The Barbican Estate’s Cromwell Tower was built in 1973
(Picture: The Modern House)A unique opportunity to carve out a brand new home in one of London’s most polarising buildings is up for grabs for a deep-pocketed brutalism enthusiast.
A site at the foot of the Barbican’s Cromwell Tower has come up for sale with planning permission granted to convert it into a new living space.
Originally earmarked for a commercial unit that never was, the ‘Void Space’ has been empty since the estate’s construction and images show its unfinished concrete floors and walls studded by steel rods.
Land Registry documents show retired solicitor Christian Keesing bought the site for £200,000 in 2010 from the City of London Corporation.
“I was living in Cromwell Tower at the time, so I must have walked past the space 1,000 times. You can see in from two vantage points, but it wasn’t immediately clear that it was unoccupied,” he said.
“When I realised it was empty, I dug out old records that showed it was originally set to be a livery hall.
“I couldn’t quite believe what was inside when I first got access — this cathedral-like volume which was almost completely untouched. I was overawed by the raw power of the space.”
Others were interested in the purchase, he says, but dogged persistence won him the sale, subject to planning approval for a residence.
Now listed with The Modern House and Savills for £3.5 million, it comes with an ambitious blueprint in tow, courtesy of a collaboration between 6a Architects and Sanchez Benton.
The finished home will total 3,100 sq ft and feature soaring quadruple height ceilings. Monolithic, concrete-walled living spaces are stacked atop one another on one side of the void, all connected by a four-storey steel staircase.
Keesing has overseen several designs over the years, but was particularly taken by the current architects’ “lightness of touch”.
The delicate steel structure and wealth of glazing is inspired by the nearby Barbican Conservatory.
In line with the rest of the estate, the leasehold will remain with the City of London Corporation.
Residents of the tower have had plenty of time to weigh in on the plans, with most cautiously supportive. “The void is currently wasted space,” said Tim Cox. “It would be good to see it put to use.”
The Barbican Association, of which 60 per cent of residents are members, speaks of “a sense of déjà vu” over the planning applications.
Designed by architects Chamberlin, Powell and Bon and built over more than a decade in the late Sixties and early Seventies, the Grade II-listed Barbican Estate is a titan of post-war architecture — and a prestigious address for design-minded Londoners.
The 43-storey Cromwell Tower was built in 1973 and was once the UK’s tallest residential building.
If a buyer is found for this Brutalist gem, work could start as soon as this year.
