The Green Mile - Design Think Tank 2020/21 - The London School of Architecture

The Green Mile

Foreword The Green Mile proposes a new vision for the City of London, as a way forward from the crucible of crises we currently face: Covid, Brexit and the Climate Crisis.

Much of the project has sought to explore the complexity of the City of London, taking present challenges as an opportunity to investigate what it can offer beyond economic self-interests. With nearly half the residents of neighbouring Tower Hamlets claiming some level of benefits, there is a large disparity in the social reality of those who work in the City and those who live in its shadow.

With the departure of its main tenant, The EBRD, the project uses 135-175 Bishopsgate as a tool to hack into the City’s intrinsic qualities and encourage an explosion of green industry.

In this document, we imagine a future for the building as the Institute for Green Research, home to Research and Development departments of major corporations and startup companies alike.

the integration of a public programme embedded in nature and accessible to all is another key tenet of our manifesto: the Green Mile is for the benefit of all and not just a select few.

As students of the LSA, the work-education hybrid is a familiar model. As such we see the integration of classrooms and auditoria into work spaces as a key tenet of both our economic and social manifesto. We believe that the emphasis on apprenticeships, re-skilling and retraining into new sustainable methods of hydrogen production, netzero transport strategies and green finance will be integral to Britain’s recovery from the accumulation of crisis, growing to become pioneers in green technology.

The jurisdiction of the City of London Corporation was extended in 1994 to adopt the entire Broadgate site, having previously been in the borough of Tower Hamlets. We believe it is time for the surrounding boroughs to push back against the City’s creeping sprawl.

Our vision for this building is aimed at the residents of Tower Hamlets and Shoreditch, just as much as for the workers of the City.

Capitalising on the building’s immense ground floor presence and unique location,

We aim to set alight the first beacon of London’s Green Mile, which will further catalyse both public and private funding to follow suit, and secure London’s identity as the pioneer in green finance and research.

We are optimistic about the future of the City of London, but we believe it must rethink its priorities. Through this document we argue that the marker of a truly successful City is not solely based in economic growth, but also in social equality and inclusivity.

In the Green Mile, the City is of benefit to people and planet alike.

Design Think Tank Home Office Tutors Blazej Czuba, Rafael Marks, Anna-Lisa Pollock, Charlotte Hurley Students Abigail Glancy, Gannaty Rahman, Jack McGuinness, Leo Sixsmith, Jonathan Boon, Ash Zul Parquear

Contents 1. Thoughts and Research 2. Our Vision 3. Design Tactics

One: Thoughts & Research 1.

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135-175 Bishopsgate Broadgate The City of London The monofunctional City The polarity of central London A lack of meaningful public realm A shifting market Heritage or horror?

Fragility exposed Working from home

10. Beyond the pandemic 11. ‘Back to normal’ isn’t good enough 12. The Climate Emergency 13. Brexit: An existential threat 14. A better way forward 15. The crucible of crises 16. Problems acknowledged 17. The residential argument 18. A unique setting 19. Beyond the fortress 20. Momentum is growing

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

135-175 Bishopsgate A cathedral to free-market capitalism Former home of the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development The monolith of 135-175 Bishopsgate sits on the fringes of the Square Mile and adjacent to Liverpool Street Station. Built as part of the Broadgate development and designed

by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill in 1989, the site unusually sits on top of the Eastern tracks of Liverpool street Station.

It was immediately inhabited by the EBRD, a bank established by a newly economically unified Western Europe

with the mission of promoting ‘marketorientated economies’ in Central and Eastern Europe, following the collapse of communism.

The excess and ostentation of freemarket capitalism is apparent in the built form of the bank to this day, with classical forms in the colonnade and rotunda, along with marble clad lobbies, gold escalators and giant frescos on the walls.

However the building is soon to be empty, as the EBRD have announced they are about to move into brand new premises in Canary Wharf. This allows us to imagine a future use for this building, beyond the world of neoliberalism.

