AA Housing and Urbanism London East Design Workshop - Group 2

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CONTENTS

Introduction...................................................................................................................................5 New Centrality..............................................................................................................................7 Amsterdam..........................................................................................................................9 Paris....................................................................................................................................17 London..............................................................................................................................25 Knowledge Neighbourhood...................................................................................................33 Hackney Central........................................................................................................................41 Spatial Conditions...........................................................................................................43 Potential............................................................................................................................53 Challenges.........................................................................................................................63 Proposal............................................................................................................................73 Hackney Wick............................................................................................................................99 Spatial Conditions.........................................................................................................101 Challenges...................................................................................................................... . 121 Proposal..........................................................................................................................157 Conclusion................................................................................................................................189 Bibliography................................................................................................................................193 Illustration Credits.....................................................................................................................195

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INTRODUCTION

Cities have been the centre of world economies for centuries, yet the combination of spatial dispersion and global integration has created a new strategic role for them.

Today, one would argue that in a knowledge-based economy, there seem to be an increasing number of crossovers between spaces of residence, business and education. While the stereotypical image of a neighbourhood was based on a system of living that was mostly focused around civic institutions rather than the economic sector, we may argue that the contemporary neighbourhood of today needs a thrust towards creating a multifunctional synergistic spatial ecology that promotes these crossovers. Hence, the knowledge neighbourhood could be set forth as an idea of things that are missing when we intensify urban areas that would characterise elements that we might be after in terms of the knowledge economy.

East London presents itself as an interesting testing ground for this new conceptualization, being located at the intersection of financial centres specialized services, and innovation and production markets. Through a redefinition of the existing potentials within the region, our strategy uses key strategic interventions which aim to organically propel development affecting change at a neighbourhood scale.

We use an approach that explores a morphological-based plan utilizing the open and courtyard block to explore shifts within dominant building types.

If we were to envision a network of knowledge neighbourhoods in a value chain spun across a spatial network, in key areas over the region of East London, the idea of a productive peripheral city region might be developed. We make use Hackney Central and Hackney Wick as testing grounds for the idea of using the Knowledge Neighbourhood concept as a critical diagnostic tool to understand how everyday relationships inform new synergistic patterns between business and residential life in spatial sequences.

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C E N T R A L I T Y

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A M S T E R DA M

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With innovative developments in trade, making it one of the leading port areas during the 17th century, the historic centre of Amsterdam grew around a concentric ring of waterways, which later expanded southwards to provide for its fast growing immigrant population. During the late 1980s, in order to re-balance the city and densify the metropolitan footprint, the area of the Eastern Docklands was redeveloped to create high-density multi-functional neighborhoods.

AMSTERDAM

E a ste r n

D oc k lands,

Am ste r dam ,

1995

Du e to decl i ni ng trade the once vibr ant por t-lands had g one i nto di s u s e. Owing to its pr ox imity to centr al s ta ti on, the l a nd which was owned by municipality, provi ded the perfect setting f or ur ban r eg ener ation.

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NEW CENTRALITY

Eastern Docklands, Aerial View, Amsterdam 2010 The regeneration of the Eastern place in phases, starting with Java-eiland and Borneo-Sporenburg.

Docklands took KNSM Island,

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AMSTERDAM

Spread across 313 hectares, the redevelopment of the Eastern Docklands was one of the big gest post-war building projects in the heart of Amsterdam.

The main vision of the project was to respond to the specific character of the harbor area rather than for mulating preconditions for its urban development.

As a result of the freedom generated, a wide variety of morphological experimentation is seen, as in the case of Borneo Sporenburg. Here, a high-density low-rise housing model, for ming both a street and water scape, which are then broken up by dense apartment super blocks oriented to maximize views, is explored.

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NEW CENTRALITY

Borneo-Sporenburg, Design Development

(i) Contour

(ii) Staccato of low rise dwellings

(iii) Structural blocks related to landscape

(iv) Superposition

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PA R I S

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In 1982, after years of concentrated focus on the area of La Defense, leading to a westward movement of the city especially in the tertiary job sector, Parisians looked to revitalize the east through a planned circular belt of development. The areas near River Seine, such as the Bercy Zone and Rive Gauche that were now derelict industrial and warehousing districts were redeveloped.

PARIS

(i) Movement Arteries

(ii) Figure - ground

Despite being a phased project, the Seine River and the new artery - Avenue De France unified the constituent parts, with rules governing the size and shape of the buildings along the avenue, and planned uses of the roadway being formulated.

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NEW CENTRALITY

Seine Rive Gauche is the largest redevelopment project in Paris since Hausmann’s time; it is spread across 130 hectares.

In contrast to traditional methods of urban development, the whole site of Rive Gauche was not treated as one project but was broken down into six diverse neighborhoods, each with its coordinating architect. As a part of the urban planning process, it questioned how one could open the city to fickleness and constitute multiple genres such as housing, offices, and a university within the district of a dense city.

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PARIS

Seine Rive Gauche, Aerial View, 1982 Before redevelopment, despite its promising waterfront location, the area was cut off from the river and the city by large pieces of infrastructure.

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NEW CENTRALITY

Seine Rive Gauche, Aerial View, 2010 This view shows the transformation of the area after the first few phases of development, where the urban blocks have been brought closer to the edge of the waterfront.

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LO N DO N

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London Shifting Eastwards East London has always found itself bereft of many of the components that could drive it towards being as consolidated, developed and forward-looking as its western and central counterparts. With large amounts of taxpayers’ money and global capital being invested in the Olympics, one fails to see an expected series of strategic developments in these deprived areas in East-London, along the Olympic Fringe.

This scenario presents an opportunity to revaluate and exploit the high potential of this area.

