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UK's largest green roof

Posted: 16/12/2006

The largest grass roof in the UK could soon crop up on the Hemel Hempstead skyline if fresh plans for an indoor ski centre are given the go-ahead. Plans by Hemel Ski Centre to replace its dry slopes off St Albans Hill with an indoor snow complex were rejected by the council last year over the look of the new building's giant aluminium roof.

But the centre will put fresh plans to the council for an indoor ski centre with a massive 'nature roof' covered in grass – potentially the largest of its kind in the country. The revolutionary roof would help the new ski centre blend into the Bennetts End horizon. It would also help to insulate the building and collect rainwater which could be re-used in the design.

Manager of Hemel Ski Centre, Dave Surrey, said: "We wanted to do more work to come up with a design we felt happy with."

A spokesman for Dacorum Borough Council said: "Improving the design of the building was a key issue – it's to do with how the building looks from a distance."

Multi-million pound plans for indoor slopes with real snow were first announced by the ski centre in September last year ahead of a public consultation. The plans were submitted to the council's Development Control Committee in November 2005 but were withdrawn by the centre a month later at the request of the council.

As well as the nature roof, the revised ski centre plans include improvements to the centre entrance in Wheelers Lane and an increase in the number of parking spaces. Trees at the front of the centre facing onto St Albans Hill will also be kept and more mature trees will be planted on the ski centre site.

If given the go-ahead by the council, the plans will make Hemel Hempstead one of only four towns in the UK with an indoor ski centre. Sports funding body Sport England has expressed concern that the dry ski slope in Hemel Hempstead could close in the future if the plans are not accepted by the council.

Figures from planning papers suggest the new snow runs could attract 150,000 skiers and snowboarders to the town each year, 50,000 more than attend the current ski slope.

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