Above: Image of the EBRD central lobby. The Bank is moving out later this year to new premises in Canary Wharf

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Broadgate The embodiment of the 1980s boom Developed over the tracks of the former Broad Street Station in 1985, Broadgate created its own land-value. Neo-liberal in its DNA, this City complex embodied the brash, flash “loadsamoney” culture of the Thatcher era.

This “amphitheatre” is Broadgate Circle, the centrepiece of a series of privately owned public spaces: an example of the American influence in more than just the postmodern architecture.2

As Robert Booth writes in the Guardian: “Its architects captured the soaring confidence of the decade by placing trading floors around an outdoor amphitheatre, where City workers swigged champagne and flaunted their brick-sized mobile phones.”1

The spreading City In 1994 the borough boundary of the Corporation of London was extended to encompass the Broadgate estate, which had previously been in Tower Hamlets, indicating the extreme political and economic power of the City, and the anticipatory excitement for office space in the Big Bang era.

Above: The construction of 135-175 Bishopsgate on top of disused railways lines previously serving Broad Street station

Above: The construction of 135-175 Bishopsgate on top of disused railways lines previously serving Broad Street station

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

The City of London The square mile of coffee, cats and caretakers Initial impressions of the City The site sits within the jurisdiction of the City of London, to the North of London Wall, just outside of the boundary of the original Roman Settlement of Londinium.

Our prior knowledge of the area and subsequent experience having started this project led us to paint various images of the City. As the illustration

opposite summarises, to us the City is a place of great polarity, buzzing in the weekday and deserted outside of working hours. That image is also one of separation, as the City has a very different feel to the rest of London: it seems to exist independently from the boroughs around it.

And lastly for many people, it appears to be a place filled with a huge density of business men, trading floors, skyscrapers and ‘Pret a Manger’s, where there is little else to offer the average Londoner.

Above: 135-175 Bishopsgate, situated on the Northern fringe of the City of London Above: An illustration showing some of our initial impressions of the City.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Office

The monofunctional City Priority office areas and the modernist attraction to zoning A legacy of depopulation and corporate priority Being the core of London’s Central Activities Zone (CAZ), the City of London is a Priority Office Area, providing 12% of the total employment of London, and accounts for over 5 million square metres of office floor space. The map opposite indicates how the presence of office space is overwhelming dominant.

The governance of the City of London has been firmly on the side of corporate priority since the mid 19th century, at which the City rapidly depopulated. We find now there are only 7100 homes within the City of London.

Office to Residential PDR elsewhere has intensified the demand for office space in the City.

Above: The areas in red are parts of the City exempt from PDR under the Article 4 Direction.

The intensification is growing

This intensity of offices is not set to slow down, with the City of London Corporation proposing an increase of 2,000,000m2 of office floor space by 2036.

Elsewhere newly increased permitted development rights for turning offices into residential is causing a growing shortage. This is pushing up the demand for office space in the City, which benefits from an Article 4 Direction (thus PDR does not apply).

The Draft City Plan for 2036 seeks to increase office space by 2,000,000m2

Offices 10 - 20 %

Retailing 40 - 50 %

Hotels 0%

Housing 0%

Above: Indicative distribution of development in Liverpool Street Area until 2036.

Above: Land use map of the area in 2020

Retail

Residential

Other

2011 Area Classification Industry for Output Areas THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Variable 12 - % Who are White

K Financial and insurance activities

0 LQ 0.27 LQ 0.39 LQ

The polarity of central London Monofunctionalism leads to monoculturism “Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.” Jane Jacobs Despite its undeniable economic advantages, the dense clustering of business affects much more than just productivity. Extremely high land prices and the mean the area has been collonised by corporate business and their employees.

0.51 LQ 0.63 LQ 0.75 LQ

Approximated social grade Sex

Whilst maintaining some distance from the cliched rhetoric of the ‘bigApproximated bad corporate’ it is undeniable that the socio-economic reality of the UK is that ‘big corporate’ is a male, white and middle-class dominated industry.

