Entries: Soapbox Towers

ENTRANT
Jemma Horwood/ Mark Rintoul

EXPLANATION OF IDEA
Soap box towers is a design for a halls of residence for all MP's who are not able to use the tube or London bus services to reach their homes, instead they can make use of one of these beautiful soap box apartments in a quiet area with superb, unobstructed views, direct mainline train links to Waterloo and even the scope to warrant a new stop for the river bus!

The scheme is located at Crossness Pumping Station and Sewage Treatment works which was built after the "Great Stink" of 1853 as a solution for cleaning up the Thames, one MP at the time said that it was impossible to work at Westminster as the smell was so bad... so once more Crossness is to be reinstated to clear up Parliament's mess. The existing Grade 1 Listed pumping station houses some of the most spectacular ornamental Victorian cast ironwork to be found today, therefore the perfect politicians communal common room... The three towers relate directly to each party, at the moment Labour is contained in a single tower as well are the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats share with the other parties as it is relative to the number of politicians in each. The built form acts as a giant abacus for each group, publicly displaying their popularity, as they gain more seats then more soap boxes are added, as they loose then boxes are removed.

The best way to clear up a mess is to start with a good wash.