 A very worthwhile cause. I'd donate the proceeds of sale of a lighthouse (if I was filthy rich enough to own one).
Are they taking the mick? Surely they must be. Why not do it properly and float the Snowdon Caff Co on the USM - concessionary terms for shareholders could include a free cup of char and a ride up on the chuffa once a year.
|
 |
Good idea....I'd buy shares...tell you what I don't enjoy...getting to the summit on foot & filling my lungs with the fresh mountain train fumes.
|
|
 I'd quite like to know who owns the bloody thing. I could be wrong (I ususally am) but why should we donate to a money making buisness.
|
|
 Indeed, I can't see why on earth the general public would be interested in coughing up money for a replacement building.
|
|
The building is actually owned by the Snowdonia National Park Authority - they purchased it some years ago in a bid to improve its look - something which a private company wouldn't do - as it costs so much money.
They own it, and they have put together the new plans - and raised £7m thus far.
The Snowdonia Society is a charity and stepped in at the last minute to launch a public appeal to raise the final £2m.
The railway rent the building - but will not gain much from the new one as they run at full capacity as it is in the summer. Having said this they ahve pleadge several hundred thousand pounds to the project.
Over two thirsd of the users are walkers, and simply and regretably if we don't get the money from the public appeal the n the building will not go ahead, and we will all have to put up with the present eyesore for a long time to come!
Dan James
Operations Director, Snowdonia Society
|
|
Thanks Dan I appreciate the Info.
Just to ask the plans for this havew been in the pipeline for at least three years. Why has the funding issue only now come to light?
|
|
Well, the plans were originally drawn up a few years ago, but were then consulted on, and amended.
Planning permission was gained last January (04), and then SNPA went about securing funding. In October 04 the Welsh assembly offered £3m, and a further £2.9m is coming from EU objective one funding - this was only confirmed recently and was on the condition that it was partly matched by the private sector and also the money has to be spent in a strict timetable.
If we don't get the £2m from the appeal we will miss the deadline for private sector funding - so not only will the new building not happen, but all the moneyt already pledged will be lost.
Lots more details (and the opportunity to donate online) are available on www.snowdon-summit.co.uk.
|
|
 £9m sounds an _awful_ lot of money to spend on building a cafe/visitor centre.
Why so expensive? Transport costs dominating? Is there a published breakdown of the costs somewhere?
I wasn't impressed with the 'plans' I've seen (poorly photographed model that show very little detail). In fact, it looks like a big, empty barn... There's no sense of scale, either; no figures in foreground to give clues. If the architect can't even manage to do this (a standard technique in architectural models and illustrations), then I have doubts about his ability to come up with a plausible design...
There is a 'Summit Video' on the website. Why not have a similar VR-generated video flyby/walkthrough of the proposed building?
Yes, I'm being critical and picky. But for £5.9m of public money, I expect to be able to be picky.
|
|
I would like to see the Local Buisnesses stumping up more esp the Outdoors chains after all colectivly we must give em significant profits
|
|
 Looks like lots of glass to me for some ****er to chuck rocks at.
How often would the windows be cleaned? and who would clean the windows? glass looks really good when its clean, but dirty glass will make any well designed(?)/good looking(?) building look like a pile of poo.
the main roof looks like a great big wing ready to take off with the first hurricane.
i looked at pictures at these locations:
http://www.hightrek.co.uk/hiking/snowdon.htm
www.snowdonia-society.org.uk/Snowdon%20summit.htm
It would be nice to see some more detail of the plans rather than just a artists impression of what the proposed building might be like from a particular angle.
|
|
And is the glass adequately stressed to take the wind load...
|
|
Depends if they serve beans.
Sorry
|
|
What a mix-up this is. Is it a tourist attraction? A monument erected by public subscription? An aid to developing business? A public utility?
If what you want costs £9m and you've only got £7m, I'd suggest some re-negotiation or re-designing is in order!
|
|
you cannot really see enough detail from the artists impressions but from comparing the size of people to structure size the windows look like their about 12feet high by about 4.6-5feet wide. maybe there is some sort of roller shuttering that pulls down from the roof to help shield the glass from the wind and protect it from vandalism when there is no one inside.
maybe Brains designed it and it will all just dissapear into the mountainside when the wind picks up. Tracy Island probably cost less.
|
|
 They'll just have to scrap the gold taps for the train-ites.
|
|
This is a ridiculous budget for this type of building. This is generally the result of an over specification of the design due to the exposed nature of the site. Construction consultants get nervous and allow this to cloud their judgement on costings. If this building was at ground level how much would it cost. You could build a very large hotel for that sum of money, and that includes land purchase. I havent done the sums but i think the price per square foot could make this one of the most expensive buildings in the uk
|
|
