As the dredging, clearing and general renovation nears completion, the pontoon settles in place and the ducks have taken to their new home. The exciting final stage of Lakeshore’s lake restoration is about to begin with the introduction of the fish.

Whilst most homes are content with a small garden pond, the residents at Lakeshore can enjoy a 10,500 m2 lake in their garden, with a pontoon for romantic midnight strolls or in the case of the fishing club, a place to sit and whittle away lazy afternoons.

The manmade lake runs underneath the whole property allowing each apartment, with its floor to ceiling windows, a different view of the weeping willow lined lake and the huge variety of wildlife living off it. The Pigeonhouse stream runs through the site, which is actually part of the Crox Bottom Site of Nature and Conservation Interest, and keeps the lake constantly fresh and full.

There are as many creatures living on top of the lake as there are living in it, with two natural islands for nesting, along with the new manmade duck island complete with stylish duck huts. The fishing club will be pleased to hear that a large variety of native coarse fish are being delivered soon and the lake will be filled with breeds such as roach, carp, tench, perch and of course the family favourite goldfish.

In addition to the fish and ducks, birds such as robins, wrens, kingfisher, mallards and moorhen been spotted flying amongst the trees, we even had a flying visit from a heron the other day. A new family of frogs from the Rana Temporaria breed join the Bufo Bufo toads to live happily in Lakeshore’s lake amongst the sweet grass reeds, water mint and water dropwort.

Allotments at Lakeshore

Set amongst 10 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens, Lakeshore’s architecturally stunning property sits on top of its own private lake. The stylish apartments offer generous living environments, but it is the gardens that set Lakeshore apart.

Kenneth Booth, the original landscaper, worked with New York based architects Skidmore, Owings and Merrill in the 1970s to design the luxury private garden for the Imperial Tobacco Factory HQ.
The lake, which acted as the namesake for the new residential property is actually man made and was created by Kenneth just under forty years ago. Now a haven for ducks, fish and those who enjoy being near water, the lake, which runs under the whole building, offers a focus on which the rest of the landscape centres.

Lakeshore’s current landscape gardener Huw Morgan talks us through the restoration of these larger than average gardens.

“In an age where everyone’s time is precious, we wanted to create an easy option for residents, so they can enjoy the benefits of an expansive outdoor area without the effort of having to keep it perfect. We’ve incorporated several wildlife walks with social areas including giant stone BBQ’s, a boules court, along with allotments and landscaped areas to just sit and unwind. The flying lawns, which stretch inside the atrium add a stylish element to the gardens, fusing the exterior to Lakeshore’s interior.”

Destination living - a home where everything you need is in your garden… including your own gym. At Lakeshore we have installed two state of the art gyms; outside equipment allows you to enjoy keeping fit in sunny weather and an indoor version means there’s no excuse for winter months. We’ve invested in modern gym equipment from Motiv8? and because it’s part of your home, you only have to pay a one off induction charge, there is no monthly fee and the service charge covers maintenance and replacement costs.

We all know the benefits of exercise, the release of endorphins keeps you happier, healthier and looking great. We’ve spoken to a Motiv8 specialist, Jenny Cromack about some simple exercises to get you started and if you are interested in registering for a place at Lakeshore’s gym please contact Lesley Hand 0333 666 9999 or live@urbansplash.co.uk

Jenny from Motiv8 talks us through how to get started at the gym;

For an all over workout it is important to include a mixture of cardiovascular, resistance training and flexibility work. Start your session with an aerobic warm up to gradually increase the heart rate and increase oxygen to the working muscles. For an intense cardio workout try interval training, which is both great for improving your fitness levels and burning calories. Try alternating 60 second sprints on the treadmill, with 60 seconds of walking or jogging x 10, or alternating 30 seconds of sprinting on the rower with 30 second rest x 10. When performing resistance exercises focus on using exercises which use big muscle groups such as squats, lunges, press ups and seated rows as these use more muscle groups than isolation exercises such as bicep curls so are more time effective and will use more energy. Ensure you complete your workout with a cool down a stretch each muscle group for 20-30 seconds.

