Plans To Redevelop Landmark Grimsby Ice Factory Building
The historic Ice Factory building on Grimsby’s waterfront could be redeveloped after an entrepreneur submitted plans. Insider Media reports that Tom Shutes intends to convert the building into offices for the maritime sector and conference facilities that will be able to accommodate live performances.
The Grimsby Ice Factory was originally built in 1900 to supply ice to the fishing trade, which expanded rapidly with the arrival of the railways and the development of Grimsby Dock. The factory was expanded over the years, and by the 1950s it was producing 1200 tonnes of ice a day to ensure that the fish was kept fresh.
By the late twentieth century, ice making technology had changed, and the fishing industry was smaller. The factory was closed in 1990 and it fell into disrepair. Plans were drawn up to demolish it, but activists secured a Grade II* listing in 1993 and it is on the Heritage at Risk register. It is thought to be the earliest and largest surviving ice factory in the world.
Tom Shutes said: “We have worked hard to build support for this project, and it is a significant moment for the Ice Factory. Our planning submission demonstrates our ambitions around high quality placemaking – to create a leading site for the UK’s renewable energy sector that can also contribute significantly to the town’s ongoing redevelopment.”
He added: “Clean energy is only going to become more important to the UK’s stated Net Zero ambitions, so we are seizing the opportunity to develop a world class campus, in effect, for the region.”
“Our vision has always been that The Ice Factory, which was conceived as a brilliant and radical piece of engineering in its day, should continue, 100 years later, as a home for engineering excellence and we hope to attract other like-minded businesses to join us.”
Shutes acquired the Ice Factory in 2021 and has since commissioned the architects Waugh Thistleton to redesign the one acre space.
Vicky Hartung, chair of the Great Grimsby Ice Factory Trust, said: “Grimsby’s Ice Factory is recognised worldwide as a remarkable, and endangered, survivor of the Victorian industrial age.”
“With great vision, Mr Shutes has brought together a project that will not only halt the deterioration of this unique building, but will be a tremendous asset for the town in years to come.”
“The repurposing of the Ice Factory will support the regeneration work that we and others are carrying out in the Kasbah and the Trust is particularly pleased to see the continuity of focus between the innovation of early refrigeration technology and current advances in producing renewable energy.”
The Ice Factory presently retains the original Victorain machinery, also much of the metalwork has been stripped out by thieves. The building is currently in a very poor state of repair, with sections of the roof fallen in. It is now hoped that the historic building can find a new lease of life.
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