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LONDON

East London sits at an interesting cross-junction where the M11 cor ridor (connecting Cambridge to Docklands), London Over ground and National Rail ser vices (connecting Cambridge, Stansted Airport to Liverpool Street) intersect. While much effort has been laid on concentrated developments within certain parts, particularly Stratford and the Olympic fringe, there seem to be several lacunae in understanding the redevelopment of the entire region. In order to understand how a coherent spatial str ucture can be achieved for the region, we could look at central London for some clues.

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NEW CENTRALITY

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LONDON

In Central London the area between Marble Arch and Holborn around the Oxford Street Armature is replete with several layers of big and small transactions and relationships developed over time, juxtaposed to produce a unique system of overlapping mixed neighborhoods, which can no doubt be read as one continuous region. While Fitzrovia to the north of Oxford Street is very different in its urban character to Soho, to the south, the two still share a rich system of synergies and cross overs, drawing them together as part of a coherent system. Similarly, if one were to look at the area around the London over-ground line between Highbury and Islington and Stratford, as a future coherent city region to be developed over time, we might start moving towards the idea of another productive centre within a polycentric city fabric.

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NEW CENTRALITY

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K N O W L E DG E N E I G H BO U R H O O D

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NEIGHBOURHOOD UNIT PLAN

NEIGHBOURHOOD UNIT PLAN Historically, neighbourhoods were thought of as areas that included residential functions with certain civic components plugged in. Economic generators were pushed to the periphery as they were considered less important than civic integrators. Hence, this stereotypical image of a neighbourhood might be summed up as one that was designed to promote sociability between people.

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KNOWLEDGE NEIGHBOURHOOD

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SHIFTING PERCEPTION

As we move from a service based economy to a knowledge based economy, cross-overs are seen between spaces of residence, business and education. The traditional layout of the neighbourhood does not accommodate this mix and hence a new concept needs to be developed that facilitates the creation of

(i) Typical image of neighbourhood as an area promoting sociability

multi-functional environments that have the capacity to support and enhance these cross-overs.

In order to achieve a large scale ambition for East London as a productive city region, we begin to foresee change in the form of strategic interventions in key sites that can with time, organically propel development around them, it affecting change at a neighbourhood scale.

If these knowledge neighbourhoods are envisioned as hubs in a value chain spun across a spatial network in key areas over the region of East London, we could conceptualise the idea of a productive peripheral city region. In order to test this hypothesis, we are going to use Hackney Central and Hackney Wick astesting grounds for the idea of a Knowledge Neighbourhood, where it can be used as a critical diagnostic tool to understand how everyday relationships will inform new synergies between business and residential life in spatial sequences.

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(iii) Changing work culture tying education and work realms (iv) Cross overs and synergies in a new work culture

KNOWLEDGE NEIGHBOURHOOD

KNOWLEDGE NEIGHBOUR HOOD (vii) Area of investigation: Hackney Central

(ii) Influx of people into London for work and education

(vi) Area of investigation: Hackney Wick

(v) The idea of knowledge neighbourhood as being structured as a network of smaller clusters 37

A s in th e ca se o f C e n tr a l Lo n do n , r elatio n sh ip s wo uld f o r m over tim e on th e b a s i s o f i n ter de p en den ce an d tr ust leadin g to th e for m a ti o n o f co mp l emen tar y k n owledg e n eig h b o ur h o o ds in th e regio n. T h i s el emen t o f tr ust stem s f r o m th e un der stan din g 38

of the i d ea o f

seei n g o n e’s n eig h b o ur o n a r eg ular b asis.

H ence, b a s ed

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a r ea s a

wa l k i n g el emen ts

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ar e

H ectar es,

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def ined with

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ever yd ay r el a ti o n sh i p s p l ay a key r o le in def in in g an ur b an so luti on.

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H A C K N E Y

C E N T R A L

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S PAT I A L

C O N DI T I O N S

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

HACKNEY CENTRAL already has some of the elements that are essential to the creation of a knowledge neighbourhood.

It has two civic components: the town hall, public library, Hackney Empire and Hackney Ocean clustered around Mare Street and a number of church buildings, the largest being St Johns at Hackney - both promoting community gathering.

Apart from these civic amenities, the open spaces in London Fields, Hackney Downs and Victoria Park offer a multitude of options for residential and cultural life. The area has primary and secondary schools that can be made more beneficial to the area, by leasing out their premises during non-working hours.

Furthermore, a cluster of creative industries have made their way up from Old Street and presently lie sandwiched between London Fields and Mare Street.

However what is most unique about Hackney Central when compared to any other area of East London, is its proximity to Homerton Hospital, a teaching hospital, and a diverse ethnic population.

(i) Civic Centre

(ii) Churches

(iii) Homerton Hospital

(iv) Primary and Secondary Schools

(v) Creative Industry 44

HACKNEY CENTRAL

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

(i) Narrow-way is a major commercial street and an extension of Mare Street. The vibrance of the street contrasts with the quiet nature of the adjacent church gardens.

(ii) Civic Cluster along Mare Street

(iii) Hackney has the highest percentage of Social Housing amongst the London Boroughs. These estates are owned, maintained, controlled by the borough.

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

(i) The St John’s at Hackney Church is surrounded by a large green space that not only acts as a pocket of public space but provides an easy connection between Narrow way and the residential settlements beyond

(ii) The sites adjacent to the church yard are occupied by a Bus-Depot and a one-storey high Tesco building. Having realised their potential, they are both earmarked by the borough to be redeveloped.

(iii) The overground station is accessible from a recessed parking space off Amhurst Road. Several clumsy buildings are seen at the traffic node between Amhurst Road, Narrow Way and Mare Street.

