The UK artist Tracey Emin is facing a hefty £160,000 bill to fix the cladding on Margate’s Arlington House tower block where she owns four flats.
Leaseholders in the landmark Brutalist building have been told they must pay £40,000 per property after structural defects were found by the UK government’s building safety regulator.
Arlington House was built in the British seaside town in 1963 and is made up of 142 flats. Emin is angry, though, saying in a statement to the council: “My question is, why, when I have only owned my flats for four years or less, am I being held responsible for years and years of neglect by [Arlington owner] Freshwater?” (Freshwater was contacted for comment.)
Emin may not be the only famous Arlington householder forced to dig deep: the British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan has a pad on the 14th floor of the tower block that is lined with mirrored panels. These sea views seem to come with a hefty premium!