FEATURE
REGENERATING THE EAST MIDLANDS
The impact of a design team
Jef Todd (pictured), Business Development Director at civil and structural engineering firm BSP Consulting, talks about the best ways of unlocking regeneration sites for development.
When it comes to regeneration schemes, the earlier a design team can be engaged the better. Many regeneration sites are urban brownfield sites or pieces of land that have formerly housed industrial works. As such, they have history, and that history can derail the future – unless an experienced team is in place to overcome obstacles and challenges. Not only should the design team
feature civil and structural engineers, with their expertise in land contamination, drainage, traffic and transport planning and other technical subjects, it should also have on board architects, cost consultants, project managers,
ecology experts, funding specialists and others. Early intervention is crucial in maximising the potential of a site, whether it’s earmarked for housing, commercial use, leisure or some other activity. BSP Consulting has been
involved in a variety of regeneration schemes over the past 18 years, including:
• Castleward in Derby, which is transforming a 30-acre brownfield site in the city centre into an urban village over ten years
• The former Cotgrave Colliery in Nottinghamshire, which is turning the old coal mining area into a new community
• Old Dalby Enterprise Village in Leicestershire, which has transformed a steep hillside, brownfield site, formerly part of a Ministry of Defence base, to create three horizontal plateaus to enable up to 25 fully-serviced building plots for commercial units.
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BSP Consulting has also drawn up the detailed designs for the first residential phase of the huge regeneration project at The Avenue, at Wingerworth, near Chesterfield, one of the flagship developments of the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA). On the site of a major former coking plant with a long industrial history, the land was once described as one of the most contaminated sites in Western Europe. Contamination can be a big issue
for regeneration sites, so early remediation solutions are important. Other key challenges could be drainage, ground conditions, or transport, traffic and access issues. Securing the right team will ensure these are tackled at an early stage. As with many planning
applications, ecology aspects of potential regeneration sites are likely to come under consideration. Having the correct experts on board from the start will ensure that the appropriate ecology surveys for wildlife such as bats or newts are undertaken and
completed at the correct time of year, for example. A robust set of activities
introduced in the beginning really can make a big difference to the viability of a regeneration site. Engineering is one of the key elements, as it can help to bring a transformative impact on a neighbourhood, town, suburb or city that is undergoing regeneration. Today’s preference for
development is to breathe new life into previously used sites and regenerate them, rather than build on greenfield land. With a shortage of housing and a commitment to new employment space, giving a new lease of life to run-down or unused areas is seen as the preferred way forward. Partnership is often the key to bringing lasting and sustainable improvement to an area. These can include public and private partnerships, partnerships between teams and stakeholders and partnerships between experts in redevelopment and regeneration. If members of the team have knowledge of the process involved in regeneration, they can all play their part in making a success of the scheme. Regeneration schemes are rarely
straightforward, but experts have the breadth of experience to help make it happen – bringing forward sites that, for instance, may have stalled because of viability issues.
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