1-2 Orange Grove, City Centre
1-2 Orange Grove forms part of a Grade II early 18th century “parade of shops” with upper floor accommodation, situated within the Bath conservation are and World Heritage Site. The row presents an unusually early survival of early 18th century architecture within Bath, considering its largely late 18th century – early 19th century redevelopment in the Georgian style. Its uniform frontage is attributed to alteration works in 1897 by CE Davis with a gabled roofline, scalloped first floor window reveals, and unusual ten-over-one sash windows. The result is a row distinctive in its designed homogeneity that offers a sharp contrast with Bath’s typical vernacular style and a Victorian insertion within the city centre, adjacent to the Grade II 1900s Empire Hotel.
BPT has some general concerns regarding the insufficient information submitted in relation the scope of works. At this stage, it is not felt that a sufficient level of detail has been provided to illustrate the degree of impact of the proposed works, or else how any potential harm would be appropriately mitigated or offset.
Proposals are indicated to relate to internal works, whilst referring to proposed remedial repairs to the external render “to prevent further water ingress into the fabric”. Given the prominent location of the building within the historic city centre and the distinctive appearance of its rendered exterior, particular care is needed to ensure an appropriate appearance and finish with regard to the render mix, colour, and texture, which should be clarified as part of this application.
The basement is indicated to be “suffering from water ingress and are therefore of limited use in their current condition”, with general proposals to improve internal conditions via ventilation and heating, though no additional information regarding a clear specification of material interventions is available as yet. We note that the previous withdrawn application 21/01901/LBA proposed a dry-lining system, and encourage consideration of options that could sufficiently address damp issues without resorting to internal tanking works. There currently isn’t enough information provided regarding the proposed measures to be able to offer further comment.
The indicated possibility of insulating the external walls should be appropriately considered in relation to any internal or external features or finishes of historic interest and how these would interact with the proposed insulation layer. It is currently suggested that the insulation would be fitted within the timber framed structure of the external walls. No specification of the proposed sheep’s wool insulation is currently provided, such as its proposed thickness and any resulting change in the building’s appearance or articulation, particularly in relation to corners, reveals, and window/door openings.
Opportunities for the installation of secondary glazing are generally supported where this would facilitate the thermal upgrade of existing windows with minimal loss of historic fabric. We recommend provision of further details regarding the proposed secondary glazing model to be used and the windows proposed for upgrade, to be illustrated with relevant contextual sections.
At this stage, we reserve any further comments until relevant drawings and sections are provided to illustrate the proposed scope of works in more comprehensive detail.