Signed a petition this evening outside Tescos trying to stop the selling of Rowleys Museum. I would hate to see it end up in the hands of Mc Donalds or Burger King or a medieval Tesco Express. I wondered if any one knew who was running the petition so people could sign it ? Realise this can be futile based on the Post Office being moved but I would assume the 'responsible people' who offered up the building for sale would then reconsider.

Margaret Owen
3 the Rocks
Hereford Road
Shrewsbury

Mrs Owen needs all petitions, no later than 20th September 2006

s.g.d.

I've probably been in RH twice in the last year, maybe a little more. The visitor number are poor. It's also shocking inside. There isn't the space, there isn't the access, the art and exhibits can't be given the showing they deserve. That's why we have sooo much in storage. I'm sure it would make a nice cafe down stairs with an office or two upstairs. But also, even if it was all private business, the best bit about RH is the outside.

perhaps it would be better off going if not many people are using it.
Alot of the stuff in town is un-used.
Ive been in there before, its not really spectacular.
The building itself is marvlous, its part of the town, but aslong as it stays, i don't care what they do inside of it!

I don't mind if Rowley's House is sold off, so long as it is restored and used afterwards. I suspect it will end up being offices or apartments.

What I do want happening though is the development of the swathes of surface car parking around that area. Barker Street car park is for sale along with the House and should form part of any redevelopment. Hopefully the urban fabric can be carefully restored there. But the other car parks need sorting out too. I'm not too pleased with the council's plan to merge Bridge Street and St Austin's Street car parks. Also the Tannery car park shoud be built on - it was only meant to be temporary (this is where that row of shops were demolished a few years ago).

What we really need is a masterplan for the area with development planned out for the next 10 years or so. However that's not going to happen because of one simple reason.

We live in Shropshire.

I'm not that bothered about the museum going, it's not exactly the world's most riveting museum and if a move to the music hall meant a bit of money being spent on modernising the displays, collection and all round experience it wouldn't be bad at all.

I don't think there's any danger of Rowley's house being turned into a Burger King or anything similar, it is a listed building after all. A tasteful conversion could be good though, maybe some shops or cafes on the bottom and apartments above. I think that something also needs to be done to get rid of the car parks surrounding it if we want to make the most of the building.

the Barker street car park is included in the sale,for development,which means that one side of Rowleys will possibly be obscured from view.

s.g.d.

But these car parks need to be developed - having that area of town as a sea of car parking just won't do in this day and age.

And any development will obviously keep a space all round Rowley's House itself - I mean, they're hardly going to build right up to and join on to the building!!

" a Preliminary Development Brief has been prepared by the local conservation officer for the adjacent parcel of land for a suggested mixed use development"

totalling approx 27,750 sqft doesn't leave much room for a space to be left.

s.g.d

What are you expecting? Some wooden huts?

Of course there will be space between Rowley's House and this development - I suspect that's where a new street will be created.

And 27,750 square feet isn't that much, considering that the development will be 3/4 stories in height.

I also suspect that figure includes the re-use of Rowley's House itself?

This PDF clearly explains what is planned for the area around Rowley's House:

http://www.shrewsbury.gov.uk/public/counci...opmentbrief.pdf

I've just read all of it and I am pleased that they recognise and may restore the lost street of Cole Hall (sometimes spelled as Colehall)! Next: Bugle Lane! :D

(They also point out that Rowley's Passage, which I've recently added to the Shuts of Shrewsbury collection, will be used by the public to access the town centre from any enlarged car park to the north of Rowley's House.)

It would of course be nice if they would expand such a masterplan further out, so that it would include the Tannery car park, the St Austin's Friars/Victoria Quay area and the Welsh Bridge end of Smithfield Road.

Rowleys is an additional 10,864sqft to the adjacent land.

the 2million price tag includes the small garden area the other side of the "shut" so this could well be blocked off by the new owners(another public loo gone!).

The shut is also a relatively new addition to the building and could be incorporated into the building again.

s.g.d.

I still insist that 27,750 square feet is not much. Consider this:

A building, or a block of buildings, 50ft x 200 ft would have a floor space of 10,000 square feet per storey. Make this building 3 stories and you have 30,000 square feet.

Not that hard to imagine a building or buildings totalling this size on the car park area, is it?

And the ground floor of Rowley's House will probably end up being cafes/shops etc. So I doubt the passage (which you are right - it was built in the 1930s) will be blocked up/closed off. When it comes to granting planning permission these things will be unveiled and sorted out.

