Discussing Urban Regeneration

DISCUSSING URBAN R E G E N E R AT I O N “With reference to two sites, discuss the economic and social advantages and disadvantages of urban regeneration schemes”

Halima Haq - University of Westminster - 2021

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With reference to two sites, discuss the economic and social advantages and disadvantages of urban regeneration schemes.

For an architect, a vacant land is synonymous to a blank canvas. However, these empty grounds may involve deep rooted issues that must be resolved before anyone can build on it.

Some land has remained empty throughout history, whereas others may be a result of dereliction – specifically after the deindustrialisation of the 1980s. Such places tend to invite crime to the area, result in unemployment, and become ‘black holes’, otherwise known as, dumping grounds. In society, architects play a significant role in transforming such landscapes, re-imagining places and creating a new sense of belonging for the future of that society. This is often carried out through the process of urban regeneration. By both enhancing the physical structure and, more importantly, the economy of those areas, urban redevelopment schemes aim to reverse urban decline. Typically, as an effort to inject prime private investment into the place, “public money is used in all regeneration programmes” 1.

Therefore, it is important that such schemes are successful and benefit the economy, and the health and well being of society. A discussion of how two urban regeneration schemes have changed over time and their economic and social benefits, based on their individual criteria’s, will be evaluated in this essay.

In the 1980s, a major political decision was made by the Conservative government to close all factories and coal pits. The decision was made as a result of growth in the services sector, and UKs’ inability to compete with foreign countries, where wages and imported goods were cheaper – arguably, a direct influence of globalisation (See Table 1). The loss of dominant economic functions in the former industrial areas led to significant unemployment, thereby triggering social and spatial collapse 2.

1

M. Weaver, ‘Urban regeneration - the issue explained’, The Guardian [website], Monday 19th March 2001,

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2001/mar/19/regeneration.urbanregeneration1. (accessed 18th January 2021).

2

C. Bakbasa, ‘Private investment in urban regeneration process: The case of golden horn’, 2013, pp. 524.

CC2 Halima Haq Table 1: Changes to primary, secondary, tertiary, and quaternary employment in the UK between 1980 and 2015 (in millions of workers).

Date

Primary

Secondary

Tertiary

Quaternary

1980

0.89

8.9

14.8

2.8

2015

0.48

5.1

22.1

5.98

Trend

Down by 45%

Down by 43%

Up by 49%

Up by 113%

Producing raw materials

Manufacturing finished products

Providing services e.g., retail & tourism

Producing IT services

Source: Regenerating Places – Geography A-Level Edexcel Student Book

The closures affected northern England, Scotland, Wales, and the Midlands, where unemployment soared. “Inner and outer London have experienced similar long-term [unemployment] trends, unlike the inner and outer areas of the other conurbations. Looked at in more detail, employment in outer London was slightly more volatile than in inner London in the 1980s, but this has been reversed during the 1990s” 3. This can, perhaps, be related to the numerous industrial structures in different parts of London. Many manufacturing spots were situated in North West London, West London and alongside the River Thames in East London. Industrial sites on either side the river span the boroughs of Greenwich, Newham, Bexley, Havering and Barking and Dagenham 4. All industrial locations in outer London, which explains the unemployment pattern in London. Between 1981 and 1996 “London lost 212,000 jobs while the rest of the South East gained 556,000 jobs”. In the 1981 Census, over 60% of adult men were unemployed in some parts of East London. It is claimed that this reflected continued deindustrialisation, strong decentralisation, and growing diversity in the economy of the region (Turok, 1999) 5. A significant reason to why these city dwellers were moving to the Midlands and towards South East of UK was because of affordable rent, housing, cheaper travel, older people wanting to retire in the countryside, and better quality of life than what London had to offer. Furthermore, population loss can, in turn, led to the “contraction of certain public and private services, in particular those services which directly serve the needs of consumers or users” 6. The physical landscape slowly deteriorated as a Turok, I., Nicola Edge., The jobs gap in Britain’s cities Employment loss and labour market consequences, Bristol, The Policy Press, 1999, pp 4.

3

Fabian Wallace-Stephens, ‘Mapping London’s makers’. 2018, https://citiesofmaking.com/mapping-londonsmakers/ (accessed website on the 7th of February 2021) 5 Turok, I., Nicola Edge., The jobs gap in Britain’s cities Employment loss and labour market consequences, Bristol, The Policy Press, 1999, pp 4.

