Adaptive Re-use

Adaptive Re-use in the City Fringe

Complex Assemblies Design Workshop 2022

Shaoke Zhang

1

Intro

The global pandemic has heightened how once ‘normal’ practices and building use has had to adapt further to forces of political and economical change. There may be restrictions and limits to our daily lives, but there is also new opportunity to interact with services and activities within existing frameworks that would be otherwise prohibitive - for example, the local restaurant that forced to close operations then adapts to become production line, delivery service, community leader, farmer’s market, and so on. There is a diverse range of how businesses, buildings and people become adaptable and flexible.

Diversity is often perceived as being connected with identity politics and demographics and, especially with increased use of social media and brand. However, diversity can also be broader and more dynamic when considering how to engage with the redevelopment of urban sites containing existing buildings and spaces and how they can be re-used.

Recent trends suggest that re-using older buildings should be the first thing to consider with any new development as it saves money and has less impact on climate change.

In the early 1960s, writer and activist Jane Jacobs was aware of this fact, and identified some the diverse possibilities of how older buildings are re-used to the benefits of the city and society: The town-house parlour that becomes a craftsman’s showroom, the stable that becomes a house, the basement that becomes an immigrant’s club, the garage or brewery that becomes a theatre, the beauty parlour that becomes the ground floor of a duplex, the warehouse that becomes a factory for Chinese food, the dancing school that becomes a pamphlet printer’s, the cobbler’s that becomes a church with lovingly painted windows, the butcher shop that becomes a restaurant: these are the kinds of minor changes forever occurring where city districts have vitality and are responsive to human needs.

Jane Jacobs – The Death and Life of Great American Cities, 1961

These city districts that Jacobs mentions are located at the inner peripheries of major cities and are rich with examples of adaptable businesses and flexible spaces. In London, a prime example would be Hackney and the East End, where former working districts, characterised by pre-war warehouses and industrial buildings, have been transformed by either demolition and redevelopment, or adapted for inventive re-use.

In a post pandemic environment, with the ongoing crisis in housing and climate change, how do we combine this imaginative multi-use architecture with the scale of social housing or other forms of affordable housing? A further exercise in adapting the use of a building to bring the city closer to the home. This may be adaptive re-use, but it also raises questions on the role of the architect as ‘curator’, ‘facilitator’ or ‘impresario’ within an ever-changing city. This should be assessed critically whilst examining real constraints and limits of existing building fabric and local politics, social need and regulatory systems.

So what is adaptive re-use?

It forms a very important aspect of any urban regeneration scheme. The adaptation process implies selecting relevant novel technologies and design concepts that will support the older buildings to adjust successfully to contemporary requirements without destroying the existing urban form.

When building structures are abandoned, adaptive reuse can be the perfect way to breathe new life into old buildings while preserving resources and historic value. Because the changes in the urban environment are often the comprehensive dynamic changes of buildings, streets, and public realms, there are many different types of adaptive reuse, which can be residential, parks, office buildings, factories, and so on.

Why is adaptive re-use of existing buildings, sites and urban conditions relevant?

Over time cities undergo significant change. This can be through urban growth, crisis, trauma, or just simple progress. Older buildings or architectural or historical merit become important to the cultural and social heritage, and become almost museum pieces within the collective city as a whole. The more mundane or nondescript architecture is often demolished and re-built, particularly if there is economic or political reason, but sometimes rescue or revival can breathe new life into a local neighborhood with inventive and cost-effective recycling of buildings. More so than ever, perhaps due to the climate change crisis, there is a balance to the debate on whether to retain and enhance or to demolish and re-build. Generally adaptive re-use is relevant because: 1) It helps maintain cultural heritage; 2) Often it can be more cost-effective; 3) If done well it can have excellent environmental benefits; 4) It can bring diversity of cross programs and uses within a neighborhood to the benefit of communities.

What are typical examples of adaptive re-use in architecture and the urban environment?

There are many different types of examples from the re-use of former industrial buildings into galleries, commercial activity and even housing.

There are extensions or infills, on top of existing buildings or in and around them to create additional development and space. The repair and refurbishment of older buildings or urban conditions – from the High-Line, New York, to the Tate Modern, to the many new transformative urban projects that become new landmarks in the city. But there are also the smaller, and more temporary use of existing spaces such as pop-up' bars, shops or event spaces in and around buildings such as former car parks, railway arches and breweries. And, there is the example of adapting and reusing existing housing, which through careful improvement fixes broken or problematic buildings, such as in the work by Lacatan & Vassal in France.

Where do adaptive re-use projects occur, and why?

There is a global wave of making use of what exists and innovatively creating new forms and architecture within and around the older urban fabric. Almost every major city in the world has many examples of adaptive re-use of existing buildings and structures, with a common location being the inner-city or inner-periphery, where property values have the potential to increase. However, it is not just an urban pattern. Adaptive re-use of farm buildings, water-towers, and other non-urban structures also occurs.

2

City Fringe

Many major cities in the world have been characterised by urbanisation, industrialisation and new technologies and infrastructure. As cities have changed, the centres expand and contract, and result in innercity conditions at the periphery of the centre. These are areas that have been commonly problematic with fading industry, migration, and uneven development. London, for example, has only in the last 30 years seen new infrastructure, development and investment running alongside new industries (creative, tech, and knowledge based industires). The City Fringe was historically regarded as the area around the north and eastern edges

of the City of London’s financial district. As the core office market continues to expand, the city fringe gradually moves north and east, including areas such as Dalston, Hackney, Haggerston and Whitechapel. Here, as the former working districts, mainly characterised by pre-war warehouses and industrial buildings have either been demolished and rebuilt or transformed for inventive re-use. Nowadays, the City Fringe is mixed-use in many places but more residential in nature. In addition, the functional relationship between City Fringe and the City of bank is also closely connected, and the two areas complement each other.

These two graphs that source from the City Fringe Opportunity Area Framework, illustrate how the City Fringe is a location that is one of the key employment areas in London, and also have a large capacity for new homes. The graphs suggest it competes with areas such as Isle of Dogs, Olympic Legacy, Royal Docks/Beckton, and Old Oak/Park Royal as one of

the key opportunity areas in London. In comparison with these other locations, perhaps only the Isle of Dogs area has the same density and diversity as the City Fringe. And uniquely, it has the closest proximity to the City of London and West End, suggesting it has the largest amount of older buildings and urban conditions shaped and formed historically.

City Fringe is identified in the Mayor's London Plan as an Opportunity Area (OA) with potential for 15,500 new homes and 50,500 new jobs by 2041. The OA was designated in 2004 and is part of the Central London Growth Corridor. This area contains significant development capacity in relatively central areas and there is particular scope not only to support London's financial and business services but also the diverse cluster of digital-creative businesses in an expanding "Tech City". In a nutshell, the expansion of Tech City and continued business growth in the City Fringe are recognised as strategically important to the economy of London and the UK. At a macro level, the government's urban vision for the area can be broadly summarised as: enabling business clusters to continue to grow into a mix of large corporations, SMEs, micro-enterprises and start-ups, while providing housing and other ancillary functions such as retail and leisure.

To achieve this vision, the government has proposed five development goals: 1) Ensuring there is the space for continued business growth in the City Fringe; 2) Striking the appropriate balance between residential and commercial development; 3) Supporting the mix of uses that makes the City Fringe special; 4) Identifying the key strategic development sites; 5) Connecting the City Fringe.

The character of the City Fringe is, and, remains urban, with a wide range of mixed uses, many new and old building types, and neighbourhoods with variety and diversity. However, the government's OA is a form of planning that seeks urban growth that could have consequences to existing communities, neighbourhoods and cultural/social heritage. The City Fringe' terminology is possibly a branding or re-identifcation of what in reality is the inner periphery of the city centre, where physical and social boundaries remain problematic for sustainable urban growth that benefits all.

It was mentioned earlier that City Fringe's industrial heritage is interconnected with plenty of cheap commercial space as one of the important reasons for the potential of the region. And with more traditional financial city businesses settling in the area, competition for leasing is also intensifying here. In addition, the increased attractiveness of the City Fringe and the arrival of the Crossrail mean that more higher-value housing is likely to emerge in the future, which is bound to gradually replace lower-value office and light industrial uses. Over time, this could lead to the weakening and demise of the digital creative cluster. This could be detrimental to London's vision of a world-leading digitally creative business hub.

To actively align with London's urban strategy and minimize the negative impact caused by gentrification, this workshop selected three plots in City Fringe that have their own characteristics and are related to each other for research and re-planning. The three areas are: The City edge, The Housing Hinterland and London Field (Cluster of a Ditrict Centre). In general, the entire workshop is extended around the following 6 key growth conditions, which are: 1) Available, affordable, suitable business; 2) Stock; 3) Location and 'creative vibe'; 4) Dense, urban, collaborative environment; 5) Connectivity; 6) Mix of uses.

District center

Housing HinterlanDs

tHe eDge of tHe city

resiDential

The analysis begins with the residential areas of Hackney, as housing is an essential part of adaptive re-use. The map shows that the housing is spread out fairly evenly on both sides of the road through London Fields and Broadway Market, but some gaps exist. There are also differences in the size and layout of the housing blocks in the north-south and east-west directions. For example, the west side of London Fields has a very regular layout, whereas the east side of Mare Street and north along Broadway market has a more disorganised layout, and there are differences in quality and price between these houses. The quality of the housing in the lower half of the picture is not as good, with Brick Lane being full of graffiti on the walls and various types of shops, which also contributes to the quality and layout of the housing in the neighbourhood not being as good as that on the south side, which indirectly interacts with the crime rate and disorder in the area.

commertial

Undoubtedly, commerce is one of the fundamental elements in the development of an area, as it brings in many people who come here to spend money and boost the economy of the area. In the area of Hackney between London Fields and Spitalfields Market, commercial buildings are located on several lines and in several areas: along with the Broadway Market to the south, on a route through the Columbia Flower Market; along Mare Street on both sides; along Hackney Road on both sides, it is clear from the diagram that the commercial buildings, including the upper ground floor commercial spaces and the residential and office buildings, are mainly located along these lines. There are more commercial buildings to the south than to the north, and they are more clustered in Brick Lane and the surrounding areas.

green space

Green spaces in the city provide space for adults to enjoy lunch, chat and BBQ on the grass and for children to have fun and exercise on equipments.

The green spaces go a long way towards reducing tensions and indirectly reducing crime in the area. In the area shown here, the green spaces are divided into two classes: larger parks or gardens and ordinary green spaces between blocks. The parks include London Fields, Haggerston Park, Weavers Fields and Ravenscroft Park, and the everyday green spaces are interspersed between these parks in a dispersed manner, with one green space in each block.

infrastucture

Infrastructure is the set of fundamental facilities and systems that support the sustainable functionality of a city. These are the buildings that maintain the stability of Hackney and provide for the people's livelihoods. As can be seen from the map, this infrastructure is largely scattered between settlements or in their vicinity, while some functions are still lacking, such as public toilets.

overall situation

When stacking these colourful blocks together, we realise that the area is full of points worthy of deeper study. Two intersecting railway lines, a busy Mare Street, several parks in different scales, several east-west or north-south arterial and secondary roads, buildings and sites with different functions, all developed along the red line in the diagram, look so busy.

However, beneath the surface, there are still problems in the area, such as the uneven development of the residential areas, the many dilapidated houses like the post-war housing waiting to be renewed, the confusing functions within many buildings or groups of buildings, and the green spaces scattered throughout the site waiting for a line to connect them, the Railway, Mare Street and Regent's Canal, these three lines, like the fragmented boundaries mentioned by Kevin Lynch in 'The Image of the City', indirectly hinder inter-regional communication and development.

Faced with these complex problems, adaptive re-use seems to be a good solution.

Fields Within The City Fringe London’s City Fringe, an inner city designation, has a rich mixture of areas of local character. The areas closest to the City, covering Spitalfields, Aldgate, Shoreditch, and Old Street is more urban and commercial in character.

Three specific fields of study within City Fringe were chosen by the group:

Then, just beyond, railways and arterial roads have nodal points around the likes of Dalston, Hackney Central, and Bethnal Green where former industrial and commercial characteristics have transformed into growth areas with new mixed use development.

2) Post-War Fields - Weavers Fields to Haggerston Park, characterised not only by the parks and open spaces, but the dominating presence of postwar housing;

1) London Fields - characterised by former light industrial land, new mixed use developments, and the connectivity of the park and surrounds;

3) Spitalfields - one of the areas with distinctly urban characteristics.

