PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT
Register of Buildings and Sites of Architectural, Archaeological and Historical Importance
Amendment of the List of Sites of Special Interest
Purpose of the Report
The purpose of this report is for the Minister to amend the List of Sites of Special Interest, having regard to the States strategic objective ‘to protect the best of the Island’s architectural heritage’ and a key objective of the Island Plan 2002 to protect and promote Jersey’s built, cultural and archaeological heritage. The report addresses decisions made in the 1970s to designate buildings as Sites of Special Interest and subsequent decisions of the former Jersey Building Heritage Sub-Committee to review them.
Background
The former Island Development Committee, in pursuance of Articles 9 and 24 of the Island Planning (Jersey) Law, 1964, and after consultation with such persons or bodies of persons as appeared to it appropriate as having special knowledge of or interest in buildings of architectural or historic interest designated numerous properties in St Helier as Sites of Special Interest in 1972 under Island Planning (Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest) (Jersey) Order 1972. This was followed by Island Planning (Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest) (Amendment) (Jersey) Order 1974 which designated the properties on Gorey Pier. These were some of the first registered buildings in Jersey and were designated at a time when the only formal means of protection for historic buildings was represented by SSI designation.
The Jersey Building Heritage Sub-Committee carried out a review of the Register of Buildings and Sites of Architectural, Archaeological and Historical Importance in Jersey between 1998-2002, and identified that some of the Sites of Special Interest designated in the early 1970s had either suffered damaging change, which had eroded their special interest; did not have sufficient special interest to meet the current SSI listing criteria adopted in 1998; or had already been demolished after receiving permission for redevelopment from former planning committees.
The Sub-Committee took the decision to identify those sites in question on the Register but to defer the formal de-listing of these properties until resources could properly be allocated to the task (this was a particularly onerous task as prescribed by the former Island Planning (Jersey) Law 1964. The recent adoption of the Planning and Building (Jersey) Law, 2002 and its more efficient and effective procedures now allows for de-Listing of these properties to be completed.
Below is a schedule of the SSIs identified by the JBH Sub-Committee for de-Listing. In addition the Committee decided that the majority of the buildings should be maintained on the Register as BLIs.
Property | Jersey Building Heritage Sub-Committee decision |
Listed in 1972 | |
12, 13, 14, 16, 17, 18-18a, 19, 20 Regent Road | Register as BLI |
15 Regent Road | Remove from Register |
36 Parade (demolished pre-1992) | Permission to demolish granted pre-1992 remove from Register |
35½ Parade (Lister House) | Register as BLI |
1-2, 4, 6 Vine Street | Register as BLI |
8 Vine Street | Remove from Register |
10, 12 Vine Street | Register as BLI |
Police Headquarters, Rouge Bouillon | Remove from Register |
6 Belmont Road (now demolished) | Permission to demolish granted 1997 ( remove from Register |
Listed in 1974 | |
Harbour View Gifts (formerly L’Amarrage), Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
The Wheelhouse & Neptune, Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
Dolphin Hotel (formerly 19-21 & Little House), Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
Old Sail Loft Boutique (formerly Gorey Yacht Services), Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
17 (Seascale Hotel), Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
Fountain Court, Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
1-2 (Nelson Court), Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
3-5 The Moorings Hotel, Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
6-9 Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
10-11 Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
12 Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
13 (Au Coin du Port) Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
15 Gorey Pier | Register as BLI |
Les Ormes, La Rue de la Solitude, St Martin (now demolished) | Permission to demolish granted 1996 remove from Register |
The present situation is unsatisfactory and unacceptable: these properties presently exist on the List as SSIs when formal decisions to amend their registration remain unimplemented.
It is considered that the decisions of the former JBH Sub-Committee are sound on the basis that the original designations were not necessarily sufficiently robust and that none of the buildings would presently satisfy the criteria subsequently established and applied to the Listing of SSIs.
Recommendation
On the basis of the above, it is recommended that the Minister for Planning and Environment resolves to:
· remove all of the properties, identified in the above table, from the List of Sites of Special Interest to give effect to the earlier decision of the Jersey Building Heritage Sub-Committee;
· either retain the buildings on the Historic Buildings Register as BLIs or remove the buildings from the Register, as set out in the table above, in accordance with Sub-Committee’s decision;
· authorises officers to prepare the requisite Notices of Intent to give effect to the Minister’s resolution
Reason(s) for Decision
None of the buildings have sufficient special interest to meet the published criteria for Listing as Sites of Special Interest.
The registration of certain buildings as BLIs is in accordance with Interim Policy HB1 which states ‘Historic buildings which contribute positively to the distinctive character or appearance of Jersey’s built-up areas or countryside, particularly where they are of ‘group value’, will be identified and included in the Register of Buildings and Sites of Architectural, Archaeological and Historical Importance in Jersey.’
The buildings to be removed from the Register retain insufficient architectural or historical merit to satisfy the criteria for registration
Action Required
Notices of Intent to be prepared to give effect to the Minister’s decision
Written by: | Roger Hills Curator of Historic Buildings - Jersey Heritage Trust |
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Approved by: | Fiona Smith Historic Buildings Officer |
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Endorsed by: | Kevin Pilley Assistant Director |
08 March 2007