A bitter row has erupted in Tunbridge Wells after a pair of historic £1m houses, earmarked to be a new national museum celebrating one of Britain's greatest architects, were instead abruptly put up for sale by the local council.
A bitter row has erupted in Tunbridge Wells after a pair of historic £1m houses, earmarked to be a new national museum celebrating one of Britain's greatest architects, were instead abruptly put up for sale by the local council. Fans of architect Decimus Burton who designed some of London's best known buildings including Wellington Arch and parts of Kew Gardens, had developed a widely endorsed scheme for the museum in the upmarket commuter belt town.
The museum was to have been sited in two vacant Regency villas designed by Burton – 9 and 10 Crescent Road and an adjoining car park – with the ambition of it becoming a major tourist attraction in Royal Tunbridge Wells. But this week it emerged that Tunbridge Wells Borough Council (TWBC) had listed them all for sale as a 'development opportunity' two weeks ago - causing fury from supporters of the scheme. Paul Avis, an architectural consultant and the chairman of both the Decimus Burton Society and the Royal Tunbridge Wells Civic Society, has urged the council to cease the sale and meet to find a 'mutually agreeable way forward
Tunbridge Wells Historic Houses Museum Decimus Burton Controversy
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