Snowdon Summit Buildings
The new proposals for the building on Snowdon's summit were placed before two
public meetings in mid January 2002 by the architects Furneau Stewart and the
Snowdonia National Park Authority.
Background
The existing building was designed by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis (of Portmeirion
fame) back in the 1930s and is coming to the end of its life. Over the past few
years many alternatives have been seriously considered from having absolutely
nothing on the summit through to a very large development.
Those responsible for briefing the architects decided that the closure of the
railway would have an extremely detrimental economic effect on Llanberis and, if
there were to be a railway then obviously passengers would have to be provided
with shelter and toilet facilities appropriate to their needs. However one
previous proposal would have cost over £10 million and would not only involve
considerable disruption during the building but also go against the views of
many who did not want to see a more considerable facility than that in place
already.
350,000 people use the existing building every year. About 120,000 come up on
the train and the remainder walk up being divided roughly in half between
"serious" mountain walkers and people who are not hikers per se. A
survey of users found that very few wanted to see an 'empty' summit.
The Brief
Therefore the architects were briefed to look for a building with an eye to
reduction - i.e. of costs, environmental and visual impact etc.
 | The building should have a footprint no larger than that existing. |
| The uniqueness of the local environment should be understood and respected
and should avoid further erosion. |
| It should be appropriate as a resource for visitors and hold out against
the inclement weather. |
| It should appeal to people of all ages, cultures and abilities - staff and
visitor |
| It must interpret the views, weather, geology flora etc. both internally
and externally. |
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It must try to achieve sustainability of energy and water production and
storage.
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The Architects
Furneaux Stewart have worked on projects such as The Welsh National Botanic
Gardens, the Eden Project and the Rainforest House in Hanover. Their
representative explained that the view of the present building was "of a
shoebox" and the view from within "was from a cave". He explained
the many studies of people's behaviour at the summit and how that of walkers
differs from the train visitors and also explained the tests with materials,
wind tunnels etc. that are being undertaken.
The Building
They propose:
| To remove the existing second storey and to place the roof on a slant so
that the view of the summit is not impaired, condensation problems inside will
be improved, it will be easier to collect rainwater for recycling and energy
consumption will be reduced. |
| The water and fuel tanks etc. are to be sited below a raised train
platform - this will bring the whole facility on to one level and avoid the need
for steps. |
| There will separate access for train passengers and walkers to reduce
overcrowding on the platform and to give a secure store for wet walkers
equipment to reduce condensation. |
| There will also be separate toilets and serving hatch accessible from
outside. |
| There will be two glass walls in the café - one looking to the summit and
the other to Moel Hebog. New technology and the angle of the glass should
minimise the reflection off the glass at present visible from a long way off |
| The roof and other parts of the building will be faced with stone similar
to the natural rock of the summit |
| The building is to go around that existing to ensure minimum disruption
whilst building is taking place |
| Sustainability |
This will be ensured by:
| Using building materials from local sources |
| Using redundant construction waste creatively |
| Use inexpensive energy |
| Recycle rainwater |
Facilities
| Simple food and drink - which can be purchased both internally and
externally |
| Toilets that can be accessed both from inside and outside |
| A shop |
| No Bar |
| There will be no winter shelter. Experience in Scotland has proved that
presence of a purpose built shelter leads to accidents drawing inexperience/ill-
equipped parties further than they would otherwise go. However the building and
its environs are being designed so there will be some shelter from the elements
in every direction. |
They are looking at ways of ensuring emergency service radios and mobile
telephones of all networks will be usable on the mountain. However the National
Park have promised that there will be nothing external that is not shown on the
models i.e. no 17 metre masts.
Timings and Costs
This project is still very much in the consulation stage. The rough estimate is
£4.5 million and building could not start before 2003. More details will be
available in 3 months time.
Any comments should be addressed to the Snowdonia National Park
property manager Peter
Trumper |
| 26/2/03:
The ambitious
plans to redevelop the buildings at the top Snowdon are likely to be
submitted in May 2003.
A meeting of the Snowdonia National Park Authority today will confirm the
appointment of architects Furneaux Stewart - Also appointed to the design
team of the Snowdon Summit Refurbishment Project are quantity surveyors
Babtie Murdoch Green.
Authority chairman Councillor Caerwyn Roberts said: "Despite some
obstacles in the past, we are determined to continue with this worthwhile
project."
The National Park was hoping to receive grants of £2.5m from the Heritage
Lottery Fund towards the £5.25m revamp but received a setback last year
when it was revealed the Lottery was unlikely to offer more than £750,000
towards the project. The Authority's officers have been instructed to seek
other funding partners, including possibly the National Assembly.
Authority spokeswoman Llinos Angharad said: "We are still carrying
on. The project is too important for Llanberis, Snowdonia, Wales and
beyond. It will be easier to attract funding
after we've submitted the planning application."
Furneaux Stewart and Babtie Murdoch Green will also be responsible for
getting planning approval for the revamp. As
the National Park is also the planning authority, the plans are also
likely to be looked at by National Assembly planners. In
the meantime, tenders are being invited from structural engineers,
planning supervisors, service engineers and consultants to prepare an
Environmental Impact Assessment.
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| Jan 2004
Planning consent now approved and
funding process still underway, estimated costs appear to be rising closer
to 9 million.
|
| October 2004
£3million has been pledged
toward the £8million cost by the Welsh National Assembly.
Work will commence in September 2005 with completion in June 2007
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| April 2005
A worldwide appeal to raise the £2.2 million necessary to start
construction on a new £9 million Summit Building on Snowdon, the highest
peak in England and Wales, was launched by the Snowdonia National Park
Authority, in partnership with the Snowdonia
Society, at 2pm, Monday 4th April, Snowdon Mountain Railway Station in
Llanberis, Gwynedd, North Wales. For further details about this project,
visit www.snowdon-summit.co.uk
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