Description

TORQUAY

SX9164 UNION STREET 885-1/14/288 (North East side) Electric House

GV II

Electricity showrooms and office. 1935, drawings signed W Marsden, with a reference to PW Ladmore, Borough engineer and architects' offices. Sheradised metal windows by Percy Hope and Sons; electrically operated sunblinds and patent non-reflecting windows by Pollards. Building now used as Borough Council offices. Portland ashlar brought to course with polished granite plinth and dressings; roof concealed behind parapet; some original rainwater goods. PLAN: Sited in the corner between the hall of the twon hall complex and the rear of the former Carnegie public library. Ground floor contained showroom, now converted to offices. Separate entrance to left with stairs rising round a lift shaft to 2 upper storeys of offices. Art Deco style, designed to show off electricity. EXTERIOR: 3 storeys. Asymmetrical 1:3-window front to Union Street; the one-window section to the office entrance block which has a higher roof and sunk-moulded parapet with a cornice. The 3-window showroom block has a plain parapet with moulded cornice. Deep bronze-coloured projecting fascia above first floor with moulded bands, decorated with wavy lines. Showroom entrance has recessed door flanked by large windows with curved corners towards the entrance. Decorative panel above is filled with horizontal metal bands with a central roundel. Plain plate glass windows to either side of the show window. Above these, recessed panels contain "Electric House" in Art Deco letters. 3 first-floor recessed metal-frame windows with reeded panels between. 3 similar second-floor windows. Entrance block to left projects to the front. Art Deco granite architrave to office door to left. Original pair of well-detailed bronze and glass doors, fascia with Art Deco 'offices' lettering over, deep overlight with pattern of horizontal and vertical bands; two 2-light casements above. Electric clock projects from left-hand bay. The left return is in the same style 5:5:3 windows, the windows lighting the stairs diagonally-set. Some original Art Deco rainwater heads, original service door. INTERIOR: Many features survive. The office entrance hall is particularly fine, lined with polished Purbeck, flight of steps down flanked by semicircular half-columns encased at the bottom with back-lit frosted glass with applied metal wavy lines. Details elsewhere include hand rails, radiator grilles, doors etc Described in Pevsner as "a progressive period piece". (Buildings of England: Pevsner N and Cherry B: Devon: London: 1952-1989: P.858).

Listing NGR: SX9134364324

External Links

• Wikidata Q26513691

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