The Lost Corners Of Suburbia
Danielle Leigh BA Design Year 2
Lost C
What I like about design is that it seems to be a form of creativity with a purpose, merging art with the practicalities of other disciplines such as science and sociology to create something wonderful which sits just below the consciousness of daily life. A great example of this is architecture, which is so ingrained within our everyday existence that it is often only noticed when something goes wrong or when a building becomes so old that it becomes a novelty.
Despite this, some spaces become forgotten and lost to the community, buildings become abandoned and unused, grow derelict and overgrown. Some of the spaces which are lost the fastest are the cleared areas used for parks or sports. Leisure activities sometimes get overlooked or left behind when we are too busy in our everyday life or move on to different trends and hobbies. It’s one of these sporting and play areas which I am investigating.
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Corners Of Suburbia
1955
2013
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For as long as I can remember, there has been a playground on Old Manor Way, Barnehurst, just around the corner from my childhood home. It has remained virtually the same over time; with a rejuvenation of new climbing-frames and other play equipment only a couple of years ago. The whole area of the railway track running along the bridge above and the wooded area just opposite the park have remained a familiar landmark to signify my closeness to home. Despite knowing the area my whole life, I was surprised to discover (while doing map studies during my geography lessons in school) that the familiar wooded area I’d walked down thousands of times was actually a old tennis courts. The remains of what was once a tennis courts were non-existent, reclaimed by nature entirely.
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The Location
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The Dilemmas and The Proposal
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To investigate the parties who are invested in the space I focused on f and health. This allowed me to focus on how that rated on each party’s the environment, but rate high on the local council’s. Occasionally th relationship between the local council and children using the spac the lifestyle and health aspect of how the space influences the co
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Who Is Invested?
four main categories: ecological, economical, social, and lifestyle s priorities, for example economy would have little or no priority to here are some parties which have more than one category such as the ce. There is the social aspect of how they interact with each other and also ommunity through the children.
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In the ecological category there are the obvious parties of the environ ecological factors. They usually have relationships with the local comm made by the human parties can have a great affect on ecological facto the habitat. An interesting relationship is that of the local wildlife public, becomes a makeshift sanctuary for wildlife as they are lef
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Ecological
nment and local wildlife as the main parties that are affected by munity and council and how they are affected by them. Changes ors in restricting the natural environment and impact the ecology of e and public transport. The land used for the train tracks, closed off to the ft alone by humans.
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Here the natural parties such as the local wildlife and environment h dren don’t. Instead, this more human concern has its relationships betw stem off the local council receiving money from the community and which has strong relationships with the community as it is essenti
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Economical
have no input into the economical side to the site, just as the chilween other communal orientated parties. A lot of the relationships spending it to aid the community. The utilities party is another party ial for their quality of life, but come at a cost.
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As quite a broad category, the relationships between parties are quite ities parties have a virtually non-existent role as they stay in the backgr relationships between other parties on the site, mostly because of the gather to use the site. the environment and local wildlife have a sm
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Social
e spread out in their interactions. Here the local council and utilround most of the time. The local homeowners have the strongest eir close proximity living near the site, as do the children when they mall relationship as they use the derelict tennis courts.
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Here the main party is the children using the space as they use it to im climb and play. This in turn improves the community. Alternatively th local drivers, particularly with the restricted visibility and speed in w wildlife and environment, which was instigated by Bexley Counci trical sub-station in the old tennis courts use PCB’s and any acci wildlife. According to the report there was only a low risk of t 23
Lifestyle & Health
mprove their lifestyle and become healthier using the space to run, here are safety concerns between the children using the site and the which they travel. Another concern is how the utilities affect the local il when they were planning to build there. The reason for this is the elecidental spillages could contaminate the environment and poison the local this. 24
1910
1939
The tennis courts originally opened in 1939 and remained open until 1999, (however I believe it was closed before that as I have never remembered it to be anything other than overgrown, or even for the gate to be unchained. According to a Bexley Council planning application form the tennis courts closed in the early 1980. In my research I discovered that, on the maps, the tennis courts and the playground were built as the town and residential area was developed. The courts are situated 3m below the road level of Old Manor Way. There is an electricity sub-station in the south-western corner of the courts, which was built in 1961 and still remains there. As the courts are now, they are described as being derelict and covered in small trees and shrubs (none of which seen as “individual noteworthy specimens� by the local council), rectangular in shape and 1477m2 in size.
