What would you do?

[TeeJF]

Let me suggest a situation... you rock up at a beautiful building which you strongly suspect is Grade II listed. You wander in and start merrily snapping away at the amazing architecture until you suddenly realise that something is amiss - the building appears to be in the process of being "salvaged" and architectural delights which you've seen on another urbexer's report only a couple of months previously are gone. Then you spot lead off the roof sitting in a cupboard, radiators stock piled in a room and gaping holes have appeared in the roof with consequential water damage rapidly taking hold. Grade II = no alteration to the exterior or interior. Your best guess is the owner is stripping fittings and decor for sale but that's contrary to a Grade II listing! So what are you going to do? Wait for the house to have a mysterious fire so that it has to be demolished? Are you going to shrug your shoulders and say, "none of my business and I've seen it now anyway so it's irrelevant what happens". Or do you go to the appropriate authority and say, "I trespassed in a building but I think you should go check it out"... ?

 

[sYnc_below]

Check to see if it is actually listed first

http://list.english-heritage.org.uk/

 

[TeeJF]

Yup. I have and it is.

 

[krela]

Crimestoppers FTW.

 

[sYnc_below]

Yup. I have and it is.

Guess its your call then.

 

[mookster]

I'd let the relevant authorities know someone is trying to pull a fast one.

 

[RichardH]

I'd let the relevant authorities know someone is trying to pull a fast one.

Definitely. I *think* that the local authority has a statutory obligation to investigate credible reports of breaches of the listed building regulations. Whether they then choose to take action is another matter entirely, but if you present them with photographs and say "this is what is happening at this listed building, at this moment", then they at least have to go and look for themselves.

 

[Janey68]

I agree with RichardH entirely. Too many of these places are 'disappearing' and I for one am sick to death of it. Where I live there has been two I know of and it makes me so mad.

 

[Derelict-UK]

How do you know the owner is responsible? If you have managed to 'wander' in, then why can't pikies? Maybe they have just stripped the roof and are leaving the stuff to pick up later when there is less chance of getting caught?

Maybe it is worth contacting the police (or crimestoppers if you cant deal with the hassle of comebacks) and tell them what you have seen. There are plenty of places on the 'list' that aren't occupied or have security, maybe you will be doing them a great help.

 

[UrbanX]

If I thought it was the owners, I'd be speaking to the conservation officer, if it was pikeys I'd have been onto the rozzers before you could day "new thread". It's only you standing between this building, of national importance, lasting now or forever...

 

[TeeJF]

Your responses are pretty much what I expected and I am glad you all agree with my thoughts regarding reporting it. I have actually set the ball rolling and I have strong reason to think it is not pykeys. I will keep you posted. Thanks for the input.

 

[Walrus75]

... I have actually set the ball rolling and I have strong reason to think it is not pykeys. I will keep you posted. Thanks for the input.

Civic duty done plus you can sleep soundly at night with a clear conscience. Nice one pal.

 

[TeeJF]

Update...

The plot thickens! I contacted the relevant authority and the inspector told me that the house has the highest conservation status and that the 'damage' that it is suffering is indeed illegal. As a result he is demanding a site meeting for an inspection with the owner. It gets interesting though because it would appear the owner will lose all permissions to carry out ANY work there if the conservation is not carried out on the house. Thus the removal of fireplaces stair decoration et all would be counterproductive. But... The salvage style work at the property is not the sort of thing you see at the hands of pykeys, it's too organised, too methodical and professional, not rip and run. The owner though has an obligation to ensure the building stays secure enough for pykeys to be kept out anyway so he's in dead schtuck whichever way he's been playing it. I just wish I'd spotted this before the 'salvage' had got as far as it has.

 

[RichardH]

The plot thickens!

I hope the damage already done is not too much to save the place. It's all very well (and satisfying) to put the perpetrator's testicles into a mincer, but it won't pay for restoration.

Interesting that "the inspector told [you] that the house has the highest conservation status". This suggests to me that either: it's Grade I, not Grade II, and you misread the list or the public list contains an error (not impossible, especially if it started as Grade II and subsequently got upgraded); or the local authority maintains an internal list of buildings that it considers "high priority" (also not impossible since the List is rather long and local authorities have a finite amount of resources - it's reasonable for them to be more vigilant over some structures than others).

Anyway, it sounds like they intend to do more than just thank you politely and pretend they never heard about it. Keep us posted!

 

[smiler]

Lead off the roof! Radiators ripped out! Makes me wonder if it is going to be cost effective for any local authority to be able afford to save it, fair play to you for trying to do something to stop it happening and now the relevant folk have been informed they should be able to stop it from continuing further, but whether they will be in the economic position to undo the damage that’s been done? Well I doubt it TJ but I give the tribute you deserve for trying.

In answer to your original question, what would I do, much the same as you, and be just as sick at the result.

 

[TeeJF]

The Grading number issue/importance is probably my mistake... I was pretty sure he'd said Grade II* and he actually explained the value of the star. His other key comment was that they can't do anything to alter the interior (that particular comment was what got me motivated) or the exterior without permission and that taking parts of the staircase away and stripping out fireplaces was not in the remit. He also made a very particular comment about the fact that the trashing of the building would mean the developer would not be allowed to do anything else on the site so I found it odd that it looks like it's being deliberately trashed - that doesn't add up at all. As to the lead and the opening up of the roof to the elements, that could easily have been the work of pykeys and chavs but it clearly wasn't rip and run which tends to indicate otherwise.

The whole issue stinks (and not of the fungus I photographed either). It will be interesting to see what happens though obviously I'm wary of going too much further incase I get accused of trespass. Still... take nothing but photographs etc.

Thanks for your comments guys. To be perfectly honest I half expected some site users to say I shouldn't have reported this because it would mean that the building will be denied to other urb-exers by virtue of increased security and/or better shuttering work. But I am sick to the back teeth of heritage sites getting trashed by unscrupulous developers with no intention of ever honouring their obligations if there's a way to circumvent it.

 

[Pincheck]

Crimestoppers FTW.

That's what i was going to say Already done this when I came across a (what i believe ) was a stolen motorbike in a abandoned factory tied house next to it in the garage, reported it there Job done

 

[LulaTaHula]

To be perfectly honest I half expected some site users to say I shouldn't have reported this because it would mean that the building will be denied to other urb-exers by virtue of increased security and/or better shuttering work. But I am sick to the back teeth of heritage sites getting trashed by unscrupulous developers with no intention of ever honouring their obligations if there's a way to circumvent it.

Urban explorers have no right of way over any derelict site; we simply have an appreciation of them rather than seeing them as useless ruins or a way to make money (well, most of us do). It is absolutely right that you should report what you have seen, and try to do something towards protecting the place. Much better that it is protected and unseen, than it becomes a tourist attraction which is allowed to be mindlessly destroyed.

 

[TeeJF]

It is absolutely right that you should report what you have seen, and try to do something towards protecting the place. Much better that it is protected and unseen, than it becomes a tourist attraction which is allowed to be mindlessly destroyed.

Thank you. I have been in a real quandry about this problem so it means a lot to both myself and Tonto that experienced and respected members of the forum agree with our feelings about protecting such a beautiful building.