News - Council fighting on to get listed status (Kimberley)

KIMBERLEY Town Council is fighting on to get an old railway building at the brewery site listed after an appeal was rejected.

Councillors applied to get the old Midland Railway building listed in April 2009 and when it was rejected they appealed.

But the appeal was recently rejected and councillors are now asking Nottinghamshire’s Thoroton Historical Society and the Civic Society to help.

Council chairman Roy Plumb said it was a very significant building and if it was listed it could be restored.

“We feel the fact that it’s so unique has been overlooked. Unless we get new intervention we have shot it. And yet that building is of a very important nature,” he said.

“We are looking for fresh blood. These societies might see some other features that were not taken into account during the decision making process,

“The Thoroton Society has been going for over 100 years and is very well respected.

“We are hoping that they may well have the experience and enthusiasm to take it on board for us because they will see the potential for it straight away.”

The station was one of the first arts and crafts style buildings, if not the first, built by Charles Trubshaw for Midland Railway in 1879.

Cllr Plumb said the building had been vandalised to ‘high heaven’ over the years, but if it was given listed status it could be restored and cleaned up.

The council wants the building to be given listed status so it becomes a feature in Kimberley, said the chairman.

“People will come to look at its unique features,” he said.

“If it’s got significant value in the architectural world, it would make something of it. We could bring it back to its original style and appearance.”

Features of an arts and crafts style building include prominent chimneys and decorative sunflower images.

Kimberley historian John Lee said: “It’s a shame the appeal was rejected, but involving the Thoroton Society is a good idea because they have people with a lot of expertise.

“It’s a very rare building architecturally,” he added.

Charles Trubshaw went on to design some very key buildings for Midland Railway and has several listed buildings elsewhere in the country.

From: http://www.eastwoodadvertiser.co.uk/news/eastwood-kimberley-news/council_fighting_on_to_get_listed_status_1_4080519