Listed gasometer is one of four being incorporated into redevelopment project

Bell Phillips Architects’ pocket park inside a listed Victorian gasholder has opened at Argent’s King’s Cross development.

Gasholder Park is a circular lawn at the edge of the Regent’s Canal, with a 30m-diameter polished stainless steel canopy encircling the edge like a continuous colonnade. Arup provided structural assessment on the project.

Constructed in the 1850s, Gasholder No. 8 once formed part of the largest gas works in London and was a familiar landmark until it was decommissioned in 2000.

The fragile 25 metre-high circular guide frame was dismantled from its old location, where Pancras Square is now, in 2011. It was then refurbished by Shepley Engineers in Yorkshire, before being re-erected in 2013 next to schools and apartments in the Plimsoll Ðǿմ«Ã½. Dan Pearson Studio designed new planting around the frame.

Three other historic gasholders have been dismantled and are being rebuilt next to Gasholder Park where they are being re-used as part of an apartment development designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects.

Hari Phillips, partner at Bell Phillips Architects which won a design competition in 2009, said: “Gasholder Park is a fantastic project which combines the industrial heritage of King’s Cross with contemporary architecture to create a unique place.

“To design a new use for such a well-known London landmark was both a daunting responsibility and an unmissable opportunity.

“We have hugely enjoyed watching Gasholder Park take shape and we hope that it will become a much-loved public space as King’s Cross continues to emerge as one of London’s most interesting new quarters.â€