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HACKNEY CENTRAL

i

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

ETHNICITY.

demographic study of the area shows that it has one of the lowest proportions of elderly people in London. Further investigations suggest that despite recent investment in primary and secondary schools, the level of education and training in the area is lower than the British Average.

Furthermore, a population which is made up of 46% immigrants has an overall health level which is lower in a lot of cases than the British average.

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A

HACKNEY CENTRAL

ACADEMIC TRENDS & BIOMEDICAL If we briefly turn our attention to global trends in academia and research, we find that working in isolation is a rarity. Increasingly a rise is witnessed in collaborative efforts, both at an inter-disciplinary level as well as at a community level. In the last decade, UK has become one of the leading hubs that connects science, business and healthcare to deliver efficient, high-quality product development for real patient benefit. In order to achieve this, large amount of investment is generated in the biomedical sector and new institutions such as the Francis Crick Institute are trying to establish a global base out of London. Apart from investment, a new trend is to engage with the NHS, in order to collect gene pool samples from a range of different ethnic groups.

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P OT E N T I A L

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POTENTIAL

HOUSING.

Another interesting element is the housing sector. Presently, Hackney Central has a number of housing types which are a mere provision. When residential neighbourhoods are built, designers find it difficult to manage the problems of community formations and sociability on one hand and privacy on the other. They thus end up creating social housing that is bereft of services, amenities and workspaces that help economically support the community as in evident in the many housing estates in the area. Street life is also affected without any sort of movement along or through these mono-functional clusters.

In order to materialise our concept of a knowledge neighbourhood and provide a breeding ground for overlaps, exchanges and synergies, the mono-functional nature of these estates can be changed by accommodating the assemblage, learning, business and service delivery space to constitute an assemlage that can be organised on the ground, while housing can be stacked above.

Housing would then move from being a mere provision into a strategy whereby along with providing new housing stock, the revenue generated will be used to pay for supporting the activities below.

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This solution of cross-subsidising also helps us address and capitalise a market trend.

As most companies today cannot afford research and development, they bring together decision makers, engineers and market agents to work collaboratively in order to apply the solutions of one field to help resolve the challenges of another. Since a single company cannot afford to own such spaces, it is wise to build leasable space for sets of companies.

The company could use a fixed amount of space for its core operations while other meeting, projection, media and conference spaces could be rented out on a time and membership basis.

Having service providers (a private enterprise corporation aided by a certain level of government support) who could create these spaces then becomes an interesting proposition. The rents in Hackney Central would definitely be more advantageous when compared to those in Docklands, Statford or the City of London. Housing could thus be a part of the membership base of collaborative spaces, which could also be associated with the arts, recreation, sport, cafes, bars and restaurants which could offer better streets.

HACKNEY CENTRAL

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POTENTIAL

HOUSING AS STRATEGY. When we apply this conceptualisation to Hackney Central, our knowledge neighbourhood can be simplified into an ecology of systems as follows: System 1 – Education System 2 – Work System 3 – Housing as a strategy System 4 – Knowledge Ecology (Education + Work + Living and the cross-overs between them) System 5 – Collaborative spaces, Civic Component, Amenities, etc.

With the strong presence of Homerton Hospital linked to expertise in the medical community and the diverse gene pool in Hackney Central, we are presented with an interesting set of possibilities in terms of the cross-overs between medical service delivery and research.

Our vision is to create a rich multifunctional environment with a strong emphasis on the crossovers between learning, living and work spaces; the collaborative spaces will serve both the learning and working communities of the biomedical sector.

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HACKNEY CENTRAL

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POTENTIAL

INFRASTRUCTURE

AND

MOBILITY

will play a prime role if we have to achieve this vision and if the area is to change. Hackney is ideally located in close proximity to the two financial districts of London - Canary Wharf (Docklands) and the City. It also has a strong road connection through the A12 and M11 highways to Stansted Airport which is growing in volume and further up to the other large biomedical cluster in the UK located in Cambridge.

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POTENTIAL

Apart from this road infrastructure, Hackney Central and Hackney Downs stations if upgraded offer a multitude of options when it comes to connecting the area over a broader topographical scale. Present important direct connections by rail include those to Cambridge and Stanstead Airport via national rail, to Berlin, Paris and other European countries across the english channel via the Eurostar and to other parts of London via the overground, high speed rail and phase II of the cross rail. If these systems are to be exploited, an upgrade of both stations along with an interchange provision becomes vital.

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C H A L L E N GE S

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CHALLENGES

URBAN CHALLENGES Our

goals

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Hackney

Central

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i) Improve the mobility and infrastr ucture in the area, also moving towards better streets ii) Augment job generation and the economic capacity iii) Eliminate the mono-functional housing estates in order to create multi-functional environments

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CHALLENGES

HOUSING ENVIRONMENT. Bereft of any services, amenities or workspaces, the mono-functional introverted housing estates in Hackney Central fail to engage in any exhanges with the surroundings. The streets between the built forms as well as those surronding these isolated clusters are starved of social vibrance.

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CHALLENGES

STATION.

Having identified the potential that can be exploited if both the stations are upgraded and linked through an interchange, as the first point of entry to the neighbourhood, the organisation of the stations will need to be altered dramatically to support an increased passenger load. One might further argue that the station precinct, which is made up of low density housing estates controlled by the Borough of Hackney can be changed to accommodate an efficient station quarter. The new businesses can generate enough revenue to pay for the stations’ upgrade.

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CHALLENGES

TESCO and BUS DEPOT If the new station quarter is to serve as a point of entry into the region and if Homerton Hospital is to play a key role in supporting the Knowledge Neighbourhood, we may recognise the potential of developing two sites that sit between them.

The first is the area just south of and adjoining the St John’s at Hackney church gardens where a bus depot is located.

