Space Place Life 2009

CITY | TOWN | NEIGHBOURHOOD | STREET | PLACE Poetry by Ian McMillan

|2009

MANIFESTO The Academy of Urbanism brings together a group of thinkers and practitioners involved in the social, cultural, economic, political and physical development of our villages, towns and cities.

The Academy was formed in February 2006 to extend urban discourse beyond built environment professionals and to create an autonomous, politically independent and self-funded learned voice. We aim to advance the understanding and practice of urbanism by promoting a culture of scholarship through evidence-based inquiry, providing an inclusive forum for dialogue across all disciplines, sharing knowledge with the community and our peers and nurturing, recognising and rewarding excellence in achievement.

Principles Urban settlements must perform at their fullest potential to advance the quality of human habitation and ensure the survival and recovery of the natural environment, at both a global and local scale. The practice of good urbanism can establish a high quality of living, nurture a healthy and creative way of life, support economic, social, political and cultural activity and deliver robust, distinctive and attractive physical environments.

1. Successful urbanism is the result of a collective vision, realised through creative and enduring relationships between the community, government, developers and professionals involved in its design, delivery, governance and maintenance.

2. The culture or cultures of the people and the ecology of the place must be expressed at a human scale and through both physical and social structures.

3. The identity, diversity and full potential of the community must be supported spiritually, physically and visually to sustain a sense of collective ownership, belonging and civic pride.

4. Vibrant streets and spaces, defined by their surrounding buildings and with their own distinct character, should form a coherent interconnected network of places that support social interaction and display a hierarchy of private, commercial and civil functions.

5. There must be a permeable street network with pedestrian priority that gives maximum freedom of movement and a good choice of means of transport.

6. Essential activities must be within walking distance and there should be a concentration of activity around meeting places.

7. Places must provide a diversity of functions, tenure, facilities and services; have a mix of building designs and types; and include a variety of appropriately scaled districts and neighbourhoods.

8. The social, cultural and economic needs of all inhabitants must be capable of being met without detriment to the quality of the lives of others.

9. Security should be achieved by organising the urban environment in ways that encourage people to act in a civil and responsible manner.

10. The pedestrian environment should be closely associated with active frontages at street level and there should be an appropriate intensity of use in all areas at all times.

11. The design of spaces and buildings should be influenced by their context and seek to enhance local character and heritage whilst simultaneously responding to current-day needs, changes in society and cultural diversity.

12. The public realm and civil institutions must be supported and protected by sound and inclusive

processes that respond to the local community and changing economic and social conditions.

13. Decision-making for the ongoing development and management of the urban fabric must engage stakeholders and the local community through public participation.

14. Diverse, accessible, affordable and active villages, towns and cities will encourage successful commercial activity, promote prosperity and support the well being of their inhabitants.

15. New and existing places must respect, enhance and respond to their local topography, geology and climate and connect to the natural environment within and around them.

16. Urban parks and other landscaped areas should provide space for recreation, encourage biodiversity and help support a balanced environment.

17. New urban forms should be capable of adaptation over time to meet changing needs and to promote the continued use of existing resources, including the built environment.

18. The built environment must seek to minimise the use of carbon-based products, energy and non-renewable resources.

In this, the third year in the life of the Academy, we bring you a further sequence of great places at the level of the City, Town, Neighbourhood, Street and Place.

None were designed for the convenience of the motor car, most are in the process of liberating themselves from its destructive invasion and few would be granted planning permission today.

What have we learned so far? Are there any timeless truths and, if there are, how can these be re-interpreted so that we can collectively create a new and appropriate form of urbanism, fit for the 21st Century?

To deepen our collective understanding of these urban paradoxes the Academy is now embarking on an ambitious programme of discovery and learning, to be founded on three core programmes of activity:

The abiding quality of all of these places is their ability to adapt and respond to the changing complexities of urban life, and their ability to do so is somehow inextricably linked to the unique and widely differing combinations of their form, their spatial arrangement, their fabric and the cultural and sensual experiences that emanate from them.

• UniverCities: learning from place through collaboration and knowledge transfer between Cities, Academia, Citizens and Practitioners • City X-Rays: developing new techniques for revealing the underlying social, economic and environmental orders of place • www.knowyourplace.com: developing a one stop shop for place, stimulating public interaction and showcasing the outputs from UniverCities and City X-Rays

At every scale of place, and under greatly varying circumstances, each was created with the shared intention of optimising the opportunity for social, cultural, spiritual and economic exchange.

