It would have put 'the wow factor' into Southampton, or so the town council believed. But the ambitious plan of architect Bryan Avery, of London-based architects Avery Associates, for the Museum of Southampton, or Spitfire Wing Tower, has not even made it off the runway.
The proposed structure, intended to resemble the wing of a Spitfire fighter plane, would have stood 135m (443ft), but will now never be constructed because of a lack of cash. It had been hoped that the money would be raised by the building of a seven-star hotel in the area, but when that scheme fell through, the Spitfire Wing was effectively blown out of the sky. Only a private developer could now salvage the scheme.
The tower was intended to be a 'Symbol of Southampton', and a retort to the 170m (557ft) Spinnaker Tower in neighbouring Portsmouth - the two maritime towns share a long history of rivalry and one-upmanship.
Displays in the museum were to have depicted Southampton's maritime and aviation history, including the stories of the Pilgrim Fathers, the Titanic, the Empire Flying Boat and, of course, the Spitfire, which was built in Southampton.
The structure would also have boasted a viewing platform from which visitors could look across the Solent to the Isle of Wight, west to Salisbury and the New Forest, and north to Winchester. The platform would have been accessible using small mobile pods similar to those on the London Eye.
Local councillors still want a new heritage centre and are hoping for a waterfront site. In the meantime, a site in the lower High Street known as Canute's Palace seems to be the favourite. It is expected to be completed by 2011 irrespective of location, but it seems that the Spitfire Wing Project has drawn little but scepticism.
Southampton Council's acting arts and culture manager Kevin White told Museums Journal: 'The building wasn't commissioned by the council. In fact, I haven't even been contacted by the architects and to my knowledge, nobody else in the council was either. It just came out of the blue - someone wanted to put up this huge building and it
was in the papers.'
Councillor Adrian Vinson told the Portsmouth Daily Echo that while he was more than happy to look at any proposal that might add to the city's image and to the facilities that are available to visitors, his impression was that it was just 'kite flying'.
An unfortunate choice of words. Any future Museum of Southampton is likely to be a project that keeps its feet firmly on the ground
Paul Stump
The proposed structure, intended to resemble the wing of a Spitfire fighter plane, would have stood 135m (443ft), but will now never be constructed because of a lack of cash. It had been hoped that the money would be raised by the building of a seven-star hotel in the area, but when that scheme fell through, the Spitfire Wing was effectively blown out of the sky. Only a private developer could now salvage the scheme.
The tower was intended to be a 'Symbol of Southampton', and a retort to the 170m (557ft) Spinnaker Tower in neighbouring Portsmouth - the two maritime towns share a long history of rivalry and one-upmanship.
Displays in the museum were to have depicted Southampton's maritime and aviation history, including the stories of the Pilgrim Fathers, the Titanic, the Empire Flying Boat and, of course, the Spitfire, which was built in Southampton.
The structure would also have boasted a viewing platform from which visitors could look across the Solent to the Isle of Wight, west to Salisbury and the New Forest, and north to Winchester. The platform would have been accessible using small mobile pods similar to those on the London Eye.
Local councillors still want a new heritage centre and are hoping for a waterfront site. In the meantime, a site in the lower High Street known as Canute's Palace seems to be the favourite. It is expected to be completed by 2011 irrespective of location, but it seems that the Spitfire Wing Project has drawn little but scepticism.
Southampton Council's acting arts and culture manager Kevin White told Museums Journal: 'The building wasn't commissioned by the council. In fact, I haven't even been contacted by the architects and to my knowledge, nobody else in the council was either. It just came out of the blue - someone wanted to put up this huge building and it
was in the papers.'
Councillor Adrian Vinson told the Portsmouth Daily Echo that while he was more than happy to look at any proposal that might add to the city's image and to the facilities that are available to visitors, his impression was that it was just 'kite flying'.
An unfortunate choice of words. Any future Museum of Southampton is likely to be a project that keeps its feet firmly on the ground
Paul Stump