6 Turok, I., Nicola Edge., The jobs gap in Britain’s cities Employment loss and labour market consequences, Bristol, The Policy Press, 1999, pp 5.

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result of dereliction, and it was not until the 1990’s that the Conservative government tried to act fast to fix the threat to Britain’s picture. This attempt was made through rebranding inner cities. Places such as Liverpool hosted Garden Festivals – small scale rebranding schemes – to create a ‘greener’ image 7. This was a start to UK’s urban regeneration schemes.

The City of London has remained a tourist hotspot, because of its famous architecture such as the London Eye, The Tower Bridge, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, St Pauls Cathedral and Madame Tussauds London. However, in the last few decades, new iconic landmarks have appeared alongside these traditional ones, creating new symbols to represent London. These include Canary Wharf and its skyscrapers – for example UK’s second tallest building, One Canada Square – and the O2 arena – formerly known as the Millennium Dome 8. These new buildings have appeared on riverfront, on the former docks in inner East London. This was not always the case (see figure 1).

Figure 1: The old building of the Canary Wharf, named after its connections with Canary Islands produce.

Photograph: From Getty Images, Christopher Pillitz/Corbis 9

Thatcher's government understood the strengths of the previous Docklands, coupled with the potential of 22 km² of existing construction land so close to Central London, that they began to imagine a new part to the city which could possibly tackle the 'spiral of decline'. As part of 7

Adams, L., Russell Chapman, Catherine Hurst, ‘Regenerating Places’, in B.D and Digby, eds., Geography for Edexcel A Level Year 1 and AS Student Book, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016, pp. 201.

8 Feriotto, Marianna., ‘The regeneration of London’s Docklands: New riverside Renaissance or catalyst for social conflict?’, MA diss., Italy, University of Padua, 2015, pp. 49.

9 Martinson, Jane., ‘Canary Wharf: life in the shadow of the towers’, The Guardian [website], Sunday 8th April 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/apr/08/canary-wharf-life-in-the-shadow-of-the-towers

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the local and national strategy for dealing with dereliction and unemployment, a plan was necessary for construction on an area of that scale and significance. Thus, under the ‘Local Government, Planning and Land Act of 1980’ (LGPLA 1980), an Urban Development Corporation (UDC) was officially formed and became known as the LDDC, the ‘London Docklands Development Corporation’ 10. Their prime focus was to encourage growth in East London, so they brought together key players, such as property owners keen to purchase land (the former Port of London was government-owned but given up for purchase), architects, construction companies, and investors. They opted for a market-led approach to redevelopment, allowing the private sector to determine the future of the East End of London.

It has been stated that, the LDDC were given planning powers that by-passed local councils in Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Greenwich. As long as planning permission was granted by 1991, companies could obtain tax breaks on new buildings. These tax breaks were designed to attract investors and still apply today (Regenerating Places, 2016) 11.

The signature initiative of the London Docklands Development Corporation was Canary Wharf – now London's second central business district. The intent of this flagship development was to replace the docklands of the former primary sector with high-rise office buildings aimed at fostering high-earned, quaternary employment. Vacancies were supposedly made available for people of the local community and it was said that high earners could create additional jobs for the poorer communities in a ‘trickle down’ effect. A huge economic shift came about into the area as Canary Wharf went onto becoming London's “Wall Street on water” 12 with investment banks locating there, and high-tech industries, finance and law companies, stock exchange and TV studios (Regenerating Places, 2016).

Every day, 100,000 commuters travel 13 there. With its new transport facilities and infrastructures, the London Dockland’s urban redevelopment programme was a huge economic success, the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) was designed specifically to scale the Docklands, providing spectacular views of the modern capital, the Jubilee Line was also extended on the London Underground – making it accessible and well connected to the rest

10

Feriotto, Marianna., ‘The regeneration of London’s Docklands: New riverside Renaissance or catalyst for social conflict?’, MA diss., Italy, University of Padua, 2015, pp. 49.

Adams, L., Russell Chapman, Catherine Hurst, ‘Regenerating Places’, in B.D and Digby, eds., Geography for Edexcel A Level Year 1 and AS Student Book, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016, pp. 201.

12 Hunt, Tristram., ‘In Britain's dockland mirror, China is sailing into view’, The Guardian [website], 6th September 2009, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/sep/06/canary-wharf-recession-london-history 13 http://content.tfl.gov.uk/travel-in-london-report-7.pdf pp. 33.

