The tower crane at Jesus College’s Northgate development site, which has become a familiar addition to the Oxford skyline over the past sixteen months, is being dismantled this week.
The removal of the crane, which has lifted hundreds of tonnes of materials on to and around the site, marks the beginning of the fit-out phase for the College’s project to create a brand new £40m building in the city centre.
The tower crane at Jesus College’s Northgate site is being removed this week
Northgate, which sits at the corner of Cornmarket Street and Market Street, will provide the College with exceptional new teaching and research facilities, a Digital Hub, indoor and outdoor communal spaces, postgraduate accommodation, a café and public exhibition spaces. It will also comprise new retail units and an NHS medical centre for the local community and visitors to the city. The project is due for completion in late 2021.
The crane, in place since February 2020, has been essential to enabling the College’s construction partners BAM to manoeuvre materials on to around the site with minimal disruption to neighbouring buildings and shops. The dismantling process will take around three days to complete, with the first stage being to carefully remove the long lifting arm.
Work is also about to begin on the removal of scaffolding to the Cornmarket frontage of the building, giving the general public their first view of the development’s stone and glass facade. David Stevenson, Jesus College’s Property Director, says, “Over the next few weeks, BAM will slowly and carefully start to take down the scaffolding that has hidden the building from view for much of the past year. We are all looking forward to seeing the new Northgate emerge.”
An architectural model of the new Northgate building, designed by MICA Architects
Behind the scenes, a range of highly-skilled contractors, including stonemasons, electricians and plasterers, are hard at work. David says, “Despite the COVID-19 restrictions in place, which mean that the teams must maintain social-distancing and adhere to mask-wearing guidelines where required, the site is buzzing with activity. Glazing and roofing is completed, and second-fix electrical work is now underway in the student accommodation block. Plastering has begun across many internal spaces, and stonemasons are currently installing stone work in our new quadrangle. It’s wonderful to see the building transforming, and the vision of our architects MICA becoming a reality.”
For more information about the redevelopment of Northgate, click here.
