Report - Central Hydraulic Tower Night Rooftopping, Oct '11

mookster · Oct 10, 2011

Me and Flubs arrived in Birkenhead and met up with Xan who was kindly putting us up for the night (thanks mate!) and as none of us really wanted to spend an evening stuck inside we all fancied a go at the roof of the Hydraulic Tower. The only issue was it was seriously windy at ground level, so god knows what it'd be like up the top.

After having a poke around the Vauxhall Effluent Drain we made our way here and bumped into a couple of nice guys round the back who turned out to be from NWEX (hi if you're reading this!) - who would've thought there would be two groups of unconnected people planning the same thing on the same night at the same time!

History - shamelessly copied from TLR's report who copied it from Wiki.

Jesse Hartley, who was responsible for many of Liverpool's maritime structures - including the Albert Dock, designed the Central Hydraulic Tower and Engine House. Providing power for the movement of lock gates and bridges at Birkenhead Docks, it was completed in 1863.

The design of the building was based on the Palazzo Vecchio in the Piazza Della Signoria, Florence, Italy.

The building sustained considerable damage from bombing during the Second World War and was repaired in a functional, rather than architectural style. The large lantern at the top of the tower was not replaced.

In March 2008, a planning application was submitted for a Â£12 million restoration and redevelopment of the building by Peel Holdings to be converted into a bar and restaurant. A ninety-two bed hotel complex is planned to be constructed immediately adjacent to it.

This was the first proper night test for my camera.