1961
The tennis courts themselves have been derelict for a number of years, giving nature the chance to reclaim the land and the local wildlife to move in. Despite the noise and danger of the train tracks, the local wildlife thrives, using the strips of land as safe havens where humans
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The Site and Area rarely come near, allowing the local bird and fox population to thrive all year round. In January 2006 the Property Division of the Environment & Regeneration Services of Bexley Council submitted plans and application forms to build 4x four bedroom houses, 4x two bedroom flats and a three bedroom maisonette with parking and amenity land. There would be ramp access from Old Manor Way. The council halted these plans after working with a local committee where there were concerns about road safety and that the site wouldn’t be big enough to accommodate 4 town houses and a two-story block of 6 flats. The current speed concerns and the blind corner leafing up to the site was the main concern. The plans were withdrawn a second time in February 2008 and were finally withdrawn in 2009. According to the traffic reports taken by Bexley Council, there have been quite a few accounts of speeding from the road before and leading into Old Manor Way, named Merewood Road. This is mainly caused by the geography of the road being a long straight stretch going down a hill and allowing drivers to pick up a lot of speed easily. The situation is made worse by the restricted visibility caused by the
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1999
railway bridge and a blind bend before it, although according to local law the visibility is within the limit. There have been three recorded accidents “leading to slight casualties” in a three year period to September 2006 in the area near the bridge said to be caused by the limited visibility, two of which being pedestrian accidents. After the head-on crash of a van in October 2006, there was an account from a local describing their reaction to the crash: “Living locally, you constantly hear the daily screech of brakes. It has a very narrow pavement, which is used mainly by the children who use the park less than five metres away from the crash site.” Although the local council’s road safety unit reported that the site was “not considered to be an accident blackspot”; despite these accidents occurring when “road conditions were dry during daylight hours” on all three occasions. The close vicinity of the children’s playground makes the concerns of the restricted visibility more worrying, particularly for children crossing near the bridge to get to homes nearby. Living there myself, I’ve found that many parents
who live nearby and are familiar with the roads near the playground are concerned to let even their older children go there on their own. The local council did discuss installing a crossing next to the park and traffic humps along Merewood Road, though they were never built. In the past, roads were not as big of a danger as they are today. As time has gone on, more and more cars have been introduced to the roads with different types of traffic. For example, the peak hour flow for traffic during the daytime is 08:00-09:00 for the schools runs and travel to work. During the middle of the day lorries and vans use the residential roads as a cut through for building supplies. By looking at the increase in traffic flow throughout the years, the likelihood of an accident happening at the site, particularly to a child, is increased. Before rejuvenating the site, a solution for the roads must be found first.
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The local community’s attitude to the old tennis courts were revealed after the local council introduced an application for new buildings on the site. The majority of the attitudes were more concerned with traffic safety: “We need to do something about the speed of traffic before we allow this. The proposed access is dangerous and it will be an accident waiting to happen.” - Richard Gillespie, Ward Councillor. A resident, Clare Gillett described the proposed entrance of the application to be “madness” and that the limited visibility caused by the bridge would pose considerable dangers to pedestrians and drivers. She also described people parking on pavements, as the site is 0.55km from Barnehurst Station, despite the dangers of the road and that the development would cause more people to park in the area.
As well as safety, there were fears of what the change would bring. A few people who at the time described worries of an increased crime rate cased by the introduction of the flats. Others thought that there wasn’t enough space on the site to build 6 flats and 4 town houses without them becoming an eyesore.
