The Rippon Building
| the Rippon Building
Darvall Heights [28, 25]
Basic Info:
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The Rippon Building
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Description
A rundown fifteen story building built in the 1920's, and a good example of early Art Deco. It is an early version of our modern skyscraper and was likely very impressive in its day. The bottom floor windows is covered by dented and bloody metalsheets and the main entrance has been heavily reinforced, now more resembling the gates of a wartorn fortress. Twin rows of rusty and wrecked cars run along the road, some of them burnt out. Further west toward St Matheos Hospital there seem to have been a heavy collision sometime years ago, and the road is mostly blocked that way.
The interior of the building is made up of what once must have been roomy and comfortable apartments, most of which furniture now has been scavenged or destroyed. Some doors is still closed shut, their contents unknown and forgotten. The elevators is out of function, and the hallways and stairways is riddled with bulletholes, broken glass and bloody tracks. Dried out stains throughout the building bare witness of firefights and battle. The stairway up to the eleventh floor is filled with trash and broken furniture, and the walls have a brownish sluggish tone. The eleventh floor is in a chaotic mess and bear the marks of fire. The entrance itself is scorched and the wind blows straight through. Something tells you this was the battleground where unknown survivors once took a stand.
When reaching the twelfth floor, you realize that the stairway is blocked by a hefty steel door. It seems to have been welded and bolted right at this spot. Nothing short of a massive charge of explosives will remove it. You can't go any further.
History
The Rippon building was built 1926, in the location where the old irish pub Rip-On-McDunnahue once stood, by the renowned contractor Gregor Henley (1869-1928), and was originally designed by the famous architect Bill Roberts (1894-1968) whom also is responsible for many of the buildings erected not only in Darvall Heights and Eastonwood, but in the entire city of Malton during this time. Roberts was in 1960 awarded with the Key to the City by Mayor Keenan (1927-1997) and the city council by his lifetime achivement of giving the city the large part of it's skyline, although many suburbs went though restoration and renewal after 1944.
The Rippon building was bought by the Lawfirm Granger, Thomas & Bater in the spring 1927, which held office there until the winter 1938. In January 1939 infamous Landlord Chester Morrison (1900-1957) bought the building and remodeled it to house apartments. 20th october 1957 Morrison was found decapitated on the top floor, and all bad publicity that followed slowly cleared the building of it's residents. The identity of Morrisons murderer remains unknown to this day, but speculations always were that his gambling and shady affairs with Maltons criminal elements finally cought up with him. Rumours were that the residents had recieved threats soon after the murder, but the Police were unable to confirm this with any of Rippon's 108 tenants.
The building was abandoned until the summer of 1964, when the scotsman Ian Kingsley (1900-1987) bought the estate and hired the architect Jack Neville (1940-?) to remodel the building to a five star hotel. May 1st 1965 the seventh Kingsley Hotel in britain proudly opened it's doors, and would soon be one of the most favoured hotels in Malton at the time, reaching it's peak in the late 1970's. This was the golden age of the Rippon building, with the rich and famous entering and leaving daily.
The night to the 21st september 1981 Kingsley Hotel was devastated in a fire, heavily damaging the top six floors and killing nineteen guests, among them rockstar Dean Anslow and politician Audrey Hempton, and injured thirtytwo more. After this tragedy the hotel closed permanently.
After this the Rippon building was scheduled to be torn down, but Scott Kingsley (1956-?), Ian Kingsley's son, decided that the building could serve another purpose and started a renovation that would eventually cost him 3.4 million pounds and take three years to complete. He turned the hotel into an apartment building once again, only this time to be used exclusively for relatives of patients treated in the Saints Row Hospitals; St Eutychian's- Pius's and Matheos's. The building had everything needed for a pleasant stay; gym, pool, restaurant and psychiatrists. The concept was new at the time, relatives could be kept close to the patients while they underwent whatever procedure they were supposed to.
Scott Kingsley turned the top two floors into suites for special guests, and the top floor into his personal home in Malton. During the 90's it was classed as number five in the list of top ten most luxurious homes in Malton (Malton Gazette No 9 1994), including a private pool and a helipad. Speculations indicate that Kingsley Jr didn't do this fully for the common good, but also because his daughter Emma suffered a rare illness at the time. Skeptics pointed out that the theory seemed a little far fetched.
Since the opening of the Rippon Home Center in 1985, the building housed over 1200 people per year until the breakout. Needless to say, Rippon was hit hard during those desperate days. In the midst of the chaos, there were eyewitnesses left behind that said Kingsley managed to fly out at least a hundred people during the evacuation before he took off himself in his helicopter.
A few say more, but it makes no difference now.
Barricade Policy
Extremely Heavy Barricades at all times
Current Status
The Rippon Building is utilized by the defenders of good and decency on a regular basis, and has been the home of many a survivor since the outbreak started. Some nights survivors has sworn to have seen lights being turned on and shadows move on the top floors, although the pathway is blocked. Who resides there is a mystery.
