southall master plan

SOUTHALLa master plan for the community

report

UNIVERSITY OF WESTMINSTER MA Urban Design | AURD704.2 Master Planning | Simone Gobber

Southall: a master plan for the communityAims and motivations that drive the project

Built elements, planned actionsMain formal considerations

Building as much as we can, not as much as they wantCapacity statement

A viable and feasible scheme, thus sustainableSustainability strategy

Reclaiming, retrofitting, reinventingKey theories that have influenced the design

Precedents

Academic jargon and graphic gimmicksDesign research

So far so goodReflective statement

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22 References

SOUTHALLa master plan for the community

report

Contents:


Southall: a master plan for the communityAims and motivations that drive the project

The proposed master plan for Southall addresses in three different ways the issue of outlining what can be a possible future for the area.

Developing a formal master plan for the regeneration of a big brownfield site, by referring to what developers are currently delivering in similar contexts in the local market.

Suggesting ways of interaction between areas that are radically different from the functional, formal and institutional perspectives, exploring how a diverse set of interventions can promote a cohesive development.

Last but not least, investigating how the process of redevelopment of such a site can evolve in time, translating the temporality into a structural component of the project.

Southall in 2020, 2025, 2030

The decision of presenting the master plan as a sequence of actions in time was taken in order to highlight the incremental nature of the pro-posed set of interventions.

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Built elements, planned actionsMain formal considerations

Rather than indulging in the design of sinuously curved streets and buildings with dramatic sharp edges, the present scheme is made out of modular, even repetitive elements. The rationale behind this decision is that it is the interaction of the different components of the project that makes its quality, rather than the uniqueness of the single elements. This reflects the overall strategy of the master plan, of being a sequence of interrelated actions, rather than a finished formal design.

The strive for a viable and feasible master plan has led to the reduction of each component to its basic characteristics - for the gasworks site, a west to east main connection, one distributive principle for the units, a set of public spaces. Yet, the diversi-ty of the functions and activities promoted, and the interaction with the actions suggested in the surrounding areas, would guarantee the diversity and richness of the outcome.

3D study model of the main residential area

The apparently monotonous outline of the new development is due to the will to define the capacity and the overall urban quality for the area, allowing at the same time the maximum formal flexibility to the developers.

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Building as much as we can, not as much as they wantCapacity statement

When setting the target values for the density that the new development would achieve, several con-sideration were made. Overall, it was taken into ac-count the constant cry for new houses in the city of London pushing for maximizing the capacity of the site, especially considering the strategic con-nection that Crossrail will guarantee to the city, and the euphoric moment that the housing market is experiencing.

Nevertheless, thinking more at a long term scale, it was decided to reduce the number of potential new residents, by dedicating a part of the site to a new business park. Two are the reasons for this de-cision. First of all, to maintain the legacy of the site with industry and production, interacting with the surroundings similar areas and providing not only houses, but also work to the residents. Secondly, but by no means less important, to mitigate the impact that such a big transformation would have on the existing community living in the area.

One of the studies to define the optimal size of the new blocks, with the best ratio between exploited area, green spaces and amount of streets.

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30 24

44 25

30 24

44 25

74.5 %

2.5%10.0 %

8.5 %3.0 %1.5 %

Development Site area [SA]Total Floor Area [TFA]Number of units [assuming all housing=TFA/80]Density in Dwellings/Ha [=units /SA]Density in people/Ha [=units x 2.6]

Open space [local parks, squares]CirculationTotal non building land [NBL]

Total Developable Area TDPercentage developed [=TD/SA]Plot ratio (gross) [=TFA/SA]

Actual mix of uses

ResidentialNumber residential unitsEmployment [office]Employment [other]RetailCommunityLeisureTotal floor area

Population

Total population residential [=Units x2.6]Total population non residential

Capacity check

32 ha411,000 sqm

5120160415

55,00095,000

150,000

170,00053 %

1.3

308,000 sqm3850

11,000 sqm40,000 sqm34,000 sqm12,000 sqm

6,000 sqm411,000 sqm

100002100

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A viable and feasible scheme, thus sustainableSustainability strategy

Sustainability has not been the driving principle for the master plan, but it comes as a consequence of a series of decisions taken in order to guarantee the feasibility and viability of the proposed trans-formation.

