Elmbank Gardens
| Elmbank Gardens | |
|---|---|
| Charing Cross Complex | |
Elmbank Gardens (south west elevation)
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| Alternative names | Charing Cross Tower The Venlaw |
| General information | |
| Status | Complete |
| Type | Offices (1972-92) Hotel (1995-present) |
| Architectural style | Brutalist |
| Town or city | Charing Cross, Glasgow |
| Country | Scotland |
| Coordinates | 55°51′53.59″N 4°16′11.74″W / 55.8648861°N 4.2699278°WCoordinates: 55°51′53.59″N 4°16′11.74″W / 55.8648861°N 4.2699278°W |
| Completed | 1971 |
| Opened | 1973 |
| Renovated | 1994 |
| Height | |
| Top floor | 14 |
| Technical details | |
| Structural system | Pre-cast Concrete |
| Lifts/elevators | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Richard Seifert |
The Charing Cross Complex - now styled as Elmbank Gardens (but sometimes popularly referred to as the Charing Cross Tower), is a multi-use commercial complex in the Charing Cross area of Glasgow, Scotland. Best known for its signature 14-storey tower which overlooks the M8 motorway and stands directly opposite the Mitchell Library, it was designed by Richard Seifert and constructed between 1969 and 1973. It is one of the tallest and most prominent high rise buildings on the western side of Glasgow city centre. The surface buildings of the subterranean railway station which serves Charing Cross are also an integral part of the complex.
Since 1995, the tower element has been used as a hotel, which is currently operated by the Premier Inn chain, whilst the remainder of the complex is home to offices (currently branded as The Venlaw) and a number of other leisure and entertainment businesses.
The 1960s saw great change in Glasgow, following on from the Bruce Report with initiatives well under way to depopulate the overcrowded centre, removing slum housing and the construction of a new system of high speed roads around the central area. The districts of Charing Cross and Anderston lay in the path of the Glasgow Inner Ring Road (now part of the M8) and consequently huge swathes of buildings were demolished to make way for its construction. The Richard Seifert Co-Partnership won the commission for much of the regeneration plan for the area, a grand scheme was planned which would stretch from the former Anderston Cross to the Charing Cross area.The original plans for the Elmbank complex would have made use of the infamous Charing Cross Podium which stretched across the motorway, but in the end only fragments of the Seifert scheme were built - likewise his nearby Anderston Centre was never fully realized either.
The original tenant of the building was the YARD (Yarrow-Admiralty Research Department) - part of the local engineering company Yarrow Shipbuilders - who remained such until 1992 when Yarrows' takeover by GEC-Marconi (ultimately British Aerospace), and a complex series of mergers and acquisitions which resulted in consolidation of its activities in the city. The building was vacated, and stood empty for over 2 years until a new use was found.
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