Shopping

David Levitt, partner in Levitt Bernstein and a resident of the centre, worked on the original plan and sees the pros and cons. ‘Throughout the ’80s we felt apologetic about the Brunswick Centre. We’d get trainspotter students coming to look at it, but it wasn’t until the late ’90s that people started talking about it. Every time a developer came in with a proposal it was ghastly, so Patrick would voice his concerns and that would make it hard for them to get planning permission. But Michael Ingall at Allied London saw it for sale and decided to go back to the original architect – he actually liked the building. Feature continues

‘It has given the residents a lift, but I feel for the older residents on a low income now that the affordable supermarket [Safeway] has been replaced with a Waitrose. The council tenants have put up with a lot – some feel short-changed by Camden Council. They’ve had all the noise and disturbance, and at the end of it some will say “None of it has been done for us.” ‘It’s very easy to be sniffy about Baby Gap or Virgin Megastore, but it’s those stores that have pumped money into the area and, if you think about it, made the independents on Marchmont Street securer by bringing more people to the area. ‘It’s a unique place – you have all races, all ages, all classes living together in harmony. There’s a sense of community and everyone talks when they pass each other on a bridge or meet in the hallways.’

There are now around 400 flats, with 320 council tenants and 80 private owners. Prices have rocketed: the flats are currently selling at £430,000 for just two bedrooms. Great news for private owners but not for council tenants priced out of the market. However, now that the builders have finished, most tenants seem just happy to have a smart, clean, new place to call home. Wandering around this bold and bright structure, the feeling from residents, shoppers and shopkeepers is generally positive. A once-dilapidated, uninviting space has been opened up into a vibrant living area. No longer the ugly, concrete place you dash through en route to a film at the Renoir – now it’s a place you’ll want to hang out in. ‘It’s not a council ghetto any more,’ says Hodgkinson, ‘it’s a good location and people seem to like the building. People are referring to it as Bloomsbury High Street, which was the original idea. I spent all my thirties working on it so I hold a great affection for it. I hope it lasts the next 200 years.’

Bloomsbury Festival runs Oct 20-22 with activities throughout WC1 (www.bloomsburyfestival.org or www.thebrunswickbloomsbury.com). ‘Inside Looking Out: Photographs of the Brunswick’ is at Unit 38, Coram Arcade, The Brunswick, WC1, Sat and Sun.