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PUBLIC REALM PROJECTS / STRATFORD ISLAND, LONDON, UK
For many around the world, and even across the UK, the drama and excitement of the 2012 Summer Olympics has long faded into sporting memory, but for the people of Stratford, the Games and their legacy remain a constantly unfolding story. Though the whole of London may have claimed the global headlines, it was the town of Strat- ford in the east of the capital that provided the event’s focal point: the Olympic Park, built on derelict land and now undergoing a second transformation into permanent, public parkland; the lynchpin for a wider promise of regeneration.
It was with this broader developmental view that planners turned their attentions to Stratford Island, an area of the town centre defined by the three- to four-lane A11 gyra- tory roadway that encircles it. Long before the world came calling, Stratford Island pro- vided a local home for cultural venues like the Picturehouse, East London Dance, and the Theatre Royal, as well as retail outlets and eateries, but there was a danger it would be left behind following the arrival of its new neighbour.
The Island sits, both literally and metaphor- ically, on the other side of the rail tracks from the Olympic park. Crucially, both sides share Stratford Station as a transport hub - a confluence of main line trains, Docklands Light Railway, London Underground and bus routes that connect locals and visitors to the rest of the city. Because of this a project was initiated to re-energise the area, to roll out redevelopment beyond the Olympic Park and neighbouring Westfield shopping centre, while at the same time creating a distinct identity within the evolv- ing urban landscape.
LAPD were brought in as lighting consult- ants, working alongside Studio Erget West architects to enrich the nighttime dimen- sion of the scheme. “We used a number of lighting tools to activate this concept,” ex- plains LAPD Associate Director Mike Brown. “We focused on the use of colour tempera- ture and the use of high CRI sources; we wanted to use high quality warm white light to make the urban space feel distinctly comfortable and inviting.” From the project’s outset it was established that equipment maintenance was an ongo- ing issue for Newham Borough Council, the authority responsible for Stratford town.
They were concerned that the increased complexity of a new lighting scheme would add to the maintenance requirement and thus be unsustainable. In response, an all- LED solution was proposed for the amenity spaces.
In keeping with this strategy, and to further engender a sense of place for the Island, the team employed a distinct vocabulary of fixtures. Most notably, post-mounted iGuzzini LED Woody luminaires, were used as an alternative to the utilitarian light columns found across the rest of Stratford, thus helping set the scheme apart from neighbouring areas. “We also used the uniformity of the light to reflect a sense of place,” says Brown. “In Theatre Square we opted to use a combina- tion of narrow beam and flood optics to create pools of light and to intimate that the theatricality of the performance spaces is flowing out into the wider environment.” An exception to the LED rule was made for fixtures along the A11 gyratory roadway. The A11 dominates Stratford Island, creat- ing its perimeter and providing an outer face for the site. In this respect, the street lighting around the gyratory system plays a significant role in the creation of the Island’s identity. Previous schemes had been found lacking on many levels. The roadway had been lit with overly decorative columns and oversized lanterns using high-pressure sodium light sources. The visual environ- ment was fraught with the excessively embellished metalwork of the columns in daylight, and dominated by the glare of the lanterns at night. “The quality of the light was also a problem,” says Brown. “The colour rendition was low and excessive glare from the fittings added to the feeling of insecurity in the space, making the light levels feel much lower than they actually were because of the dominance of flaring light sources in one’s periphery view.” LAPD specified a new column from Urbis to be installed around the gyratory system. The columns were specified to align with those used along the main stretch of the A11 as it heads south west towards the City of London, providing continuity to the roadway. “We went to lengths to ensure that the columns were only installed on the outer edge of the gyratory, so as to enhance the sense of separation between the Island
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