the battered site
The developers of Battersea Powerstation (there has been a long line of those) plan to turn the site into a massive complex of luxury flats, shops and leisure facilties. At the Open Day (Aug '08), they pointed out that these developments hinged on an extension of the underground being built.
Meanwhile, protesters mounted posters demanding affordable housing onto the designer hoardings .... these posters were in turn defaced...presumably by agents employed by the developers who may not have been as amused as I was.....the images here show some of the results.
Re-visiting the site in May 09, I found that they had been pasted over and the 'damage' repaired....which renders my images into some kind of historical record.
Re-visited in Feb '12. Roadworks were in progress and much of the design camouflage of the hoardings had been painted out in grey, I know not by whom. The developers have pulled out after failing to get the necessary investment given the tube extension was on hold due to the recession and the Olympics on the horizon.
PS: Note the homages to Pink Floyd's album on the 2009 hoardings which have now also disappeared.
www.battersea-powerstation.com./
UPDATE Dec 2012
The site has been bought by a Malaysian consortium for £400 million. As it is a Grade II listed building they have to keep its facade features, but are allowed to replace the chimneys with replicas.
The site manager told me that a family of falcons is nesting in one of the chimneys. They too are protected so it will be interesting how the company will deal with them.
More info:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-19491249
Photos of the inside of the building:
industri.uk.com/battersea/photography.html
UPDATE Nov. 2014
The falcons have long been enticed away via a specially constructed steel tower....not sure how that worked.
Works have begun. A lot of claims are made on the site hoardings. An extension of the underground has been given the go-ahead. The future begins.
www.archdaily.com/554700/new-images-released-of-foster-an...