We want to make your home as sustainable as it is stylish. We’ve invested in the best eco-friendly technology to heat your home and we want you to know how it works. In every apartment, the under-floor heating and hot water is provided via a combination of a ground source heat pump and a biomass boiler run on woodchip. The ground source heat pump system consists of a network of 100m deep boreholes, through which fluid is pumped. The natural geothermal heat in the subsoil has year round warmth of 10 to 12°C and as the fluid passes by, it absorbs this heat.

The ground source heat pump then turns this into 45 to 50°C, meaning every 1kwh of energy used, generates 4kwh of energy to heat your apartment. To put it in perspective, it works a bit like a fridge in reverse! For your hot water, the temperature is boosted to about 70°C by a biomass boiler that runs on a fuel of wood that would have otherwise gone to waste. This clever combination of heating technologies ensures the building’s supply of heating and hot water is virtually 100% renewable.

At Urban Splash it’s all about bringing buildings back to life and Lakeshore is no exception. We’ve transformed the historic headquarters of Imperial Tobacco Factory, from a dramatic Grade II listed building into funky and affordable Lakeshore flats, whilst keeping many of the original features.

The futuristic building was originally completed in 1974, and clad with Cor-Ten which we have carefully restored, allowing the building to retain its history. Cor-Ten is a weathering steel, which was first used in 1916 in America. It cleverly protects itself from progressive corrosion by oxidising on exposure to air and moisture. Interestingly it also changes colour depending on location, ours is a dusty coco colour as it is surrounded by countryside, but had we been by the seaside Lakeshore would have been grey! We have also kept the original walkways but added glass balustrades to form balconies so the building looks almost exactly the same from the outside, whilst inside we have been very busy making the best use of space, to create design led and spacious luxury apartments. In fact the only original element inside other than the structural frame is the handrail in the stairways. We’ve cleaned it up, so it looks good as new, but it’s always nice to know that a part of history is still in use!

With Lakeshore’s completion date just a few months away, the apartments are really starting to take shape and Bristol’s fine weather has helped us progress with installing and completing the ETFE atrium roof. This inflated pillow material is the very same as the Eden project’s roof and has already served its purpose, filling Lakeshore’s main atrium with natural light.

The lightweight ETFE roof actually maximises natural light into the building, whilst providing a sheltered environment inside Lakeshore. We have just started painting all the atrium walls different shades of white, so more light is reflected around the rooms overlooking the atrium.

Last week I hosted the inaugural Urban Splash tour at Lakeshore in Bristol.

It was the first in a number of tours we’re hosting around the country and I was delighted to meet some great local people and give them the first glimpse inside our redevelopment of this prominent scheme.

The group that came to Lakeshore consisted of local stakeholders such as the Civic Society as well as representatives from a local recycling group. It was a great opportunity to show them what’s going on on site and where the building is up to. It was also really encouraging to hear their feedback (which thankfully was all good!) and answer their questions. It definitely whet my appetite for the next Lakeshore tour in a couple of months’ time.

So if you fancy a look around the building email us at rsvp@urbansplash.co.uk or for a full list of tours see below:

New Islington
Friday 10th September 2010, 4-5pm
Friday 3rd December 2010, 4-5pm

Park Hill
Wednesday 15th September 2010, 2-3pm
Wednesday 8th December 2010, 11am-12pm

Lister Mills
Wednesday 18th August 2010, 2-3pm
Wednesday 10th November 2010, 2-3pm

Lakeshore
Friday 24th September 2010, 1-2pm
Friday 10th December 2010, 10-11am

Royal William Yard
Thursday 2nd September 2010, 11am-12pm
Thursday 2nd December 2010, 2-3pm