The effect of this is that the City is an exclusive place, with statistically little reason to venture in if you do not fall into that category.

social grade AB

0.87 LQ

Females

Average 0 LQ 0.04 LQ Above: Percentage of people who are White (Dark Red = 100%, Pale Yellow = 0%)

Above: Percentage of people who work in the Financial or Insurance Industry (Dark Red = 100%, Pale Yellow = 0%)

0.36Data LQ geography

Scale 1:2120

0.68 LQ Average 1.3 LQ

Map shows % of Various measurement units.

DataShine produced by the BODMAS pro Map shows % of All usual residents aged 16 to 74 in employment the week before theiscensus.

Census data (c) Crown Copyright Office of National Statistics.

Visit http://www.datashine.org.uk/ for an intera Census data (c) Crown Copyright Office of National Statistics.

1.6 LQ Contains Ordnance Survey data (c) Crown copyright & database right 2014-5. Survey data (c) Crown copyright & database right 2014-5.

Contains Ordnance

,c11_uk_-OAC11UK0012-P-oa-to100-0.8

2.0 LQ

Above: Percentage of people with approximated social grade AB (Dark Red = 100%, Pale Yellow = 0%)

A borough boundary divide

Above: Percentage of people who are female (Dark Red = 100%, Pale Yellow = 0%)

Data geography

Scale 1:2120

With over half the residents claiming some level of benefits in neighbouring Tower Hamlets compared to the almost limitless wealth of the City, there is huge disparity in the social reality of those who work in the City and those who live in its shadow.3 The maps indicate local polarity in social realities.

Map shows % of All Household Reference Personsabove aged 16 to shows 64.this% Map of All usual residents.

DataShine is produced by the BODMAS pro Census data (c) Crown Copyright Office of National Statistics.

Visit http://www.datashine.org.uk/ for an intera Census data (c) Crown Copyright Office of National Statistics.

Contains Ordnance Survey data (c) Crown copyright & database right 2014-5.

Contains Ordnance Survey data (c) Crown copyright & database right 2014-5.

,c11_ew_-QS611EW0002-QS611EW0001-oa-standard_dev-0.2

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

A lack of meaningful public realm Economic objectives first, human needs second Questionable public realm and vacant superlobbies The City is primarily driven by economic objectives, as evident in the fabric make-up of the Priority Office Area. Areas of publicly accessible greenery are few and far between, presumably due to extreme land prices and lack of residential communities to utilise them outside of a lunchbreak.

Right: Finsbury Square, minimal planting and little separation from road traffic

At Ground Floor, we see the streets lined with the inactive frontages of ostentatious super lobbies, which are designed to impress, but ultimately remain empty.

The modernist pre-occupation with separating a place into its varying functions is incongruous with the vibrant, mixed and diverse pieces of City fabric that we all know and love.

The City of London is an example of the ‘industrial atmosphere’ that can be created when there is a lack of variety in use.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

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DESIGN TACTICS

A shifting market Effects on the built realm Ways of working are changing “The City has had to evolve. It had to become more versatile in its approach otherwise relying on a financial sector or insurance, it’s too narrow. I think in answer to your question yes, a bit like the lines between conventional service were blurring and the lines between districts of London are changing as well. I think most agents in the markets will tell you that over the last 5-6 years occupiers have become a lot more flexible in terms of where they would want to eventually reside” Shaun Simons, Collier International.

The WeWork model Fierce competition in the area from new build mixed-use developments such as Principal Place and popular co-working providers such as WeWork suggests that in a post-pandemic recession, outdated office stock will be hard hit. Underutilisation would provide developers with a strong argument for demolition.

Above: An interview with Shaun Simons from Colliers International discussing the how ways of working are changing.

Ageing office stock in a fast-moving market The City of London has a stock of ageing office spaces, built in the office boom of the 1980s.

