MA FILTRTERIALS & ATION PAST AND C URE LA LEAN ND SING FOOD ; ARA BLE L AND
D6 Project Brief - Revision A Winchester Horticultural City Timothy Gentry 14/2/138 www.timspart2.wordpress.com
SITE CONTEXT | Winchester Master Plan
1
Precedent | Floriade 2022 by MVRDV
Winchester Horticultural City With more than half of the worlds growing population of 7 billion having migrated to living in cities, and the detrimental knock-on effects this has for the eco systems that sustain them, the problem of foodinsecurity is becoming an increasingly pressing issue in need of an answer. But without extenuating circumstances forcing the hands of local populations to take up a shovel and start farming for themselves, as history has seen happen in Cuba for instance, how do we go about encouraging people in predominantly food-secure countries to do the same before food shortages become a more widespread problem? Answering this question is central to the generation of the brief and resulting plans for the Winchester Horticultural City project. The brief, therefore, is to set out a strategy specific to Winchester and Wolvesey Castle, the project site, to utilise both urban and rural areas within the centre to maximise opportunities for farming flora and fauna in a way that encourages participation.
2
South England
Hampshire & The Isle of Wight
Southampton & Winchester
Eastleigh & Winchester
3
Itchen Navigation, Winchester
Central Winchester
Bishop’s Palace & Wolvesey Castle
Site location
4
The city and site both maintain a strong connection with the waters of the River Itchen and associated former navigation which have had a far-reaching impact on their history and sense of place. The area is a long established trail for the enjoyment of local inhabitants and is now also to be a productive source of produce. As such, the history and stories of Wolvesey Castle are like a microcosm of the city’s. It is a priority for any proposals to maintain/ preserve, if not enhance, these connections in a way that does not do to a disservice to past histories. As architect Sverre Fehn said: “Only the manifestation of the present can bring the past back to life�. Therefore, new additions should preserve the stories of previous generations whilst remaining true to the stories of people yet to come. Key to achieving this goal is in the successful application of an overarching concept. The conceptual driving force behind development of the plans, reflecting both utilitarian concerns and ones of cultural significance, is the hortus conclusus or walled garden. This recognises the historical provenance of the site by applying an appropriately historical motif carrying with it a cultural significance of its own; one especially appropriate to the setting but open to contemporary interpretations and applications, such as urban agriculture. Architecture, architectural components and landscape collude to affect our sensibilities. Both landscape and architecture should be inseparable from the language of the place.
5
First floor east block hall in 1160
Wolvesey Castle (Old Bishop’s Palace) Ruins
6
Compton Lock, Itchen Navigation
Another key to the success of the project will be in developing holistic strategies that envisage the city as a beacon of sustainability both in physical and social terms. Emotional durability is the key to generating participation which in turn should preserve the physicality of the project. As the city centre lies in a valley between the South Downs to the east, and hills of Fullflood and beyond to the west, pollution from the motorway spills down into the valley and is absorbed by the water meadows. The water meadows will form a key part of the developing masterplan and are to be re-instated as both arable and pasture land, serving multiple functions as a means of purifying polluted water, a sustainable source of power for local initiatives and a source of sustainable building materials/ food for the project and its infrastructure. Supporting infrastructure should look to develop closed-loop systems of management, eliminating waste, preserving ecosystems and increasing well being through a better understanding of our relationship with nature.
