Stephen Green specialises in restoring listed buildings and carrying out new schemes in conservation areas. There are few places of note in Bath that have not benefitted from his planning expertise.
Stephen Green has lived and worked in Bath for over 40 years. After moving to the city in 1982, he and his wife Philippa formed the company Future Heritage to respond to the challenge of restoring old buildings to accommodate contemporary uses. The company name was chosen to reflect the dynamic tension inherent in adapting and restoring historic buildings to give them a new lease of life.
“My main focus has been on restoring listed buildings and carrying out new schemes in conservation areas. We have completed schemes in Bristol, Cheltenham, Marlborough, Salisbury, Torquay, Truro and Winchester, but our roots are in Bath, where we have completed 40 schemes”, says Stephen.
“After London and Edinburgh, Bath is one of the best cities in Britain for anyone with a passion for historic buildings,” Stephen explains in his publication Future Heritage: A Property Odyssey. He also says how in the aftermath of World War II there was a legacy of ugly post war buildings hastily erected in the 1950s on bombdamaged sites. These buildings presented an opportunity for those with the right vision to replace them with new, more appropriate buildings, such as the south side of Widcombe Parade, Queen Square House in Charlotte Street, Circus Mews and Seven Dials next to the Theatre Royal.
After setting up Future Heritage, Stephen completed more than 40 schemes in Bath, ranging from single buildings to schemes such as The Tramshed, a mixed use scheme of c.60,0002ft. Other notable projects over the years include the restoration of Somerset Place; the Arts and Crafts interpretation of St Michael with St Paul Church House (now Pomegranate Meze Bar) in Walcot Street; Bath’s former Post Office in New Bond Street, along with newbuild schemes in conservation areas such as Walcot Street, Crescent Lane and Henrietta Road.
Stephen says his favourite projects are Seven Dials by the Theatre Royal and the entire Crescent in Somerset Place (“…this encapsulates the work we have done in both restoring listed buildings and creating new buildings in conservation areas”). Stephen finds a great release in painting historic buildings and gardens – where he doesn’t have to worry about dry rot, damp, subsidence, conflicting regulations, delays and increased costs…!
“People and place are intrinsically linked”, says Stephen, who in his work has done his utmost to reinforce these connections.
Stephen Green, 10 Bridge Street, Bath BA2 4AS
Portrait by Joe Short. Joe is an award-winning photographer based in Bath. joeshort.com