January 10 2024

Planning consent has been awarded for 321 studio apartments at 292-298 St Vincent Street, completing a shift from a 250-bed hotel approved in 2020 as a result of the pandemic.

Targeting post graduate and overseas students the project will be delivered by Artisan Real Estate who will demolish the existing office building which has been unoccupied since 2019.

Artisan’s Scottish regional director David Westwater, said: “ There is a demonstrable need for high-quality purpose-built student accommodation in the city, especially for individual studio apartments. The more longer-term student market we are targeting will bring energy and investment to the city centre and ensure deliverability of a superbly designed development to replace the existing office block which has remained vacant for four years.”

The design Hawkins Brown design remains largely unaltered externally save for the removal of 'Vienna House' branding and a more masonry-heavy interaction with the street. In a design statement the architects wrote: "The building is conceived as a regular framework, similar to the grid frameworks of the American artist Sol LeWitt, that is eroded to step down to relate to the adjoining built context.

"Within this framework are double order terracotta 'drapes' or 'big curtains' that will provide a play of light, shadow and reflections across the facade throughout the day."

The tower will remain setback from the street, due a future Avenues upgrade, as before with the lower level hosting a co-working space and student amenities.  

12 Comments

#1 Posted by town planner on 10 Jan 2024 at 12:01 PM

The cladding looks similar to the Candelriggs development albeit a different colour. Jury is still out for me on how good this material will look when complete.

#2 Posted by A Local Pleb on 10 Jan 2024 at 12:20 PM

Yet another banal stack of boxes with the city, there is little to excite you about this.
Being positive it is better than what currently occupies the site, however that alone is not good enough.

#3 Posted by Fat Bloke on Tour on 10 Jan 2024 at 12:44 PM

Formulaic at best -- not a stunner in any way shape or form.

Important site on a big street -- hoping for something more than filler.

At least we will only have to put up with it for 30/35 years and we can start again.

#4 Posted by The Heart of Saturday Night on 10 Jan 2024 at 12:45 PM

Ah yes, Sol Lewitt, Glasgow's favourite son.

#5 Posted by D to the R on 10 Jan 2024 at 13:23 PM

#1-4 ... lets not bother then eh? Easy to criticise architecture subjectively but surely development is better than no development. You also have to assume that since it now has approval, the city planners consider it beneficial ...

#6 Posted by James Hepburn on 10 Jan 2024 at 14:53 PM

It strikes me that GCC and its intendant developers and architects equate mediocrity with major achievement. No wonder Glasgow has become a shipwreck.

#7 Posted by Hairy Hipster on 10 Jan 2024 at 15:26 PM

@#1 - the cladding at Candleriggs looks very similar to the new high rise flats next to the Barclays office. Looks pretty nice.

#8 Posted by The Heart of Saturday Night on 10 Jan 2024 at 15:42 PM

#5 - just because GCC's planners have approved it doesn't automatically make it good...

To be honest I was more poking fun at the usual Design Statement BS rather than the scheme itself, but there we are.

#9 Posted by Ultraovox on 11 Jan 2024 at 08:37 AM

Ohhhhhhhhh.....Vienna

House.

#10 Posted by MegaVox on 11 Jan 2024 at 09:26 AM

This means nothing to me !

#11 Posted by Philip on 11 Jan 2024 at 14:04 PM

Banal, formulaic architecture and looking dated before its even built.
HB think this concrete frame/ metal curtains approach is really clever...even 10 years on since R+H did it at Riverside and all the dross since.

Isn't there a more up-to-date fad to facsimile?

#12 Posted by Sven on 15 Jan 2024 at 14:20 PM

I see a building that will date quickly and world demographics will result in a large and permanent decrease in student numbers over the next 10-15 years. So do we want temporary non-architecture in Glasgow?

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