Within and around these ‘centres’, many neighbourhoods are characterised by street markets such as Columbia Road, Broadway Market and Brick Lane which become lively and attractive with independent shops, bars, restaurants which regularly draw busy crowds.

Loosely connecting and linking much of these places there is a ‘greengrid’ of open public spaces, with three large parks (Hagerstown, London Fields, and Weavers Fields) and smaller open green spaces. These open spaces may have similar urban characteristics but differ in respect to local demographics and the way each are used.

And, within and around all the recent transformations and new incoming creative industry led businesses, there are the ‘hinterlands’ of housing estates, taking up large amounts of land. Some of these estates are historical and important (Boundary Estate for example), and, some are good and bad examples of modern post-war housing. Post-War housing such as the Dorset Estate, Mansford Park and DeBeavoir are characterised by high density, flatted blocks, low-rise duplex housing, under-used public space and modern, almost brutalist styles of architecture.

London Fields

1745 London Fields

1831 London Fields

1862 London Fields

1939 Council Plans for London Fields North and South.

People's memories of the city can be divided into individual and collective memories, with the individual memory typically referring to a person's memory of a specific location within the city, and the city itself serving as the collective memory of its inhabitants. In addition, the city, like memory, is associated with objects and places, so it can be said that the city is the place of collective memory. Actually, many collactive memories of London are associated with Hackney, including the five miles of canal banks, Victoria Park, the heights of Homerton, and the goat sculpture in London Fields, which is located in the south-eastern part of the park. Additionally, London Fields holds many memories of Hackney, having once been a part of Hackney's enormous commonable grounds where livestock, most likely goats, were once herded through its infamous "black roads" before being driven to the Smithfield slaughterhouse in the city. According to historical records, London Fields belonged to the Savoy Hospital in the early 16th century. However, by the end of the 16th century, the area between Mare Street and London Fields had established itself as a distinct settlement on the route from London to Cambridge. It wasn't until the early nineteenth century that the area around London Fields began to become increasingly urban. Benjamin Clarke once remarked about the area around London Fields that practically all fields were fields. Some exceptions include the areas of decent houses known as Lansdowne Place and Terrace in London. Precisely because these collective memories represent the city, it determines to a large extent its transformation.

Key elements

Street and buildings connection

connectivity

Boundries

London Fields

The photos on this page include some background to the context of the London Fields area of study. As mentioned earlier, the park was originally common lands, later becoming a municipal park. Today the park is enjoyed by many people and is a highly popular spot in summer months with outdoor bbq parties, trips to the Lido, sports, leisure activity and eating and drinking.

Nearby Mare Street was once a route into Smithfield for cattle and sheep from outside the city - historical animal troughs still remain to this day.

Nowadays, Mare Street is a busy street undergoing new transformations with creative workspaces, new bars/restaraunts, and new housing all adding to a diverse area with a mix of different local communities

The introduction of the railway line in the late 19th Century involved the clearing of allotments and early Victorian period housing. Gradually, new light industrial buildings started to appear, then further lower quality warehouses were added in the post-war period. Over the last 30-40 years the area has been undergoing further change, with the area directly east of London Fields an attractive location for land acquisition and private development of

residential-led mixed-use development. The railway and viaduct remain, but now the arches activated with a range of new uses (bakery, cinema, coffee shop, etc).

London Fields

As Jane Jacobs once said, "Both the decay of old cities and the decline of newer, non-metropolitan urbanization are inevitable, economically or socially." In those neighbourhoods, the railway lines and the arches below, the hungry and poor beggars or the homeless, the dilapidated and sparsely populated buildings, the poorly accessible road system or the fuzzy boundaries with the parks, they are waiting for a chance to be regenerated. This was certainly the case in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the global economy issues impacted negatively on major global cities such as London. In this area of London, around London Fields and South Hackney, the 1980s and 1990s saw slow gradual urban growth, and soon after developers intervened and started to buy and build cheaply for profit, demolishing older warehouse stock in their way. Nowadays there are different approaches to urban growth, including new development of the same model but of higher quality, and more interventional projects that make use and retain existing buildings as part of a new model of development. This has resulted in a pot-pourri-like arrangement around the railway on the eastern side of London Fields, consisting of new developments, interconnected blocks, existing buildings, and city blocks in need of ‘repair’ .

For this masterplan, Mare Street, the railway, and the route through Broadway Market and the park have become strong north-south arterial axes in this area. Actually, this area was largely influenced by the railway and light industry. But now there has been a new development and the blocks are full of a variety of new creative uses. Meanwhile, many of the blocks in the ribbon bounded by the railway line and Mare Street are separated by boundaries. Therefore we aim to link these areas through adaptive re-use while improving specific buildings.

London Fields

Intersections Following Kevin Lynch’s views on those places in the city where paths meet and features are concentrated, this sketch mapping diagram aims to discover and imagine some of the potential intersections of the London Fields area. These are connecting points with possibilities to be adapted and improved upon. When these connecting points are extended in a linear fashion, they form two axes in this design to some extent. The first axis runs east-west along Well Street through Lamb Lane, then through Railway Arch and London Fields and finally past Middleton Road.

The connections along the route are new instalments along the roadside to reinforce the road boundary and some new interventions. The second axis, which runs through Lamb Lane, is dominated by a gridlike structure of buildings at the junction between the railway arch and the park, replete with mess and requiring human intervention to change.

The first step of transformation is to improve the connectivity of the area: the bridge from Ash Grove Bus Garage to the Oval connects the two sides of Regent's Canal very well. At the same time other strategies have taken on the role of improving the block environment or connectivity, such as Clusters, Connections and links or Axis and Grid.

London Fields

Due to the varying urban conditions, the various regions vary to varying degrees. Perhaps as a result of their function, 'Border land' between Hackney and Tower Hamlets, which contains a wide variety of buildings, uses, and contexts, is able to accommodate development. Similarly, the changes that occur in this area are also intended to accommodate development. The emergence of differences between areas may also begin with differences between individuals, which means that the income, social status, and even religion of individuals between areas become urban conditions. There is some variation in the spatial quality of mixeduse buildings. Several interventions are poised to influence and transform the area in response to these urban conditions. The different colour blocks in the diagram refer to different types of interventions, including the use of grids as structures for the buildings, the mixing uses of spaces to form a cluster and the optimisation of the road network through linkage.

London Fields

These strategies emerged for this: grid and axis, cluster, connectivity.

The first is the improvement of connectivity, i.e. the physical reshaping of buildings or roads in order to achieve better connectivity.

Grids and axes try to create different kinds of buildings in the site in order to attract more people, while clusters create different spaces through the combination of buildings. Actually, the design has basically evolved from these three ways.

London Fields

As seen on the diagram, this region has undergone significant transformation since its former state. First, there are now more connections; previously, the end of Helmsley PL was blocked off, making it difficult for people or vehicles to enter Exmouth PL directly. The same is true for the lower right block, where the original structure was too dense for people to pass through. Simultaneously, two east-west axes cross the two main roads on the site in order to reinforce the connection between the blocks east of Mare Street and London Fields, as well as the road's edges. In addition, the new block is composed of clusters, which are parts of different buildings that have been reassembled to improve the original block's functionality, such as the relationship between residential and commercial spaces in the buildings.

London Fields

The sketches opposite are spatial explorations of existing conditions (on top), with possible new adaptations that help form part of an urban proposal (positioned below).

The first row sketches the condition of Secondhome and Space Studios on Mare Street. This concentration of buildings and employment uses (mostly co-working and art studio spaces), is characterised by the broad pavement area adjacent to Mare Street. There is potential for the reworking and adaptation of the space between these blocks, where a new access route (which would link directly through to the park) could be formed to create more connected studios with better light and access, with the possible addition of new development being added above and to the side.

The second row of sketches looks at the condition of some of the older housing estates tucked within the eastern side of London Fields, along Warburton Road. The existing condition turns away from the street, or perhaps the street form and pattern changed, leaving the housing having a degree of privacy. But this privacy does not equate to spaces of intimacy or interest or practical use. The proposal (which does not seek the removal of trees - these are only removed for clarity of the sketch), aims for some reworking of the large blocks, to increase passages, and views, and more human scale, with this leading to possible new housing in close proximity.

London Fields

The sketches opposite are spatial explorations of existing conditions (on top), with possible new adaptations that help form part of an urban proposal (positioned below).

The condition with the railway is one of several similar conditions where the area links directly through to the park. Visually, the spatial condition has been transformed from a blocked existing archway into something more transparent and connected. The space used under the railway is an important part of developing other parts of this local area. Some of the arches could break through to form an informal open public area or ‘square’ with these historical arch elements and two sides of the railway line could be connected. Each arch unit could function as a pop-up space - like similar existing arches elsewhere. Some creative performances and exhibitions could be shown in this space. These railway arches could provide a broader range of uses than just commercial.

The condition of Helmsley Place is explored in the second row. The existing character has on one side poor quality light industrial buildings (1980s) which accommodate a range of studios and workspaces. The other side has an ad-hoc ‘spill-out’ of outdoor seating, temporary structures and seating areas that are ancillary to pop-up restaurants and other uses within the railway arch. There are possibilities of using the ad-hoc approach, to create a series of structures and ordering gridded elements that act as a framework for a mix of people that require small studio space and/or businesses.The street edge is also reinforced. These proposed structures would help unify the language of the street and form a feeling of a village of creative studios and various pop-up facilities.

London Fields

The south part of the area east of London Fields is compressed around the railway line, the buildings along Westgate Street and Mare Street. This compression has resulted in a recent growth of bar/restaurant spaces and similar activities and is now an actively busy junction. A few blocks in, and the compressed nature of the block has problems, due to spaces, buildings and railway arches not having adequate access, activity, light - making them awkward and difficult to occupy or use.

Possible approaches should focus on the success of the commercial activity, studio spaces, and the sense of place. Better connectivity can be made and the bottom end of the railway arches where businesses have struggled due to visibility and access. This then links with a possible network of pedestrian and cycle pathways - small scale as to not disrupt too much of the existing built fabric. There may be some medium scale proposition added to create new open space - to echo and compliment the open foodcourts and markets on Westgate Street.

Overall, by exploring a range of different interconnections and existing conditions, the beginnings of a new urban plan for this area can be developed. Based on working with existing buildings and uses, the key proposition would be to make a network (or framework) of paths through the deep and dense blocks.

This could help the success of bars, restaurants, studios, galleries, coworking, markets and other like-uses to expand and generate a greater sense of place and activity.

London Fields

The propositional work for Site A seeks to work with the existing conditions that are successful and make new conditions using the approaches of ‘clusters’, ‘links/connections’, and frameworks of ‘axis’ and ‘grids’.

Many of the existing buildings succeed in lively activities and use, and programmatically the proposition aims to allow this pattern to extend and grow.

Space around the railway is suggested, with new yards, markets, courtyards, and making spaces being able to be situated with useful outdoor space and presence to people - instead of tucked away and hidden.

However, clusters of more dense activity can remain and be concentrated around key spots, and along main streets and routes.

Any new building or complex introduced aims to work with existing uses, with new sites potentially opened up for future development of housing, or extension to existing programmes (such as the school, or art studios). This imagined masterplan approach seeks a condition that has four main northsouth edges: the park side, the two sides of the railway, and the Mare Street side. This is then split, slightly to enhance connection with Mare Street and the park (east to west), broadly following the existing block pattern.

The uses and programmes are varied and mixed, again based on the existing condition, but adapted to have a new studio/employment spaces with flexibility (like the pop-ups next to the railway arches of Helmsley Place), and residential spaces roughly where already located (with some newer elements within the urban block). The Westgate street side aims to open up for further commercial spaces, markets, courtyards, etc to link with the new activated railway arches.

London Fields London Fields

Name: The Fisheries Description: Co-working space and residential space in the heart of London Fields.

Year: 2017 Architects: Hollaway Studio Location: 1 Mentmore Terrace, Hackney, London, E8 3PN. Provide: 33 offices, 114 private desks, 34 residential flats.

Case Study

The Fisheries is adjacent conversion project to the north of the site. It is currently a mix-use building for residential and co-working, a project that responds to the ratio of residential to commercial, and the idea of a creative neighborhood in hackney.

Without changing the number of dwellings, the developer decided to reuse the adjacent small derelict building and combine it with ground floor space to increase the commercial area. This response to the concept of adaptive reuse. The original brick façade between the two buildings has been retained and converted into an interior. The interior reveals much of the exposed original structure and materials, which are combined with the new finishes and interiors. In the small building included, in addition to the office scene, there is additional pop-up space and a door separate from this building. The pop-up space is closely related to the creative nature of the work and complements each other.

