Restoration work starts on Navy site
Fears still remain over Royal Navy’s crumbling historic buildings
HERITAGE leaders have welcomed a ‘change of heart’ by the Ministry of Defence to save historic naval buildings from crumbling after decades of neglect.
Restoration has finally begun to protect the historic The Parade in Portsmouth Naval Base which was in urgent need of work to stop it collapsing.
Numbers 2-8 of the elegant Georgian terrace of former dockyard officers’ houses had been blighted by damp, while a repairs schedule – originally promised in 2009 – was placed on the backburner.
Now, scaffolding has been fitted around the buildings to begin work to fully weatherproof the terrace – which was built between 1715 and 1719.
The efforts have been welcomed by the Naval Dockyards Society. However, the chairman of the organisation, Dr Ann Coat, warned there were still seven other sites that needed urgent attention to save them.
Among them included the former Royal Naval Academy, which has stood at the military hub since 1729.
Dr Coats said the Georgian Grade II-listed building was one of the oldest on the dockyard but had been left ravaged by dry rot and water penetration since its closure in 2007.
Sources have previously told The News it could take as much as £7m to rescue the historic site and make it structurally safe.
And although the Royal Navy confirmed it was ‘considering’ how it could protect the at-risk heritage asset, officials would not say when any action might be taken.
Dr Coats said: ‘This is a tragedy because these buildings have been paid for by all the taxpayers of the past.
‘They have been built by Portsmouth and Gosport people; they have been part of creating the navy that we have today.
‘They are listed and are part of our heritage and must be protected and preserved at all costs.’
The oldest site still in need of restoration is the Grade I No 6 dock, which was built in 1700. Its stone work has been weathered by sun and frost, with the lower stones disintegrating and mortar joints opening up.
The unused east wing of the Grade II-listed iron and brass foundry, in Victoria Road, is at risk after years of neglect, as is the Portsmouth pay office, in College Road, which is suffering from damaged brickwork.
Warnings have also been issued over the future of the No 25 Store, in Jago Road, the Grade I-listed Portsmouth Block Mills, in Main Road, and the historic railway track on the base.
Speaking of the restoration work on The Parade, Dr Coats added: ‘It seems that the MoD has had a very positive change of heart and is finally acting to refurbish the historic fabric of this at-risk structure.This is exciting and heartening news.
‘To have the outstanding and historic Parade visibly deteriorating opposite Victory House must have been a cause of great embarrassment to the navy.’
Dr Coats has previously warned that work to repair all the sites could cost as much as £15m. She is now urging for the Ministry of Defence to set up a separate body to oversee responsibility for the project.
A spokeswoman for the Royal Navy said: ‘The Ministry of Defence recognises the importance of maintaining our historic buildings, and we can confirm that we are undertaking work to ensure that Long Row, known as The Parade, in Portsmouth Naval Base is wind and weather proof.
‘We are also considering how we can protect other important buildings in the base, preserving Naval Heritage assets for future generations.’