With this in mind, my proposal needs to keep in mind the local’s opinions and attitudes in order to ensure that the site is sustainable and compliments the community rather than trying to pull the it in a different direction and have the community reject it. The site should be based around what the community values and what will help it grow and develop. 31
he Local Community
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I found it amazing how quickly nature takes back spaces left behind by hum environment to their own benefit. After some investigations into how a plac humans are removed from it, it was interesting how fast a space is reclaime nobyl disaster and what happened to the area after the population of 2 m viously greatly affected by the radiation in the early years, but now 30 humans put on the environment like on forest growth and on the w and roads and leisure spaces were slowly engulfed by the plant lif this example and applying it to the old tennis courts, it’s easy to habitat. The space now has become part of the ecosystem. 33
The Environment
mans, who usually restrict and they to control the natural ce become derelict and what happens to an environment when ed and repopulated by nature. A great example of this is the Chermillion was evacuated. The environment and local wildlife were obyears on it is considered a natural haven for wildlife. The restrictions wildlife have been taken away and they now take advantage of the freedom fe. After about 15 years, the local football field had turned into forest. Taking o see how quickly the site became unrecognisable and is now a thriving natural
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Ethics vs The site itself has two main users: the ecosystem and the community, particularly the local children, and each of these have different needs and priorities. If the site was to be renovated into a public space, much like Bexley Council had tried to do with the residential housing, the natural ecosystem would be lost and it would have an impact on the local wildlife, cutting out a chunk of its habitat. If it is concreted over, the loss of a green space in the residential area could cause environmental problems like surface runoff and minor flooding, which would in turn possibly cause landslides, which have happened on the Barnehurst rails on January 9th 2014. With very few wildlife sanctuaries left in the cities, these small spaces provide support for the urban flora and fauna and help maintain their ecosystem. Alternatively, the community is it’s own fragile ecosystem, relying on positive interaction to maintain the bonds and progress. Often the places with the strongest communal bond have relatively low crime rates, which is understandable if you consider that in a community your neighbour is your friend so you want to help them rather than not get involved. Originally the site itself was build for the community to help its bond, but over time it is being used
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s. Sustainability and Their Relationship. less and less. “Roads are now barriers, no-go zones for children�, splitting up the community and preventing the interaction to bond it. The roads have now even become a safety hazard, preventing children from even going to one of the few places to interact with other local children, which ethically should be fixed to prevent even the risk of accidents. If you weighed up the problems of community against the environmental risks, both have their own importance. The best thing to do for the environment would be to let the wildlife to have their sanctuary, but as we have seen in the past, the local council will most likely try to build it as houses again. Instead the site could be used as a communal space, using ways to aid the environment and local wildlife within the site’s renovation.
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When designing a communal space, one of the first things I looked at was the roads. It would be pointless to renovate the tennis courts if it would put more people at risk crossing the dangerous road with limited visibility. I had the idea of closing off the small stretch of road which had limited visibility and using it as part of the communal and playground space instead. Keeping in mind with the ethics of the driver and how that would change traffic flow, I found that there would still be alternative routs for drivers to take, which would be safer. Then I thought about how the communal building could be used and enhance the community. In order to bond the community through positive interaction, I decided that it could be used to as a peer learning centre and children’s creche which benefits the community and allows people to interact and progress. For my proposal, I have tried to keep in mind the various need and restrictions which each of the concerned parties required, and create a space which will enhance the community. I thought that a cafe would be good in the playground so that parents could relax while watching their children. I included a small football pitch in the design after observations of children playing. often they would use the small strip of grass to play football and the ball would be kicked over the fence and into the road. With a small pitch they could have the space o play and the high fence would ensure that they don’t kick the ball out of the pitch. On the old tennis courts, the communal building with parking would be built. I would try to preserve as many trees as i could, especially next to the neighbouring homeowners so that it would ensure their privacy. The building would be made of wood so that it would be aesthetically pleasing to the community. The roof would be turfed with natural grasses and fauna to give beck the lost habitat space to the environment. the car-park would be gravelled, not concreted, to allow the water to drain and prevent minor flooding. 37
