the 30-storey blocks of Red Road flats was demolished last year Plans to demolish five tower blocks as part of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games opening ceremony have been scotched. Is it appropriate for demolitions to be turned into public spectacles, asks Finlo Rohrer.

The five well-known blocks at Red Road will still be demolished. But this particular revolution in Glasgow's social housing will not be televised.

There was the threat of protests, a group letter from architects in Glasgow and a former MSP Carolyn Leckie, who criticised "the disrespect displayed by blowing up homes for entertainment". Her petition attracted thousands of signatures.

There have been many occasions when big demolitions using explosives - known colloquially as "implosions" - have been presented as entertainment. In February, about 30,000 gathered in Frankfurt to witness the controlled demolition of Frankfurt's university tower, one of the biggest demolitions ever carried out in Europe. Thousands gathered in 2000 in the streets near Seattle's Kingdome sports arena when it was blown up. When, in 1995, the Landmark Hotel in Las Vegas was blown up, it featured in the movie Mars Attacks.

"The Americans do love an implosion, particularly around Las Vegas - every implosion of a hotel is a major event," says Mark Anthony, editor of Demolition News. There are TV crews and a kind of carnival atmosphere in some cases. "There are people in many countries who will travel thousands of miles to see one."

The 31-storey Landmark Hotel, which was built in 1961, was imploded in 1995

But in the UK, the phenomenon is much less spectator-led, suggests Anthony, although that's not to say that many haven't enjoyed the impressive sight of a block collapsing in on itself.

Architect Maxwell Hutchinson wrote that during the great wave of demolition of 1960s tower blocks, "picnic parties sat on London's Hackney Marshes as tower after tower exploded and crashed into a pile of wasted idealism and dreams".

But in the case of Red Road, it's wrong to have demolition as entertainment, says Miles Glendinning, professor of architectural conservation at the University of Edinburgh. "The proposal filled me with horror and disgust." The planners of previous eras may have made mistakes, with hindsight, but they often had good motives, he suggests.

There's no doubt that when the five towers are eventually demolished some spectators will gather. But Anthony will not be among those who are impressed by the sight. "I'm probably a bit jaded because I've seen so many," he says.

Follow @BBCNewsMagazine on Twitter and on Facebook

View the original article here

Games drop Red Road flats demolition must visit

Five of the six remaining tower blocks would have been demolished during the opening ceremony Commonwealth Games organisers have dropped the demolition of the Red Road flats from the Glasgow 2014 opening ceremony.

Five of the blocks were to be brought down at the start of the Games in July.

The plan proved controversial, with an online petition against the demolition gathering more than 17,000 signatures.

Glasgow 2014 said opinions being expressed about "safety and security" meant the destruction of the flats would not now feature in the opening.

Continue reading the main story

Opinions have been expressed which change the safety and security context”

End Quote David Grevemberg Glasgow 2014 chief executive The 30-storey structures were built in the mid 1960s and the original eight tower blocks housed more than 4,000 people. The demolitions will now be rescheduled.

Risk fears

Opponents had questioned the message the demolition would send and described the plans as insensitive to former residents as well as asylum seekers currently living in the sixth block.

In a statement, Games chief executive David Grevemberg said: "We made it clear from the outset the absolute priority was safety and that this event would only happen during the opening ceremony if it was safe to do so.

"Over the past few days it has become clear that opinions have been expressed which change the safety and security context.

"Glasgow 2014, Games partners and key stakeholders, including Police Scotland and Glasgow Housing Association, are not prepared to allow what was proposed to be a positive act of commemoration to create risk for all concerned, including the communities of north east Glasgow."

'Dignity' call

Former Scottish Socialist MSP Carolyn Leckie, who launched the petition, had been due to meet with Glasgow 2014 representatives to discuss the plan on Tuesday.

The petition called for the flats to be brought down with "dignity" and not as part of an entertainment spectacle.

The event was to have be shown live on a massive screen at the Celtic Park ceremony and to a huge TV audience.

Glasgow 2014 said the demolition was a matter for Glasgow Housing Association (GHA) and would take place as part of their ongoing regeneration programme.

However, Mr Grevemberg said Glasgow 2014 would still dedicate an element of the opening to telling the story of Glasgow's social history.

A GHA spokesman said: "As we have stated all along, public safety is our absolute priority. The demolitions will be rescheduled and we will continue to liaise and take the advice of the police and our demolition contractor."

A Glasgow City Council spokesman said: "We support the organising committee's decision. Public safety must always be paramount on these occasions."

Monday marks 100 days until the start of the Games.

View the original article here