The site is bounded by Narrow Way to the west (a vibrant street lined with cafes, delis, shops and restaurants) and a residential neighbourhood with primary and secondary schools implanted in it to the east. We argue that the bus depot can make way for a rich multi-functional environment that is simultaneously responsive and makes use of the existing conditions.

If this idea is pushed forward, then a single storey TESCO building with a parking lot which sits across the London Overground from the bus depot can also be similarly developed. We may justify this selection by the knowledge that the Borough of Hackney has already earmarked both sites for future development.

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HACKNEY CENTRAL

Furthermore, a third area just south of the TESCO site, where another low density housing estate controlled by the Borough is, can be upgraded over many stages of phased development in order to accommodate the knowledge ecology model.

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P R O P O SA L

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PROPOSAL

MOBILITY INFRASTRUCTURE Having identified that Hackney sits at an interesting cross junction, where the M11 corridor, London Overground and National Rail services intersect, it becomes essential to understand its implications and the transformation it needs to undergo in order to support the conception of knowledge neighbourhoods in Hackney Central and Hackney Wick. The A12 is used to get onto the M11 corridor which links East London to Stansted Airport and Cambridge. It also serves as a corridor with exits that lead to Docklands and The City of London. In order to support cross-overs at a multi-scalar level, it becomes important to create an efficient mobility system at the neighbourhood cluster level that facilitates easy access to the hubs of development across the city region. The London Overground does a fairly good job connecting Highbury and Islington to Stratford.

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However, predicting that the intra-city rail network will reach a point of saturation, pushes forward interesting alternatives such as next generation buses and other new-age road oriented transport. On studying the present system of roads in East London in the area around the over ground line, it is evident that while there are fairly well-established lines of movement between the north and south in Upper Street, New North Road, Kingsland Road, Queensbridge Road and Mare Street, there is a redundancy in long connections from east to west. The only east-west road that springs from Highbury and Islington as St. Paul’s Road and continues up to Mare Street is Graham Road. Morning Lane connects Mare Street to the A12 via Wick Road and Eastway. It may be argued that streamlining Graham Road to meet Morning Lane by extending it 300m forward can create a continuous east-west road corridor.

HACKNEY CENTRAL

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PROPOSAL

STATION.

With the London Overground line offering a blunt resistance to any movement across it, if the stations were left at their present location, the build-up of passenger loads over time will end up overloading Armhurst Road. Additionally,

space to facilitate an interchange and to plan the supporting facilities along a corridor linking both stations. Next, it is necessary to break the barrier between the two sides of the Overground line. We propose a elevated corridor built above the

we would also fail to exploit the potential of streamlining Graham road.

Accessing the areas to the south of the station quarter would involve moving over long distances.

Furthermore, it would get increasingly difficult to design an efficient station interchange.

Overground to facilitate movement between the two stations. Apart from creating a direct connection , this further functions as a filter which will move people vertically up into office space, down towards the platforms, or out, on either sides of the station. Three principle points of entry from Graham Road into this elevated station corridor would allow people to move either into one station, move from one station to the next or to move across the built ensemble.

By retaining the position of Hackney Central Station and move the Hackney Downs station to the junction of the Overground and National Rail lines. This we are presented with a linear

CASE STUDY

CENTRAL RAILWAY AREA, BARI, ITALY:

The proposal to transform the central railway area of Bari, began with a desire to solve the issue of the fracture of the city regions. By radically using an elevated platform as a connective tissue, the designers turned the station into a park offering views of the city. Instead of burying the railway track, it was imply enclosed by the ensemble .

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(i) ground floor plan

(ii) first floor plan 77

PROPOSAL

Similar to the Bari exemplar, the corridor will not be a free object in space, but instead a builtform that encloses the railway system.

This new conception, enables us to plan spaces to hold offices, cafĂŠs,

Amhurst road and Graham road intersect oddly to form a trapezoidal station quarter.

Having proposed a rectangular arrangement (station building) along Graham Road, having to do the same with Amhurst

restaurants, etc., which could arguably, generate enough revenue to support the station. An amalgam of tower and block typologies is used to constitute the built mass, the ground and podium levels being occupied by commercial and service-delivery enterprises, above which leasable office space can be accommodated. The bulk of the linear built-form is broken by injecting a series of differentiated courtyards, that are used as station concourses, restaurant spill-over spaces, forecourts, gathering spaces and service yards. Apart from supporting different activities, the courtyards will also help in lighting and ventilating the spaces around them.

Road, creates a set of negative triangular spaces. These spaces could be used advantageously turning them into plaza spaces at the junctions where the three proposed lines which come from across the station turn to meet Armhurst Road at a right angle. The plazas would help alleviate some of the density in the quarter.

A differential system of pedestrian paths and vehicular lanes for servicing the quarter are vital to the design logic used to plan the quarter. The blocks configured, around this system accommodate courtyard spaces for light and ventilation, differential in their character based on the type of use as discussed earlier. Surfaces in the quarter would also be differentiated, with the facades of buildings fronting frequently used pedestrian paths being designed to be more porous to offer heightened visual permeability.

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PROPOSAL

CASE STUDY

S-BAHN:

The S–bahn viaducts in Berlin offer permeable visual experiences which allow one to capture framed views and to physically cross over from one side to the other, occasionally enjoying the odd cafÊ implanted in one of the many arches.

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CHURCHYARD and VIADUCT Some of the same design logic used to design the station quarter is applied to rethink and re-imagine the area presently occupied by the bus depot, TESCO and the housing estate which form a key component of our knowledge neighbourhood.

We propose that the site of the bus depot be developed to hold housing with wonderful views of the church gardens to the north. The community church, Narrow-way, proximity to a residential quarter with primary and secondary schools all favour the decision towards developing housing.