The Proposal
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Web Links:
Local Photographs:
http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/22947/photos#h_ff_1=&n=FPN&m=API&s= http://www.yourlocalweb.co.uk/greater-london/bexley/barnehurst/old-historical-nostalgic-pictures/ (Page 2 photograph) - http://www.francisfrith.com/barnehurst/photos/tennis-courts-c1955_b667009/#utmcsr=visionofbritain.org.uk&utmcmd=referral&utmccn=visionofbritain.org.uk http://bexley.boroughphotos.org/
Bexley Council Planning Application and Documents:
(these included plans, maps, transport assessments, geoenvironmental assessments, etc.) http://pa.bexley.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=JQQ20JBE01D00
Newspaper Articles: (Found in the Bexley Local Archives, then later refered back to on newspaper website)
http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/archive/2006/10/09/959321.Head_on_smash_under_railway_bridge/ http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/bexley/1317383.Safety_fears_put_homes_on_hold_/ http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/bexley/2018993.No_to_homes_on_tennis_courts/ http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/10924906.Southeastern_services_disrupted_due_to_ landslide_at_Barnehurst/?ref=var_0 http://www.bexleytimes.co.uk/news/barnehurst_landslide_causes_travel_chaos_as_bexleyheath_line_closes_1_3194930
General Links:
Michael Green: Why we should build wooden skyscrapers - http://www.ted.com/talks/ michael_green_why_we_should_build_wooden_skyscrapers.html Xavier Vilalta: Architecture at home in its community - http://www.ted.com/talks/xavier_vilalta_architecture_at_home_in_its_community.html http://www.architecture.com/WhatsOn/ForgottenSpaces/ForgottenSpaces2013.aspx#. UtMwBWRdWCt http://www.tropolis.me/riba-nearly-forgotten-spaces/ http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/aftermath/videos/world-without-humans/ http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2009/03/three-mile-island-and-chernobyl-what-went-wrong-and-why-todays-reactors-are-safe
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Bibliography Books:
Cumberlidge, Clare.: Design and landscape for people : new approaches to renewal / Clare Cumberlidge and Lucy Musgrave.. London : Thames & Hudson, 2007 Shedroff, Nathan.: Design is the problem [electronic resource] : the future of design must be sustainable + pdf download / Nathan Shedroff.. Brooklyn, N.Y. : Rosenfeld Media, c2009 Barringer, David, 1969-: There’s nothing funny about design / David Barringer.. New York : Princeton Architectural Press, c2009. El-Khoury, Rodolphe.: The living, breathing, thinking, responsive buildings of the future / Rodolphe El-Khoury, Christos Marcopoulos, Carol Moukheiber with contributions by Drew Adams ... [et al.].. London : Thames & Hudson, 2012. Russ, Thomas H.: Sustainability and design ethics [electronic resource] / Tom Russ.. Boca Raton, Fla. ; London : CRC, c2010. Fry, Tony: Design futuring : sustainability, ethics and new practice / Tony Fry.. Oxford : Berg, 2009 Landscape and sustainability / edited by John F. Benson and Maggie H. Roe.. London : E. & F. N. Spon, 2000. Gastil, Raymond W.: Open : new designs for public space / Raymond W. Gastil and Zoe Ryan.. New York : Princeton Architectural ; London : Hi Marketing, 2004 Bachelard, Gaston, 1884-1962.: The poetics of space / Gaston Bachelard ; translated from the French by Maria Jolas ; with a new foreword by John R. Stilgoe.. Boston : Beacon Press, c1994 Culture/nature : art and philosophy in the context of urban development / edited by Anke Haarmann and Harald Lemke.. Berlin : Jovis, 2009 Corbett, Judy.: Designing sustainable communities : learning from Village Homes / Judy Corbett and Michael Corbett ; foreword by Robert L. Thayer.. Washington, D.C : Island Press , 2000. Crosby, Theo, 1925-1994.: How to play the environment game / (by) Theo Crosby.. Harmondsworth : Penguin ; London : Arts Council of Great Britain , 1973.
Documentaries:
AFTERMATH: Population Zero. (2008). Documentary film. Directed by Jason Bourque. National Geographic: Cream Productions. Life After People: The Series (2008). Episode 1, 5,, “The Bodies Left Behind” and “The Invaders”. TV, A E Networks (Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company, The History Channel, April 21 2009, May 20 2009. Chernobyl Reclaimed: An Animal Takeover. (2007). Documentary Film. Directed by Peter Hayden. Unknown place of production: Blue Paw Artists and Off the Fence.
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