Many display a calm authority in their ability to successfully bring together Space, Place and Life, whilst others thrive on extraordinary levels of innate complexity, nurturing far higher levels of community enterprise and cohesion than the sanitized and compliant layouts produced by the dead hand of professional planning.

To match this expansion in both our activities and influence we are expanding the membership of the Academy. If you would like to join us in our common quest, please come on board.

John Thompson, Chairman The Academy of Urbanism

The URBANISM AWARDS 2009

a figure ground

a memorable image

and a poem

BRISTOL MANCHESTER NEWCASTLE/GATESHEAD

This isn’t easy. A poem is a machine of words and sounds And Bristol’s more than that. So much more.

Try getting Cabot Circus into a line: light reflecting on windows, On the face of someone entering a shop with a smile. See: Two lines! The Harbourside: I’ll sit here for a moment and try To write a line about how Bristol meets the water meets the sky And then a line about how Clifton’s streets somehow make you Walk more slowly, taking in the view and more than the view, The history, the sense of promise, the stroll down Whiteladies Road Where you just can’t decide where to eat except everywhere And this poem’s getting fuller and it feels like it might explode With all the things I’m trying to squeeze into it. Okay then, admit it: This isn’t a poem, it’s an open top bus tour of a city That’s a poem all by itself. Bristol: epic work, constantly redrafting.

BRISTOL

MANCHESTER You hear this place before you see it; the noise and the buzz Of a city brimming with self-belief, A music that comes from laughter and football And walking a certain way down Piccadilly.

Like this: the arms, the confidence.

You see this place before you hear it; as your plane touches down Past the Manchester lights that glow with the knowledge That this is a city believes in itself And a certain way of talking on the last tram home.

Like this: quip first, gag second, punchline after.

You live in this place like you live in your own skin: It takes you over, you’re a streetplan, a future entwined With a past so they both show their best face To a world that just has to bow to the inevitable: Like this: we’re here, just accept it, we’re Manchester, Manchester!

NEWCASTLE/GATESHEAD That Northern Angel welcomes you with open arms and smiles: He’s not wearing a shirt because this region’s never cold.

He’s standing halfway to the sky, can see for miles and miles Just how this place renews itself by blending new and old; From the Baltic to St. James’s Park, the Metro to the Sage You can feel regeneration’s pulse and hear renewal’s heart.

The gorgeous Angel’s calling in a brand new golden age Driven by music, dance and story, fuelled by song and art.

A river splits these cities and yet gives them definition: Take me walking by the Tyne and let me hear the future sing In a strong North Eastern accent full of joy and erudition That’s taken heart from yesterday and knows tomorrow brings A redefining of the centre, acknowledgement that today Newcastle, Gateshead and the North’s revival’s here to stay!

CHICHESTER RICHMOND STIRLING

Look behind me, hear the Romans talking And the Saxons laughing and as I’m walking By the Cathedral You can hear Medieval voices singing this song!

CHICHESTER

Look around you, feel the glow of history Get close to this city’s eternal mystery; Beauty’s defined As you hear divine voices singing this song!

The city’s walls keep nothing in except a sense of tradition The city’s walls let ideas seep through: call it innovation!

This mix of old and new is hard to pull off, it’s really tricky!

But this place has succeeded in a way that’s really Chichestery!

The Festival Theatre and the galleries and the shops are Places that define this city, the throbbing heart of Chichester!

Look around now, take in a heart that beats Across several hundred years of West Sussex streets Chichester’s living Chichester’s showing us the future so sing along!

RICHMOND You need a river; preferably one that can hold the light Of the setting sun in Autumn; you need a castle, A nice big dominant one that holds half the sky, That percolates your thinking if you live here.

You need a theatre, one where the performers on stage Are almost sitting in the audience, where the words you speak Seem to hang in the air like lights. You need a history That doesn’t poke you in the eye, but rather walks beside you, A companion, a guide pointing and explaining. Cobbles are good, And a range of museums. And the language has to be local, Has to sound like it’s made of things like cobbles, and the river, And the shadow of the castle, and the impossibly beautiful Skies of North Yorkshire with just the odd cloud sailing...

