New apartments seek to establish a sense of place at Pacific Quay
May 12 2025
A vacant island site at Glasgow's Pacific Quay could be returned to use under proposals to build 49 flats across two perpendicular blocks.
Surplus Property and Grant Murray Architects have teamed up to augment the recently constructed Prince's Quay by resurrecting a 2022 residential consent. Incorporating a food store, the blocks are aligned to activate the streetscape, fronting a pedestrian link to the river while anchoring haphazard recent development.
In a massing statement, GMA wrote: "Due to the progressive and somewhat fractured manner in which Pacific Quay has been developed, there is a lack of coherent street form to the area. This has resulted in islands of development separated by large open spaces dedicated primarily to surface car parking that creates an unwelcoming and isolated feeling to those passing through.
"With little direct context to relate to, the proposal creates a coherent boundary for the site by the addition of an adjoining wall that links the two blocks and separates the public areas of the retail unit and car parking with the residential elements and private garden areas. The linking wall incorporating bin stores for the development will link the two blocks while avoiding becoming overbearing in scale."
Finished in textured brick with profiled terracotta detailing applied to the top floor to reduce apparent massing.
A commercial unit will front the intersection of Pacific Drive and Festival Gate
The development seeks to provide continuity with recently completed apartments over the road
|
4 Comments
When there is a lassez-faire attitude to planning, this is what to expect. With no masterplan to develop a hierarchy of streets and no codes to embed scale, quality and detailing this is exactly what you get; sterile public space with buildings that withdraw from the street edge creating sloap. When was the last truly great street that has been delivered in the city? There has been ample opportunity, but it seems with path dependancy, the discretionary nature of planning coupled to a seemingly absent competence in design governance- we will get this kind of thing time after time.
The design of the builidngs is kind of what we have come to expect in Glasgow, it has that air of austerity coupled to a provincial midset. Edge of town mentality in the inner city. It is strange that in a place so close to so many others,that the idea of living there without a car is pretty much unthinkable . (Does anyone remember the sales pitch on the first phase - trying hard to sell it on the basis of the 'proximity' to Finnieston - laughable).
I was about to say that I don't blame the architects too much given how the die has been cast in planning terms , but those shallow double pitches - what on earth is going on there?
To speak of the lack of a coherent street, island developments, unwelcoming and isolated etc. and then create that..
Tongue in cheek surely?
I'm intrigued as to exactly what kind of business would want to open up here. Moreover, given the general lack of density, just what kind of business would be viable. In any case, the retail unit is a sop to the notion of -dare I say it- 20MN's - I can see it lying empty for quite a while.
https://publicaccess.glasgow.gov.uk/online-applications/files/022888C38B03E4227F7CB67E33666B2E/pdf/25_00774_FUL-SITE_PLAN_AS_PROPOSED-6484316.pdf
Post your comments
Back to May 2025
Like us on Facebook
Become a fan and share
There isn't a hint of urban grain to speak of in those visuals or the site plan. While I'm no great fan of the 'haphazard recent development' referenced in the article, it at least tries to create a legible street along festival gate. These are just two lumps of housing in a car park with some token greenery on the SLOAP.