London Fields

Co-working is a very appropriate model for creative work. fishery's office area is different from the normal model of rooms and desks and chairs.

Instead, there is a free flow of office space, with no clear boundaries and no large, separate office areas. Office activities that require more than one person are usually done in common meeting rooms. So, the rental options here are just as flexible as the nature of their work. Companies rent on a workstation basis rather than a room basis, making it more suitable for small creative studios.

London Fields

This is a sketch plan of the basement floor, including bicycle parking, coffee shop, open workspace, room workspace, toilet, shower room, recording studio, stairs, elevators, storeroom, corridor.

This is a sketch plan of the ground floor plan, including a restaurant, muti-use space, flexible workspace, open workspace, room workspace, storeroom, elevators,stairs.

This is a sketch plan of the first floor plan: including meeting rooms, muti-use space, flexible workspace, open workspace, residential units, storeroom, elevators,stairs, linkages.

This is a sketch section. It shows the relationship between the existing building and the new building, which are connected by the basement and some linkages on the first floor.

This is a sketch part section part plan. It shows the characteristics of the co-working space of the podium and the proportion and relationship between the commercial functions in the lower part and the residential functions in the upper part.

London Fields

This is a sketch showing the linkage between the Fisheries building and the existing building.

The drawing shows that the designers have created a long corridor through the linkage, with many interesting co-working and sitting spaces.

This picture is a floor-by-floor analysis of the residential space in the upper part of the building. It shows that the building has different sizes of flats, such as the flat with balcony or duplex flat.

The interior proposed co-working space

Post-War Fields

1946. April. 2nd.

1955. June. 6th.

During the World War II, the East End of London was bombed severely.

After that, many social housing estates were constructed. They were mostly erected for economic benefit but not always to the welfare of residents.

The post-war social housing estates meet the needs of a great number of dwellings but not provide an appropriate and satisfying living environment.

Post-War Fields

The two main routes start from the the more mixed and commercial areas of the city fringe, and go through the post-war housing area.

The area, north east of the City, between Hackney Road and Bethnal Green Road is characterised by large amount of post-war housing estates.

Two of these estates, the Dorset Estate and the Mansford Estate have proximity to Columbia Road market and some remnants of Victorian period development that survived the bombing that occurred here during WW2.

The two estates are shaded black. The grey shaded areas indicate parks and open green spaces. Some of these rose out of badly bombed areas, giving useful shared green space and amenity to the local area, which formerly had many pre-war industrial buildings. The proximity of Columbia Road and Broadway Market (further to the north) are important, as both have weekend markets and attract many visitors.

Along the roads, there are many commercial buildings and small businesses. Some buildings are used as shops on the ground floor, as residential spaces on the upper floor. In the specific days, there are several impressive markets.

This mapping is an attempt to illustrate how the main non-residential uses are generally located, within the proximity of the two estates. Notably, commercial activity is situated along the main arterial roads, where access and delivery are easier, but also historically there would have been a similar ribbon-like commercial pattern pre-war.

The large spaces behind and between these main roads are where housing dominates - post-war period housing in particular. Interestingly, both main parks of the area have proximity to the two of the area’s main streets Haggerston Park just north of Hackney Road, and Weavers Field just to the south of Bethnal Green Road.

Post-War Fields

“The typical town is not a pattern of streets but a sequence of spaces created by buildings.”

- "The Concise Townscape", by Gordon Cullen

The spaces formed by estates of different types are distinct. Without the notion that the modern social housing estates are often situated and isolated in the centre of large green lands, a new vision emerges that the spaces shaped by estates could be accessed and form a network of travelling a sequence of spaces.

The post-war housing estates are surprisingly diverse in height, scale, density, material and style. There is potential for them to be redesigned and revitalized as housing with better living environments and parts of a remarkable and impressive townscape.

The red blocks are in characteristic shapes, generally designed by architects with the intention of exploring new ways of living. The yellow blocks form enclosed and usually private courtyards. The green blocks are scattered low-rise housing estates that create surprising and impressive spaces. The blue blocks are slab buildings without a sense of enclosure.

Post-War Fields

The existing post-war housing estates in Hackney are diverse in material, height, type, scale, density and style. The public spaces in the post-war housing estates, the ways that they are enclosed, and the urban condition around them also characterize the post-war housing.

Post-War Fields

The open green spaces in and around post-war housing blocks are mostly isolated as semi-private spaces, which are sometimes of little use.

However, the more successful shared open spaces (shaded) could provide an existing framework to possibly have the less successful spaces adapt and interconnect.

Physical access allows people to walk through the neighborhoods, which provides walkers with various views and experiences, and also the community with safety as a result of users in sufficient numbers.

Gated neighborhoods offer the residents feelings of belonging and safety.

In this situation, the connections are constructed in visual contact.

Post-War Fields

This drawing is an attempt to imagine an urban morphology of open green space, that becomes linked, network-like, with landscaped spaces and routes connecting through local neighbourhoods.

Physical links and access allows people to walk through, with potential of safer experiences and views that are formed with distinct post-war housing and picturesque landscape.

Visual links and access don't allow people to walk in, offering the residents feeling of belonging and safety.

Post-War Fields

This mapping of the open green spaces in the vicinity of the two estates begins to suggest a connecting ‘green corridor’ between Weavers Fields and Haggerston Park.

In the existing situation, there are several junctions where the connections between green lands are interrupted. The market and small businesses in Haggerston Park have the potential to relate to the commercial buildings and market along Bethnal Green Road which is the north of Weavers Fields. The street from Haggerston Park to Weavers Fields is intended to be enhanced through the continuous landscape, commercial and communal elements, and various post-war housing estates.

Discussions on how some of the existing open green spaces could be combined with new ground floor commercial activity was explored with this diagram. Along this north-south axis there is commercial activity only at Hackney Road and Bethnal Green Road. It was considered that new commercial uses adjacent to and within this axis could draw people through, but also help provide facilities and land-use that helps the various forms of post-war housing nearby.

Post-War Fields

Haggerston Park and Ion Square Gardens on the south side are blocked

by Busy Hackney Road, but the extended open space from Ion Square Gardens implies the connection between the two open spaces. To the north of Hackney Road there is Hackney City Farm. This is an important local amenity and facility that is popular with local people and young families.

This drawing shows how the existing conditions could be utilised and adapted to improve activity within the public realm. A stronger visual and built connection at that connects Hackney City Farm, and connected or ancillary for the farm suggested in Ion Square Gardens (i.e. places to grow, and places to buy and sell produce, whether from the farm or new allotments).

Proposing a commercial building with outdoor public amenity space on the southeast edge of Haggerston Park and moving the entrance of Hackney City Farm Yard help to open the edge, attract people to get into the market, and guide the path between Haggerston Park and Ion Square Gardens.

Proposing new housing following the Columbia Road typology, with the commercial spaces on the ground floor and the living spaces on the upper floors serves to not only maintain the density of flats and population lost in the de-densification of nearby housing transformation, but also shape the street and enclose the green land.

There is potential to introduce a new form of landscaping that uses some of the design devices of picturesque historical English Landscaping - such as gazebo or pavillion like structures as commercial or community spaces, and hedges, ha-has, and other landscaping devices to enhance the views and use of the existing and newly proposed open spaces. These moves, also suggest the adaptation of long and deep existing blocks - to make them looser, more linked and more approachable at street level.

Post-War Fields

On the west side is the Victorian period terraced housing of the Columbia Road neighbourhood, while on the east side are the distinct duplex postwar housing estates. Between these conditions there is an existing group of buildings consisting of a Montesouri School, a retirement home and a church building joined at the northern side of the grpup.

Ideas for adapting and improving this existing condition consist of: Reworking the middle block, retaining the church building but re-doing the poorer quality buildings for school use and new housing; Creating pedestrian links and visual links through buildings to connect with open green spaces; A possible new framework to create neighbourhood that has connection with Ion Square and Haggerston Park to the north, and the more commercial Bethnal Green Road to the south.

The intriguing pattern indicates a possibility for the estates themselves as picturesque landscapes. Removal of some flats on the ground floor improves the permeability and accessibility of the neighbourhood and also prevents people from getting lost in it. Some picturesque elements are introduced into the area. Some commercial, communal and cultural spaces, the functions of which are all related to the markets, parks and residents nearby, are placed in the buildings to service people both locally and from outside.

Following the Haggerston Park, Hackney City Farm and Ion Square Gardens, the private gardens are attached to the Victorian terrace on the west side. The middle green lands are enclosed by the private gardens and buildings along the road. They are semi-public and designed with diverse picturesque elements. Keep on to the south, the green land works as public space. The series of green lands respectively serve as spaces with different functions, such as plants growing, farms, floral displays and so on.

Post-War Fields

The spot is at the crossroad of Bethnal Green Road and Vallance Road, close to Weavers Fields. Weavers Fields and Pollard Square are blocked visually by Bethnal Green Road and the commercial shops along the road.

There is a market on Monday to Saturday where people could pick up a range of fabrics, jewellery and flowers, as well as cheap toiletries and kids’ toys.

Ideas for adapting and improving this existing condition consist of: Radically changing aspects of Bethnal Green Road edge with new buildings that are split and also contain courtyard elements for independent shops and business to evolve in an organic way ; Enabling visual and physical connections through Pollard Square to Weavers Fields; A proposed new market area to encourage an increase in street market activity that already exists nearby.

Create an accessible corridor from north to south between the two green spaces on the east side, creating outdoor public space and bringing public space into the adjacent buildings.

Considering the housing estates in the south of the block, some communal and cultural functions are placed in the transformed buildings in the southeast, which s e r v i c e t h e r e s i d e n t s n e a r b y.

Create an internal commercial street on the west side by breaking the compact commercial block and creating voids. Bring markets and small businesses into the adjacent buildings.

Considering the market and small businesses existing on Bethnal Green Road, the market building is constructed on the northwest of the block.

Post-War Fields

The green corridor is based on the introduction of picturesque landscape and market, which are both extracted from the urban environment nearby and service to local residents and visitors. The mixture of post-war housing estates, picturesque landscapes, commercial and communal buildings and amenities creates a distinctive and intriguing townscape. When people walk through the green corridor, the sequence of urban life is experienced.

Post-War Fields

The groupwork involved a case study to help understand new housing in the context of post-war housing estates, but also the landscaped public realm. Kings Crescent Estate in Hackney was chosen.

"The Kings Crescent Estate is a great example of how estate regeneration can preserve existing diverse communities and support them through periods of change. An example of combining sensitive refurbishment together with new buildings and great design, which has created a neighbourhood people can be proud of.“ --Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London

Phases 1 and 2 were completed by December 2017. Three new blocks combine with Lemsford, Therfield and Kelshall Courts to create new streets and courtyard gardens, and 273 new homes.

Phases 3&4 is a highly-sustainable approach to large-scale estate renewal, combining refurbished existing social housing and new buildings within a people-focused public realm, alongside a new Community Centre, workspaces and shops.

--Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London

Post-War Fields

The project intend to reconnect the rundown and mostly wrecked estate to the city and enhance the lives of inhabitants who had been living for over two decades around a fenced off mound of debris. The combination of community and local authority-led development, the project shows a way forward to create a robust model for new and refurbished housing.

This sketch mapping analysis describes the block arrangement and the spaces that are enclosed and used for community use only, private garden space, and the more semi-public buffer spaces.

This sketch mapping illustrates the vehicle and pedestrian access within the estate. Parking is discouraged (to comply with planning policy) and residual space is used to create more density and combined open spaces.

This sketch map aims to highlight a design concept that was used in the landscape design of the site. The idea of ‘play streets’ was introduced to make something more out of ordinary access routes. Smaller access routes for residents within the community also were provided to link between blocks.

This sketch was undertaken to illustrate how the estate was regenerated with almost entirely residential as sole use. There are some community facilities and a small amount of commercial and employment space. This suggest that it is more of a private, quiet estate and is enclave-like rather than a through area that connects other communities and neighbourhoods.

Post-War Fields

The new build blocks of Phases 1 & 2 follow a fairly rigid orthogonal block.

However, there are breaks created to allow visual interest, and visual connection, but also to provide access into new landscaped courtyards within the centre of each block. This typology is more akin to European gridded tenement blocks with courtyards.

The landscaped courtyards feature areas for residents to plant and grow vegetables, and informal play areas for children. The courtyard approach is positively enhancing the public realm and the ‘feel’ of the estate, but keeps the public out generally.

