Kings Cross Central

Proposals for a site within the Argent Kings Cross development including public open space and new uses for listed gasometers.
Priestman Architects were commissioned to test assumptions made in the masterplan by Allies and Morrison and Dimitri Prophyrios, and assess viable density.
Critical constraints of the site include the new high speed rail line from the St Pancras international terminal to the North, adjacency to and interaction with public open space and neighbouring sites and the need for connections to surrounding areas.
Proposals include the design for a hybrid building typology combining apartments with site-wide parking. Parking for 850 cars on 7 floors serves and reduces construction costs for adjacent plots, provides acoustic and visual screening to the railway, and creates the opportunity for drive-in living at high level and landscaped gardens on the roof.
Single aspect apartments and shops or workplaces at ground floor including 400 units of varying sizes is wrapped around the South and East side of the building and conceals the car parking.
Instead of trying to build within the retained gasometers, these beautiful structures are to be celebrated as sculptures in public space. This allows the proposed adjacent buildings to be taller and denser, since overlooking is reduced and daylight increased.