This is the Arts Tower. It's the tallest building in the UK used for teaching, although quite a few academic departments have moved out to other buildings the Department of Landscape and The School of Architecture still occupy the top nine floors.
Not far from the Arts Tower is Crookes Valley Park, adjacent to Crookes Valley Road. Cross over the road and if you can find your way to the steps hidden in the bushes that lead down the steep banking you might (it is possible to get lost) find this path by the side of the recreation ground at the top of The Ponderosa (an Open Space, not a park, did I mention that? What *is* the difference?)
Looking down on to The P through the protective mesh, designed to stop giant moths interfering with tiny goalkeepers when playing on the 5-a-side pitch.
Not far from the moth-mesh is Martin Street. Here all six blocks are visible. A giant domino topple in the making.
These blocks and flats were all very pleasant inside after the refurbishment. The only downside was the removal of the live-in caretaker service. There was a caretaker every couple of blocks but Tory cuts in the mid-1990s meant this was lost, subsequently the communal areas deteriorated rapidly as the toss-pot element got away with wrecking stuff. Elderly residents would put plants in the entrance lobby area, very homely, until the unruly element messed it up. The balance of resident types just edged beyond the centre of gravity. There's a common theme as how housing estates deteriorate, too many of a particular age group tends to push things past a tipping point. There should be a more considered mix of residents to even things out. Pretty much every social housing area I've lived in has moved from good to bad this way - based on my anecdotal evidence (maybe I'm the common, unruly element!)
Anyway, never mind my half-arsed, untested theorising...
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