Post-War Fields

An illustration of the estate showing the new build phases (Phase 1 & 2), and the less dense phases 3 & 4 that involve the refurbishment and repair of existing 4-storey blocks, and the associated amenity spaces.

An illustration that looks closer at the areas where existing blocks were adapted. In some cases, new improved access ways and through routes were introduced, and with the removal of the car parking and associated roads this allowed to create a good range of public and private spaces.

Post-War Fields

The existing buildings of phases 3 & 4, consisted of 4-5 storey deck access housing that contained duplex flats. The regeneration works consisted of improving and expanding the private amenity spaces and gardens and in some cases providing new ‘winter gardens’. This is a form of upgrade, with better homes with new cladding and amenity providing greater long term sustainability.

Enlarged entry level duplex flat plan post-improvement works.

Selected photos of Phases 3 & 4 prior to works.

Selected photos of Phases 1 & 2 completed works.

Post-War Fields

This drawing is a hybrid drawing showing the existing building fabric (in Black), with new additions in red. The dotted lines represent the deck access and in some cases how this was incorporated into something new.

This compares the new design of improvements to the exterior of the existing blocks. The new armature provides each duplex flat with new amenity space, and the architecture is extended to create a clear legible entrance canopy.

new

existing

Post-War Fields

Sketch perspective of the new amenity space of the duplex units

Sketch plans of the new amenity space of the duplex units

Post-War Fields

The Kings Crescent Estate regeneration was successful in providing new homes of mixed tenures and many estate improvements. The play streets seemed a little under-used, and perhaps with the lack of active ground floor and public links through the estate, there is the creation of a more private inwardly looking environment.

Learning some lessons from this case study helped form some key ideas for a a more ambitious proposition of creating a new neighbourhood along a new ‘green-corridor’ between Hackney Road and Bethnal Green. Here there is more scope for active public realm, more commercial activity, but also for the improvements and adaptation of some of the housing forms to create courtyards and amenity/community spaces that help keep a clear understanding of public and private environments.

Historical Background

Spitalfields is located just outside the ancient walls of the historic City of London. The area around Spitalfields today remains a unique and attractive characteristics with rich historic buildings, vibrant markets and many modern businesses. What makes people enjoy coming to live in Spitalfields is its diversity, the sense of community, and the preservation of the historic value of the streets.

Spitalfields takes its name from the fields of St Mary's New Hospital without Bishopsgate, suggesting a place where greenery grows. By 1666, traders were already operating outside the city gates (where the market is today).

The landmark Truman Brewery opened in 1669 and in 1682 King Charles II granted Jogh Balch a royal charter granting him the right to hold a market on or near Spital Square on Thursday and Saterday.

Spitalfields had hosted layers of refugees and other migrants over the centuries. The success of the market encouraged people to settle in the area and following the edict of Nantes in 1685, Huguenots fleeing France brought their silk weaving skills to Spitalfields. Their grand houses can still be seen around what is now the conservation area of Fournier Street.

Today these houses are home to many artists. In the late 17th century, the Spitalfields provided a base for Protestant Huguenots fleeing religious persecution in France. This was followed by the influx of Jews from Eastern Europe in the late 19th century, also as a result of persecution policies.

The area has been home to a range of immigrant groups over the centuries and has long played a role as the centre of the East London fabric trade.

Today, as well as clothing manufacturing, it is also a popular destination for designers, retailers and other people in the creative industries. In addition to the clothing and creative industries, tourism, food and the night-time entertainment economy also contribute to the area's significant appeal.

Identify Problems

In Spitalfield, the development of public spaces throughout the area shows a pattern of sprawling development. There are poor connections between public spaces and a significant amount of space is wasted.

In urban development, the market-led process of opportunistic, profit-driven private development often leads to an increase in high-value residential projects. Such public space design is more focused on its formality and ornamentation, weakening the interaction with the public and creating a sense of distance from it. It is indisputable that urban public space can change people's perception of the city, and citizens can directly perceive the positive inclusiveness of the city through the openness, activity and interaction of public space, and feel a greater sense of belonging and presence.

Due to the expansion of central London, high density development has led to a reduction in public space and green space on the one hand, and the need for derelict areas and open spaces to seek new development opportunities on the other.

SpitalfieldS

This diagram is from an analysis of the green spaces within the context of the City Fringe area around Spitalfields, with Ning’s site at Bishops gate, Han’s site at Truman Brewery, and Shaoke's site beside Old Spitalfields Market which is closer to the City of London.

The whole area has a shortfall of under-used public open space (indicated in the areas shaded gray). The lighter gray areas are the green spaces in this area, most of which attract few people in the current situation.

Case

High Line

The High Line's strong connection to the city is what makes this project so powerful and unique. The High Line park is more than just an ordinary park, it is a journey. In it, the idea of 'walking' is reintegrated into the urban park experience. The aerial walkway, which rises 30 feet above the ground, offers a unique cinematic view of the city, a way of using the city as a medium of communication that does not separate space for particular groups of people. Many residents walk up to the High Line and are able to reap unexpected surprises. This process of mixing different building types and their connections to the High Line, as well as providing an authentic New York experience through sightline orientation, neighbourhood streets and iconic urban elements, is one of the reasons why the High Line is so appealing. Thus, the success of New York's High Line does not stem simply from the repurposing of the railway and the creation of green spaces, but from the integration of the High Line parks with urban development, presenting a sustainable and diverse development landscape.

However, the scale of the High Line in the site is much smaller than that of the New York design, making it difficult to effectively represent the urban landscape of London in this area and, in some ways, a poor imitation of the New York Highline. In this context, many residents felt that the formalisation of the informal green space would result in a serious gentrification of the area, which would not alleviate the already strained living patterns but would further reduce the living space. The residents of Brick Lane have taken it upon themselves to campaign for the community to respond to their plight.

In the forthcoming Bishopsgate Goodsyard Development, the High line became one of the most important aspects of the design, as the developer attempted to model the park on the old Goodsyard building after the High Line Park in New York. However, this green space does not provide a useful link between the two areas, but is simply a garden on high ground.

Solve Problems With the transformation of the High Line largely a foregone conclusion, the easiest way to respond to the concerns of the residents was to link the High Line to other areas in order to avoid it becoming a monolithic development.

This linkage is not a physical connection alone, but a continuous development of activities that will form a new system of events for the whole area.

Instead of isolating the various public spaces into fragmented areas of activity, the interventions on the entire site link the spaces together into a new system of events. This strong connection gives the neighbourhood more choice, such a powerful bond between the space and the residents has activated more creative activities, which in turn has given the area a basis for systematic development and for countering the development of nefarious commercial capital.

This will provide a vision for the subsequent development of the site from Old Spitalfields Market in the south to triangular space, Ely's yard and Truman Brewery markets, into Brick Lane, through Backyard to Allen Gardens and on to the high line. During this time, the type of activity varies depending on the scale of the venue.

The four diagrams show the problems in the Spitalfields area: 1. The impassable boundary formed by the railways makes the Highline virtually impenetrable to the south; 2. The forgotten low-quality buildings in the triangle area with their high fences are difficult to connect with their surroundings; 3. The Back yard has been used as storage for many years, the yard is cluttered and the gates are closed. Low-quality buildings also struggle to meet the demand for further use; 4. These two popular public spaces are in close proximity, but have not been developed in unison to form a large range of events.

For High line in New York, It is clear that this sustainable model owes much to the pattern of New York's own development. If other cities start to copy New York's High Line parks as a template, they will eventually fall into the illusion and trap of 'sustainable development, creating a superficial 'cultural bribe'. These parks are built at a terrible price: the rich are given a park that reflects their desires and a 'luxury consumer lifestyle'. At the same time, the privatisation schemes that included them gained a degree of legitimacy.

There is apparently an urgent requirement for the High Line to form ties with the surrounding area instead of just being a park raised above the ground.

Benefiting from the height of the High Line, the platform allows for a sightline exchange with the public spaces to the south. If used wisely, this advantage will attract people to active exploration in Spitalfield.

The High Line will be linked to Grey eagle street to the south by staircases, which will allow new development of the buildings on both sides. To the west, the High-line will link directly to Allen Garden, creating a new public space system.

Aerial Connection

Connecting high line to Allen Gardens for a new landscape experience and pedestrian guidance. This will allow new activity to be generated in multiple areas of wasted neglect, taking pressure off Brick Lane. By reshaping the buildings along spital st, we decided to open up the square of the Truman Brewery and extend it to the Allen Garden as well as provide a new bridge to connect with High Line. Meanwhile, the bottom overhead construction of the new building allows it to become a continuation of the street space,

a'

providing space for informal events. This section illustrates exactly how the Allen Garden and the High Line are linked. The continued space is made possible by the ground floor space, which allows access to the Allen Garden from the spital st and then directly to the High Line via the new bridge, which is located over the railway and provides a great view for the railway, garden and the Hign Line.

a

Allen Garden is connected to Brick Lane and the High-line, which is about to create a new opportunity for development in this forgotten area. On the one hand, the new building will maintain the industrial elements, and on the other hand it will alleviate the serious housing problems. The ground floor of the building can become an extension of the activities on Brick Lane, for example the street market can be extended into Allen Garden and Truman Backyard. This approach does not change the exact size of the public space, but actually increases the space available to residents and visitors, making the public green space more usable and friendly.

When standing on the platform of the highline, people can directly see the corridor in the 'triangle area' as a special public space. This will provide suggestions and guidance for the next event space for visitors on the High Line.

When one is in the corridor of the 'triangle area', due to the difference in height and the size of the space, the visual guidance experience is not the same. However, it is still clear that people can observe the stairs to the High Line and the special green space.

Street Connection

The difference between this current stretch of Grey Eagle St and the brick lane is clearly felt. The industrial buildings do not generate a stable use and the end of the road is not attractive. The road will then connect the Triangle, Ey's yard and the Highline, giving the building a new opportunity to develop and attract residential activity.

The industrial building can be developed for other uses and the informal activities of the brick lane can be introduced into it.

More specifically, the vacant industrial buildings on the south and the green space to the east give the Highline the conditions to extend and respond to the needs of some residents. When the building is opened up, the boundaries between the city and Itself can be blurred, allowing the area to return to its original liberal development pattern as the Brick lane falls into the trap of commercial activity. When a culture of informality is introduced, randomness allows a wider range of people to occupy the space in more diverse ways. The informality acts as a way of resolving conflicts and differences between cultures. Intercultural conflicts and differences, which means that the definition of this area can be generated by the citizens themselves. In this sense, specific urban spaces, including spaces for consumption, facilitate physical contact between different social groups.

Triangle Area

Through the field investigation of the Old Spitalfields Market area, there is an obvious problem in the 'the triangle area' as shown in the diagram, which is the key part of connecting the surrounding areas, but the current situation is a mess. The central area is totally abandoned building, and surrounded by walls. The first diagram shows the entrance view of this area, with an abandoned area surrounded by walls covered in graffiti.

Walking along the route, the diagram below shows the east side view in the 'triangle area'. There is a 'bridge' connecting the Truman Brewery building(on the right side of the diagram) and the warehouse. As the warehouses became useless, the 'bridge' had no practical use either. As a result, the derelict areas should be transformed into new public spaces.

We can notice that when we entered the 'triangle area' and walked along the route, there is no connection to the Truman Brewery and the existing corridor is useless. Many open public spaces are inaccessible. So what can we do to the walls? The traditional knocking down of walls is not the only solution. Walls surrounding the abandoned area can be infused with new uses by widening the walls and creating micro-public event spaces; The wall beside Truman Brewery can be changed, like digging some arch holes to reconnect.

Through our design, this area will become a public space with clear boundaries. The wall spaces have been given new functions and become a continuation of the Truman Brewery, providing an entertaining public space. The space within the site provides more greenery, but the activities of Ely's yard can still be evolved here. The whole area is walled off from the Truman Brewery, but with interesting entrances and exits, the event space continues.

A vision for the subsequent development of the site from Old Spitalfields Market in the south to Ely's yard and Truman Brewery markets, into the brick lane, through Backyard to Allen Gardens and up the high line. During this journey, the type of activity varies depending on the scale of the venue.

However, these scenarios are all created by reshaping the armature to form the urban living room, thus alleviating the problem of the brick lane being alienated from the surrounding area. In this intervention, the informal activities of the brick lane can be used to encourage active participation by residents. The vacant space in the Truman Brewery can be utilised as a vehicle for activating urban activities.

Case Study - 1

NAME: TEA BUILDING LOCATION: 56 SHOREDITCH HIGH STREET DESCIRPTION: OFFICE BUILDING BUILDING AREA: 28 000 SQM ARCHITECT: AHMM REFURBISHMENT YEAR: 2010

The building facade has been preserved. The internal functions do not affect the texture of the facade.

