Nos 27 And 29, Nos 31 And 33 (West House) And Nos 35 To 41 With Iron Railings To Entrance Steps

A terrace of eight townhouses at Nos 27 to 41 (odd) West Avenue, Filey, dating to circa 1840 and among the first terraces built during the town's development as a seaside resort following the arrival of the railway in 1846.

The buildings are constructed of fine red brick in Flemish bond to the front elevation, with rougher brick in English Garden wall bond to the rear. They are roofed in Welsh slate. Each house is three storeys tall with a half basement and attic, arranged as two bays and double depth, with the entrance to the left and an originally top-lit dog leg staircase aligned with the ridge. The principal reception room was positioned on the first floor to the front, spanning both bays.

The front elevation displays Classical detailing characteristic of late Georgian design. Entrances are approached by steps flanked by iron railings and feature original four-panelled doors with rectangular overlights, set within panelled reveals and framed by doorcases with Doric columns supporting corniced hood entablatures. Two doors are modern reinstatements. Windows have gauged brick flat arches, with original multi-paned sashes to the first floor extending down to a stuccoed storey band. Nos 27, 29, 35 and 39 have later nineteenth-century style canted bay windows to the ground floor. Nos 27 and 39 have roof dormer windows. Some modern replacement windows are present, notably at Nos 35 and 41. Ridge chimney stacks survive between most of the townhouses, except between Nos 29 and 31. Ornate railings survive to the front of Nos 27 and 29. The roof of No. 41 has been replaced with an unsympathetic mansard form, though its flanking chimney stacks remain. Modern colour wash has been applied to the side and rear of No. 41 and to the rear of two further properties.

The rear elevation is of more utilitarian design and has undergone greater alteration, with numerous replacement windows and the addition of modern fire escapes. However, half of the houses retain nearly all their original multi-paned sashes. No. 41 is the most altered, being colour washed with changed window openings including two full-height canted bays.

Internally, the townhouses retain their original staircases from ground to second floor, featuring open strings with simple brackets and turned balusters supporting handrails that are either ramped or wreathed around the dog legs, with curtails on the ground floor. Surviving period features include decorative brackets between the entrance passage and stair hall, plaster coving to the original reception rooms, and period joinery comprising skirtings and architraves.

The terrace was developed following the 1835 purchase of farmland by J W Unett, a solicitor from Birmingham, who encouraged Filey's expansion as a seaside resort by laying out streets and selling plots to builders. The coming of the railway in 1846 provided further stimulus to the town's growth, with this terrace believed to have been one of the first to be completed as part of this development.