Precedent | Brockholes Visitor Centre by Adam Kahn Architects
The emotional durability of the place relies greatly on successfully engaging local people. Local people should have a strong sense of ownership of plans produced and projects built to ensure the sustainability of the scheme and reduce food miles. Goods produced in this way are more likely to be consumed locally, something which a commercial farmer would never be able to guarantee due to fluctuations in price. The city masterplan will identify areas and methods for people to grow their own produce
7
Precedent | Hedmark Museum by Sverre Fehn
and will adopt an open-source or ‘free’ development model. Planning will thus adopt a supporting infrastructure role and a philosophy of enabling by providing people with easy access to the designs and tools to do things themselves. In order to consolidate these driving design concepts into a single project, Wolvesey Castle, formerly the Old Bishop’s Palace, will function as a City Farming Head Quarters. The role of the headquarters is to become a depository of ideas to help people realise their own plans for the horticultural city. It is a lab, manufacturer, educator, prototyping facility, farmer, market stall and advisor to the local population. The Palace will be reimagined and reinstated as an important resource centre for the city. It will provide local people with the skills, knowledge and food to sustain themselves as the Abbey Gardens to the north once did in centuries past. To do this the Palace HQ will function in a variety of different ways. It will be a place for people to: 1. Administer the local horticultural city project, from which all aspects can be managed and coordinated as part of a holistic approach. 2. Teaching and learning providing people with farming knowledge. 3. Production will be both accommodated within and coordinated from the centre. 4. A source of construction techniques, products and materials. 5. A community hub for people to share their ideas and personal experience / adaptions of designs and services offered by the HQ. 6. A centre for people to coordinate local infrastructure projects; such as recycling points for food waste and opportunities to build vertical farms, i.e. building facades, disused tunnels / buildings. 7. A place for people to seek help in setting up and managing/ maintaining their related projects. 8. A market, shop or outdoor place to gather, sell produce grown in the water meadows or by local people, and hold community events. 9. A tourist link to the navigation reinforcing the city’s connection to its land and history. 10. A museum telling the story of the palace both old and new (walking tour). 11. Warehouse storage for both food and building materials (reeds).
Precedent | A Mudhif
12. A profitable and sustainable farm.
8
Wolvesey Castle S.W.O.T. Analysis
STRENGTHS
WEAKNESSES
• Central location in the city masterplan and between water meadows
• Poor or convoluted links into the city for transportation
• Direct access onto the Itchen Navigation
• Not especially open in appearance, fortress-like
• Logical gathering point for storage of produce and for local events
• Little to no presence in the street scene
• Good links into the city by foot + bike
• Wind power not possible
• Surrounding arable land
• Arable crops limited due to moisture present in land around the navigation
• Great location for locals and tourism
• Marshy / water-logged land
• Good clear view of the sun for the majority of the day and at all times of year • Sheltered site from prevailing winds • Solar thermal gains • Good pasture land
OPPORTUNITIES
THREATS
• Historical precedent of the site gives it a sense of provenance
• Potential for the provenance of the site to engulf the project, obscuring the main aims
• Materials can be grown locally for use in construction
• Existing plan of ruins could be restrictive
• Historical plan of the building provides framework for the planning of the new building • Improved links into the city by foot + bike • Holistic design strategy for the management of Winchester Horticultural City • Open-source development model with the use of local resources • Promote local engagement and ownership of ideas within to increase a sense of community and ensure the project is sustainable
• Lies within flood zone 2 from the Itchen • Pollution from the motorway settling in the water meadows • Exposure to the sun during summer months may need managing • Flat site means water is more likely to pool • Water-meadow farms are sensitive environments, require careful management
• Sun-orientated energy strategy • Flat site for easy access and manoeuvrability Precedent | Neues Museum by David Chipperfield and Julian Harrap
• Aquaponic and / or hydroponic methods of farming could be easily accommodated • Power can be generated from the river
9
Precedent | WISE by Daivd Lea & Pat Borer
Building with farmed materials
Next Step The narrative of people and place is the drive and focus of this project. I intend to present it by storyboarding events in which the building provides the context. Starting from a macro scale moving into the micro and back out again as appropriate. Research conducted into crop yeilds, rotation and turnover as well as precedents and technology such as urban farming techniques (hyrdoponics / aquaponics etc) and construction with reeds needs to be properly conveyed. More diagramatic/ descirptive work of cultural and technical aspects is needed. I also intend the project to fullfill other environmental goals by making sure it is buillt not just for people but for the wildlife that relies on an sustains the ecosystems on which the horticultural city depends. All of this will take place in an open-source narrative, where local inhabitants become the main driving The Mashambas Skyscraper
force behind its continued development.
10