Architectural Form Transformation

It is clear from the architectural form that the buildings in Shoreditch have changed over time. In the mid-18th century, the Shoreditch Area was mainly dominated by the textile industry. The area was covered by large tracts of farmland and textile factories. At that time, the Tea Building provided storage space for the textile factories.

By the 19th century, with the industrial revoltion, building functions were transformed into factories and warehouses.

Since the begining of the 20th century, due to the opening of the Liverpool Street Subway Line, the Shoreditch Area began to attract a large number of artists, musicians, opera houses, residences and businesses. As a result, the Tea Building has been developed into a commercial building.

Units

The evolution of TEA is facilitated by the continuous tenancy renewal or change of the units in the building. Tenancy change provides an opportunity to refurbish, upgrade and link up existing units to create larger superunits which have become more popular and marketable for new tenants.

For the existing tenants, they could also look at expanding their unit when the adjoining unit becomes available. This is also accompanied by the refurbishment of the common parts, which is also carried out in a rolling programme across the building.

Permeability

Case Study - 2

NAME: GCU LONDON LOCATION: 40 - 48 FASHION STREE DESCIRPTION: SCHOOL ARCHITECT: GCU LONDON YEAR: 2017

After a fire on fashion street, the first design of 2017 has replaced part of the walls with glass and added studio work partitions to divide the space and improve its efficiency.

In the following redevelopment plan, the roof plan was flattened to provide a roof garden. The middle area serves as a passageway and exhibition space connecting the entrance to fashion street with the south side of the building.

Windows are provided on the south side of the building to make the most use of the light.

Modification Strategy

Instead of fixing the facade of the old market building, the architects chose to preserve it, while also adding a new structure wrapped in cork behind it. In this way, the building was made to blend the time of both. It is separated from the old building by an internal street.

As the purpose of the building changed from a market to a school, from a public space to an enclosed study environment, the space within the building was divided into smaller sections for the convenience of the students. The number and size of windows have been increased to allow for better daylight. The roof is landscaped to provide a space for students to relax and play. The corridor linking the old and new parts of the building has been created as a gallery, not only as an intersection of the building's age, but also as an area for student interaction.

Section

Both Tea Building and the Fashion Street preserved their historical and architectural character, such as Concrete walls and Exposed water pipes, and their internal spaces have been effectively reused. In contrast, the Tea Building, as an iconic building, has a great influence on the neighbourhood, dividing the large space into pieces like cutting a cake, and following up with the addition of several functions that have transformed it into a city in the city. The Fashion Street, however, has a simpler range of functions, but the use of materials to update the spaces is very interesting.

4

Themes

Key urban themes were borne out of the group work within the fields of study. These themes were the result of propositional work where attempts were made to stitch together problematic existing urban conditions and rework and improve existing built structures. The diagram opposite is a sketch appraisal of connecting themes across the three fields of study. Broadly, key themes were identified and explored in individual projects whilst acknowledging and taking influence from group projects.

This section explores themes that are relevant to the specific and changing forms of urban development within the City Fringe. The main themes identified were as follows: Housing: Where there are thematic subsets including: density; housing mix; amenity; typologies; affordability. As identified earlier, the City Fringe OAPF considered the area to have a relatively high capacity for housing.

Connectivity: More accurately, this theme seeks out a set of physical and spatial interconnections between existing areas, existing streets, and existing buildings. It explores how and what is linked closely, and connected further.

Public Realm: All groups engaged with the street level and the existing urban conditions in and around the chosen sites. Thematically, this embraced aspects of the idea of ‘garden’, the ‘picturesque’ and ‘open space’ all considered as useful for improving the existing urban conditions.

Mixed-Use: The City Fringe OAPF champions the richness in the character of the area, where there are many examples of successful mixed-use projects and areas with a mixture of creative and tech-orientated workspace, and other ancillary, supporting uses. If housing capacity is relatively high in the area, then so too are mixed-use projects incorporating new employment space.

Everyday Life: This theme was viewed as an attempt to imagine the user and how existing areas are experienced. Observations on structured hierarchies and modes of controlling everyday life qualified as one of the urban themes, despite being a complex issue in urban theory.

Kintsugi Urbanism: Taking inspiration of Lawrence Barth’s classification of how urban change and adaptation becomes something new. Analogous to the Japanese philosophy and art of Kintsugi, where the broken and damaged can be seen positively, where imperfections in the repair are embraced. This last theme is about urban intervention into fragmented parts of the city, where the duality of the old and new can become a new other.

Housing

Housing Density A common perception of post-war housing is how highly dense it is. Many Blocks, whether point blocks, deep blocks, or shaped blocks are multistorey concrete structures with varying standards of public space, shared amenity and private amenity spaces. The Dorset Estate and Mansford Park Estate were two of the City Fringe Estates looked at in detail. Through discussion with the group, the idea of decreasing the density of high-rise blocks was considered. This is initially problematic as it decreases the provision of new homes in an area with high housing capacity and in the context of the UK’s housing crisis.

Therefore, should the high-rise blocks of high density become less dense with the intervention of other uses, or more amenity space, or larger more spacious flats, then to facilitate this new homes could be located nearby in new buildings (or extended buildings) that help to enhance the adjoining urban block and street pattern - reusing formerly underused poorly planned post-war public realm. This is illustrated opposite. The ‘Y’ shaped blocks within the Dorset Estate are ‘de- densified’ with surrounding blocks (in red) becoming more dense by Hackney Road to the north, and new blocks, with new housing density, along subsidiary roads to create improved streets.

Plan of an upper floor of Loveless House, Dorset Estate.There was no record of the original plans.

This drawing was based on site observation, site measurement, and analysis of existing floor plans of other Lubetkin housing porjects.

There are 10 flats per floor over 11-storeys. Only a small portion of the flats have private amenity space. The mix of housing is 1bed and 2bed flats.

The result is a block of high density, and problematic lower floors where the outlook is not good and there is very little private amenity.

A speculative proposal of a new plan for the lower/ middle floors of the 11-storey Loveless House.

The number of flats has been reduced from 10 to 8, creating for improved dual aspect, more energy efficient building fabric and new private amenity.

There is also scope for new non-residential uses to create a more sustainable life of the block.

Housing Mix Within the context of new residential-led mixed use developments of the area there are planning policies that often vary to meet perceived need for certain mix of use of flat sizes. The once general guidance of 1/3 one bedroom flats, 1/3 two bedroom flats, and 1/3 three bedroom flats has been less secure since the Conservative Government’s introduction of the Help To Buy Scheme in 2013. This has affected many parts of inner London where values are high, densities are high, and where family sized dwellings are not ideal or desired. For instance, a three bedroom flat in London Fields will have a value higher than £600,000 (the threshold for an equity loan from the government’s Help To Buy Scheme), meaning the demand for larger (and more valuable properties) is lower, and the supply becomes greater.

The existing new residential-led developments around the London Fields area were examined. Many pre-dating 2013 have a large number of family sized dwellings which can be argued is not suitable for an area that has high density, and more amenable to a young professional demographic than large families. The Sidworth Street building is analysed for ways of addressing firstly the mix of flat sizes, but also previous discussions on density and possible new provision of employment space.

The illustration opposite is a resultant study of this, and the next page shows some of the analysis work.

The Sidworth building is a new building with the typical form of office space located on the ground and underground floors with residential space above.

There are some 3-bed units for family housing units. The quality of the living conditions is not good as only one side of the apartments has windows for daylight.

According to the working nature of the Hackney south area, these units for families are not appropriate for the housing market. Most of the residents prefer single units or couple units. Therefore, two 3-bed units are changed into three 2-bed units.

The middle corridor is also broken through and connected to the Laundry building for adding sharing space.

Housing — Collective Living The City Fringe area has a shifting demographic of younger, more 'upwardly mobile' people, but high values in new developments so close to the City of London means that new collective living models are increasingly popular.

The two most common modes of collective living are micro-living and co-living, so the existing building is divided into two blocks according to the north and south sides. The Micro-living model on the south side is a relatively large apartment with a fully functional space suitable for a whole family. Residents can invite friends to gather and play in their own apartments, or participate in various social events in the building's communal spaces. The office space within this block is flexible, adopting a co-working format similar to The Fisheries by Hollaway Studio, which is

located in the heart of London Field. The block retains the existing structure and the ground floor office space, with the re-use of the residential function on top of the office space. The residential spaces are arranged along the perimeter of the plan to meet the immediate need for daylight while ensuring good ventilation. From the facade, each home is equipped with a small balcony. The overall look of the building is like the most common commercial and residential building in the UK (ground floor for commercial and higher level for residential).

The co-living mode on the north side is a type of dwelling suitable for single people. The household size is small, and the only private space is the bedroom and bathroom, while all other activity needs are basically in the public area. The design of this residential type is more in line with the pursuit of contemporary young people. This block is a "prison"-like facade with a rich circulation and activity in the interior atrium.

Housing — Concept for Affordable Housing Within the stark contrast between the forthcoming Bishopsgate Goodsyard development and the likely transformation of the area, a conceptual approach to low-income, self-build, reclamation-orientated housing was perceived. This is a conceptual position that has roots in theories of alternative living and imagines 'what if true affordable selfbuild dwellings could work together with new developments in our inner cities?'

The investment in high-value flats has led to a shortage of autonomous property and a rise in housing costs. So, conceptually a proposal to build modular vaulted spaces on top of the existing low-rise buildings, i.e., to use the neglected living spaces over the buildings in order to contribute to the solution of the housing problem for the lowincome population. Respect for the ideas and context of the residents. Due to the complex spatial structure created by the underground and the Goodsyard viaduct, the collection of building adopts a flexible spatial layout that allows different

spatial patterns to be constructed within different structural spaces, thus meeting a wide variety of needs. The use of floor slabs and interstitial spaces creates new community platforms, and activity spaces including staircases, gardens, public spaces etc. A variety of community functions are offered to residents to facilitate interaction and progress between people. As numbers increase, people (or community) can build taller structures on their own, extending the design over adjacent buildings to create an architecture that is Ad-Hoc, personal, and reclaimed.

Public Realm

Public Realm - Reuse and activation Reconfiguration of existing, poorly connected and maintained open green space, and the enhancement of existing market areas. This activates more activity and opens up not just better public realm, but possible development opportunities for residential and other uses.

In the forthcoming Bishopsgate Goodsyard Development, the Allen Garden, isolated by the railway, has not been considered, leaving activities scattered among several public spaces and making it challenging to create a system of green spaces to promote the attractiveness of the area. In the design, the proposed new ‘high-line’ park could be extended and connected with Allen Gardens, allowing users to continue their journey. This approach does not change the exact size of the public space, but actually increases the space available to residents and visitors, making the public green space more usable and friendly.

When residents' activities are no longer concentrated on Brick Lane, the development of other streets and spaces will be valued for residential development. On the one hand, it relieves the pressure of activities in Brick Lane, and on the other hand, it allows for the transformation of the activity space from a linear to a more stable grid, offering more possibilities for residents' activities and increasing their sense of belonging.

Initial sketch investigating the possibility of new open space in and around the Truman Brewery

Public Realm - Boundary & Garden The areas in and around post-war housing projects such as Mansford Estate and Dorset Estate commonly have low quality street level conditions.

The boundaries formed by car parking, garages, brick walls, garden fences, hedges and un-used messy strips of green space all contribute little to an engaging streetscene and public realm. There are possibilities here for new adapted and re-worked boundary conditions at the ground level of the public realm.

The design logic of the ground floor public realm has been mentioned in the first phase of the transformation of the boundary. The general idea is to transform the private garden into a public space dominated by soft landscapes, while the parking areas are transformed into public spaces dominated by hardscapes. In order to achieve this goal, there are two main problems that need to be solved first. One is to make private gardens public, which mainly depends on the negotiation between the community and the owner.

The second is to provide new parking lots for private cars. There are mainly two solutions here, one is to build an underground car park based on the location and size of the existing car park, and the other is to choose a location around the community to build a multi-dimensional car park for Mansford Estate and surrounding communities private cars, which will be briefly explained in the next paragraph. In a word, the landscape design of the public space on the ground floor is mainly to follow the gardening ideas of Chinese classical private gardens, and to create several car-free, soft landscape and hard landscape combined and interrelated landscape yards.

Public Realm — Function and Place-Making

Within the City Fringe area (and inner London generally) parks are considered vital public spaces. Historically, these have either been repurposed common lands, or developed to give 'lungs' to a dense city, where there are facilities for leisure, play, and the enjoyment of green space.

