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Tower blocks Perry Barr demolition.

gary6373

gary6373

knowlegable brummie
They're pulling the flats down. photos taken today Mon 1st March. Nice day for it I guess.:(
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Tweed Tower
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Like a huge dinosaur
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Good heavens....what a monster...better than that bashing ball thingy. When were those buildings built?
 
I reckon they were built in the 70s we used to call them suicide blocks for obvious reasons


Mossy
 
Thanks for the info Mossy. Yes, I get the name for them. Oh dear! Those are great photos Gary 6373 Thanks for posting them.
Wonder what's going up in their place.
 
Only a guess but i reckon they were built late 50s early 60s.
Two more photos.
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water spray? to keep the dust down?
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im sure i read in the newspaper that there is going to be low cost housing on the site
 
jennyann said:
Good heavens....what a monster...better than that bashing ball thingy. When were those buildings built?
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Im sure the first tower blocks went up in about 1956. I started infant school that year and remember watching the huge tower crane over the block during the construction. All long before the underpass, Birchfield road was awash with large imposing Edwardian/Victorian gentlemans residences, houses similiar to the still standing Britsh Legion. Many were becoming derilect and I remember exploring these and scrumping in the huge back gardens behind them. It is indeed a sign of advancing years when buidings seen constructed a a child are put under the hammer.
 
They were built in 1957/58, and as John Davies says all along that stretch of Birchfield Road were huge residences in their own grounds. The family of a schoolfriend of mine lived in the middle block, and when they were new the flats were pretty nice places - no vandalism or graffitti, just decent families glad to have been moved out of the Summer Lane scrums. Even the lifts worked! I'm glad they're coming down though, as they'd become a real eyesore, as has the underpass, if anyone's driven through it recently.

Big Gee
 
I think Enid Goodwins was along that stretch of Perry Barr. Thank goodness those tower blocks are gone, that bit of Birchfield Road is confusing to drive along, especially if you want to turn right to go along the Broadway. Maybe they will sort that out with the new buildings going up. The underpass as you say Graham is an eyesore.
 
Thanks for the photo's Gary. I had a few friends who lived there or the houses at the back. Went to several parties there in the early 60's and they were very smart flats and I never fealt afraid not like these days. Glad they are going or have gone by now. Di the bit I do not like is cutting across from the left looking towards Perry Barr onto the underpass as no one will give. Jean.
 
Think these tower blocks were built around 1964.I had a mate who moved to calder tower when they were first built.He had been moved from wilton st
 
That was the time I went ot party's there at Bobby Aldridges flat and they were lovely then. My friend Brenda Brown lived in a small house just behind them. Jean.
 
#1. Di that's where we cut in to go under the underpass and it is a nightmare. I wish Pete would go the long way round. Down that way tomorrow so will see how much progress they have made with the flats. Jean.
 
Di.Poppitt said:
I think Enid Goodwins was along that stretch of Perry Barr. Thank goodness those tower blocks are gone, that bit of Birchfield Road is confusing to drive along, especially if you want to turn right to go along the Broadway. Maybe they will sort that out with the new buildings going up. The underpass as you say Graham is an eyesore.
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I remember Enid Goodwins, used to go to classes there on a Saturday lunchtime. It was just past the flats in Livingstone Road if I remember rightly?
Previous to that, I used to go to Ballet and tap lessons in one of the big houses on the opposite side of Birchfield Road..
It must seem strange to see the flats gone now.
 
great pics..i think the other two towers are birchfield and calder...my son was hoping that they would bought down by explosives a few seconds apart but there would have been too much disruption and danger to do it that way...

lyn
 
Yes Lyn to close to the underpass the tremor may have done to much damage. they had to to do the cooling towers in Nechells the same way to close to the motorway. Took em months. Dek
 
ahh right dek....it fascinated our tom when we took him to see them bring down the tower block that was next to the royal oak pub lozells road...that would be just over three years ago...

lyn
 
Hi Dek: It's going to be very different around Perry Barr without those blocks of flats when the last one comes down. Do you know what is in the works for the area following this demolition?
 
Jennyann I was wondering that too. I do remember going to a party there when I was in my teens and thinking I wouldn't like to live that hight up. I don't think I looked out of the window all night as it was one of the top flats. Jean.
 
On a visit to Birmingham in 1980 I was invited to view someones apartment which was in a high rise building in Edgbaston. It was night time so it was interesting to look over the city with all the lights far below and stretching into the distance. I did comment, however, that I felt it highly unlikely that I would like to live in the building although being a block of privately owned apartments it most likely did not suffer from the issues that the local authority blocks did. I often wonder what the views of people were who lived in high rise structures:I am sure many liked them for a variety of reasons - well maybe those who did not like gardening. :D

In the early 1990's I had occasion to visit a Municipal seven or eight storey structure, used by the local Council as offices, in Hanley, Staffordshire. In conversation with someone who worked in the building she told me that no floor above the third was used as staff felt sick due to the movement of the building due to wind. I wonder about the movement of the very tall tower blocks such as the ones which are the subject of this thread. Did they noticeably sway and was it felt by those living in them?
 
I feel really sad that the flats have gone .My childhood has gone, I lived in one of the maisonettes which were built first.I lived there for ten years, happy days running up and down all the stairs in the flats.I remember so well there were fourteen floors people used to hang their washing out on the very top floor.the flats were lovely inside.The one underpass at the top of Birchfield road was built not long after my sister Susan was knocked down.We used to have great fun in the playground next to the flats,If we played kick the can we always hid in the flats.I went to Canterbury Cross School and went to Enid Goodwins Saturday afternoons.I also remember the precint being built at Perry Barr too.Does anyone remember Byrons Cafe?
 
I think Byrons Cafe was in the block where Lloyds Bank used to be. My mother and I would pop in when we got off the bus from town. She fancied the bloke who owned it!

Big Gee
 
As far as I can recall Byron's was on the other side of Birchfield Road, not far from the Odeon Cinema.

Going off-thread a bit, but I remember Perry Barr Precinct very well. There was a very good Indian restaurant in the tower block, and I knew the Applebys who owned Sports & Leisure in the shopping square. Unfortunately the place became semi-derelict very quickly, and unsafe because of unsavoury characters hanging around.

Big Gee
 
HI BIG GEE
Nice to hear about that demolition going on its well over due was nt there a murder there in the big blocks years ago of an old lady
i have been to the perry barr shopping centre a few weeks ago but i did not feel safe from the muggers and i thought more of my car being nicked
wondering whethjer its still there or not
Oh by the way gee i have just e mailed you again in case you have not noticed okay Alan Astonian
 
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