Abominable?

Architect Trevor Horne has been forced to defend his "curious building which reflected the history of the city" to the City Council's Conservative and Heritage Panel.

Panel member Andy Foster, of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, loathed the cantilevered blocks extending from the tower.

He said: “It’s abominable. It’s like a punch in the face by an architectural fist.

“It has no relation to place or location, it is out of scale with the buildings around it. It’s like something from Alice in Wonderland, a place where the normal rules don’t apply.”

http://www.birminghampost.net/news/newsaggregator/2009/02/10/planned-birmingham-tower-block-near-bullring-slammed-as-abominable-65233-22890457/

The 27 storey block is part of the Kuwaiti backed scheme Beorma Quarter by developer Salhia.

Panel members including representatives of the Victorian Society, Twentieth Century Society and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings were all opposed to the development with no-one speaking in favour of it at the panel meeting.

Council leader Mike Whitby, who visited Kuwait last month, is a keen supporter of the scheme as it brings the promise of more investment and 3,000 jobs to Birmingham.

Speaking late last year Coun Whitby (Con Harborne) said: “The important thing about this is that the money to pay for Beorma is coming from Kuwait and will not be subject to the credit crunch. We are not talking about sub-prime loans here.

“Other Middle Eastern companies are also looking at the potential offered by the city of Birmingham in recognition that our economy is robust. They see this as a good place to do business now and in the future.”

http://www.birminghampost.net/news/2009/02/10/planned-birmingham-tower-block-near-bullring-slammed-as-abominable-65233-22890457/2/