Harris Museum: Victorian Society condemns council renovation plans

The Victorian Society said it had "major" concerns about changes to an entrance and a loggia

A council's plans to alter "one of the finest examples of Greek Revival architecture in the country" have been condemned by a historical society.

Preston City Council announced a £10.7m scheme to "future-proof" the Grade I listed Harris Museum in November.

Responding to the proposals, the Victorian Society (VS) said they did not "adequately take into account the special architectural qualities of this magnificent building".

The council declined to comment.

The Harris Museum was designed by local architect and former city mayor James Hibbert, who built many of the buildings in Preston, and opened in 1893.

'Symmetry and balance'

In November, the authority said the project aimed to "conserve and reveal" the building's original architecture, improve accessibility and ensure it remained relevant "to future generations".

The plans included "accentuating an original entrance", installing a ground floor Changing Places facility and infilling a loggia - an open-sided roofed gallery - to house a new lift and staircase.

A VS spokeswoman said there were questions over whether the proposals were "the best way" of achieving the changes and planners should refuse the scheme "to alter one of the finest examples of Greek Revival architecture in the country".

She said the infilling of the loggia and the removal of gates and stone parapets from the Lancaster Road entrance were of "major concern", as the former would impact heavily on the building's "symmetry and balance", while the latter would erode its design with "no benefits gained".

The VS's conservation adviser Tom Taylor said the body "objects in the strongest possible terms [as] these proposals do not adequately take into account the special architectural qualities of this magnificent building".

Preston City Council said as the planning application was live, "we cannot comment at this time".