London Fields is not fenced in like other London squares because it is common land; it remains open and unlocked. Therefore, all thirteen entrances to the park are accessible, and people can enter and exit without obstruction. The park contains various features, including numerous trees, a swimming pool, a table tennis court, multiple children's play areas, a cricket field, a small square surrounding the lamb sculpture on the south side,

and a picnic area with grass. The park is much loved and used by locals and visitors, it is well served by facilities and is now one of London’s most vibrant urban parks. In addition, the park's level of activity varies with the season, being significantly more crowded in the summer than in the winter, and less crowded at night, when homeless people and vagrants wander in. There are two noteworthy roads in the park. The first is the road that runs from the park's north side past the lamb sculpture and continues to Broadway market and Haggerston Park. The other is the road that connects the east and west sides of the park to Well Street. Later, these two lines served as the primary axes of the intervention in London Fields.

London Fields is a conventional park with a variety of functions that make the whole park vibrant. But while the people in the neighbourhood may just want to occupy the meadow of London Fields for a sunny Saturday afternoon or a BBQ, the other functions of the park are less important most of the time (the swimming pool, the basketball court or the children's play area are exceptions). Meanwhile, as an unfenced and all-weather park, London Fields is an unsafe place at night, and none of the functions can be used at night. To address these issues, some park-specific interventions seem to be necessary.

Drawings of possible park 'pavilions' or 'stages' that proposed new functions to serve users of the park and the surrounding area. Some of these would be practical facilities, and some based on leisure/entertainment, and, some that help to facilitate a sense of place and orientation.

Some of the original functions of London Fields have been considered, such as cycling-related spaces or park management spaces. There are also new functions that have been added such as sightseeing, the open stage and commerce. In order to make these functions unique 'stages', each function was abstracted so that it had its own graphic within the grid, and then based on the graphic three-dimensionality, it was transformed into these different towers. In the commercial towers, people can buy coffee or sit down and enjoy a snack; in the bicycle towers people can park their bicycles freely and relax and chat. At the same time, they light up the area at night, making

London Fields accessible at night. And the whole of these interventions in London Fields form a large lighthouse that illuminates the urban park. At the same time, London Fields itself suffers from a lack of infrastructure. During the summer months, crowds of people gather on the lawns of London Fields to enjoy a beer or a barbecue. However, when you approach the park, there is only one toilet on the east side of the park, which is not enough to satisfy the needs of the people who come here to rest. The park, therefore, needs more toilets, i.e., a better infrastructure.

Public Realm - Inside Out Not all public space need be open green space. There are many urban examples of public space that works within and around buildings - at different levels, connecting with activity and street level. In clusters of dense buildings it could be argued that public spaces that work within buildings and blocks also combine with outside spaces. This articulates a dual range of inside and outside, with the combination of both becoming an intriguing new typology.

The public realm between the Sidworth building and the Laundry building establishes a connection which also could reflect the railway arch space.

Two buildings both cut parts of the ground floor or lower floors to form a more open space near the railway. The unity of the functions makes the public realm open to the surroundings.

The public realm inside the block combines the ground floor area with the outside area. All solid and void spaces are regarded as a whole plan to consider. This method makes the whole block ground floor level have a consistent circulation. Sunken plaza and space corridor are also used to expand the circulation in the vertical way.

Public Realm — The Courtyard & Other Micro-Urban Public Space Within areas that are characterised as 'urban', there is often limited space for outdoor space. In many corporate scenarios around The City of London, open spaces that are successful are moments of peaceful quiet (i.e., St.Dunstan’s in the East churchyard). However, many spaces are directly the result of corporate development and are characterised by commercial

activity, close to shopping or food places. At the scale of courtyards, corners, micro parks, and roof gardens, a broader range of public spaces could exist. The development of the courtyard as a green space with possibilities for gatherings, markets, courtyard gardens and roof gardens is aimed at addressing the scarcity of green space in the area where the site is located.

Public Realm - Green Pathways & Corridors The public realm of Post War housing, also has limits on how the street level and concourse lacks in greenery and good quality landscaping. When post-war development was conceived and being planned, the modern movement, (almost socialist in poltical terms), erased the heritage and skills associated with English Landscape Gardens and the Picturesque.

The green lands enclosed in post-war housing blocks are mostly isolated as semi-private spaces, which are sometimes of little use. Having ignored the physical boundaries, there is a potential to create a green corridor that starts from the Columbia Flower Market, goes through Dorset Estate and Fellows Court, and gets into Haggerston Park. The green corridor passes by many post-war housing estates, which are distinct from each other in type, material, height, scale, layout, style and density. Combined with the distinctive post-war housing estates, the green lands that are well designed with the picturesque principle could form a beautiful townscape and offer romantic sensibility. As a delicate suquence, the Green Corridor offers people a surprising walking experience.

A photo study of the route from the Dorset Estate to Haggerston Park

Everyday Life

Everyday Life - The Ordinary & The Rhythm Everyday Life - The Ordinary & The Rhythm Theories of Everyday Life can be complex when discussed in relation to urbanism and housing. Sometimes it is political charged, where the lives of people are controlled and structured in a way that the architecture and the political system imposes an impossible respite from the mundane day-today activity and patterns relating to ‘just getting by’. But out of the ordinary, and in keeping with the theories that seek out observational detail of the everyday, there can be clues to respond with possibilities that may create spatial or programmatic interventions that may allow people to break away from the binds of everyday life.

The Dorset Estate and Ravenscroft Park are enclosed by fences, low walls, and un-used bits of open space, poorly maintained grass, bin stores, parkingmand sub-standard children’s play areas. The site can appear isolated, and within this the daily life can be limited to the housing being simply a place to sleep and eat. Communal acitivity seemed plausible at some point, but the shared spaces and community spaces seem to be disappearing.

With the proximity to Columbia Road, with its regular flower market every Sunday. The temporal rhythm of this activity, means that weekends are often busy and lively. With the other days of the week ordinary in comparison. The more successful community engagement and activity is centred closer to the market and the Victorian stock of housing, where the mix of people within the Dorset Estate (elderly white; working class; muslim; young professionals; unemployed) seem to keep to their usual private everyday and arguably don’t fully engage with new rhythms taking them beyond the ordinary - even temporarily.

This drawing imagines what could be. What could change. Where there is small areas of potential change. Where there are more significant architectural or structural improvement. And, how there could be new uses and new attempts to break down some of the binds of everyday life.

Interviewer: I visited Dorset Estate and Ravenscroft Park in a morning, when it was quiet and empty. It seems that few people would enjoy themselves here. How do you feel about the green lands here?

Oscar Brown: Actually we do like them. You see, we can see the green lands from our windows. They look good.

In an attempt to look closer at everyday routine and detail, research focused on visiting the building, seeing the workings inside and meeting some residents to discuss life inside the building.

One of the key observations were that the lower floors had more indication of lower income occupants. This was characterised by security grilles on entrance doors, and poorer quality decoration, whereas the upper floors obviously had more young professionals living there (suggested by the type of decoration, plants, colours, window treatments - and then confirmed by the residents that were interviewed).

Inside one of the one bedroom types of flats on one of the upper floors, the layout was measured and recorded. The interior was clean, compact and decorated with timber floors and white walls with tasteful design-led modern furniture. The character of the space however was dominated by the views out towards Ravenscroft Park and Columbia Road.

On 13th May, Oscar Brown and Lucy Daw who are living together on the upper floor of George Loveless House talked about how it feels to live in Dorset Estate.

Lucy Daw: Yeah, we do. When it’s sunny, we would like to spend our time on the benches in the green space.

Interviewer: The last time I visited Ravenscroft Park was in winter. The situation might be changing in different seasons.

What would it be like in summer?

Lucy Daw: Green space is popular in summer. Children play around, residents walk their dogs on the green land, and some people do sports around.

Interviewer: Columbia Flower Market will be open on Sunday.

Will you often visit the market? How do you feel about Columbia Flower Market?

Oscar Brown: When it comes to Sunday, many people from the neighborhood and outside London will gather here for this market, and the park will become very busy. We love the flower market and often go there.

Interviewer: Do you mind people from outside entering the park? Does it make you feel disturbed?

Lucy Daw: I don’t mind that. Many people with flowers stop by or pass by Ravenscroft Park on Sunday. We can see them from the windows. They would play with their children, talk with their friends or just sit down to enjoy the sunlight. It’s lovely.

Interviewer: If Columbia Flower Market is introduced into Ravenscroft Park, or Ravenscroft Park are partly open and services to the visitors, would you feel bothered about the privacy?

Lucy Daw: I don’t know. Maybe I will. But I guess I will be fine with it if this just happens on Sunday?

Hostel

music & leisure

residential & commercial

sHops & supermarkets

Bus stops

inHaBitant

sHopkeeper

cHurcH

scHool

railWay & station

roads

artist

Worker

Homeless

london Fields

Everyday Life - Fields & Hierarchies Identifying the fields of activity gives an idea of the structures and facilities in place that serve the everyday lives of individuals and communities.

Taking into consideration a generalised selection of 'actors' within an area can give some idea of existing social hierarchies within a given area.

The area in and around London Fields was examined and discussed within the group. The illustrations show a range of these 'fields of activity', where different 'actors' use at particular times and in particular ways.

The Bayford Street business centre is an enhancement of a specific function in the existing building, but this approach can also be applied to the surrounding buildings. The hostels, clubs, residential blocks or supermarkets such as Tesco can all be the subject of enhancement. With the reinforcement of function, i.e., through the grid structure above and the plug-in rooms that provide more space for the buildings to complement or improve the hierarchy or value of the buildings themselves, these buildings with their structures become the new lighthouses of the city. However, to form a system, these lighthouses need 'bridges' to connect them. A bridge is a very abstract concept here; it is similar to the system of lines in Parc de la Villette, i.e., a corridor based on Folly and the grid, superimposed on the concept of 'floating'. For instance, the cinematic walkway is described

by Tschumi as a Cinegram, not a definitive, unique or even repetitive thing, but a combination of event and space, a symbol of image and movement, writing in motion, and a continuum of discontinuity. From this, it can be deduced that the bridge connecting the various lighthouses will also take many forms, perhaps through the buildings, or passing overhead, perhaps linked to the urban landscape as a green corridor. It is like the lighthouse, with its infinite possibilities.

Everyday Life — Social Boundaries The context of the Bishopsgate Goodsyard development, a controversial large-scale regeneration of a major site and area in the City Fringe, there is potential unevenness. Close by, there are still areas with social problems and blighted with poverty, where the chances of moving beyond the binds of everyday life are very limited.

Within an area with a rich, radical history, and diversely mixed population, people's everyday lives will be affected by such a major corporate regeneration of an entire area. There are physical and social boundaries that will need to be overcome.

The conceptual project of examining how new forms of low-cost housing can exist alongside high values, starts with imagining the boundary walls.

The existing real and imaginary walls define the extent of the historic and social boundary and serve as a reminder that the Goodsyard will expand over time. Within each arch of the boundary wall is an infill wall, within which a second arched window opening is provided. Each opening is provided with iron railings to prohibit access. This leads to the closure of the entire area inside. In order to reactivate the whole area, the barriers are proposed to be removed without complete destruction. Historically representative arched elements were selected to add entrances and open up the boundary, linking Slater Street to Goodsyard and shaping a linear functional space. At the same time, retaining and using the typology of the site's historic elements, the familiar everyday activities will act as a strong buffer and precursor to the new. In doing so, it facilitates a change of space that is not entirely resisted by vulnerable groups and is gradually accepted. Through the transformation of the wall, the Goodsyard becomes a development more inclusive of the everyday lives of the surrounding area.

Connectivity

Connecticity — Interconnection When connectivity is discussed in relation to cities, it can be a broad meaning. The connections examined in the London Fields and Regents Canal area of the City Fringe was a thematic inquiry into how streets, throughways, and local hubs were physically interconnected.

The street pattern is characterised by historical urban morphologies and transformations. The canal and railway are physical boundaries of a kind that have beginnings in a former industrial age, the gasworks too, a leftover of a different time.

Additional problems with lack of connectivity are caused by larger buildings that block and exclude passage - such as the Ash Grove Bus Garage, commercial warehouses, and large 1950s residential blocks.

Increased interconnection in this area could be seen as a positive change as the area undergoes a new era of urban transformation. The gasworks site has planning approval for residential-led mixed-use development, which will add even more people to the area following the recent dense development nearby. More people will mean more activity, and new physical connections between the local neighbourhood will be inevitable.

