TIME TO STOP
THE long struggle by Mr Peter Palumbo to build an architectural monument on the site next to the Mansion House that he and his father have acquired has become both tragedy and farce. It is a tragedy that, because of his single-minded obsession with that one site, Mr Palumbo's rare gifts as a patron of good modern architecture should have produced nothing. It is a tragedy that he cannot recognise that the successful opposition to his scheme is based on serious concern for the nine listed buildings which would be demolished and on the conviction that both the earlier tower by Mies van der Rohe and the present project by Mames Tirling are wrong for the prominent and important city site. What is becoming farcical is Mr Palumbo's refusal to give up and his using every possible avenue to gain his ends. This struggle is becoming destructive to all concerned. The time has come to end the farce, for it is wrong that historic buildings responsibly listed by the Depart- ment of Environment should be under continual sentence of death. Mr Palumbo should now sell or restore them and realise his ambitions as a patron or architecture on another less sensitive site and so at long last win applause on all sides. WE apologise again to readers, contribu- tors and advertisers who have had diffi- culty telephoning the Spectator. Our tele- phone system is still half out of order after two months. British Telecom are still unable to identify or correct the faults (for the full story by Michael Trend see p.14). We also apologise to all those whose letters have not been answered. We have received no letters since last week because of a postal strike in our district. Contributors' cheques posted last Thursday were caught by the dispute and therefore delayed. The strike has just ended, we are told, but anyone wanting to be sure of reaching us by letter at once should deliver by hand.
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