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Back to index of Nerve 20 - Summer 2012
Outing to the Florrie
By Ritchie
Hunter from the Nerve Review Writers Group
Painting by Ossie Jones
We met
at the building in the heart of the Dingle, local people call the 'monstrosity',
which is set to become a great white elephant. But we weren't there to
see the 'Tezza', Park Road's Tesco. We moved off down a residential street
towards the Mersey where we could see Wilson's Flour Mill, owned by ADM,
another multi-national bullying its way around the world. And there was
the Florence Institute, not finished yet but still a stirring sight in
its red brick splendour. What a stark contrast to the 'monstrosity'- and
these will be my last words on the 'Tezza' building that's more like a
barn really, all plastic n glass, with a car park underneath; no style,
just a prefab.
The Florrie? Now here's style, and history too, soaked into the bricks and wooden beams, all intricate curlicues and porticos with an observation tower boasting a roof laced with copper.
Built as a Protestant boys’ institution in 1889, the Florrie provided relief for those young people who, up to then, had been incarcerated on a borstal ship, the Akbar, floating directly below on the Mersey (see: 'Savage Ships' in Nerve17). From providing education and discipline in its early days, the Florrie became what most people remember it as, a boys’ club, symbolising the rich wealth of sporting talent coming from this area.
Today's multifunctional use, hire of the great hall, café etc., is dictated by the need to be sustainable. And this question of survival, in the midst of the managed decline of Liverpool's social fabric, was at the front of our minds on our visit: especially when there are other places vying for the same audience.
In 2006 Nerve interviewed Ossie Jones a local artist. He told us how he was using his art to raise funds to get the Florrie renovated. "The community has to be involved in saving this building and in deciding what to do with it. There's no point saving it if they're not."
So, for a project like this to survive, the local community has to be involved. And this is exactly what happened here. People gave their time, sweat and sometimes tears, to get this iconic building renovated. They won't let it go easily!
For more on the history of the Florrie see the Nerve website or go to: theflorrie.org
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