Historic place becomes digital archive

Guy and James discuss an unusual site for a modern enterprise.

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James: Great old building.

Guy: Carpenter Gothic.

James: Means?

Guy: Don’t know the designer. Records were lost but it is said that the builder just drew a rough sketch and made it up as he went along.

James: Plenty of room for extension.

Guy: Being a wooden building bit of a fire hazard for valuable documents.

James: It's got sensors and sprinklers.

Guy: The combination of old and new is appealing. A historic place, an important cultural relic, housing a regional digital archive.

James: Half the councillors want to turn it into a restaurant.

Guy: A quick fix to bring in some money. Culture takes a back seat to commerce again.

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Coffee shop plan

Frank, an energetic retired engineer in his 80s, has an idea for putting the roof of his small museum to use and shows Lloyd the approach he has in mind.

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Frank: Come on up.

Lloyd: This is the access?

Frank: It’s not so difficult.

Lloyd: This ladder is an antique. It’s an artifact.

Frank: My point. We’re only allowed to build a storage room for archives and artifacts on the roof.

Lloyd: Is that all?

Frank: But look at the view from up here. Great sight for a coffee shop. Recreate coffee houses as a modern place to work. Wireless and coffee.

Lloyd: But you can’t get planning approval for a coffee shop?

Frank: Not to say it can’t be done. Archiving is a foot in the door. Put in a kitchen and toilet and Bob’s your uncle.

Lloyd: And build in a new staircase.

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