Fraser/Livingstone Architects continue to campaign for the retention of Argyle House, around the issues of Waste: of carbon, of the outstanding Edinburgh architectural history it represents, and of the 900 tech jobs it nurtures.
To those who ask what major work, including net-zero retrofits and big glam upgrades, would we propose, in an ideal world, we point out that a critical aspect of the building and institution's success is that it provides low-rental space for start-ups. Any major refit that translates into a steep rent rise would be self-defeating. However, if there was a relatively benevolent owner, willing to invest in some simple upgrades, we would suggest the following modest upgrades:
1. Repairs: roof, leaks etc - sensible, basic stuff
2. Decarbonise Energy Generation - likely geothermal heat pumps
3. West Port Pocket Park: replace the small number of parking spaces to the main entrance front with trees, forming a wee Pocket Park, relieving the claustrophobia the junction (and the owner's new proposals) threatens with the "letting a little sunshine and nature in" that Edinburgh polymath Patrick Geddes called for.
And, if finance allows:
4. Public Close: take a new (daytime, closed at night) public route through the building. We accept its big, grey townscape has many virtues, but it does block a huge slab of Old Town. A Close would link through to the regeneration around King's Stables Road behind, with separate wings of the building entered off it.
Thereafter, replacement windows, new social hubs and cafes, and general fit-out and energy-saving improvements, would be next on the list - if finance allowed.
Link to our library piece - Wealth or Waste
