ENLIGHTENED PLANNING 115
among bigger developers is also shifting. Clare Richards, founder of socially engaged practice ftwork, which sets itself the mission to ‘revive the social purpose of architecture’, points to research conducted in 2019 by one of the biggest UK and Ireland developers, Grosvenor Estate. It revealed that among the general public, trust in developers was a depressing 2%, and trust in local authorities reached a far more shocking all-time low of 7%. As a result, Grosvenor has instigated a community charter and helped to fund the Quality of Life
commission, dRMM founder Sadie Morgan’s pioneering platform for identifying what makes a modern home liveable and lovable. ‘Tey’re making the right kind of noises,’ says Richards, who, in turn, has seized this civic, people- centric development mood to launch a Collective Community Action initiative, identifying ways and means to embed communities, their values and aspirations into planning processes.
Te outcome of real engagement, Richards argues, is not just more thoughtfully designed
neighbourhoods, but a commitment to ongoing stewardship ‘because… people having some buy-in, some sense of ownership in the whole process, creates a much better result.’ Social, environmental and economic sustainability are interdependent, she continues. ‘If a place is truly inclusive, there is social capital; people support each other, they shop and work locally and generate more local activity.’ How gratifying it is to see these three case study projects putting that social capital central to their agendas.
northern European regeneration projects – knew that Sunderland had to take charge of its own assets. ‘We had to buy land quietly to have a development platform that was meaningful.’ Only by retaining a certain amount of ownership could Sunderland control quality, character and programme. But with limited resources, fostering the right business partnerships was also key, as well as helping to create a distinctive look and feel to the city and neighbourhoods by working with the right – and often local – architects. The latest master plan has been led by Newcastle-based FaulknerBrowns, together with London’s Proctor & Matthews. To demonstrate the city’s ambitions, McIntyre says, ‘We’ve pulled a broad but high-quality and quite costly bunch of professionals around us.’ A pivotal moment in the scheme came when Legal & General came on board in early 2020 with a £100m commitment, and a pledge to build two regional ofices in a newly designated central business district, whose anchor structures include a fully flexible, 21st century City Hall by Bowmer & Kirkland – with construction already under way, it will open in late 2021. A 450- seat performing arts venue, The Auditorium, designed by Flanagan Lawrence, will also open in late 2021, housed in the city’s 1907 fire station building. Also promised is The Culture House: a new city library, as well as a hub for creativity, making and learning.
Already opened in 2019, on the Vaux Brewery site is Feilden Clegg
Bradley Studios’ The Beam. This £13.5m five-storey building offers grade-A ofice accommodation, with a design that promotes health and well-being thanks to its central planted courtyard, natural lighting and ventilation, and other passive design elements. Using a simple steel frame and precast concrete floors, it references Sunderland’s industrial past, with views over the River Wear, and adds ground floor retail, cafe and restaurant spaces to the local offer. Clearly impressed by this flagship, council-funded project, Ocado revealed plans to open a base in Sunderland just weeks after The Beam was completed.
For housing, the council is working with development partner igloo, known for its commitment to quality, innovation and liveability. FaulknerBrowns is designing mixed-use schemes, with Proctor & Matthews overseeing the design of residential districts, and architects MawsonKerr assisting on the aforementioned 125-home Vaux neighbourhood – just gone in for planning – and will be completed for 2023, when the Sunderland will host the Future Living Expo. As a metropolitan area,
Sunderland is already the largest city in the North East, encompassing parts of the Newcastle commuter belt and the town of Washington. McIntyre reflects on the current challenge: ‘In a city of 30,000, there were less than 3,000 living in the city centre, 90% of whom lived there through necessity not choice.’ In a few short years, that perspective will hopefully be reversed.
KIRSTEN MCCLUSKIE
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