The Sentinels | |
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General information | |
Type | Residential |
Architectural style | Modernist |
Location | Holloway Circus, Birmingham, England |
Completed | 1971 |
Height | 90m |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 31 |
Design and construction | |
Architect | Bryant's Ltd |
The Sentinels are two 90 metre tall residential tower blocks on Holloway Head in Birmingham, England. The two towers, called Clydesdale Tower and Cleveland Tower, are both 31 storeys tall and were part of a major regeneration scheme following World War II which consisted of the construction of hundreds of tower blocks. They are the tallest residential tower blocks in the city.
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The tower blocks were the brainchild of the Chairman of Birmingham's House Building and Housing Management Committees returning from a visit to Chicago to witness the opening of the Marina City development which consists of two 61-storey towers.[1] The councillors decided that Birmingham needed a development similar to this and in 1965, plans began to surface for the construction of twin towers at Holloway Head to overlook the new ring road.[1]
After discussions over height, it was decided that the tower blocks should be 32 stories tall, one story taller than the Red Road tower blocks in Glasgow, Scotland.[1] It was decided to construct them out of concrete, which was common among tower blocks in the city during that time. They were designed by Bryant's Ltd.[1] and both towers were identical though angled differently to provide a different perspective to each block.
The project was approved in 1967[2] and construction of the towers commenced immediately. Cleveland Tower was completed in 1970[3] and Clydesdale Tower in 1971.[4] Upon their opening, they had 488 flats.[2]
Recent changes to housing legislation by the incoming Conservative government allowed the Council to offer many of the flats on a cost rent basis to those not on the council housing waiting list. The flats thus initially attracted a much wider range of tenants than would usually be found in a high rise council block, including the actress Noele Gordon (who appreciated their closeness to the ATV television studios) and many gay men who found it convenient for the nearby gay bars.
Although changes to the Council's letting policy subsequently ended cost rent lettings, the Sentinels have always enjoyed a wider range of residents than many other blocks and remain popular.
During the height of the HIV/AIDS hysteria the number of gay men living in the Sentinels provoked hysteria in the media with the tabloid Daily Star, interviewing one new resident who said that she wore protective gloves when touching the buttons on the lift in fear of contracting the disease.[5]
In 1999, residents of The Sentinels together with four other council owned estates, voted to transfer their homes into the ownership of an independent housing association, Optima Community Association. Optima then embarked on an extensive refurbishment programme as part of a wider regeneration scheme in the Attwood Green area in Birmingham.
The project at The Sentinels involved replacing windows, kitchens, lifts, refurbishing the communal areas and improving security. A new entrance was constructed as well as a roof feature, lighting scheme, which illuminates the building a blue light at night, and the addition of new cladding to the exterior of the building.
In 2004, the Sentinels Residents Association submitted a petition to Birmingham City Council complaining about waste facilities. They also complained about a man, who had previously threatened suicide, being rehoused on a high floor of one of the towers.[6]
If you say you're the ring finger on my stone
Well I say I'm a kite with a key
If you say that you are unsure of things
Well I'm not accepting defeat
Are we strong enough
Is it good enough
Am I brave enough
For the both of us
I will sing you songs
Even though you can't put 'em on your finger
I'll never be a diamond mine, I'm just a singer
I will sing you songs
Wishing my words carried on as long as a stone
On a band of gold
You're sleepwalking through the daylight
How else am I supposed to follow a dream
And now you say I can't wait on you to connect these hands
But I'm still trying to reach
So are we strong enough
Is it good enough
You pray hard enough
For the both of us
I will sing you songs
Even though you can't put 'em on your finger
I'll never be a diamond mine, I'm just a singer
I will sing you songs
Wishing my words carried on as long as a stone
On a band of gold
'Cause I'm just a rolling stone in a band on the road
I know words don't mean
Much on their own
But what I sing to you
Is worth more than a stone
I will sing you songs
Even though you can't put 'em on your finger
I'll never be a diamond mine, I'm just a singer
I will sing you songs
Wishing my words carried on as long as a stone
On a band of gold
'Cause I'm just a rolling stone in a band on the road
You said you want a stone
On a band of gold
What you got is a rolling stone
In a band on the road
Yeah I'm just a rolling stone in a band on the road
I haven't seen the sun in days
Man, it's getting to me
Well that's our industry
I lost my happy thoughts
Caught up in a tree
Flying's harder for me now
And kiss my ass you dream
I hope you're hearing me
No one's bet on you quite like I did
It's taken everything I've got
To keep myself on the road
I don't wanna drive no more
I am a stubborn bull
I am a caveman
A cheap tattoo
Gone from black to blue
So I don't wanna hear it from you
Never gonna be a spaceman
Sitting on my tin can
Never come back
I spend my afternoons
Making masterpieces
People would later understand
Well damn you wishing well
You should've told me
I bought dreams you wouldn't sell
It's taken everything I've god
To keep my hands from my face
I don't wanna cry no more
I found dangers in
Acting out
Dreams never meant
To be carried out
Oh, but I am the stubborn bull
Yeah, I am a caveman
A cheap tattoo
Fading from black to blue
So I don't wanna hear it from you