The Alexandra Park and Palace Statutory Advisory Committee was scheduled to consider a proposal for a new storage building in the West Yard of Alexandra Palace. The meeting's agenda also included standard procedural items.

West Yard Storage Project

The committee was scheduled to be advised and informed about the principles of a new storage building proposed for the West Yard of Alexandra Palace. This project is intended to precede a presentation of the proposal to the Alexandra Park and Palace Charitable Trust Board.

The report pack indicated that the East Wing Restoration Project, funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and Haringey Council, will take ownership of spaces currently used for event infrastructure in September 2016. Failure to relocate this infrastructure could significantly impact the gross margin and the sales team's ability to secure and retain clients, thereby limiting gift aid to the Trust. Investigations revealed no suitable spaces within Alexandra Palace itself for this scale of infrastructure.

The proposed solution involves building a new storage facility in the West Yard, adjacent to the West Hall and Great Hall. The Surveyor to the Fabric, Purcell, was commissioned to undertake a feasibility study and prepare concept designs. The building is intended to provide storage for displaced event infrastructure, offer commercial space, provide structural support to the North Wall, and bring the derelict North West Tower back into use. An application for planning and listed building consent was planned for April 2016.

The report highlighted that alternative storage locations within Alexandra Palace were investigated but none met the required specification, which included ground-level access to the Great Hall and West Hall, a minimum area of 400 square metres with a minimum height of 6.5 metres, ease of access for forklifts, and the ability to support the weight of the infrastructure.

The proposed structure is a three-storey steel building, with basement and ground floors for storage and upper levels for commercial use, such as function rooms and a roof terrace. The project also aims to restore the North West Tower and connect it to the new building, along with external restoration repairs to the Tower and the North Wall. The current proposal includes a six-level structure with a function suite and roof terrace on the upper levels. This would involve piled foundations and works sequenced to support the North Wall while maintaining operational access to the Great and West Halls. The project also plans to reinstate openings for three windows on the North Wall elevation and for the North West Tower, as well as external restoration repairs to both.

The report noted that an initial pre-application meeting with the London Borough of Haringey on 18 March 2016 received a positive response, with officials appreciating the design's boldness, pedestrian linkages, the structured support for the North Wall, and the clearance of the West Yard of portable buildings.

The provisional project programme outlined milestones including the completion of feasibility, surveys, and developed design in March/April 2016, consideration by the APPCT Board on 12 April 2016, completion of final design by June 2016, seeking planning permission in April 2016, with planning consent expected by June/July 2016. Construction was anticipated to start in July 2016, with completion on site in January 2017 and final fit-out by February 2017.

The report also touched upon legal implications, stating that the works require planning permission and listed building consent, with comments on these to follow in a report to the Trust Board. Financial implications were summarised as affordability, prioritisation, business need, and value for money, all of which would need to be considered by the Trust Board.

The committee was scheduled to be advised and informed on these principles, with a recommendation that the Committee note the contents of the report and advise the main Board where appropriate. Concept drawings for the proposal were attached to the report.