Newest city in an ancient land; place to sit and listen.

In the Castle’s shadow I drink espresso; Stirling sky is a colour Just the red side of blue, tonight.

How do you describe a city like this ?

Old Town in name only; stand and look And on Graduation Day students flock like birds Coming home to roost in the nest of learning.

How do you describe a city like this ? I’m trying.

At the Top of the Town I look out over the city And somehow the city looks back at me; I’m reflected By a place and Albion have won three nil; I’m smiling.

How do you describe a city like this ? I’m trying my best.

Describing the essence of Stirling is like trying to hold the water of St. Ninian’s Well in your open hands; it’s a feeling somewhere between fresh air and birdsong...

Oh, how do you describe a city like this ? Come and live here! meet you later by the Old Town Jail Where we’ll sit and try to describe

STIRLING

JEWELLERY QUARTER LACE MARKET STOCKBRIDGE

JEWELLERY QUARTER This place shines. It really shines. Put that in your poem: it shines.

I’m scribbling as fast as I can, but this place is many faceted, Like a jewel, you mean ? Very clever. Don’t forget: it flippin’ shines.

It’s a kind of multi-faceted and gleaming and, yes, shining, asset To a city that’s already full to bursting with ideas and places Put this in your poem: it’s been here for two hundred years And have you mentioned The Big Peg ? Not yet but I will, I will, It was a place where jewellers with their gleaming faces ?

Yes, if you like, gathered in this city..am I making myself clear ?

It kind of moves, this places, it dances, it shimmies, it’s never still.

Shimmers. I like that. That’s really helpful, thankyou very much.

No, shimmies, mate; it dances, this place really moves and shines A bit like a jewel does; Thanks, thanks...It sparkles to your touch The Jewellery Quarter: craft and art and business meet. Sublime!

BIRMINGHAM

LACE MARKET NOTTINGHAM

Past, present and future in streets built on lace, Built on lace and a capacity for invention, A capacity for invention and a refusal to lie down, A refusal to lie down when history comes knocking.

When history comes knocking you open the door You open the door and let rethinking in Let rethinking in and convert the old places Convert the old places to hotels and homes Hotels and homes and places to work in Places to work in, places to eat, places to think Places to think how the long lost lace makers The long lost lace makers would stand and applaud Stand and applaud the rebirth of a district Rebirth as a district, intricate as lace Intricate as lace in its delicate ecology Delicate ecology of past present and future...

STOCKBRIDGE EDINBURGH I like a place with bridge in its name; it suggests movement, Progression, a journey, no matter how small.

Well, take a journey to Stockbridge, walk the Colonies, Gaze into the Water of Leith and see yourself reflected, And that’s what I call a journey, a journey into yourself, And that’s what Stockbridge offers, a time to reflect On what can be done in a city; walk by St Stephen’s Church And past the Academy, wander up Ann Street, a street That a better poet than me called ‘the most attractive street In Britain.’ Sir John Betjeman, he knew a neighbourhood When he saw one, these schoolkids, they know a neighbourhood When they see one, these eaters, these drinkers, these thinkers These walkers, these talkers, they know a good neighbourhood When they see one: this one, with a bridge in its name...

HIGH STREET KENSINGTON HIGH STREET PORTOBELLO ROAD

Remember, this is Skipton: embrace the urge to skip Down this High Street like no other High Street Allow a Yorkshire-ish grin to play round your lip And a dance of delight to grow from your two feet And buy a pint, buy a pie, say hello to a feller You’ve known since you were but a lad Then buy something sweet from a market stall seller Then nod to the feller from the previous line’s dad And smile to the family who’ve come for the day (they call ‘em comforts round here but they like ‘em really) Because this High Street’s a place to work, rest and play (Shame that line’s been used already: it’s the sort of touchy-feely Line that fits this High Street to a T!) Skipton High Street: I’m impressed; As High Streets go, this one has to be the best!

HIGH STREET SKIPTON

KENSINGTON HIGH STREET LONDON

If you stroll down High Street Kensington From the underground station of the very same name You’ll see that the prospect is a pleasing one; Because while many high streets look the same This isn’t the case with Kensington This street looks like no other one!

If you stroll down High Street Kensington You’ll be amazed by the architecture And how the morning sunshine shines upon The art deco walls whose fine trajector -y is something subtle, not full-on Down the valley of High Street, Kensington!

