London's Battersea Power Station Green Roof

London is full of iconic architecture, such as Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and Battersea Power Station. However, none of them have green roofs, at least not yet.

Built in the 1930s, Battersea provided electricity to the city, but also tons of smog. However, Rafael Viñoly, the chosen designer, has offered his latest in design to convert the landmark into usable real estate, with large green roofs! FREE SHIPPING on orders over $50.00 at InhabitLiving.com

Sadly, this project has been marred by an original designed deemed grandiose, and now critics highlight a variety of, well, criticisms.

From Niki May Young at World Architecture News.com:

"He (Brian Barnes, noted artist and community campaigner) has, some might say, a purist belief in the Station’s community worth, and while he sees the latest designs as progress, there are many elements that he insists are not necessary. “They’ve gone back to the park view from before that mad dome thing which we called the dyson, you know it looked like it was going to hoover everything up..."

Other critics, such as one found at Londonist.com, have this to say:

"An underwhelming effort, then, but just another notch in the chimney-stack of pie-eyed ideas for the site. Over 25 years since it breathed its last fumes into the London fog, Battersea Power Station remains a blot in the copybook of countless developers and architects, and as yet another scheme is run through and rejected, the building's gradual decomposition will continue."

While I haven't followed the obvious ups and downs of the project, it is clear to me that it has been quite bumpy. However, what is clear is that Battersea and the surrounding neighborhood could use a boost in terms of commerce, architecture and green space. While purists are never satisfied, a nice helping a green roof should mollify most critics, I hope. Indoor gardens