The viaduct that separates the TESCO and bus depot sites is materialised spatially in the form of a series of arches. While a regular infill of spaces inside the viaduct opens up the possibility of a lively environment, it restricts this ambience only to one side, and acts as a barrier. Hence in order to design an integrated system, we use a similar visual strategy as the S-Bahn in Berlin. Learning from the exemplar, we argue that a porous viaduct creates a healthy relationship between the church gardens and the development on the three sites.

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PROPOSAL

Having established a porous and visual connection across the viaduct and keeping in mind our housing stratergy, we provide a ground plane that can hold amenities such as gyms, spas, conference and meeting rooms, cafĂŠs and restaurants, some of which form a part of the time and membership space so as to extend the use of these facilities beyond just the residents inhabiting the housing units. We use tower and slab typologies to form clustered open blocks, that are configured to hold amenities below and housing above.

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PROPOSAL

CASE STUDY

OPEN BLOCK, NORD, RIVE GAUCHE. To produce a vibrant and dynamic environment, it is interesting to exploring the concept of the open block by Christian de Portzamparc. The open block is a set of independent entities that nevertheless can co-exist together, the whole being greater than the sum of the parts as seen in Massena Nord, Rive Gauche.

The open block works on the concept of heterogeneity, each block can incorporate different functions, architectural styles and stakeholders. It also helps define a street based logic, enabling continuity to co-exist with porosity. This relationship does not stay limited to the ground floor but also extends to the envelope of the building in the form of courtyards and open spaces at multiple levels.

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Rather than imitating old streets and existing blocks with traditional courtyards that offer no benefits of views or light, we use design clues from the ‘open block’ to form our cluster. As a result, we are able to get a lot of light and movement into the depth of the cluster. Since each building is separate, apartments with different orientations, gardens and courtyards are visible from the street.

HACKNEY CENTRAL

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PROPOSAL

CHURCHYARD SECTION The section explores the placement of various courtyards in the dense block formations. It also clarifies the prime locations for housing and offices by highlighting the favourable views and service courtyards in order to support the built environments.

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HACKNEY CENTRAL

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PROPOSAL

BIOMEDICAL

QUARTER.

Zooming in on one of the clusters clarifies the design strategy. The differential nature of streets dictate the facade treatment and courtyard types. Building facades fronting pedestrian paths present a more porous ground plane as opposed those facing a service lane. some built forms allow one to move through them from pedestrian lanes to courtyards and vice-versa, highlightng the permeability of the blocks themselves.

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PROPOSAL

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BIOMEDICAL QUARTER SECTION

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PROPOSAL

GROUND FLOOR ORGANIZATION With the proposal to streamline Graham Road, we are left with a narrow piece of land abutting the viaduct, parts of the TESCO site and the housing estate to be developed in stages. We use the narrow piece to develop a type that fuses blocks and towers and stretch this same logic to the two other parcels. Graham road would thus be lined by a series of visually porous spaces at the ground floor, giving rise to a lively street.

A system of vehicular service lanes and pedestrian paths are established in order to clarify the extent of each of the blocks constituting the quarter. The same logic used to determine surfaces, courtyards and systems of access and servicing as discussed earlier in the design of the station quarter is then applied in order to form an environment where the upper storeys hold housing and office spaces to support a rich system of spaces below, used for biomedical research and development, service delivery, conference and exhibition spaces, meeting and seminar facilities, cafes and restaurants.

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PROPOSAL

MOPHOROGICAL ANALYSIS

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PROPOSAL

FUTURE DEVELOPMENT It may be argued that with time, the development planned around the station may start linking up with other nodes in Hackney Central. An interesting system of cross-overs will start to form between Homerton Hospital, the biomedical research and service delivery hub we have just proposed. The creative cluster close to London Fields may offer particular support to the biomedical development in the area. With positive development, the Borough 96

HACKNEY CENTRAL

of Hackney could be convinced to rethink how other low density mono functional housing estates could be augmented in order to provide better housing and more jobs.

On a broader scale, Hometon Hospital could prove to be an important hub that links the idea of the knowledge neighbourhood proposed at Hackney Central with the one we are going to discuss at Hackney Wick.

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W IC K

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S PAT I A L

C O N DI T I O N S

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

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INTRODUCTION

London is everyday turning more and more into sports and recreation, as well as towards creative industries, making Hackney Wick a potentially great area, for it brings both worlds – the creative and the recreational – together. The area presents distinct features that are of great advantage to a neighbourhood desiring to nurture optimal conditions for collaborative environments to flourish. The existing talents and creative sectors that reside in the area as well as its neighbouring canal, parks and recreational zones can undoubtedly foster the conditions that pull together a combination of diverse industries brought about by everyday activities that can possibly create social and economic platforms of exchange, engaging and interacting with one another promoting clusters of excellence.

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

Lea Valley Reservoir

Hackney Marsh Hackney Downs Mabley Green Hometon Hospital London Fields

Victoria Park Olympic Park Hackney Wick

Canary Wharf

O2 Arena

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HACKNEY WICK

A12 Motorway

Hackney Wick is located in a noteworthy area, where its closeness to airports (City and Stansted Airport), main highways (A12 to M11) and railroads (London Overground and National Rail Services) connect it easily to other areas within the region.

Overground Train

City Airport

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

Hackney Wick is a unique neighbourhood because of its magnificent location. The Lea River, Victoria Park and the Olympic Park surround it. In very close proximity one can access other leisure spaces, such as Mabley Green and Hackney Marshes.

Its vicinity to all of these different recreational areas makes it the perfect place where the possibilities for fostering a number of things derived from sports and movement are abundant.

