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Stonecleaning facades of city centre buildings.

Posted: Thu 05 Oct, 2023 7:05 pm
by blackprince
The latest additions to the Leodis archive include some photos which I think capture the time when the facades of city centre buildings were being stone cleaned to reveal architectural features and paler stonework which had been hidden for decades under layers of soot.
This pic shows the contrast between neighbouring buildings , one of which had been cleaned

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View of buildings on the south side of Boar Lane, looking west. New Station Street can be seen to the left by the traffic lights.


Two further pictures show buildings covered in scaffolding which may well have been erected for cleaning the façades. Pressurised water was used which is why one set of scaffolding is covered in plastic sheeting.
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View of the junction of Briggate, which runs left to right, and Commercial Street. Manfield shoe shop occupies the south corner junction.

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Boar Lane looking East

This series of photos is dated by Leodis roughly to late 80s /Early 90s.
I thought most of the city centre stone cleaning was done in the 70s. Does anyone remember when it was done?

Re: Stonecleaning facades of city centre buildings.

Posted: Thu 05 Oct, 2023 9:16 pm
by Leodian
Thanks blackprince for those Leodis photos. They show how little I recall of work (including stone cleaning) in the centre of Leeds as I did not remember any demolition of a building there on Boar Lane around then. It seems to me that on the right in the third photo might be what becomes Trevelyan Square but I thought that development was later. On the left in the first photo is what might become The Bourse though again I thought that was later.