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of London, new roads were constructed with a link to the M1 and London City Airport was built to provide business connections to the City and Canary Wharf.

The social benefits of this redevelopment scheme are debatable. In the 1980s, the government launched the 'Right to Buy Scheme' which gave previously residing dwellers, a right to buy their home at a discounted price. Over 20,000 new houses and flats were constructed since, including luxury flats, and many old terraces had been cleared or renovated. Most of these flats were sold out to middle-class tenants and buyers, as they were desirable and very well situated in the Central Business District. This method is known as gentrification – the process whereby the character of a poor urban area is changed by wealthier people moving in, improving housing, and attracting new businesses, often displacing current inhabitants in the process 14 – and is a huge disadvantage of regeneration schemes. As wealthier people move into these neighbourhoods, Biro argues, “the intensity of price increases in many neighbourhoods encouraging landlords to remove tenants through illegal means so that they can sell the property or acquire higher paying tenants” 15.

It may come as a surprise that, two decades following the original urban regeneration, came another redevelopment plan for East London in 2005. Along with nine other countries, London entered a competition to host the 2012 Olympics. The winners would be offered support in regenerating their chosen area, ‘free publicity’ from the Olympic Games, and increased boost of tourism further funding the economy. Stratford, London, was successfully selected for regeneration as the area was depicted to be the most deprived in London and the UK. There were signs of dereliction around parts of Stratford (see figure 2), unemployment was soaring, and the district had the greatest concentration of high-rise tower blocks in Britain. The canals in Lower Lea Valley had been abandoned for 30 years, and as a result, were clogged by debris and weeds, but had potential to be restored to become part of a beautiful park. Newham alone accounted for 42% of the formerly used London brownfield sites. The Brownfield locations remained empty for 20 to 30 years and could be used for the Olympic Park 16. The London Bid Team demonstrated the area had potential to be cleaner,

14

Oxford University Press, Gentrification, Oxofrd Languages [website] https://languages.oup.com/dictionaries/

Jessica, Biro., ‘Gentrification: Deliberate Displacement, or. Natural Social Movement?’, vol. 15, no. 1, 2007, pp.

44.

15

16

Deigmology, ‘Dereliction in the Lower Lea Valley, London’, Deigmology Blog [website], May 19th 2016, https://deigmologyblog.wordpress.com/2016/05/19/dereliction-in-the-lower-lea-valley-london/

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greener, and being a multicultural metropolis, London could offer a strong sense of community representation for the games.

Figure 2: Dereliction at Lea River, Stratford, London.

Rather than economic, this urban regeneration plan was originally supposed to be environmentally led with added economic and social benefits. However, during the development phase, London took advantage of the free publicity to brand themselves and think economically. Place branding is a different method opposed to corporate branding since places are more complex 'products'. The results of a place's branding can be highly beneficial, so nations must consistently and carefully manage their image. It is used to distinguish one area from the other, achieve comparative market recognition and develop itself as a major city (Jovic, Maja, 2020) 17. Essentially, it is the process of placing a country on the world map “whereby…marketing strategies are applied” 18. This can be done through creating an attractive personality of the city, through infrastructure, the built environment, national

Quoting definition from lecture by Dr Maja Jović, ‘Architecture and Heritage: The Role of Architecture in a Post Conflict Environment’, Lecture, 2020 18 Wikipedia contributors. (2021, January 16). Place branding. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 7, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Place_branding&oldid=1000761142 17

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stories, economy, and event hosting 19. Many countries employ well known architects to create flagship structures, this creates another opportunity to draw tourists into the city to admire the grand urban design. For the 2012 Olympic Games, London ensured they would create a legacy and success of the regeneration scheme. The Aquatic Centre (created by star architect, Zaha Hadid), the London Olympic Stadium (formerly HOK Sport), and the ArcelorMittal Orbit Tower were a few of the architecture added to East London (see figure 3). Furthermore, in time for the 2012 Games, TFL spent £6.5 billion on improving the transport network and infrastructure. This investment included 10 railway lines and 30 new bridges that would continue to link London communities after the Games, while at least 60 Games-related initiatives were launched to encourage greener transport, including an investment of £10 million to improve pedestrian and cycling routes through London 20.