In particular, a special attention was given to these measures that by improving the environmen-tal quality of the place, would at the same time achieve other goals such as minimizing the costs of the intervention, increasing the value of the development and providing a more beautiful and efficiently managed public realm.

This is the case for instance of the proposed soil remediation embankment alongside the railroad: by reducing the cost and the impact of the reme-diation of the site, it provides a visual filter to the residential units by the rail tracks, and becomes a linear park providing an alternative route to the station.

Ecomasterplanning Assessment Tool (EmAT)©

Eco Business Park | Royal Docks | Newham

Passive and energy efficient design

Energy production, including renewable energy sources

District evergy networks

Waste management and recycling

GREY

Ecological characteristics and continuity of landscape

Amount of green landscaping; ecological assessment for the area count of biodiversity

Landuse

Air, soil pollution

GREEN

Flood protection

Rainwater and storm water management

Water consumption

Water quality for watercourses; water pollution

BLUE

Planning policies

Local restrictions on pollution waste, landfill use, etc

Amenities available

Social integration

Community involvement

RED


Eco Business Park | Royal Docks | Newham

Passive and energy efficient design

Energy production, including renewable energy sources

District evergy networks

Waste management and recycling

GREY

Ecological characteristics and continuity of landscape

Amount of green landscaping; ecological assessment for the area count of biodiversity

Landuse

Air, soil pollution

GREEN

Flood protection

Rainwater and storm water management

Water consumption

Water quality for watercourses; water pollution

BLUE

Planning policies

Local restrictions on pollution waste, landfill use, etc

Amenities available

Social integration


RED


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Sustainability assessment

GREENEcological characteristics and continuity of landscape

Amount of green landscaping and biodiversity

Air, soil pollution

BLUERainwater and stormwater management

Water consumption

Water quality forwatercourses

GREYPassive and energyefficient design

District energy networks

Waste managementand recycling

REDPlanning policies

Amenities available

Social integration


Enhancing of the Country Parkand the Grand Union Canal

New parks and new wildlife habitats

Remediation of a heavily polluted site

Sustainable Urban Drainage Systemsgreen roofs

Naturally filtered swimming poolreducing the need of fresh water

Regeneration of the Grand Union Canal

North-south orientation and wide streetsmaximizing sunlight provision

District heating system

In-situ bio remediation of polluted soil

Cooperation between different councils

New parks and marina, a renovated Country Park

New development blending with the existing

New community pocket parks

√√ √ √√ √ √√ √ √√ √√

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Reclaiming, retrofitting, reinventingKey theories that have influenced the design

The design has been influenced by several theories, starting from the classics of modernism such as Le Corbusier’s rationalistic plans or Sitte’s attention to the urban landscape, going to the more contemporary ideas represented by the New Urbanism movement, and transit oriented development (and constantly referring, of course, to the milestone represented in the UK by Towards an Urban Renaissance).

In particular, three approaches have been particularly important in integrating and defining the overall ap-proach. For the gasworks site, but also for the actual neighbourhood, the ideas and principles on how to give new value to the existing collected in the book Reclaim, edited by Aurora Fernandez Per and Javier Mozas. For the business park, and the revaluation of suburban landscapes, the studies carried on in the US by June Williamson. Finally, the Made in Tokyo re-search for the relevance of unconventional, exception-al interstitial elements to complete the urban fabric.

Reclaim Remediate Reuse RecycleAurora Fernandez Per and Javier Mozas

Designing Suburban FuturesJune Williamson

Made in TokyoKaijima, Kuroda and Tsukamoto

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Baden Powell Close, London | Peter Barber Architects

Transitlager Warehouse Redevelopment, Basel | BIG

Container Store in Tukwila Industrial Area, Washington | Starbucks

Industrial and business parks are often perceived as in-compatible with other functions. By promoting a set of intervention of infill, as well as retrofitting of the existing urban fabric, it is possible to achieve a mix of functions that would ensure the improvement of the urban qual-ity of the area. Particularly significant in this sense are small projects like the terrace houses created in Baden Powell Close by Peter Barber, screening the site behind and radically redefining the image of the area, as well as the idea of using the big roofs of the warehouses as suggested by BIG in Basel, and promoting small infill interventions allowing new businesses to activate the open space in the area.