If you stroll down High Street Kensington You understand shopping as theatre It’s buy and sell with dazzling jewels on, Somehow commerce getting fairly near ter A fine cloak that your soul can don A state of grace is High Street Kensington!

PORTOBELLO ROAD LONDON You get row after row after row after row: Shops putting on a show down Portobello Go slow through the snow, get a wrap or a throw Go hot in the sun, get a spending glow Please don’t say No just go with the flow Down row after row after row after row Of cafes and shops and stalls and you know You’re gonna get a bargain down Portobello!

So, for hats for above, for shoes for below The odd stuffed crow, head of a buffalo Photo of Lee Brilleaux, aromatic pillow Hat in the shape of an armadillo Row after row after row after row After row after row after row after row O it’s busrting with life down Portobello!

CROSBY BEACH NORTH LAINE OXFORD CASTLE

CROSBY BEACH LIVERPOOL

Sand sifts, sand shifts, sand changes, Sand slides and solidifies, sand alters in the light Sand dances, sand crumbles, sand rearranges Morning sand is different to how sand was in the night!

And now the crowds are walking in the stiff and bracing breeze Bending from the whirling wind like scarved and hatted trees Gazing at the metal people staring out to sea The ones who could be human, who could be you or me; Sand shifts, sand sifts, sand rearranges, Morning sand is different to how sand was in the night Sand crumbles, sand dances, sand changes Sand solidifies and slides, sand alters in the light; Crosby Beach can say something on how we learn from place On how the sands’ impermanence can be a kind of grace, How art and life can come together, beneath a moving sky Watched by whirling seagulls and statue’s frozen eye.

Sand changes, sand crumbles, sand dances Sand rearranges, sand sifts, sand shifts Evening sand is different to how sand was in the day Sand alters in the light, sand solidifies and slides...

NORTH LAINE Why country song ? Why opera ?

Well they can both hold huge emotions And they don’t go through the motions And I’ve got a growing notion That North Laine’s just like that!

BRIGHTON

Its setting’s operatic; over the top, dramatic You can eat and drink and stroll and shop, Lounge with purpose or wander erratic.

Dress like a hipster! Go over the top!

Buy something that’s been chucked from an attic!

Browse and buy, squeeze each last drop From a place that sends you quite ecstatic Get clothes for a punk or a goth or a fop Or a nylon shirt that throbs with static!

Get your boots into action, move those flip flops Get a cappacino that tastes authentic To anybody with a heart or a soul or a brain The place to be seen is YEEHA! North Laine!

OXFORD CASTLE I woke up inside the prison walls for a full English breakfast.

I peered inside the cells and felt the weight of guilt.

I shouldn’t have had that second sausage But it was staring me in the face. So I did.

I wandered round the Castle and looked in an apartment.

I had a vision of living within easy reach of pasta.

I shouldn’t have had a vision of wandering down for spaghetti In my pyjamas and my slippers. But I did.

I thought about how these days anything is possible; How history doesn’t just have to be there, crumbling, It can be part of the present and part of the future A simple idea, of course. With burgers.

I went back to my room and I ordered room service.

I looked at some art, I listened to jazz and I shifted My definition of what a castle can be: it can be a model Of how to live your life. With ice cream.

OXFORD

SPONSORS Principal Sponsors: DTZ Howard De Walden Estates Integreat Yorkshire Oracle Residential Sheffield Hallam University St George plc The Trevor Osborne Property Group The Vedis Group Co-Sponsors: Anthony Reddy Associates Banner Homes Barton Willmore British Land Broadway Malyan City of Edinburgh Council Crest Nicholson Crosby Lend Lease CTP St James Dublin City Council EDAW Evans Property Group Gifford Glasgow City Council Highland Homes Murray O’Laoire Architects O’Mahony Pike Architects Savills South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) The Muir Group

Supporters in kind: Alan Baxter & Associates Barton Willmore BDO Stoy Hayward CB Richard Ellis Charles Russell Solicitors Cityscape Gillespies John Thompson & Partners PPS Group RUDI Space Syntax Squint Opera Tibbalds Planning and Urban Design In Residence: David Harrison (Artist) Julius Cocke (Film-maker) Ian McMillan (Poet) Frank McDonald (Writer)

