"While brand-new developments undoubtedly have their benefits and opportunities, the renewal approach to our cities’ existing historical buildings deserves the same focus"
- Jeremy Hughes - RBH Properties
The regeneration of our towns and cities will play an important role in the UK’s future – for residents, businesses and the environment alike. However, for these places to prosper environmentally, economically, and socially in the long term, a brave and balanced approach from property developers is needed.
These are the thoughts of Jeremy Hughes, Director at RBH Properties, who has recently redeveloped Pennine Five – a mammoth 1970s commercial complex in Sheffield City Centre.
Using yesterday’s buildings to shape today
Every one of the UK’s towns and cities has its own unique character and identity, and their built environment plays a huge part in determining this. That is because when it comes to architecture, each decade tells a story and has made its own mark on our townscapes and cityscapes, with each one leaving behind a bespoke legacy.
That is one of the most fascinating and beautiful things about the UK, the smorgasbord of architectural influence that makes up the fabric of today’s built environment.
Yet, unfortunately, far too often the market prioritises shiny new developments over the upgrading of existing structures. This is a move which is not only unfair to our architectural roots but to the future of our climate, too.
Teaching an old building new tricks
While brand-new developments undoubtedly have their benefits and opportunities, the renewal approach to our cities’ existing historical buildings deserves the same focus.
Ultimately, it is all about careful balance and consideration.
Sometimes new buildings are the right choice for a specific site, but breathing fresh life into our existing built environment, and saving that embodied carbon, needs to be the first avenue developers explore – instead of simply disposing of these old constructions to create a clean slate.
The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors has previously estimated that 35% of the lifecycle carbon from a typical office development is emitted before the building is even opened.
This means that it can often take a decade or more for a building to effectively repay its carbon debts accrued during construction. So, if renewal is not part of the conversation when it comes to determining the future of these existing older structures, some will be demolished before they have a chance to be netted off.
And while preserving our architectural heritage is important, this should not only be confined to structures that are deemed beautiful, such as aesthetically pleasing Victorian buildings or Listed architecture, but it should extend to those from the less-celebrated periods in history, such as the concrete giants of the 1970s and ‘80s.
By protecting a variety of built environment design eras, our cityscapes will remain unique to their settings and stories and won’t become ‘identikit’ city centres like you may see in other parts of the world.
Also, if we are to truly address the climate crisis and help decarbonise our towns and cities, it is vital that property developers take the bolder – and braver – decision to address ‘the elephant in the city’ by renewing, reusing and reinventing these mammoth buildings.
A property paragon when it comes to renewal
An example that perfectly illustrates the championing of renewal over demolition in our portfolio at RBH Properties is the Sheffield development, Pennine Five.
It’s fair to say that this once-secure former HSBC headquarters may not be everyone’s cup of tea! However, we have worked tirelessly to modernise the complex and bring it up to accessible standards with modern facilities, and it is bringing renewed vibrancy to this area of the city.
It is now one of the UK’s largest office renovations outside of London and could be seen as a blueprint for how regeneration can help lower carbon emissions today, not decades down the line.
This is because by transforming, rather than demolishing and rebuilding, it has saved over 150,000 tonnes of concrete and steel, corresponding to over 170,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions — the equivalent of driving from Sheffield to London over 9.5 million times.
Ultimately, if we had taken the rebuild route, the new £1.5 million public plaza would never have existed. And it is set to become a vibrant hub not only for the campus’s tenants but for the surrounding residential properties and businesses to utilise as well.
The revitalisation of Pennine Five’s unique architecture has created a real point of difference and brings life to this once-forgotten part of the city – acting as a catalyst for further inward investment in the area.
It is also a prime example of how large-scale refurbishments can offer much-needed lease flexibility for a city’s business landscape – ensuring there are options for all budgets. As a result, the companies who cannot afford the higher price tags of new builds, still have an inspiring environment in which to grow their business.
Using the past to construct the future
The last five years have been very challenging for the UK – from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine to country-wide recession and the cost-of-living crisis – but we cannot let regeneration stand still.
If the country is serious about supporting economic growth, attracting new businesses and creating quality jobs in the midst of a climate emergency, then there needs to be balance in regeneration and repurposing these buildings.
Only when this reinvention and open-minded mindset is adopted, can we move our towns and cities forward and create holistic, prosperous and sustainable city centres, using the past to positively reshape our future.