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Hackney Marsh A12 Motorway

Homerton Hospital Overground Train

Olympic Park Victoria Park Hackney Wick

River Lea

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

Railway

Queen Yard

Queen Yard

A12 Motorway

Queen Yard

White Post Lane

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Main Yard

Hamlet Industrial Centre

Victoria Park 109

SPATIAL CONDITIONS

Taking advantage of these recreational spaces that surround Hackney Wick is difficult because of the spatial characteristics of the area. The railroad, the motorway and the canal currently fragment the neighbourhood, which make it hard to access the different green spaces available.

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS - CONNECTIVITY

Despite being strategically located, Hackney Wick is isolated from its surroundings because of the barriers that the infrastructure presents: The motorway impedes easy circulation towards Victoria Park, the railway line obstructs the north-south movement, and bridges are necessary in order to cross the canal both to the east and the south area. Within the area, there are poor connections due to the block patterns and dead end streets system that are currently in place.

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS

A high concentration of design studios and artists are located in Hackney Wick, however, it’s not because of its thriving artistic life but because of the affordability of the space due to the decline of the industrial base.

The potential in the area has been observed by many entities that have suggested different proposals, but they have all seem to target the generic potential of the area, without exploring its uniqueness: the current existing creative industries and talents that exist in the area and the canal, parks and recreational spaces.

These unique characteristics make Hackney Wick and Fish Island the perfect place to become a rich centre of new economy industries, where a large range of new opportunities can be provided for the creative industries instead of just retaining a little bit of affordable space.

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS - CONSERVATION AREA

Hackney Wick and Fish Island have a unique character owed to their historic buildings. They have been designated by the Hackney Wick Conservation Area as Buildings of Townscape Merit, and as such, they have been adapted and are currently being used mostly to promote the creative and cultural industries.

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1

4 2

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SPATIAL CONDITIONS - CONSERVATION AREA

Gainsborough Community Primary School

Oslo House

Book Central

Maryland Studios / Walis Studios

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Lion Works / Liquid Studios

Lion Works / Liquid Studios

Maryland Studios / Walis Studios

Stour Space 119

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C H A L L E N G E S

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CHALLENGES - RAILWAY STATION

The site presents certain challenges in terms of mobility, as the current infrastructure does not allow for smooth circulation and connectivity within the neighbourhood and to adjacent areas.

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The existing railway station stands in the centre of Hackney Wick, which would be an ideal location if it weren’t for the fact that it creates a barrier between the north and the south, appearing as an impenetrable surface. It is located where most probably the future developments in the area will occur. Taking this into account, concentration in the area will grow quite significantly, making the current station too small to accommodate the expected density.

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CHALLENGES - RAILWAY STATION

BEATRIXKWARTIER is an elevated rail line running parallel to the street. This railway is

situated along the pedestrian pathway but since it is a lightweight structure it allows light and movement to go through the space below.

The quality of the permeable structure is outstanding compared to other elevated railway structures, which block the ground level, just as the existing one in Hackney Wick.

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CASE STUDY

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CHALLENGES - BUS CIRCULATION

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The public bus transportation system circulates mostly in the surrounding areas of Hackney Wick, while only one bus stops directly on the railway station, making it very limiting for the users. This condition might be due to the block patterns and the lack of connectivity in the area.

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CHALLENGES - PEDESTRIAN ACCESS

The current block patterns allow for circulation through the existing courtyards and through only a few streets because of the nature of the dead end streets. The existing path along the canal is limited to certain areas, which limits activities along the waterfront.

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ECOLOGY

STREET. The existing street pattern is fragmented, which creates a strange

circulation pattern.

The station blocks the street level, which in turn makes for a difficult north and south internal vehicular and pedestrian circulation.

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ECOLOGY

COURTYARD. Nowadays, London experiences the conditions of great developmental

pressures and the constraints on the block form are rather extreme, creating very compressed environments. Although the intensification leads Londoners to take advantage of increased concentration of people to give new amenities and services that would otherwise be located elsewhere.

To explore the diversity of block sizes, the variety of possible functional mixes, and to indicate the differences between courtyards and streets, there was a need to take a look at different cases.

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COURTYARD

CENTRAL ST.GILES is a solution of an architectural scale for the creation of a dynamic flow and internal movement in the area.

The complex is surrounded by solid façades of old-style buildings and its ground floor remains accessible from all sides by being transparent and “lifted” from the ground.

St.Giles High Street, London by Renzo Piano

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CASE STUDY

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COURTYARD

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CASE STUDY

Just walking / Shortcutting Walk with an intention

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COURTYARD

BREWERY SQUARE. Together with preserved historical buildings, in Brewery Square there

are some commercial places, such as Tesco and Waitrose, in new housing blocks. Along with new dense housing developments they bring enough people for Tesco and Waitrose to co-exist in proximity.

St.John Street, London by Hamiltons Architects

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CASE STUDY

Brewhouse Yard (public) Private Yard Pedestrian Route (public)

Just walking / Shortcutting Walk with an intention

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COURTYARD

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CASE STUDY

The environments are differentiated: there is a quieter one inside the block – the courtyard, and the wide street as a primary route. Design Studios and Showrooms are the elements of a larger network spreading all over the end of the Clerkenwell road and St.John Street.

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COURTYARD

PIED BULL YARD. This is an example of how a yard is organized in an old housing

block in a central area of London with small studios, shops and cafes on the ground floor, facing both – the street and the yard.

This is a type of yard where one would go with a special intention, for example, to repair the “Canon” camera or grab a coffee in the “Cordon Bleu” cooking school. Spatially, the yard is hidden from the street view, one may only enter it through small arches or covered corridors.

Bury Place, London

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CASE STUDY

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COURTYARD

This is a type of yard where one would go with a special intention, for example, to repair the “Canon” camera or grab a coffee in the “Cordon Bleu” cooking school.