If the planners and councillors on the development control committee use their brains and take care then we could end up with a great new area of Shrewsbury in 9/10 years time.

btw - have you gone through that PDF document? "Figure 3" on page 9 and "Figure 5" on page 12 show pretty much everything I would imagine to happen on this site. I hope they stick to this plan!

(Also, on figure 5, note another new passage, between buldings A and B.)

the Towler Shaw Robertts' sales particulars make no mention of any streets or public rights of way,just a single block plot.

the 27,750sqft is the total ground area for sale,this will obviously be times two or three etc if built on.

s.g.d.

:D

You mean they got them? BTW I'm sure they'll take care ............ of themselves! <_<

Fortunately we have a planning system to make sure over-zealous and uncaring developers do as they should.

(Well, that's the theory.)

I await the planning application eagerly. Hopefully there will be one application for the whole site (Rowley's House and Barker Street car park) but that may be just too much like common sense.

So long as people like us make sure our voices are heard when the planning application is submitted then you never know - the planning officer in charge may start to ask questions and make sure things are right.

We live in hope!! :rolleyes:

and this gives you hope?

I interviewed the lady who's running the petition today.

She is also organising a hands around Rowleys event and a meeting at the council, all I can say is no matter if the petition works or not and we know what happened with the post office, the lady really is very passionate about Rowleys House.

I also did not know that the building was given to the people of Shrewsbury many years ago and the family's relatives who owned it are not happy about its possible future.

Morriss' gave the building to the town in 1930.As they are trying to get planning permission to extend their offices I don't think that they will want to make much of a fuss.

I know that the hands round the building is planned for 23/9/06 but did mrs Owen say a time?

s.g.d.

is that the village by Minsterley? ;)

s.g.d.

Rowleys Museum is really attractive from the outside. I' wonder if you can divulge the reasons for the lady who is taking the petition Chris, why she doesnt want it to be sold?. I must admit I have only once been inside. It is a fantastic building though which portrays everything about Shrewsburys past ! I think someone has tried to pull down the ohh so commercial sale board which sits over the shelter opposite kentucky fried chicken. How 'tacky' is that board !

I think that Mrs Margaret Owen believes that Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council is failing in its duty to the Town by planning to sell off Rowleys House and by closing the museum without adequate provision for another musem.

There was also a protest last Sunday by local artist,Casper Macindoe,who is against the loss of public access to such a wonderful building whilst appreciating its
short comings as a museum site.

s.g.d.

I thought the link put on by Proud Salopian: http://www.shrewsbury.gov.uk/public/counci...opmentbrief.pdf

put the problems associated with using an ancient building such as Rowleys House with great clarity.

As far as I know Newport House (the old guildhall) is still for sale. You need deep pockets to take on these buildings for restoration/conversion. :(

This linking hands around the building seems a bit of a waste of time to me and if it gets on the news people may be inclined to say 'get a life, you Salopians!'

So long as the building is protected (which it is thesedays) if someone is willing to buy it and give it a new life, perhaps residential again, then it will return to its original purpose.

Rowleys House(the timber framed building) has never been residential,it was built as a warehouse in 1590's and as such is one of the oldest surving industrial buildings in the county,if not the country.

Rowleys Mansion(the brick building) was built about 20 years later and was probably the first ever brick building in Shrewsbury.

I think one of Rowley's sons was probably the towns first ever boy racer.He had to have the latest,flashest carriages and drove them round town at great speeds.
He possibly didn't wear a baseball cap or hoodie but would have had the latest fashions for his elders to complain about.

s.g.d.

Margaret believes that it should remain accessible to the public; she worked on the Corbet bed and really does not want to see Rowleys House lost from public use.

I'm not sure at what time the Hand Around Rowleys Event is taking place, I will listen back tot he interview when I'm in the office and let you know.

Latest on the Rowley's House sale:

http://www.shropshirestar.co.uk/2006/10/de...-museum-future/

Well, well , well, given to the town by Morris's and sold to Shropshire Homes (probably) with a promise to keep the house open to the public (for a bit anyway) and that they will ensure lots of nice, pretend mediaeval houses are built around it. :rolleyes:

Perhaps not quite as naff as the Julian Friars development but almost I'm sure. <_<
So long as their are a multitude of dormer windows, redundant chimneys (do many of us roast a pig in the inglenook thesedays?)and the occasional jettied floor thrown in our planners will give it the green light. ;)

With regard to the Corbet bed I was quite shocked when taking an interest in this project to find out that only if you were 'born and bred' in Shrewsbury could you contribute your needlework talents to this project. :angry: Still perhaps a 'born & bred' CHAV (the term originating from here too) may develop his fire setting on the said bedhangings and make it a 'home-goal!'

