List of tallest buildings and structures in Ipswich

The waterfront regeneration project during the peak of the building boom in 2011. The Cambria Regatta Quay building can be seen under-construction on the right. Regatta Quay Block A is under-construction in the middle. The Cranfield Mill is under-construction to the left.

Cranfield Mill is the tallest building in East Anglia

St Mary-Le-Tower is the 2nd tallest building in Ipswich

St Francis Court is the 3rd tallest building in the town

This list of tallest buildings in Ipswich ranks tall buildings and structures in the U.K. town of Ipswich, Suffolk by height. The tallest building in the city is the Cranfield Mill, which rises 71 metres (233 ft) and was topped out in 2009.

History

20th century

One of the first major 'building booms' was in the 1960s and 1970s known as the Greyfriars development. The project consisted of large plazas, office blocks and residential towers. The project was not received well and in the 1990s, most of the project was destroyed. Surviving buildings were revamped in the 1980s and 1990s, these included St Francis Court and St Clare House. The rest of the development was demolished to make way for the Willis Building.^[1]

21st century

In recent years the town of Ipswich has experienced a building boom, especially on the outskirts such as Ravenswood and Kesgrave. Ipswich dock, known as the waterfront has seen huge investment in two separate projects as part of the waterfront regeneration project. The Cranfield Mill was a development of the tallest building in Ipswich but the interior was never finished due to financial difficulty. The other project was the Regatta Quay redevelopment which consisted of two large residential blocks. The Cambria Regatta Quay was completed but the Regatta Quay Block A was never completed as the bank funding the project went bankrupt, the building was left in a skeletal state. Recent investment however, has promised its completion for 2017.

During 2015 another small 'building boom' had started to happen, firstly with the redevelopment if Stoke Quay. The development consists of a large residential building called Stoke Quay Genesis that has 386 homes at a total cost of £36 million. The main contractor was ISG.^[2]

Princes Street in the town centre will see the construction of two large office buildings. The old Fisons building is undergoing a £9 million redevelopemt into a newer office building. The construction has begun and is expected to be completed in 2016, being built by PDR construction Ltd.^[3] The law firm, Birketts LLP is going to build a large HQ on the site of Riley’s Pool Hall, which is going to be demolished after their administration announcement. The developers of the plan are Churchmanor Estates.^[4]

Tallest Buildings and Structures

An equal sign (=) following a rank indicates the same height between two or more buildings. Only structures taller than 30m are listed.

Rank	Name	Use	Image	Height m/ft	Floors	Year	Notes
1	Cranfield Mill[5]	Residential		71/233	23	2009	Despite being topped out in 2009, the interior of the building has remained empty ever since due to financial difficulties.
2	St Mary le Tower[6]	Religious		54/176	3	1862	The site of St. Mary-le-Tower has been occupied by a church since at least the compilation of the Domesday Book of 1086.
3	St Francis Court[7]	Residential		52/172	16	1962
4	Regatta Quay Block A[8]	Residential		52/171	16	2017	The building is still on hold after the financial difficulties in 2007. The building nicknamed the 'Wine-rack' is in the centre of the picture.
5	St Clare House[9]	Office		48/156	12	1982
6	The Civic Centre[10]	Office / Government		44/141	14	1969-2009	The building was used by a division of Suffolk County Council who relocated to Endeavour House.
7=	Orwell Bridge[11]	Road Bridge		43/140	N/A	1982
7=	Suffolk House[12]	Office		43/140	9	1969
9=	Ipswich Hospital Maternity Block[13]	Hospital		41/135	9	1955	The Hospital was founded in 1909.
9=	Guardian Royal Exchange building[14]	Office		41/135	8	1970	This building was built as an extension for Suffolk House and is currently owned by AXA.
11=	St Vincent House[15]	Office		40/130	10	1967
11=	Suffolk New College[16]	Educational		40/130	8	1959-2010	The main tower of the college being prepared for demolition in 2009, a new college building has since been built.
13=	10 Reavell Place[17]	Residential		37/121	12	2010
13=	The Cambria Regatta Quay[18]	Residential		37/121	12	2009	The building is the only completed building of the Regatta Quay development.
15	Cumberland Towers[19]	Residential		35/115	12	1966
16	Neptune Marina[20]	Residential		34/112	11	2005	The Neptune Marina building is to the right of the photo.
17	St Lawrence Church[21]	Religious		30/90	N/A	1449	The 15th-century church has the oldest set of church bells in the world.

Timeline of Tallest Buildings

Rank	Name	Image	Height m/ft	Floors	Years tallest	Notes
1	Cranfield Mill[5]		71/233	23	2009–present
2	St Mary le Tower[6]		54/176	3	1862-2009
3	St Lawrence Church[21]		30/90	N/A	1449-1862

References