Spatially, the yard is “hidden” from the street view, one may only enter it through small arches or covered corridors.

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CASE STUDY

Just walking / Shortcutting Walk with an intention

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CANAL

The canal is a natural armature in the site and existing line of movement that carries different speeds along it. As it presently stands it is being used as a walking, running and biking path as well as for rowing and related activities.

It already provides a series of events that are currently isolated and not integrated to the site.

In order to understand how urban fabric, it is necessary that establishes recreational Utrecht in the Netherlands

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a canal could potentially to look at some cities activities that integrate and the Christianshavn

work where with area

in the context of a larger the waterway is a system its surroundings such as in Copenhagen, Denmark.

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CANAL

UTRECHT, THE NETHERLANDS. Adjacent to the canal in Utrecht there is a 3-meter paved area for pedestrian use. It acts as a front yard for the basement units but it also allows public access. The road running on top of the basement units creates a separate layer of movement that works in the larger system. The commercial and recreational activities take place in both layers, thus establishing synergies between the two.

Between Oudegracht and Lijnmarkt

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CASE STUDY

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CANAL

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CASE STUDY

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CANAL

COPENHAGEN, DENMARK. The canal in Copenhagen is where one of major

recreational areas of the city. The system is organized by a pedestrian path that runs along the canal edge separated from the vehicle movement unlike the one in Amsterdam, where the walkway runs in front of the buildings. It provides the opportunity to generate activities along the fringe.

The canal itself also has a pier extension onto the water in which there is a cafĂŠ and a boat club.

Between Overgaden Neden Vandet and Overgaden Oven Vandet

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CASE STUDY

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CANAL

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CASE STUDY

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P R O P O SA L

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KNOWLEDGE NEIGHBOURHOOD

If one looks at the crossover of sports, creative industries, new materials and design, there is a great promise for the development of a new knowledge economy in the area.

This results in an environment that encourages innovation, development and growth.

Hackney Wick is to become a centre for new economic industries that provides a great range of new opportunities, not only for the existing creative industries, but also for the residents, researchers, and for new industries to bloom. The aim is to cultivate relationships of trust that can be valuable for the formation of different trades that can collaborate and interact with each other in the context of everyday activities.

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NEIGHBOURHOOD UNIT PLAN

OLD vs NEW. Today, as there is crossover between the ways people live, learn and

work, neighbourhoods are understood as a place where the integration of different networks occur, and residential living, civic and economic institutions are closely interlinked.

In the original neighbourhood unit plan, neighbourhoods were based on residential life and were mostly focused on civic institutions, which were separate from the economic sector.

It had a central element or community centre, which was the church.

Several communities are corporation-based, sharing the main linear armature amongst them, whilst nowadays knowledge neighbourhoods are network-based.

The alternative neighbourhood unit plan might be applied to Hackney Wick, where rather than a continuous spine intervening in the surrounding areas, the station is the main connection that will distribute things around it. As a line of movement, the canal and the motorway serve as arterial connectors, both to adjacent and further districts.

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS

Hackney Wick presents interesting connections that are not found in the fabric but that can be felt. The canal and the use of courtyards will be developed as tools of integration, since the area has the necessary instruments but lacks a good integrative system.

Different spatial solutions are proposed for the area around the motorway and the station, according to their singular characteristics, in order to achieve the proposed ambition.

Bands

Interbands

Activated Axes

Systems of Intervention: A promenade along the canal, solid faรงades blocking the motorway, recreational areas and a courtyard organization act as complementary systems.

One can imagine a series of activities that might appear within these systems.

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - STATION

STATION.

Understanding that the developmental pressure will rise, it will be necessary to upgrade the station to accommodate the growing density of the area. If most of the development will happen in this area it would be better to move the station to an area where it would be more beneficial to our concept. The relocation of the station towards the canal will allow permeability through the site in all directions and create new patterns of movement in the area.

The milieu of the station will no longer be that of just entering and exiting but it will be a of a pleasant space, where one can feel a sense of identity at the arrival point.

By creating an open, permeable ground floor, along with open spaces that face the canal, the station starts to link different association patterns, as it will be located between different lines of movement: the pedestrian/bicycle/boat along the canal and the vehicular drop off point.

Some of the possible activities and spatial solutions at the station: canal-rowing, cycle lane, small square, permeable space, colonnade, boulevard, cafe/shopping, trees, gathering.

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Existing Railway Station

Proposed Railway Station 165

MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - STATION

Ground Level

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Platform Level

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - STATION

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - CANAL

CANAL. We propose a recreational and/or civic space that extends beyond the canal into the

site. The creation of different levels around the water: bridges, sporting pathways, rowing clubs, kayaking spaces, biking and running clubs, will develop a place where not only sport is the main activity but where you can possibly meet a diverse group of people that might share interests beyond sports.

Since sports are part of everyday activities, a rich recreational space and civic environment will begin to form, and the canal will be an invitation for new industries to have accessible testing grounds for the production of new materials.

The canal is the main armature by which these opportunities will arise. From it, they will extend across the site into the different spaces. The different systems would be connected, which would hopefully create the synergies that are fostered in a knowledge neighbourhood.

Some of the possible activities and spatial solutions along and on the canal: rowing, cycle lane, swimming pool, amphitheater, exhibition spaces, colonnade, landscape.

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - CANAL

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - COURTYARD

COURTYARD. The area is currently occupied by talented, but opportunistic creative industries considering the low rent live/work spaces that are available. The current developers’ proposals aim to retain these spaces, without taking into consideration if the existing industries will thrive. Most of these spaces are organized in courtyards, which are open and serve as a shared multipurpose space or mostly as a parking lot.

