Photo: John Sturrock

A new public square similar in scale to Trafalgar Square has recently opened as part of the King’s Cross regeneration programme. Granary Square has been designed by Townshend Landscape Architects and delivered by King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership. It connects the Regent’s Canal to the Granary Building which became the home to Central Saint Martins in 2011.

The centre-piece of the 8,000 square metre project is a fountain with 1,080 individually programmed jets. When in use, the water jets, which each have their own pump and light, can be programmed to dance at different heights or be simply left as mirror pools reflecting the Granary Building behind. The water for the fountain is cleaned and recycled in two 105,000 litre tanks beneath the square making it as sustainable and water efficient as possible.

In addition to the fountain some historical features have been retained to animate the space including the old railway tracks, the line of the former canal basin and one of the original rail turntables has been restored and topped with a glass panel so that the mechanism can still be seen.

Although the square remains somewhat out of the way whilst the rest of the King’s Cross development is completed, there is a programme of events planned there over the summer called Summer Stories. This includes the Central Saint Martins’ degree shows in the Granary Complex, The Big Dance and Eurostar’s Traction, curated by DJ Gilles Peterson.

For more information, please visit: King’s Cross regeneration

Photo: John Sturrock