Context 169 - September 2021

C O N T E X T 1 6 9 : S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1 23 FROM THE BOTTOM UP TONY BARTON This could be Chester’s most protected building A project to bring new life to the former Hydro Electric Station on the River Dee in Chester shows how building conservationists can work with the voluntary sector. Donald Insall Associates wants to give some- thing back in the places where we work, includ- ing through a range of support for the amazing people who voluntarily care for, fight for and proactively seek improvements for our built heritage. This might be pro-bono architec- tural support for a church or simply giving time for colleagues to sit on a local committee. Sometimes these extra-curricular activities lead to us being both conservation campaigner and conservation architect. The Hydro Electric Station on the River Dee, a Grade II listed building, was commissioned in 1913 to provide electricity for Chester, which it did for about 40 years, before being converted into a water pumping utility which ceased operation only in the last couple of years. The University of Chester recently looked at recom- missioning a hydro-electric plant. This proved not to be feasible, in part because the turbines would have proved too attractive to the Dee’s migrant salmon, whose journey would have ended messily and prematurely in Chester. Although the Hydro is not Chester’s most attractive listed building, it is probably its most protected. In addition to being listed and in a conservation area, it sits on the weir, so works require scheduled monument consent and must satisfy a plethora of habitat and environmental criteria, being in a special area of conservation and a site of special scientific interest. We were in the right place at the right time when a group of scientists, academics and environmentalists started to look again at the building and arranged rare access. The Hydro was built into the Dee parallel with the old Dee Bridge (another scheduled monument). Its principal internal space is the longTurbine Hall, whose floor is just above the tidal river’s high- water mark, some three metres below the street. A fine timber-panelled door opens on to the street, but it leads only to a ladder with no room for a stair. The building is currently accessed by dodging traffic on the Dee Bridge and descend- ing a steep external stair. Once inside, the poor condition, of the flat roof in particular, becomes evident. Acro-props juggle for space with tons of late-20th-century redundant pumping equip- ment, switchgear and desilting mechanisms. No machinery of any historic value remains. One major hurdle for linking local groups with their heritage is the misconception that a building can not be touched if it is listed. After opening eyes to the art of the possible, we had to find a way to move it on as a viable project. This included providing a way to get the public, including prams and wheelchairs, down to the Turbine Hall; fitting in some toilets; dealing with floods; making a fire escape; repairing the roof and perhaps using it; installing zero-carbon technology; protecting the fish, ducks and cormorants; sorting out asbestos; and keeping The Hydro was built parallel with the old Dee Bridge, another scheduled monument (Photo: Richard Thorn)