Precedents

retrofittingthe business park

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The character, the legibility and the permeability of an area, as well as its environmental and cultural quality, can be radically transformed not only by massive and disruptive transformation, but also by a set of small acupunctural operations. Transforming empty lots in urban pocket parks, for instance, even if only on a temporary base, is an effective way to promote commu-nity cohesion. Reinforcing the quality of existing net-works - as suggested by the landscape architect Walter Hood for Richmond, is a viable and cost-effective way to promote walkability in the city. Finally, designing - even with little interventions - and managing back alleys is a way to increase the sense of safety, as well as allowing the extension of the existing network of public spaces.

Precedents

Union Street Orchard, London | Wayward

North Richmond Master Plan, USA | Walter Hood

Gibbon’s Rent, London | Team London Bridge

enhanced permeability and pocket parks

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Train stations are a key element for urban regeneration, not only for their functional and iconic value, but also as an opportunity to become the focal point of new ur-ban hubs. The Crossrail project will not only mean faster connection through the city of London, but it will also be the occasion to redesign many stations (like the one in Hayes, the next stop from Southall), with improved functionality and an enhanced public realm. At the same time, they attract investments that can generate complex development schemes, combining transport to business and residences, as is happening in Guild-ford. Not only train stops then, but efficient transport in-terchange hub integrated with the city, at the same time landmarks and places to live.

Precedents

Hayes and Harlington new Crossrail Station | Bennetts Associates

Guildford Station regeneration | Solum

Bijlmer Station, Amsterdam | Grimshaw Architects

station redevelopment and new access

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NDSM, Amsterdam | Eva de Klerk

Royal Greenwich UTC, London | Malcolm Fraser Architects

PCITAL Gardeny Agro-foods Scientific Technological Park, Lleida | Equip Arquitectura Pich-Aguilera

The progressive de-industrialization of the city that ef-fected most European countries in the last decades, has left an heritage of huge redundant structures in what is often a very strategic location. Rather than being re-placed by new housing, these sites can be transformed by reinventing the relationship with the structure and rethinking the kind of activities that they host. This is the case of the creative village hosted in the former NDSM shipyard in Amsterdam, the university laboratories de-signed by Malcolm Fraser in Greenwich, or the Techno-logical Park in Merida, all samples of different ways to retrofit existing factories, turning them into laborato-ries for urban regeneration.

Precedents

new uses andactivities

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Donnybrook Quarter, London | Peter Barber Architects

Newhall | Allison Brooks Architects

Beveridge Mews, London | Peter Barber

The process of reclamation of a site such the gasworks in Southall requires as lot of time and resources, due to the technical problems related to the decommissioning of the site and the pollution of the area. The process can be tackled and facilitated by a series of interventions on the edges, the easiest to reclaim. While starting to transform the place, these can act as a seam between the existing fabric and the new development, and contribute to generate the economical resources for supporting the reclamation costs. Particularly inter-esting as precedents for a bordure to the new devel-opment have been samples of contemporary terrace houses schemes, dialoguing with the existing ones but introducing new forms and character to the area.

Precedents

redevelopment ofthe edges

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Westergasfabriek, Amsterdam | Studio Parker

Ballast Point, Sydney | Mc Gregor Coxall

Olympic Parc Wetlands, London | Susdrain

The major issue with reclaiming a gasworks site is deal-ing with the high level of pollution of the soil, that makes the site unfit to host permanent uses. The fastest way of solving the problem is to relocate the soil. Doing it off-site has a huge operational and financial impact on the project. A better way is to deal with it in situ, by es-tablishing some remediation zones where the pollut-ed soil is allowed to regenerate slowly with bio-reme-diation systems. While not allowing the establishing of permanent and constant uses, these areas can become the chance to create new landscape features, turning a problem - the polluted soil - into an opportunity for creating a better and more attractive environment.

Precedents

soil remediation and new landscaping

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Music Park, Sevilla | Costa Fierros Arquitectos

Fuji Kindergarten | Tezuka Architects

Gasworks Plaza, Brisbane | Mirvac Design

A romantic approach - increasingly to be found among developers - is to consider the elements of the industrial as a key component of the urban character (and adding value to the development). More pragmatically, in a de-commissioning process what is retained as a memory is what cannot be used elsewhere, because of being unfit to modern standards or hard to move. If it is likely to think that the existing blue gasholder will find its way to China, it will be necessary to deal with the others.