ACADEMICIANS Adrian Spawforth, Adrian Penfold, Alan Boldon, Alan Mee, Alan Simpson, Alan Stewart, Alastair Mellon, Ali Grehan, Alison Peters, Andreas Markides, Andrew Beharrall, Andrew Burrell, Andrew Dixon, Andrew Ryder, Andy Karski, Andy Munro, Andy von Bradsky, Angus Boag, Angus Kennedy, Anne Power, Barra Mac Ruari, Ben Allgood, Ben Bolgar, Bernie Foulkes, Bob Young, Prof Brian Evans, Catherine Teeling, Charles Landry, Chris Alexander, Chris Murray, Chris Oldershaw, Chris Winter, Chris Balch, Chris Brett, Clive Dutton, Conor Norton, Darryl Flay, David Cowans, David Hughes, David Lock, David Miles, David Porter, David Prichard, David Rudlin, David J Taylor, David Taylor, David Ubaka, David Warburton, Deb Tate, Debbe Aplin, Debbie Dance, Demetri Porphyrios, Derek Latham, Dick Gleeson, Dickon Robinson, Douglas Evans, Elizabeth Motley, Emma Appleton, Eric Holding, Eric Reynolds, Frank McDonald, Gerry Grams, Georgia Butina Watson, George Ferguson, Gideon Amos, Gill Taylor, Gordon Carey, Godfrey Winterson, Hank Dittmar, Heather Hancock, Herbert Giradet, Hilary Satchwell, Holly Porter, Hugh Murray, Hugh Petter, Iain Docherty, Ian Mellor, Ian Stratford, Ian Tant, Ivan Ball, Jackie Sadek, James Pike, Jan Anderson, Janet Sutherland, Jasvir Atwal, Jeremy Dixon, Jeremy Till, Joanna Averley, John Bell, John Betty, John Kennedy, John Mullin, John Muir, John Prevc, John Thompson, John Thorp, John Wakefield, John Worthington, Jon Phipps, Jonathan Burroughs, Joost Beunderman, Joyce Bridges, Jules Cocke, Karen Cooksley, Karen Escott, Kelvin Campbell, Kevin Murray, Killian O’Higgins, Kirsteen Thomson,

Lawrence Barth, Lindsay Smales, Lindsey Whitelaw, Lora Nicolaou, Marcus Adams, Marcus Wilshere, Mark Davy, Martin Colreavy, Michael Bennett, Michael Lowndes, Mike Galloway, Mike Taylor, Ned Cussen, Neil Monaghan, Pam Alexander, Pankaj Patel, Patrick Gulliver, Paul Davis, Paul Murrain, Paul Warner, Peter Crossley, Peter Heath, Peter J Ralph, Peter Murray, Peter Stonham, Peter Studdert, Peter Udall, Phil Darcy, Philip Davies, Prashant Kapoor, Prof Peter Roberts, Prof Randall Thomas, Riccardo Marini, Prof Richard Hayward, Prof Richard Parnaby, Prof Robert Tavernor, Rhodri Samuel, Richard Leese, Richard Motley, Richard Rees, Richard Reid, Richard Rogers, Richard Shaw, Richard Simmons, Rob Cowan, Rob Davies, Rob Tincknell, Robert Adam, Robert Coles, Robert Powell, Robert Seatter, Roger Madelin, Roger Zogolovitch, Ruth Morrow, Prof Sarah Chaplin, Sarah Whittington, Sean O’Laoire, Sergey Bobkov, Simon Davis, Simon Jenkins, Simon Ogden, Sir Bob Kerslake, Stephan Miles-Brown, Stephen Byfield, Steve Cannadine, Steven Bee, Steven Byrne, Steven Gleave, Stuart Black, Stuart Gulliver, Stuart Robinson, Sunand Prasad, Susan Parham, Terry Farrell, Terry Hodgkinson, Tim Farrow, Tim Stonor, Toby Shannon, Tom Bloxham, Tony Carey, Tony Edwards, Tony Reddy, Tony Shoults, Trevor Beattie, Trevor Davies, Trevor Osborne, Trevor Philips, Tricia Topping, Valli van Zijl, Vivec Nanda, Wayne Hemingway, Yolande Barnes.

Honorary Academician: Jan Gehl.

Drawn, designed and produced on behalf of the Academy

by JTP Cities