Heritage ‘not a consideration’ as council weighs up Dorman Long tower demolition application

Plans were lodged last month by the South Tees Development Corporation to dismantle the 56 feet high former coal tower in Nelson Street, South Bank, which has been described by some as “iconic” and an important local landmark on Teesside.

The development corporation is part of the Tees Valley Combined Authority and has responsibility for the former Redcar steelworks site – now known as ‘Teesworks’ – on which the tower sits, and is tasked with regenerating the area and bringing new investment.

Photographs recently taken by members of the public of the Dorman Long tower show machinery belonging to demolition specialists Thompsons of Prudhoe at the foot of the structure, prompting the combined authority to deny that work has already begun.

The application, which states the building is structurally unsound and cannot remain, is a ‘prior notification of development’ application, meaning the council, as the local planning authority, can only consider the method of demolition and any proposed restoration of the site.

A letter submitted with the application by Phil McCarthy, the associate director of planning agents Lichfield, said: “It would not be appropriate from the local planning authority to consider any matters beyond these considerations.”

It added: “The works will be undertaken methodically and safely, resulting in no impact to the surrounding area.

“The clearance of the site will facilitate its future development, in line with the aspiration of Teesworks.”

Nonetheless the plans have led to opposition from Redcar and Cleveland councillors and members of the public who have commented on them online.

The council said the application differed from a planning application that would be usually considered by members of its regulatory committee and a final decision would be taken using its delegated powers.

In a statement it said: “In the case of demolition the local planning authority can only consider the method of demolition and the aftercare of the site. 

“If the local planning authority has no issues in this respect, then it is likely that prior approval will not be required.”

The council said the development corporation had provided a copy of a site notice dated August 19, which required any responses to be submitted before September 9.

It added: “The Dorman Long tower is not listed and does not lie in an area of special control, and so it benefits from no protection under the Planning Act. 

“As such, the council cannot consider any heritage considerations in considering the prior approval application.”

A spokesman for the combined authority said there was work going on “in and around” the tower, but much of it had been associated with taking down the adjacent South Bank coke oven battery, which is making way for a new wind turbine manufacturing facility.

He said: “[Our contractor] is also tasked with demolishing the rest of the infrastructure around there, which involves decontaminating all the pipework and cutting that out.

“Nothing structurally has been changed with the tower.

“There was a small reddish-brown lean-to bit of brickwork on the front of it which contained some pipework which has gone.

“All the work is just to coincide with the rest of the demolition programme that has already been put through.”

The spokesman said the combined authority did not want to presume the outcome of the application.

“The planning has gone in there and we can’t try and determine what the planners might say or not,” he said.

“Everything we do has to go through the local planning authority, what happens then and the consultation needing to be gone through is determined by the nature of the application.

“We have not started any work on demolition, these are ancillary works in and around on all the other structures that are coming down.”

Alastair Smith, who recently photographed the tower while walking along the nearby ‘Black Path’, said a concrete skirt at the bottom of the tower had been removed, which he speculated was to expose the load bearing beams of the structure to a demolition blast.

Petitions launched

Two petitions in protest have been started on the change.org website – one launched by Teesville councillor Vincent Smith.

Cllr Smith said the building was an “iconic landmark” which should be retained and re-purposed as a lasting testament to the hard work of generations of iron and steelworkers.

He said: “I challenge them [the development corporation] to publish the survey on the building, what estimated cost of repair is stated over the cost of the demolition? 

“Is the land the tower occupies really essential to redevelopment or is it being cleared just in case it is required?”

Cllr Sue Jeffrey, who represents South Bank, referenced the council’s local plan which she said sought to “safeguard and enhance the significance of buildings, sites, settings and areas of heritage and cultural importance, including the Dorman Long tower”.

She said: “I believe the council as planning authority should be taking steps to stop this demolition by immediately serving a building preservation order on the tower. 

“This will delay demolition for six months and allow time for the council to submit an application for listed status to Historic England in line with the Local Plan policy to safeguard the tower.”

Another petition has been drawn up by the Labour group leader on the council, Councillor Carl Quartermain.

He said the Dorman Long tower should be preserved on the grounds of protecting industrial heritage and identity for future generations. 

Cllr Quartermain mocked Redcar Conservative MP Jacob Young on Twitter, who previously said he was committed to preserving the tower if it was safe to do so and would be a “powerful voice” for its preservation.

Last year Mr Young co-chaired a ‘heritage taskforce’ set up at the request of Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen which aimed to make recommendations about elements of the former steelworks site which could be retained for heritage purposes.

Those recommendations, which included the go-ahead to remove the blast furnace, were criticised by campaigners wishing to retain the core of the furnace as a potential tourist attraction and to showcase the historic steel industry, and variously described as a “whitewash” and “cultural vandalism”.

While the future of the Dorman Long tower has always been under consideration, it was never on a list of nine primary assets set to be demolished.

Work has taken place, however, to inspect the structure and provide a full picture of its condition.

When the taskforce revealed its recommendations in January it said work on assessing the future of the tower as a “built asset”, along with other potential future uses should continue.

Mr Young said: “I have made it clear that I didn’t want Dorman Long Tower to be demolished, I argued against this and I’m disappointed with the decision that has been taken.

“Back when I was an apprentice at TTE, I’d look out of the window and see that Tower and think about the history that it's seen.  It has stood for almost 70 years emblazoned with the words that are printed on Steel Beams across the globe and it stands as monument to the workers of Teesside who forged that Steel and built the World.

“I've always said we need to recognise the historical and sentimental value that the Tower holds.  However if this part of the site is to be used to bring jobs to the area, jobs of the future, and jobs for local people, then this has to be the way forward for our area.

“Through the Teesworks Heritage Taskforce, we've worked to ensure the site and its legacy is properly recorded to highest standard.  As part of this work we have developed a digital twin of the Tower so that it can be digitally recreated elsewhere and properly remembered.

“The Taskforce have also asked for a life size replica of the iconic Dorman Long lettering from the Tower to be created and incorporated into the future of the site.

“My focus is on Teesside’s journey towards our cleaner future, with 18,000 new jobs over the next five years.  We’ve got to do what is right for the region as a whole and sometimes, however regrettable, that means accepting decisions such as this.”

Meanwhile, charity the C20 Society, which campaigns to preserve notable 20th century architecture and design, said it was putting together a “strong letter of objection”.

It said: “This 1950s tower is an important local landmark and monument to Teesside’s industrial past and should not be destroyed.”

Nick Taylor, from the Dorman Long building preservation group, said in his comment on the plans that Dorman Long, which constructed the Sydney Harbour Bridge, was a “titanic name” that resonated around the world and the Dorman Long tower one of its key structures.

He said: “I and many other members of the public feel this plan to demolish the Dorman Long tower has been kept low key from the general public and not actively publicised.”

Former Redcar MP Anna Turley has been among those criticising the move.

She said on Twitter: “In London they can spend £6m on a weird temporary eyesore around Marble Arch.

“In Teesside our mayor and Tory MPs are proposing to demolish an iconic piece of industrial heritage that could be transformed into an architectural and cultural institution.

“Not acceptable.”

Some on social media have suggested the tower could be retained and incorporated into a more modern structure or facility, drawing parallels with the Baltic flour mill in Gateshead which was incorporated into the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art.

The Dorman Long Tower was erected in the 1950s.

Coal was stored in the tower and fed along a conveyor belt into the coke ovens which fuelled the blast furnace in order to make steel.