Working and living and interactions are no longer done in an inward looking way but in exactly the opposite condition, where innovation is achieved through an outward looking approach in which collaboration and networking is part of their work process scheme. As such, one can begin to imagine how places of interaction are an important part of the neighbourhood and of everyday life.

Boundary Strategy and inner Courtyards Strategy might be applied into the courtyard system.

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By creating courtyard spaces as centres of activity and generating new different patterns of movement and interaction then one might be able to create new opportunities for spaces where these everyday life synergies may occur. The streets then might act as integrators rather than connectors.

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MAJOR INTERVENTIONS - MOTORWAY

MOTORWAY. One possible spatial solution to the motorway question might be, for instance,

for buildings to ‘turn their back’ to it. They could potentially have lighting from the top and have solid walls adjacent to the street, so as to create a sound barrier. They would act as protectors for the contiguous row of buildings and would allow visibility towards Victoria Park and other areas.

The interstitial space found at the north of the site can be possibly used for creating a skate park.

Merging in this area are the railway system and the motorway, which will form, along with the skaters, a mixture of juxtaposed layers.

Some of the possible activities and spatial solutions along the motorway: skate park, boundary strategy, inner courtyards, basketball courts, tennis courts, climbing wall, office spaces.

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PROPOSAL

MASTERPLAN. The proposed masterplan is the recommendation after several tests taking into consideration the desire to establish dynamic public spaces that integrate different industries, providing supporting areas for knowledge ecologies to emerge. The distribution at diverse levels engages and produces different social expressions. Overlapping and juxtaposing the canal, railway, and courtyards, creates new spaces where distinctive forms of public interaction can happen across diverse disciplines throughout the neighbourhood.

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PROPOSAL

STAGES. The development would be done in stages to progressively improve the area. The

station would be built first while the old one is still providing service, therefore not disturbing the transportation services to the area. This would consequently free up the space when the major developments would occur. The second stage would comprise the area adjacent to the motorway and in the intersection of the canals, as well as the clusters in Fish Island. Lastly and more importantly, the courtyard spaces in the central area enabling interaction and movement all the way to the canal.

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Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3

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PROPOSAL

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PROPOSAL

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C O N C L U S I O N

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CONCLUSION

Through the exploration of strategies to spatially develop the concept of the Knowledge Neighborhood at Hackney Central and Hackney Wick, we start to see a series of clusters that begin to transform areas, offering different learning, business and living environments linked through networks over large and small geographic zones. While the two areas in Hackney do not share identical spatial developmental strategies, they do have as a common starting point, sufficiently rich synergistic overlaps by virtue of being linked to a resource in Homerton Hospital.

Previously, neighborhoods might have been understood as being based around residential life, which was in turn linked to civic and economic institutions, the Knowledge Neighborhood integrates these elements to create a network-based system where interdependence and interconnection are its defining principles.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Gastil, R. (2002) Beyond the edge: New York’s new waterfront, New York: Princeton Architectural Press.

Gehl, J. (2001) Life between buildings: using public space, Copenhagen: Arkitektens Forlag.

Jacobs, J. (1992) The death and life of great American cities, New York: Vintage Books.

Koolhaas, R. (1994) Delirious New York: a retroactive manifesto for Manhattan, Rotterdam: OIO Publishers.

Office for Metropolitan Architecture, Koolhaas, R. and Mau, B. (1995) S, M, L, XL: small, medium, large, extra-large, New York: Monacelli Press.

Rossi, A. (1982) Architecture of the city, Cambridge: MIT Press.

Rowe, C. and Slutzky, R. (1997) Transparency, Basel: Birkhauser.

Sherwood, R. (1979) Modern housing prototypes, London: Harvard University Press.

Tschumi, B. (2000) Event-cities 2, Cambridge: MIT Press.

Ungers, O.M. (1997) Oswald Mathias Ungers: the dialectic city, Milano: Skira.

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ILLUSTRATION CREDITS

p. 10 - 11, Amsterdam Map: Source: The Harbour Developments, University of British Columbia, 2012 p. 13 - 14, Eastern Docklands - Both Views: Source: Google Images p. 15, Borneo-Sporenburg, Design Development: Source: Adriaan Geuze/West 8, Utigeverij 010 Publishers, Rotterdam 1995 p. 22, Siene Rive Gauche, Aerial View, 1982: Source: Paris Rive Gauche, 3rd millenium area of culture, research and education, Universiteit Van Amsterdam, 2006 p. 23, Seine Rive Gauche, Aerial View, 2010: Source: Google Images p. 35, Diagram of Clarence Perry’s Neighbourhood Unit: Source: New York Regional Survey, Volume 7, 1929 p. 77, Central Railway Area: Source: http://www.dezeen.com/2013/04/29/massimiliano-doriana-fuksas-toredesign-central-railway-area-of-bari-italy/ - last viewed 21.05.13, 07.10. p. 124, Beatrixkwartier: Source: Google Maps p. 125, Figure 1: Source: http://www.fubiz.net/galleries/set/architectural-interest/photo/3355300407/ - last viewed 20.05.13, 23.00. p. 125, Figure 2: Source: http://openbuildings.com/buildings/randstadrail-station-profile-2463 last viewed 20.05.13, 23.01.

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TUTORS: Lawrence Barth and Anderson Inge TEAM: INDIA Karan Bakre INDIA Nitisha Popat TURKEY Neris Parlak CHINA Yanran Zhang INDIA Shikha Bhardwaj RUSSIA Olesya Nalivayko PANAMA Sigen Margarita Palis RUSSIA Alexandra Chechjotkina THAILAND Poom Supakijjanusan THAILAND Teerapat Amnueypornsakul

Produced in 2013 by Housing & Urbanism Architectural Association School of Architecture

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Housing and Urbanism Architectural Association School of Architecture