Shropshire Homes have taken on the St Julians development, let's hope that it is third time lucky and it actually gets completed.

s.g.d.

Shropshire Homes aren't too bad - it could be worse... Wimpey Homes...

I am amazed that a building donated to the people from morris' in the 30's, not to politicians or councillors but the people can be so easily sold. :angry:

Power to the people I say lets storm the council buildings and demand a share in the councils 'booty' :angry:

They must be loosing money hand over fist. ;)

Um "the people" is not a legally accepted term - although it was meant to be donated to "the people" it was actually donated to Shrewsbury Borough Council (which in 1974 became part of the Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough Council). Therefore the Council have every right to sell it on. Especially considering that they are democratically elected by "the people" of Shrewsbury (and Atcham).

Thank you for that Proud Salopian. Just shows how crooked some politicians can be when it comes to the true meaning of words. :D I will never refer to 'people-power' or 'power to the people' in the same context again. :lol: So the people are now the council, councillors are politicians do you have some kind of council dictionary with you. I think the word democratic comes into the whole process here also. Or is there a council definition for democratic process

I think democratic process is the term used where 30 councillors decided that the "people" did not need a referendum to decide the future of the building.

s.g.d.

I hope that is 'tounge in cheek' SQD ? :(

Hang on or is the councils definiton of 'tounge in cheek' as 'they wont care they havent kicked up a fuss before' ,referring to the 'people' and by that I dont mean the council if you understand where I am coming from ! :D

Judging by the petition collected the members of the council were wrong but continue to go against consensus of the population of Shrewsbury. We all make mistakes but when the council do they seem to get away with it !

But soon they will be no more. Thats another thread perhaps!

Rowley's House is Council property and they have the right to sell it off. It doesn't belong to "the people". Nothing in the United Kingdom belongs to "the people" except for some remaining common land (which there is still some left, but only on hills like the Strettons).

You talk about democracy. The Council is controlled by Councillors, who are elected by the electorate of the area the Council covers and represent the people for limited terms. I also suspect that if a referendum were to be held, a majority would agree that Rowley's House should be sold off.

The process of change that is currently happening means that we will lose Rowley's House, but we will also gain Theatre Severn in Frankwell. In the middle we will see a refurbished Music Hall and Vaughan's Mansion. I think this is a good process.

It is also progress that we will see the development of the car parks in the West End area of town. Rowley's House is central to this development and therefore is included with it.

Rowley's House is not suitable for the museum service anymore and the Music Hall & Vaughan's Mansion would make a better centre for Shrewsbury's main museum. The present auditorium there will probably be converted into 2 or 3 floors of museum. The total capacity and size of Shrewsbury's main museum will be far greater in the Music Hall than at Rowley's House.

Let Shrewsbury change - the changes to the Rowley's House area, including Rowley's House itself, will be a good thing. The important thing is to make sure that any development is good quality and retains the character of the area. As I've ranted on about before, Colehall should be restored and the development as a whole should allow people to walk through with ease. And concerns about losing Rowley's House from the public realm are exagerated. I suspect the ground floor of the building will remain in the public realm as cafes, shops, etc. And that passage will probably remain too.

Oh and going back to the original argument - the money from the sale goes back into Council coffers. The same coffers which you pay tax into and the same coffers which services that you use and benefit from are payed. Remember, as much as you hate the idea, it is the Council who run Shrewsbury, not "the people". Be glad that we live in a democracy and therefore able to vote for Councillors.

(This sort of democracy being representative democracy - another form of democracy called direct democracy does exist that uses referendums much more. Switzerland does this for example.)

I agree with progress Proud Salopian however believe in consultation. I think any member of the public should have some form of consultation in any process of shaping the towns future. I think sometimes however the 'power crazy' in some of us allows mistakes to be made. Mistakes need to be avoided otherwise people loose face.

When are the next elections taking place ?

There will be consultation (indeed there already has been*) about proposals for Rowley's House and development of the area around it.

The next elections are taking place in May 2007. Not all wards/councillors are up for election then though.

*I remember there being a consultation exercise, which I missed, about half a year ago about the West End area. It was after that when they decided to sell off Barker Street car park, merge Bridge Street and St Austin's Street car parks and divert traffic around this new larger car park. However, there still isn't much agreement about what to do with the Tannery car park.

It seems unusual though that even though there was consultation how well this is publicised and to whom. I'm really not sure of the way the council consults the public. It cannot be very effective in this case because at the last hour a petition was hastily put together. Not trying to disrespect the council but perhaps they need to think about better communication

I think the blame lies squarely with the planners. They have been highly incompetent throughout this process.