g re e ns c o m mo ns a g r ic ul t ur e so c ial c o ntac t la n d u s e r e c l a ma ti o n
riots religion urban communities
the Hub
landscape | k e n t i s h tow n b y i l o n a h ay + g e o r g i a l ag a n a ko u
Last summer, images of London burning were televised worldwide. On the second day of riots, in one corner of Kentish Town, all shops closed early, bar one, which brought in young male family members and friends to stand vigil. Would it be possible to create and extend this feeling of vigil and commitment beyond just a crisis time and one family group? Kentish Town was once a rural village outside London. Our project is to implement a village-like community, along with an associated self -confidence and independence, in an urban environment. As this is a city in which the state of the economic downturn is never far from the news, where people are ‘locked away in [their] private cocoons’,1 we felt that a return to an ancient and rural landuse model could be socially restorative in the modern metropolis.2 We propose to reinstate a historic Common and to create a hub or focus point on the common land. The proposal takes wasteland and makes it available to those wanting to contribute to it. It creates community by creating a distinct venue, a calendar to help organise it and provides opportunities for further education. In practical terms it will need a tested operational method, a means of income and a business plan. Lost land and lost people; can they be linked together to create something socially binding?
On Site review 27
rural urbanism
72
hay + l ag anako u
Site The site is in Highgate Road (once known as Greene Street after the village green) in the vicinity of the original Kentish Town common – wasteland on which the landless used to graze their animals. The common has been eroded and its leftovers are disjointed and not used by residents on a regular basis. Modern wasteland is also incorporated into the project. Proposal The new Common will be agricultural with goats, sheep, fruit, vegetables and herbs. The land is for the use of the community surrounding it, including its schools. A hub, ideally located to tie all the identified common land together will be a centre for agricultural commerce, education, and leisure: a market square and a café. The existing petrol station and garage roofs will be extended as green routes for people and animals – links to weave the Common back together.