Therefore, the regeneration scheme would be a huge economic advantage for London and its East End.

Figure 3: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and its grand urban design.

A key economic advantage of this regeneration scheme was the addition of the new Tube station in Stratford to further link the city to the rest of London - being the most accessible part of London, Stratford is also second only to King's Cross. Stratford is now a well19 Quoting from lecture by Dr Maja Jović, ‘Architecture and Heritage: The Role of Architecture in a Post Conflict Environment’, Lecture, 2020

The Olympics, ‘London 2012 Venues And Infrastructure Already Providing Strong Games Legacies’, Olympic Org [website], 10th August 2013, https://www.olympic.org/news/london-2012-venues-and-infrastructurealready-providing-strong-games-legacies 20

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connected London town, enabling commuters to conveniently drive to work. A multiplier impact has been generated by new construction and tourism employment and in general unemployment overall fell across London during the Olympic period. It is predicted that by 2030, more than 20,000 jobs will be generated, bringing more than £5 billion into the area.

However, it is also estimated that the Olympic stadium cost £701 million pounds, nearly 3 times the initial estimate (source). Many local residents were upset by this. The overall Olympics bill was £8.77 billion in revenue from the taxpayer. That was £5 billion over target.

There have also been claims that some statistics are ignored to make a regeneration project seem successful than it really was, MP Rushanara Ali, in the Olympic borough of Tower Hamlets, said: “The impact of the infrastructure investment has been really fantastic... But – and there’s a big but – in my borough unemployment actually went up during the Olympics” 2122. There were vast economic disadvantages from the Olympic regeneration scheme and what was envisioned did not really occur.

Additionally, there were great social impacts expected of this redevelopment such as improved housing since the relaunch of the new housing estate named the East Village, formerly known as the Athletes' Village, where kitchens were attached to the rooms and walls were broken through. Almost half 40 percent of these 2,818 new homes were claimed to be affordable. However, evaluating this claim years after the Olympics have taken place, it is evident that there were huge disadvantages to the residents of the area. Bernstock (2016) writes, “it was always assumed that the Olympic Park itself would be a key dimension of housing legacy. However, targets for affordable housing there have been revised down from 35%-40% in 2010 to a minimum of 20% and maximum of 35% in 2011, and a maximum of 31% in 2013. These cuts have been justified by the need to pay back debts and the loss of an uplift in land values” 23. These statistics aren’t alarming as it was quite clear from the regeneration criteria that this project was largely economic and environmentally driven. The social aspect was merely a side thought. Furthermore, dereliction still looms behind areas of the Olympic Park (see figure 4).

https://www.coolgeography.co.uk/gcsen/London_Regeneration.php Emily Dugan, ‘Olympic legacy shows in 'transformed' outpost’, nzherald [website], 17th July 2013, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/olympic-legacy-shows-in-transformedoutpost/CKUKYJSPPU32SOHBOJUHEYDZSY/ 23 Penny, Bernstock, ‘London Olympics has brought regeneration, but at a price locals can’t afford’, The Guardian [website], https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/aug/30/london-olympic-regeneration-but-price-locals-cantpay 21 22

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Figure 4: Below Stratford high street, post-industrial backwater remains and new developments are visible behind. 24

In conclusion, urban regeneration schemes only benefit the city’s image, merely creating economic advantages for the government and for those already well off. As Smyth. H. argues, “renewing the existing fabric and regenerating the areas of decline and dereliction is one of the greatest challenges for the well-being of society” 25 this is because as an area improves and gains investment, the existing community is driven out as a result of gentrification. Only few can reap the benefit of government policies, while the rest are left in poverty to resent the middle-class newcomers who take their place. For example, although East London’s Docklands is no longer UKs most deprived locations, poverty still resides there. In 2012, 27% of Newham’s working population earned less than £7 per hour – the highest percentage of any London Borough (Regenerating Places, 2016). In comparison, the London 2012 Olympic Park regeneration did not create a huge long-term success in economic and social factors. The built environment was transformed; however, it did not benefit those it was promised to benefit. In defence of the Olympic Park regeneration, it is clear that the type of regeneration was different for both projects. The London Docklands were given an endless timescale to develop and plan strategically, while the Olympics regeneration was a scheme developed to suit the host city for the major 2012 sports event. They suffered greatly in respect to other “mega-projects by virtue of having an immutable deadline for completion.

