Garturk Street

Restoration of decayed Grade A Listed 1876 tenement by Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson to provide 8 modern flats for Govanhill Housing Association for Affordable Rental.

The building is one end of a City Block containing 6 ‘Greek’ Thomson tenements on Garturk - Allison – Daisy Streets and was in appalling condition. The uninhabitable building had suffered fire, severe water ingress, extensive timber decay, received little maintenance over years.

The project’s crucial role in GhHA’s 4 year programme to acquire property will help reverse a rundown area of multiple deprivation, with partnership from Scottish Government, GCC-DRS and Govanhill HA. Comprehensive Building Repairs included new matching stone indents, slated roof and new timber double-glazed sash and case windows, meeting stringent Listed Building Consent conditions. Floor-by-floor rebuilding of the timber joists and flooring was a priority to restore structural integrity.

ASSIST’s experience of Listed/Legacy buildings over 50 years provided the expertise and experience essential to the success of this Garturk Street project. We created contemporary pleasant flats which provided modern facilities, met current comfort, wall insulation/energy, security and sustainability standards; we restored and built on the recognised spatial advantages of tenement flats. Impressive front rooms and hall areas received repaired/replacement cornices, fire-resistant ceilings, ceiling roses plus natural timber skirtings, architraves and window linings, to match original site patterns.

The maximised use of natural materials, retention and reuse of existing fabric and space plus long-life specification all contribute to improved sustainability. In terms of innovation, we created elegant and sympathetic frameless glass safety panels on upper floor windows to compliment the restored building, visually unintrusive while maintaining residents’ safety. We always considered the long-term attractiveness of the flats and building to residents. Some clever and simple answers included painted finishes and colour schemes in the common close incorporating a custom-design stencil, echoing Thomson’s interest in Greek and Egyptian motifs. Re-use of the building shell and internal volumes/spaces reduces the carbon footprint of this affordable housing: refurbishment by nature is employment/labour intensive. The restored building has been viewed by Client, Funders, local residents and the Press: it has been publicly hailed as a Transformation.