Another whatizzit? puzzle

[IanB]

The building pictured below is rather grandiose and decorative. Can you say where it may be found, and for what purpose it was constructed? (As you may guess, it has something to do with electrons.)

[TerraHertz]

Would it be a pumping building, above an underground water reservoir?
Either that or a sewage pumping station, though it would probably have tall vents if it was sewage.
Little idea which city it might be, though I'd guess London.
I notice there are two of the buildings, at each end of that structure.

Did you shop out the text on the signs?

For people who like guessing locations, try http://www.geoguessr.com/
Caution, it's really addictive and time consuming.

[IanB]

No, it's not a pumping station.

I did remove the name from the street sign otherwise it would be too easy to Google it. However, the red lettering on the sign says "City of Westminster", which would place it in London.

The whole thing is one structure, including the features at each end and the length in the middle. The flat part on the roof with the the steps leading up to it is a public garden, put there to replace the original leafy garden that was on the same site before the building was constructed.

[vk6zgo]

Something to do with Marconi?

[IanB]

No, nothing to do with Marconi.

The building is in Mayfair, which is a very expensive part of London. The building is there because what it encloses needed to be in close proximity to the surrounding area and not somewhere far away with lower land values.

[Tac Eht Xilef]

Duke St electrical substation 

edit: I only know this because I used to be in a "Whereis?" Flikr group with a bunch of friends, and one decided to muck us all up by including a few pics from his trip to London...

[IanB]

Yes, it is indeed an electricity substation, also known as Brown Hart Gardens. Commissioned by the Metropolitan Electric Supply Company (METESCo) and designed by architect Charles Stanley Peach, it was completed around 1905. It is still in operation today, although one presumes the electrical stuff inside it has been through a few modernization cycles since then.

[vk6zgo]

It may not even be in use anymore----there are quite a few "substations" around my home city which are
now used for other purposes,& I imagine London would have had many more.

[electronics man]

In Britain many old utility buildings, such as pumping stations and substations, are beautiful pieces of architecture. The Victorians were really proud of there technology.

[IanB]

It may not even be in use anymore----there are quite a few "substations" around my home city which are
now used for other purposes,& I imagine London would have had many more.

This one, though, is still fully functional:

https://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/internet/en/news-and-press/press-releases/5million-upgrade-for-Soho-electricity-network.html

Demand for electricity only increases, and space to locate infrastructure in a densely populated city is in short supply:

http://library.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/library/en/RIIO/Asset_Management_Documents/High_Value_Projects_Justification/UKPN_LPN_LRE_6105_West+End.pdf

The above document indicates that the Duke Street converts 132 kV to 11 kV with a capacity of 134 MVA.

Duke Street: The substation is located in Mayfair, beneath Brown Hart Gardens, a 10,000 sq. ft. public open space featuring a pavilion, balustrade and Diocletian windows. It is a Grade II listed structure, managed and maintained by Grosvenor Estates. It was originally converted into a substation in 1902. It now contains three 60 MVA transformers, a tunnel shaft connecting to Carnaby Street and AIS tee points. There is no available space for further extension within the existing footprint.

[Stonent]

It could have one of those old mercury rectifiers inside.