Connectivity here could solve three kinds of problems: 1. The railway line and Regent’s Canal are two hard boundaries to the bus garage. Connectivity means the breaking to limitations brought by the boundary; 2. There are many important functions around the periphery that need to be extended, and this is also a way of connectivity; 3. Connectivity can make areas that were previously very negative more positive, thus eliminating some of its insecurity issues.

The sketch plan opposite suggests possible new connections that could interconnect local areas within the context of new urban transformation caused by new and forthcoming development.

A. Connection through the raised railway viaduct, with the possibility of future regeneration of the railway arches being linked with both Broadway Market and Mare Street.

B. A direct link east and west between Regents Studios (fully occupied with creative industries) and Sheep Lane with the possible new public space and future development as indicated in Hackney Council's site designation.

C. The possibility of a pedestrian and cycle bridge over the canal, connecting the Oval developments with a direct route up Sheep Lane towards London Fields.

D. The inevitable linking between new Oval developments and forthcoming redevelopment of the Gasworks. And, improved interconnection at the canal-side with Vyner Street (like Regents Studios, another locale full of creative industries).

E. Improved interconnections for pedestrians and cycles to make it easier to quickly connect with the south, Sheep Lane and Oval.

There are many unused areas on both sides of the railway line next to the bus garage. If this area is opened up so that the two sides are connected, then they form a very positive space that is also mixed-use, for example as an outdoor market or an outdoor exhibition.

This would create a lot of 'street eyes', a space that Jane Jacobs found inspiration for the cohesive community described in 'The Death and Life of Great American Cities' as an 'active and autonomous spatial environment'.

The sketches on this page show two examples of proposed interconnections.

The first example shows the existing physical barrier of the Regents Canal at the junction of Andrews Road and Sheep Lane, looking over towards the Gasworks site. The Gasworks has planning consent for a residentialled mixed-use development. Many new people will be moving into the area. A new physical link in this location would interconnect the two neighbourhoods.

The second example shows the existing edges of the railway line in the yard of the Ash Grove Bus Garage, and the potential for a new link that would interconnect Sheep Lane with both Broadway Market and Mare Street.

The Gas Tank site has a high potential. It has the potential to become a music park in conjunction with the Oval Space. Of course it has more possibilities than that, but it is poorly accessible. If they are connected by way of connectivity to Sheep Lane to the west of the bus garage, then the new bus garage and Gas Tank could influence each other and even become the whole image of Hackney, together with influencing the surrounding city.

"There are two closely related aspects to the right of assembly: the first is applied to the people who live in a town, and the second applies to the buildings which compose it. From the visual standpoint, the greatest single loss suffered is the neutralization of the floor, the space between buildings, which has changed from a connecting surface to a dividing surface. It has also changed from a particular to a generalized surface", as Gordon Cullen said in Townscape.

Connectivity - Adapting and reusing what should be existing links The forthcoming redevelopment of the Bishopsgate Goodsyard terminates at the eastern edge of the site at Brick Lane, with questionable types of connectivity with the street. However, at the other side of Brick Lane, the existing open green space is neglected and has a problematic urban quality.

There is connectivity across Brick Lane between these two areas, and adapting and reusing these slight existing connections can work well with the proposed high-line of the Bishopsgate Goodsyard development and how it can transform other areas positively.

Low-quality industrial constructions and green spaces give the opportunity to redevelop the urban space while responding to the demands of the inhabitants. The boundaries between urban space and architecture can be blurred when the urban space extends to the ground floor of the building.

The overcrowded activities and street markets on the brick lane could intervene in these areas, thus alleviating the conflicts between residents and the pressure of urban development.

Once public spaces are connected, it provides a framework for holistic development, which greatly increases their capacity to respond to threats.

Residents can have the strength to refuse while developers pursue economic development as the only target.

Connectivity - Pushing the ground floor boundaries of post-war housing estates Many post-war estates have boundaries at ground level, where the orientation of buildings, fences, walls can often appear non-legible and difficult for people to traverse, or safely pass through.

The benefits of opening up physical boundaries and allowing the flow of people safely through estates are how these routes link with lively streets that are used, and activities that can safely bring people and existing communities together.

There are many boundaries in this site. Car parking and garages create poor public realm conditions where the car is given priority at the expense of residents or people passing through towards streets or parks. These environments are often poorly lit and unsafe. There are also boundaries between the blocks where previous communal activity and planned link is now closed off. And, there are gates, walls and fences that attempt to direct people, but limit easy access to nearby streets and amenity.

The north of Hackney is in the London Borough of Hackney, while the south of Hackney Road is in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. They are managed under different policies and are in different development situations. Hackney Road is a visible boundary between the two boroughs.

The enclosed site is isolated from the surrounding environment. The Dorset Estate is detached, solid, tall and private, which works as a visual and physical boundary.

When the site is reconstructed after World War II, part of the previous paths remained. Recovering some paths in the 1920s helps to build a much more accessible and permeable network.

The opening up and cutting through of the buildings on the ground floor create some streets and improve connectivity. Also, the commercial and communal spaces are introduced in the buildings on the lower floor to build connectivity in functions and activities.

Mixed-Use

Creative Working Space Sharing Space Residential Space

Mixed-Use - The fix Within former light industrial areas within the City Fringe, local councils often designate as Priority Employment Areas. This means that policy requires high levels of employment space as part of any new development or regeneration project. In reality, with residential values driving private development opportunity, the quantum of employment space (less value than residential) is often eroded.

For example, policy in Hackney seeks new development to be 60-70% of new PEA development, but almost all of them have managed to gain consent and be built with only 30% employment space. This is perhaps due to financial viability and also council’s desire to maximise the amount of new homes.

The diagrams above aim to illustrate how the mix-use is fixed. On the left is what occurs in reality (residential-led mixed use, despite policy for more employment space. What happens if commercial employment space increases a little, and can it change location? Can there be a combination of the two distinct uses that work together as one?

In this project, the main concept is using flexible mixed-use forms to reconstruct a creative block. The scheme regards the whole block as one mix-use cluster. It breaks the boundaries between the ground floor and upper floors, which redefines the definition of the ground floor function that often concludes commercial.

Non-residential space begins to spread in the horizontal direction. In this block near Mare Street and the railway line, the main functions are residential, commercial, and creative working spaces which are shown in three colors. It also expands a bit to the nearby blocks to make the mix-use cluster have stronger connections with the street.

Mixed-Use - Multi-functions The City Fringe OAPF identifies that there are buildings and areas with a range and mix of different uses and functions, and see that this as positive.

In many cases, these kind of buildings are located in former industrial areas where new galleries, bars, restaurants combine with event spaces, shops and offices. Eventually, the next stages of change bring about high-end loft development. This occurred in the Shoreditch area in the 1990s, and is occurring elsewhere in the Brick Lane / Truman Brewery area.

In the Dray walk, the ground floor of Z Block has been reused for a CD club, bars, art galleries and a pop-up store, making the street a popular destination. However, the upper floors are still wasted. A consideration is to reuse these empty floors for new forms of loft-type housing, while the commercial activities and artistic development on the ground floor have been retained, and the different functions have been integrated into the building, giving it a vision of a highly utilised, multi-use development.

New forms of adapted buildings could occur whilst maintaining multifunctioning spaces throughout. This section illustrates the concept of the existing building on Dray Walk being adapted on the upper floors, bringing outdoor space, dwellings and new connections with the street.

Mixed-Use buildings with multi-functions can be sustainable in areas like this where residential and commercial values are high. Can they sustain in other areas?

Mixed-Use — Post Pandemic Change Debates on the effect of the Covid-19 global pandemic on the offices and workspaces of cities are ongoing. Many newly built offices remain underoccupied, or even unable to find tenants. The changes of building use are part of how existing buildings can be unlocked to provide new forms of mixed-use spaces. Hypothetically, can under-occupied commercial buildings have their land-use designation changed to allow residential mixes? And can these bring new life to existing buildings, with a range of different typologies that work together with reduced workspace? If people are choosing to work at home more often, then can these homes be brought directly into the city's commercial centre?

There is a logical connection between the preservation of existing buildings and the new-added collective living modes. For example, the environmental advantages of reuse, as well as maintaining the continuity of the urban architectural landscape and historical fabric. Creating a new sense of identity in the act of living in the original building was originally intended for a different purpose. The mode of collective living is a new form of space that is increasingly being chosen.

The mode of collective living is a new form of space that is increasingly being chosen. The reason for this is that with the growth of urban populations and the intensification of urbanization, people are living in smaller spaces and thus living more closely together. However, such living patterns often lack a sense of community and belonging. Living in a collective, with different forms and functions of shared spaces, is a more social, economical and sustainable way to live in the city.

This drawing illustrates a conceptual proposal for bringing residential back into the city's commercial centre. Existing multi-storey offices, with glazed cladding, are repurposed on the upper floors to accommodate a vanety of collective living models.

Mixed-Use - Cross Programming A building's function and programme often dictates how it is perceived from the street or public realm. A complex of buildings combining existing structures, uses, and programmes can have dynamic quality where many different programmes and functions cater for people and help to create a hub of activity.

The conceptual proposition of the redevelopment of the Ash Grove Bus Garage, expanded to include new building additions with functions and programmes that crossover with patterns of similar uses nearby. This complex of cross programming includes new residential blocks, new event spaces, ground floor shops, bars and restaurants and facilities for performing arts.

Kintsugi Urbanism

Kintsugi Urbanism - Patching It is not uncommon for older buildings (whether modern, or more historic) to have the need for repair and improvement. This is often because the building spaces or fabric has vulnerabilities or flaws - whether this is how the building can no longer be used properly, or if it just needs an upgrade.

Patching in new architectures to help repair could bring better use of space and help the building perform better in relation to energy efficiency.

Not unlike the approach taken on many Lacaton & Vassal projects, where post-war high rise housing is imaginatively re-clad, this project expands this, patching in new spaces and uses into existing floor plans and sections.

This conceptually could provide additional outdoor space where none currently exists, whilst being able to extend some dwellings, and bring in other ancillary uses.

The deck accesses are widened and serve as public realms, which could be seen as vertical streets where people can meet and interact with each other.

The Dorset Estate is a post-war social housing estate, built in the early 1950s in an area that was badly bombed in World War II. In that period, the building intended to accommodate more displaced people and ignored some other problems. The project seeks to transform the building to provide a better living environment without demolishing it.

Some flats are removed and transformed into public spaces both indoor and outdoor. The outdoor public spaces cut the long neighbourhoods into small blocks to produce diversity in function and space. The removal of some flats reduces the density of the residential population and economic benefit. To remedy it, the flats that are removed in the two wings of the Y-shape building are moved to the third wing and the flats are mostly 1 or 2 bedroom flats that are the most economic type.

The flat layouts are redesigned to respond to the changed structure of present households.

This ‘patching’ like approach also helps repair the building fabric, where new technologies (of post-Grenfell, non-combustible cladding systems and insulation) provide better long term functionality.

Kintsugi Urbanism - Stitching together The old shelter is standing as an abandoned structure near the mix-use cluster block. It is also reconstructed as one extended part of the mix-use project. The original frame is retained to keep the feature of the street.

Some flexible creative spaces are arranged under the structure to serve the creative works.

These units are temporary and multifunctional, and they could form a new active connection between the mix-use block and the surrounding blocks.

The reconstruction of the old shelter could repair the broken spots which stop the continuity of the street.

Kintsugi Urbantsm — Plugged In Not all forms of repair are subtle or carefully crafted. In the urban context, repairing poor-quality existing buildings can be almost violent. Change through repair can be an upheaval, replacing users and inhabitants. What there was a way to plug-in a form of repair, leaving imperfections of existing structures to be enjoyed whilst new uses and structures exist above, and in, and alongside?

The addition of space to the existing building is a way of urban kintsugi, which is reflected in the restoration and enhancement of the function, hierarchy and value of the existing building. After many of the industrial buildings in Hackney had stopped operating in recent decades, leaving behind derelict industrial buildings, many flats or converted industrial buildings in the London Fields area became a gathering place for artists, as can perhaps be seen from the graffiti on the Brick Lane. Artists in the city

are often in an awkward position, partly because they do not have a regular income and also because they have specific demands on the environment in which they work. The creatives in the Bayford street business centre occupy only the upper part of blockB and have very limited living and creative space, so there is new space infilling below, and expanding above.

This is an additive form for Kintsugi Urbanism, plugged in, almost with the conceptual inspiration of an Archigram project.

