Aim to bring back '1960s vibe' to derelict block

Mark Braund is the architect responsible for transforming the Civic Centre in Plymouth

The new architect appointed to transform a landmark derelict building into 140 new homes is aiming to bring back the "1960s vibe".

The Civic Centre in Plymouth, which was first opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1962, has been empty since council staff left the premises in 2015.

A previous plan to renovate the 14-storey building was abandoned and Plymouth City Council bought the site back from developers Urban Splash in 2024 for £1.

Plymouth City Council now has £20m from Homes England to start work on the site and has appointed Building Design Partnership (BDP) to come up with a new plan to rejuvenate the building which has been Grade II listed since 2007.

The Civic Centre in Plymouth was first opened in 1962

Plymouth City College struck a deal with the council in 2024 to set up a campus on the bottom two floors of the site.

Mark Braund, architect director at BDP, said the building offered an incredible opportunity.

He said: "It's an amazing urban loft-style living with exposed surfaces. That's our ambition that we'd like to achieve with this building - a really unique product for Plymouth.

"There are amazing views out over the city and we want to capitalise on all of that 1960s vibe this building has - we just need to bring it back out."

BDP has worked on previous Plymouth projects including the University of Plymouth's Roland Levinsky building and the Theatre Royal regeneration project completed in 2013.

Plymouth's city centre champion Mark Lowry wants to bring the Civic Centre "back to life"

The Civic Centre was a central part of the rebuilding of the city centre following the devastating bombing across the city in the Second World War.

Mark Lowry, city centre champion at Plymouth City Council, said the Civic Centre was "so important to our regeneration story".

He said: "I think we can give people some confidence. We've got a very ambitious programme to bring this building back to life.

"We've now got the right architect in place, we've got City College on the ground floors of this building and we're bringing it forward for residential opportunities in the coming years."

A new planning application is expected to be submitted later this year as detail from the original application has changed.

Work on stripping out the building is continuing and the council said it could take between five and six years to complete the redevelopment.