24 25

https://mickhartley.typepad.com/blog/2009/10/lea-river-park.html Smyth, H., Marketing the City: The Role of Flagship Developments in Urban Regeneration, 1993, pp 1.

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When works fall behind timetable, this can add cost pressures by forcing organisers to instigate expensive emergency building programmes” 26. The advantages of urban regeneration schemes only benefit the area of development and very rarely influence, in London’s case, the outer city and their neighbourhoods, as poorer communities are forced out of the area. Existing locals may argue their sense of belonging to the place no longer exists after their hometown has been regenerated.

[2683 words excluding title & bibliography]

John R. Gold, Margaret M. Gold., ‘Olympic Cities: Regeneration, City Rebranding and Changing Urban Agendas’, 2008, pp. 303.

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Bibliography Books: Adams, L., Russell Chapman, Catherine Hurst, ‘Regenerating Places’, in B.D and Digby, eds., Geography for Edexcel A Level Year 1 and AS Student Book, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2016, pp. 193-244.

McCarthy, J., Professor Graham Haughton, and Professor Graham Haughton, Partnership, Collaborative Planning and Urban Regeneration, England, Ashgate Publishing Company, 2007.

Smyth, H., Marketing the City: The Role of Flagship Developments in Urban Regeneration, 1993.

Turok, I., Nicola Edge., The jobs gap in Britain’s cities Employment loss and labour market consequences, Bristol, The Policy Press, 1999.

Journal Articles: Beatty, Christina., Stephen Fothergillô., Ryan Powell., ‘Twenty years on: has the economy of the UK coalfields recovered?’, vol. 39, 2007.

Biro, Jessica, ‘Gentrification: Deliberate Displacement, or. Natural Social Movement?’, vol.

15, no. 1, 2007.

Davis, Juliet, ‘Materialising the Olympic legacy: design and development narratives’, vol.

18, no. 4, 2015.

Evans, Gillian, ‘Minutes, meetings, and ‘modes of existence’: navigating the bureaucratic process of urban regeneration in East London’, vol. 23, no. 1, 2017.

Feriotto, Marianna., ‘The regeneration of London’s Docklands: New riverside Renaissance or catalyst for social conflict?’, MA diss., Italy, University of Padua, 2015.

John R. Gold, Margaret M. Gold., ‘Olympic Cities: Regeneration, City Rebranding and Changing Urban Agendas’, 2008.

Lectures: Jovic, M. (2020). ‘Architecture and Heritage: The Role of Architecture in a Post Conflict Environment, Week 5’. Lecture,.

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Kamvasinou, K. (2020). ‘Interim Spaces and Creative Use’, Week 7’. Lecture,.

Websites: Deigmology, ‘Dereliction in the Lower Lea Valley, London’, Deigmology Blog [website], May 19th 2016, https://deigmologyblog.wordpress.com/2016/05/19/dereliction-in-the-lowerlea-valley-london/ Hunt, Tristram., ‘In Britain's dockland mirror, China is sailing into view’, The Guardian [website], 6th September 2009, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/sep/06/canary-wharf-recession-londonhistory Martinson, Jane., ‘Canary Wharf: life in the shadow of the towers’, The Guardian [website], Sunday 8th April 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/apr/08/canarywharf-life-in-the-shadow-of-the-towers The Innes Partnership, ‘The LDDC History Pages’, LDDC History [website], 6th January 2014, http://www.lddc-history.org.uk/ Wallace-Stephens, Fabian., ‘Mapping London’s Makers’, Cities of Making [website], 17 May 2018, https://citiesofmaking.com/mapping-londons-makers/ Weaver, Matt., ‘Urban regeneration - the issue explained’, The Guardian [website], Monday 19th March 2001, https://www.theguardian.com/society/2001/mar/19/regeneration.urbanregeneration1.

List of illustrations: Figure 1: Old Canary Wharf. Photograph: From Getty Images, Christopher Pillitz/Corbis Source: https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/photos/christopher-pillitz-canary-wharf Figure 2: Dereliction at Lea River.

Source: https://mickhartley.typepad.com/blog/2009/10/lea-river-park.html Figure 3: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park Source: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2014/jun/ucl-and-olympic-park-update-professorstephen-caddick-vice-provost-enterprise

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Figure 4: Dereliction in Stratford.

Source: https://mickhartley.typepad.com/blog/2009/10/lea-river-park.html