5

Types

Addition - Roof

Addition - Hat

Addition - Supplementary

Addition - Underground

Addition - Parasite

Refurbishment - Skin

Addition - Bridge

Addition - Annexes

Refurbishment - New interior

Addition - Corner

Addition - Principal

Refurbishment - feature

Addition - Umbrella

Addition - Connectivity

New building - Infill

Addition

Addition - Roof

Connections are made between multiple existing buildings through the roof.

Making it possible for existing buildings to get a connected public space on the platform under the roof and a shared rooftop public space.

Micawber Studios

Addition - Underground

By adding underground spaces, it is possible to expand the space in an existing building or connect multiple existing buildings.

Musée du Louvre

Addition - Bridge

An aerial corridor, which can connect multiple existing buildings so that they can be used as a whole.

Canal-side shopping centre

Addition - Corner

It refers to the renovation or new constructions at the corner of a building in two directions. It often plays an important role for the community because of the multiple directions.

Stapleton Hall Road

Addition - Umbrella

A newly built construction that forms an umbrella-like structure above a number of buildings, through which multiple existing buildings can be connected or, clusters can be created.

Le Fresnoy Art Center

Addition - Hat

A new building volume on top of the original building. The new building will always contrast with the original one, as if it looks like a hat.

copper learning centre for Birkbeck

Addition - Parasite

Some accessory constructions which are the varies extensions of the existing building volume. Always changing the shape and appearance of the building, while altering the original space.

Gehry House

Addition - Annexes

A new volume extended from the existing building, which is an adjunct to the existing building.

Tate Museum

Addition - Principal

A new volume extended from the existing building, which is larger than the existing building and becomes the main building part.

The fisheries

Addition - Connectivity

New volumes added between multiple existing buildings, and create connections between them.

Lighting a 15th Century Barn

Addition - Supplementary

A new building volume which is the massing or functional supplement of the existing building, and always has a direct formal or spatial connection between the new and the existing building.

53 Great Suffolk Street

Refurbishment

Refurbishment - Skin

The renovation of existing building facades. It can effectively improve the appearance of the building, or change the connection between the interior and exterior spaces.

Grand Parc

Refurbishment - New interior

The renovation of the interior space of an existing building. As the existing space cannot meet the functional requirements of the new building, a redecoration is usually carried out.

LocHal Library

Refurbishment - feature

This refers to the transformation of an existing building which marks a very unique architectural style. It often forms like a marker or place-making, and has an impact on the surrounding area.

canal-side shopping centre

New Building

New building - Infill

The new building completely occupies the intermediate space of several existing buildings, creating an effective public space or transportation links for them.

Musée du Louvre

6

In Closing

Shaoke's project looks at how existing buildings can adapt to the postpandemic world, where people spend more time working at home than in the city. There is possibility in new typologies of work and living.

Adaptive re-use themes used in her project: - Housing; - Public Realm; - Mixed Use Adaptive re-use types used in her project: - Roof; - Underground; - Connectivity; - Supplementary; - Skin; - New Interior; - Infill

Han's concerns are a response to the housing shortage caused by gentrification, and she is proposing with Loft Living in and around the former Truman Brewery buildings of Brick Lane. The loft typopogies have multiple uses, relating to the public realm.

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in her project: - Public Realm; - Connectivity; - Mixed Use Adaptive re-use types used in her project: - Roof; - principal; - new interior; - connectivity

Ning has made ambitious proposals for the future development of Bishopsgate Goodsyard. She proposes alternative ways of connecting with the historic Goodsyard and creating new forms of low-cost housing in an attempt to balance current planning permission for redevelopment.

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in her project: - Housing; - Everyday Life Adaptive re-use types used in her project: - Bridge; - Connectivity; - Roof; - Infill

Mengya takes Dorset Estate as the research object, a representative modernist post-war housing, examines how we can retain and enhance the existing and revitalise the public realm.

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in her project: - Housing; - Public Realm; - Everyday Life; - Connectivity; - Kintsugi Urbanism Adaptive re-use types used in her project: - Hat; - Principal; - Connectivity; - Supplementary; - Skin; - New Interior; - Feature

Chenyao’s project takes the uneconomical duplex model of the Mansford Estate as an example to do research on the same theme. He transforms Mansford Estate with a new active public realm, and new flats above.

Increasing the density, with community uses at street level to engage people.

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in his project: - Public Realm Adaptive re-use types used in his project: - Roof; - Bridge; - Hat; - Connectivity; - Parasite

Long's project seeks to build on the Hackney planning site designation to propose something more ambitious and connected. The project takes the best of existing fabrics and connects new uses with areas that connect with existing patterns.

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in his project: - Connectivity; - Mixed Use Adaptive re-use types used in his project: - Umbrella； -Refurbishment

Hanning's project examines the performance of mixed-use clusters, and how they can be improved, in line with the Hackney Priority Employment Area policy, which seeks approximately 60 percent of employment space in any new development.

Yi's projects focus on where city fringe and district centers collide. The park, the railway, and former industrial uses are existing context for new interventions that go beyond familiar and common uses.Meanwhile, residential blocks on the west side of the park lack various functions like commercial and workspace, however infill is a good solution to it.

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in her project: - Housing; - Public Realm; - Mixed Use; - Kintsugi Urbanism

Adaptive re-use themes and types used in his project: - Public Realm; - Everyday Life; - Kintsugi Urbanism

Adaptive re-use types used in her project: - Bridge; - Hat; - Annexes; - New interior; - Supplementary

Adaptive re-use types used in his project: - Hat; - Corner; - Feature; - Infill; - Supplementary

The booklet explored the potential of adaptive re-use in the city fringe.

Having observed and analysed the specific buildings, sites and urban conditions, diverse approaches to adaptive re-use are studied, applied, and evaluated. The exploration on housing, public realm, everyday life, connectivity, mixed-use and “Kintsugi” Urbanism brings forward some possible solutions for the city fringe. Nevertheless, there are some limitations existing. It is debatable whether the renovations and transformations of the buildings could definitely solve the problems in the urban areas, whether the interventions are in the right direction for the city, and whether the evolutions are positive for the citizens.

Also, much research, analysis and proposal are based on the specific and fixed areas, the city fringe. There is a challenge to seeking the possibility of evolving and applying the adaptive re-use approaches that are raised above to a wider range of global cities. In the other way, the problems faced by the city fringe are not isolated and unique, but a global issue. If there is a possibility of creating a framework of adaptive re-use for a broader range of urban areas in global cities should be furtherly considered. The city fringe is diverse and changing. The adaptive re-use is complex and various. The projects and thoughts are just beginnings.

Appendix 1 A selection of early analysis work on the urban artefact.

Building as Urban Artefact

Floor plans of LocHal Library

Activities in LocHal Library

Grand Parc

Floor plans and Elevations of Grand Parc

1. Bedroom; 2. Living room; 3. Kitchen; 4. Bathroom

OFFICE SPACE Office space in Star Apartment

DWELLING SPACE 12%

Section

Section

70%

VOLUNTEER SPACE

CLINIC SPACE Clinic space in Star Apartment

Dwelling space in Star Apartment

5%

Section

Volunteer space in Star Apartment

Section

14%

Situating the Artefact

Surrounding analysis of LocHal Library

Surrounding analysis of Grand Parc

Surrounding analysis of Star Apartment

Critical Observations and Propositions

With a brief actively pursuing examples of adaptive reuse, the group considered how their artefact could be improved and adapted. This enabled arrange of critical observations and some potential problems with the artefacts, that inviduals within the group sought to solve and repair.

Three typical walls to get a multi-used space

Informal Activities in LocHal Library

A Comparison between Star Apartment and Grand Parc

A new interior of Star Apartment

Appendix 2 A selection of sketch images, ideas, analysis and propositions.

Sketches and the 1km Map of London Fields and the Surrounding Urban Blocks.

Psychogeography Map of London Fields

Existing Condition between Mare Street and Railway Line

Urban Diagram before and after New Reuse Forms

New Reuse Forms from Cases Study

Rate of Residential Area and Non-residential Area before and after Reconstruction

Plan of Mix-use Cluster between Mare Street and Railway Line

Sketches of Spatial Quality in Mix-Use Cluster Block

Proposal of Ash Grove Bus Garage in London Field Area A - Commercial Space B - Co - Working C - Lecture Hall / Concert Hall D - Studios E - Residential F - Commercial under Railway Line G - Multi-use Space, like Market

Observation and Analysis of Dorset Estate and Surrounding Urban Area

Re-Use and Planning of Existing Buildings and Space in Goodsyard (Plan & Section)

The Loft Typologies in Truman Berwery

Adaptive Re-Use of Bishop Square

Spatial Transformation of Collective Living Mode

Lofts in Truman Brewery - Adaptive Re-Use for Residential

The Taxonomy Drawings of the Elements from both Existing building and ‘Installation’

Sketches of Formation of ‘Installation’ on Bayford Street Warehouse

Section perspective of the Bus Garage

Sectional Perspective (North to South) + Roof Plan

Sectional Perspective (West to East) + Roof Plan

Conceptual Spatial Organization

Plan Transformation - A new Atrium in Bishop Square

Adaptive Re-Use in Goodsyard - Residential

Sectional Perspective of Mix-Use Cluster from Railway View Cutting through the Laundry Building and the Sidworth Building

Bibliography

Bibliography

Abbott, S. J. M. (2011). Pevsner’s Townscape: Visual planning and the picturesque. By Nikolaus Pevsner, edited by Matthew Aitchison. 270mm.

Pp 221, 38 figs. Los Angeles: Getty Research Institute, 2010. ISBN 9781606060018. £21.95 (hbk). The Antiquaries Journal, 91, 395–396. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0003581511000588

MESSINA, R. (2019, February 8). A Dutch city gets a new public living room — and so much more. A Dutch City Gets a New Public Living Room — and so Much More. https://www.frameweb.com/article/a-dutch-city-gets-a-new-public-livingroom-and-so-much-more

City Fringe Opportunity Area. (2015, November 19). London City Hall. https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/planning/implementing-london-plan/ opportunity-areas/londons-opportunity-areas/city-fringe-opportunity-area

old spitalfields market. (n.d.). Home. Spitalfields Market E1. Retrieved June 5, 2022, https://www.spitalfields.co.uk/spitalfields-history/

Coleman, N. (2014). Lefebvre for architects. Routledge.

Santos, S. (2016, March 17). 20 creative adaptive reuse projects. ArchDaily. https://www.archdaily.com/783283/20-creative-adaptive-reuse-projects

Cullen, G. (1961). Townscape. de Certeau, M. (2011). The Practice of Everyday Life. Univ of California Press.

Hackney Council. “London Fields Mabagement Plan 2017-2022(Update January 2019),

Sinclair, I. (2010). Hackney, that rose-red empire: A confidential report.

Penguin UK. Theresa Hwang. “Star Apartments:Design Excellence in Affordable Housing.” www.EnterpriseCommunity.org/Design, n.d.

Zogolovitch, R. (2015). Shouldn’t we all be developers?

Hejduk, J., & Palestry, G. (1982). A Berlin masque Chelsea 41.

Hussey, C. (2019). The Picturesque: Studies in a Point of View. Routledge.

Jacobs, J. (2016). The death and life of great American cities. Random House.

Kershen, A. (2004). Strangers, aliens and Asians: Huguenots, Jews and Bangladeshis in spitalfields 1666-2000. Routledge.

London government. (2015, December 1). City Fringe Opportunity Area Planning Framework. https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/city_ fringe_oapf_adopted_dec_2015.pdf Lynch, K. (1964). The Image of the City. MIT Press.

Acknowledgements

We want to express the deepest thank you to the following individuals who contributed, assisted, guided, and supported us for the effective advancement of our adaptive re-use in city fringe project in one way or another.

To our tutor Steve, for intending to understand our thoughts and encourage us to develop our ideas, for inspiring us and providing much broader and diverse perspectives, for taking us on the study tour and several more times site visiting, for providing suggestions, assistance, guidance, and moral support in the process of design workshop.

To our Housing & Urbanism tutors - Lawrence Barth, Jorge Fiori, Dominic Papa, Anna Shapiro, Elena Pascolo, Lucy Styles, Irénée Scalbert, Giorgio Talocci, Naina Gupta and Francesco Zuddas, for offering various and excellent lectures which widen our horizons and lay a solid theoretical foundation, for participating in our presentations and providing valuable suggestions.

To the group members, for supporting each other and collaborating to complete the group work.

To the AA school, for the diverse lectures and activities, for the rich library, convenient DPL and the Print Centre.

Shaoke Zhang