The Lanark County Buildings, also referred to as the South Lanarkshire Council Headquarters, is a

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

facility in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

, Scotland. It currently serves as the headquarters and meeting place of South Lanarkshire Council.

History

Originally the headquarters of Lanark County Council (which had previously been based at Lanarkshire House in Ingram Street in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

), between 1975 and 1996 it served the same function for the

Strathclyde Strathclyde ( in Welsh language, Welsh; in Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic, meaning 'strath

alley An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, footpath, path, or passageway, often reserved for pedestrians, which usually runs between, behind, or within buildings in towns and cities. It is also a rear access or service road (back lane), or a path, w ...

of the River Clyde') was one of nine former Local government in Scotland, local government Regions and districts of Scotland, regions of Scotland cre ...

region's Lanark sub-region (which oversaw five smaller

districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

, including one for the Hamilton area based at the nearby

Townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of Terraced house, terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type o ...

) then for the

South Lanarkshire South Lanarkshire (; ) is one of 32 unitary authorities of Scotland. It borders the south-east of the Glasgow City council area and contains some of Greater Glasgow's suburban towns, as well as many rural towns and villages. It also shares bor ...

local authority since then. Construction of the structure, which was undertaken by Laing Group to a design by the Lanarkshire County Architect, David Gordon Bannerman, in the International (

Modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

) style, started in 1959; completed in 1964 with a ceremonial opening by the Queen Mother, the complex features a 17-storey office block, a separate debating chamber in a rotunda and an external plaza with fountains. Category A listed, the

modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

design was influenced by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

building in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Glass curtain walls cover the north and south facades, with the narrow east and west sides being blank white walls. Occupying a prominent position where the A72 and A724 roads meet within the Hamilton West district north of the town's historic centre, its upper floors offer views over the

M74 motorway The A74(M) and M74 form a major motorway in Scotland, connecting it to England. The routes connect the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway in central Glasgow to the Scottish-English Anglo-Scottish border, border at Gretna, Scotland, Gretna. T ...

, much of Lanarkshire and parts of

Greater Glasgow Greater Glasgow is an urban settlement in Scotland consisting of all localities which are physically attached to the city of Glasgow, forming with it a single contiguous urban area (or conurbation). It does not relate to municipal government ...

, and in turn it is the area's tallest building (slightly higher than the numerous residential

tower blocks A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdiction. ...

in nearby

Motherwell Motherwell (, ) is a List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Shires of Scotland, Historically in the p ...

, although some of those have more floors) and one of its most recognisable landmarks. Immediately to the east is the neo-classical Hamilton Sheriff Court building, also Category A listed.

References

External links

*{{commonscat-inline Government buildings completed in 1964 1964 establishments in Scotland Buildings and structures in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire International style architecture in Scotland Category A listed buildings in South Lanarkshire Listed government buildings in Scotland County halls in Scotland

History

See also

References

External links