| Tower Place | City of London |
Tower Place was initially laid out in 1962-66 to the west and south of All Hallows-by-the-Tower Church to provide public open space when 16-storey office buildings were erected. A large open space with 2 courtyards was created, granite setts to the north demarcating land once part of the churchyard. The area was entirely redeveloped in 1992-2002 in a scheme that included a new public plaza with seating, trees and water adjacent to All Hallows Church, partly sheltered by the 26m glass atrium that connects the two office buildings.
The information shown above was correct at the time of the last update 01/04/2010
Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news.
www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/openspaces
The information below is taken from the relevant Local Authority's planning legislation, which was correct at the time of research but may have been amended in the interim. Please check with the Local Authority for latest planning information.
Tower Place, April 2010. Photo: S Williams
Click photo to enlarge.
Tower Place was laid out to the west and south of All Hallows by the Tower (q.v.) in 1962-66 to provide public open space when office buildings were erected here, a joint scheme of London County Council, Corporation of London and the then Borough of Stepney, now London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Sir Basil Spence was the consultant architect. The site was a large open space with two courtyards; to the north granite setts demarcated land that had been formerly part of the churchyard, the rest paved. The Bowring Building had a courtyard with planters and a sculpture by John Robinson 'The Hammer Thrower' (1973) and a number of mature trees including plane, cherry, beech. The southern courtyard provided views of the river.
The area was redeveloped between 1992-2002 with a new low-rise office development of two buildings joined by an immense glazed atrium by Foster + Partners replacing the 16-storey high buildings of the 1960s. The development sought to restore the site's traditional urban grain, reinstating historical views and creating a new public plaza with trees and water in front of All Hallows Church. Designed by Townshend Landscape Architects, the new space is partly sheltered by Tower Place Atrium and incorporates two designated City Walkways, inviting people to use it as a thoroughfare or as a sheltered place to meet friends and colleagues throughout the day.
Simon Bradley & Nikolaus Pevsner, 'The Buildings of England, London 1: The City of London', 1997 (1999 ed.): Foster+Partner website