A City Within A City
Summerhall is a City within the City, a maze of courts, closes, halls and back stairs, full of artistry and industry, with all sorts of galleries and theatres, brewers and distillers, tech innovation and quiet studios, but with the Arts leading all. Like all cities it has backwaters, including abandoned or underused buildings and corners. But its future is uncertain as its vast contribution to the culture of Edinburgh and beyond relies on considerable philanthropic subsidy.
This Proposal looks to reorganise the creative uses more efficiently within the site’s historic sections, and so release the two “unloved” 60s/70s
Brutalist buildings for transformation into:
- A Summerhall Arts Hotel in the tower and up Hope Park Terrace, with a rooftop terrace bar and restaurant and a party hat terrace on top taking advantage of the mindblowing views across Edinburgh.
- A small Summerhall Square Student component in the 1970s Summerhall Square block.
Both of these will be high-end, with the hotel aiming to attract a guest of the Taylor-Swift-at-Murrayfield variety – understanding that the higher end will cross-subsidise the arts best, while all new hotel and student users will gain value from, and add value to, Summerhall’s principal arts use.
Summary Virtues:
- The Robert McDowell legacy enshrined;
- The primary success enshrined: a Summerhall Arts Hub, that is a city and international focus for the mix of arts and crafts that has brought such energy to Edinburgh;
- The Summerhall Arts Hotel as described, that adds to the diversity and glamour of the site and that cross-supports the primary arts activities;
- No buildings demolished; all enhanced.
COLLABORATOR / Summerhall Arts
BRIEF / Reorganisation of extensive arts and creative site with cross subsidising support for the central arts function
FLA TEAM / Ayla Riome, Felix Wilson, Malcolm Fraser, Susanna Boreham
The Summerhall Arts Hotel
The biggest transformation is to the 7-storey 1969 New Brutalist Tower. It’s stripped back to its frame, reclad and reoccupied, and heightened by a rooftop “party hat” bar/restaurant, augmenting its stunning views out over the Meadows to the Castle, across to Arthur’s Seat and the wide sweep from the Pentlands to the Forth, encompassing all the Seven Hills of Edinburgh. On the ground floor a new, wide foyer reflects the top of the tower and opens the whole site up to the Meadows, drawing visitors in and connecting them through to the main courtyard – which is opened-up and surrounded by a sheltering loggia.
The Hotel’s close association with the main site should make it the top draw for top visitors to the city, attracted by, and feeding into, the energy of Summerhall Arts.
An Adaptive Reuse Diagram
All numbers and areas are approximate; for instance note that we are suggesting that reorganisation, alongside investment and improved access throughout, might allow all current users that wish to remain in the site to do so. However this will depend on very detailed investigation plus much detailed discussion with an eventual owner/partners/investors around use, funding and business plan.
Summerhall Arts: the lead user on the site – its core and value:
- 6442 sqm of galleries, studios, tech spaces, cafes and theatres and halls, in the main building, Dissection Room wing and rear Stables and rooms above the Brewery;
- Including the Library and Galleries, Demonstration Room and Anatomy Room theatres and Café
Summerhall Crafts: 1175 sqm for current users including Pickering’s Distillery, Barney’s Brewery and the Old Dick Bar, in locations as existing.
The Summerhall Arts Hotel: 4170 sqm overall including:
- Opportunity for 80 rooms, ranging between 18-29 sqm, or larger rooms with fewer numbers
- 183 sqm rooftop bar with 313 sqm terrace, both with fabulous views across the site and the city beyond
- 865 sqm ground floor dining and lobby, welcome and link into the central courtyard
The former Hope Park Church: at the very north-west corner, with its own main entrance possible from Hope Park Terrace. Principal possible uses, both complementary to the site in general:
- The Demarco Archive, currently in the front building; or
- A separate Wedding, Conference and general Event Space, operated by the Hotel
The Student Wing: 1795 sqm overall incorporating 36 rooms, with external terrace overlooking Arthur’s Seat
Options
We would, of course, look to decarbonise energy generation on the site, with geothermal heat pumps being obvious solutions: this practice has installed them at the Dovecot Studios nearby. But there is an opportunity, too, to use the lofty 1970s chimney: up there the wind will be vigorous and consistent so we might propose to make it even taller with a Savonious Wind Turbine – neat and quiet, spinning round on the same place like a billowing flag for low carbon.
Suggestions for materials and colours are shown, and would be tested further.
