Number 13 August 1990
A REVIEW OF CURRENT ARCHITECTURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND EVENTS INTHE CAMBRIDGE AREAPRODUCED BY THE CAMBRIDOESHIRE ASSOCIATIONOFARCIIITECTS. THE VIEWS INTHISNEWSLETTERARE THOSE OFTHE INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTORS AND NOT OF THE ASSOCIATION. NEWSLETTER CO-EDITED BY DAVID RAVEN AND COLEN LUMLEY. 'CAMBRIDGEARCHITECTURE' TRUMPINGTON MEWS TRUMPINGTON CAMBRIDGE.
A duty is owing tothose participants who, nonetheless, entered into the spirit of the competition (insome cases, witha considerable commitment ofresource) to submit material, in improvements tothetownscapeq tyofthe anticipation ofa professionallymanaged Square. The results (or lack of results) have assessment and exposition of the submissions, only scarcely been made public. Both theM&S issue and the question of improving theimage of consistent with theunderlying seriousness and significance of its objectives. Whatever one's theMarket Square impinge on the broader question of the character and provision of public views areofthe entries under these conditions (and this issue oICAMB EARCJ-tTEC'TURff attempts to redress some ofthelack of
The conservation of our urban heritage is constantly under challenge and tlme does not stand still. The market trndlnJ in itself is evidence ofa living process, which beliea any tendency tofixing the physical appearance of the built environment, atany moment intime, in perpetuity. It is only some 156years or so since the fire that brought about a dramatic remodelling and resizlng of the Market Square [2&3]. There can be no real argument forthe immutabilty of its present shape and
required..... setting the conceptual tone forits eventual assessment ofthecompetition submissions. The proscriptive conditions of the competition clearly werea deterrent to many of thepotential professional entries, resulting in the derisory number ofsubmissions. This, for the reasoris given, need notimply an absence of professional imagination, or lack of interest in the environmental character of the major civic open space inthe City.
The problems of theMarket Square arenot such that they znaybe solved by superficial Interventions to do with the flooracape and marginal shifting of trading stalls, or even the reintroduction ofa fountain; even though, in their own terms, these elements havea part to play. The issue deservesa new ideae competition actwithln the context of the findings of a Local Plan. A Pian which takes on boarda comprehensive overvlew of publlc open space inthe Clty centre and the very obvious changes and levels of use of public open space Inthe centre ln receat years. It isa subject wkicb overlaps witb other recent major changes and the intensificat-
Similar reflections perhaps influenced the
One of the flrst issues is to acknowledge the context and the primacy ofthecivic purpose and symbolic significance of the Market Square. The sec°nd priority ought to be to review the ataWs of the uses appropriate (now and inthe forcseeable future) to the Square [sucha fe8ppraisai might include the question even asto wbetber tkcMarket Square is st1Il tke xtgkt location for market trading in the City]. There is little point in holding a competitlon for improvements to the Square inthe first place, if there isa Local Plan forthe City in the offing. It simply pre-empts and is prdudicial to its proper remit.