The circular gasholders sites can become the foot-print for new community activities, giving shape and life to a new gasworks park celebrating the new life that is brought into the area. As part of the park, interesting precedents are cases of public structures that enable the use of the roof as an extension of the public realm.

Precedents

landmark facilities for the community

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Thames View East, London | Pollard Thomas

Mill Hill East | PRP

Marine Wharf | Grid Architects

As said before, the block type for the residential part of the scheme reproduces in shape and size what is cur-rently being delivered by the market, allowing flexibil-ity in the subdivision of the area and a provision of different typologies, from urban flats to maisonettes with direct access from the street and terrace houses. The perimetral block typology has not only been chosen for its popularity among the developers, but also for its positive effect of increasing the streetscape legibility, as well as providing an active look over the open space both inside and outside the block.

The diversity in height and typologies presented guaran-tees diversity, allowing niches of intimacy in a dynamic metropolitan context.

Precedents

a diverse newneighbourhood

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Royal Docks Ecobusiness Park | Llevelyn Davies Yeang

Campus Palmas Altas, Seville | Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners

Lingfield Point | FAT

Industrial zones and business park are not necessarily grim areas to be kept separated from the rest of the city. On the contrary, if well designed can become an inte-grated component of the urban fabric, providing good quality open space to the workers and visitors of the local businesses, as well as offering space and activities to the neighbouring residents.

In the design of the business district, a special attention was given to the environmental infrastructures, with green corridors allowing permeability, walkability as well as hosting sustainable drainage systems.

Precedents

a hub for business

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Academic jargon and graphic gimmicksDesign research

Part of the challenge undertaken with the present work has been not only to outline a program that would comprehend and integrate all the differences, complexities and idiosyncrasies of the site, but also to deliver it in a way that would potentially be under-stood by someone not accustomed to academic jar-gon and graphic gimmicks.

Even though technical drawing could not be avoided to represent particular formal relationships, as well as to codify and measure certain ideas, in general it was attempted to delegate the message to clear drawing and text lines that would extract the main essence of what suggested by the master plan.

Significant in this sense the work undertaken with the three dimensional views, generated by a computer program, but then reprocessed by hand in order to bring them to life, adding little details that allows a more intuitive comprehension of the scheme.

Southall, preparatory sketch

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So far so goodReflective statement

The initial personal aim of this master planning project was to demonstrate to me and to a potential client/employer my design and graphic skills, as well as my overall comprehension of what sort of process and dynamic stand behind such a work. As I proceeded in my research, I realised that a lot of the knowledge gathered in past and recent work about the decom-missioning of industrial sites, soil remediation, as well as community planning, could play a significant role in defining the strategy of the intervention. This allowed the project to become something more complex and complete than a mere blank paper design exercise, but due to time restriction it had to come to an end way before it could be considered a mature product. In particular, the communicative aspects of the project have been tackled only superficially, as well as it would be necessary to have a broader and more sophisticat-ed comprehension of the total area and its surround-ings, without focusing only on the gasworks site - as attempted, but only partially satisfying. Nevertheless, it has been a greatly useful exercise on how to process quickly and efficiently a complex task, and to deal with such a site without being overwhelmed by its size and complexity, but on the contrary taking advantage from it to create a rich and engaging master plan.

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Junzo Kuroda, J., Kaijima, M. (2001). Made in Tokyo: Guide Book. Tokyo: Kajima Institute Publishing Co.

Kirkwood, N. (2001). Manufactured Sites: Rethinking the Post-Industrial Landscape. London: Spon Press.

Marot, S. (1999). The Reclaiming of sites. In Corner, J. (ed) Recovering Landscape. New York: Princeton Ar-chitectural Press.

Mozas, J. (2012). Reclaim Remediate Reuse Recycle. A+T. 39-40. 16-24.

MJP (2010), Sustainable Suburbia: A Walkable Garden Suburb. London: Homes and Communities Agency. Homes and Communities Agency.

Urban Task Force (1999). Towards an Urban Renais-sance. London: Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions.

Venus Group (2011). Royal Docks Ecobusoness Park. London: Venus Group. Venus Group.

Williamson, J. (2013). Designing Suburban Futures. Washington: Island Press.

References:

southall master plan

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