With 15 year-old buildings commonly failing to comply with modern EPC requirements; inadequate ventilation

systems; tired facades and interiors, and with the expansive trading floors designed for a single tenant becoming incompatible with modern standards of working, these buildings must adapt quickly to retain their attraction.

135-175 Bishopsgate is a classic example of this, where we see the bank relocating to brand new ‘eco-offices’ in Canary Wharf.

Unsafe environments in a pandemic

Dated facades where appearance is everything

Do not meet modern EPC ratings

Single tenant design becoming unpopular

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

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Above: “Last ‘unaltered part’ of Broadgate faces demolition as listing ruled out”

Heritage or horror?

Broadgate’s postmodern legacy “Keeping pace with the market”: British Land transform Broadgate Fierce debate over the fate of a number of post-modern offices largely designed

by Peter Foggo of ARUP in the 1980s has taken place over the last few years, during which time the landowners, British Land have embarked on a

Above: Appold Street in 2008, prior to the demolition of 4-6 Broadgate designed by Peter Foggo.

Above: Appold Street in 2017, after the construction of the UBS HQ by Make Architects. The design has considerably changed the original permeable masterplan for the Broadgate site, and has drawn strong criticism.

Above: Eldon Street in 2017, during the demolition of 100 Liverpool St designed by Peter Foggo.

Above: Eldon Street in 2020, during the construction of British Land’s major flagship redevelopment of 100 Liverpool Street, by Hopkins Architects.

massive redevelopment of the original complex.

“When we became custodians of the campus it was all office, and we realised that in order to keep pace with the demand of the market we would have to be creating a much more mixed used, 7 day destination.”4 Transforming London’s Broadgate: 100 Liverpool Street

Above: Social media appreciation for the 135-175 Bishopsgate

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

An area which relies on its 9-5 community

Fragility exposed When half a million people disappear over night

As discussed, the City’s lack of variety in uses mean that is reliant on its commuting community, who typically only ‘activate’ the City during working hours. As we have seen, British Land have recognised this underutilisation of prime space, and are working at redeveloping a large part of Broadgate to become a mixed-use, 7 day a week destination.

Indeed, the market seems to agree with this sentiment, as we see the demand for City floorspace surge once again, as developers back the City’s future.

But will this be the last pandemic?

When the pandemic hit however, offices shut and 500,000 people disappeared from the Square Mile in the blink of an eye. With virtually the entirety of City workers now working from home, and doing so successfully, new concerns about the future of office spaces were raised - a particularly worrying topic for British Land, who own 22.7 million sq ft of office space.

This may be true, however we cannot pretend this will be the last pandemic.

Many scientists agree that our behaviour - particularly deforestation and our encroachment on diverse wildlife habitats - is helping diseases to spread from animals into humans more frequently, and many are predicting that “this kind of event is likely to happen again”.6

The City will bounce back

Therefore we have an opportunity to prepare ourselves better for the next one. By diversifying our City to include more uses, we can ensure better economic resilience in a future lockdown.

Peter Rees, Ex-Chief of Planning for the City of London disagrees with this fear-mongering.

“Journalists have been telling me that

Above: Liverpoool St Station, Network Rail

people will be working from home within 10 years since the 1980s.” He says. “But the more that technology invaded people’s jobs, the more they wanted to come face to face”.5

Above: Moorgate Station, geograph.org.uk

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DESIGN TACTICS

A Developer’s View Across London, many of the big landlords have been following WeWork’s lead, leasing space to smaller outfits on a more flexible basis, rather than looking for major anchor tenants.

Despite hawking the biggest office in the capital, Harry Badham admits that the future of the workplace is smaller tenants leasing smaller spaces. “We’ve always said we want to be the only landlord in London to lease you less space,” he says. “We’re providing the communal facilities for the whole building so you don’t have to.”7

Working from home A long term threat to the office?

Positive outlook for the office

Positive outlook for WFH

Extracted from “The Wodge: can London’s tallest new skyscraper survive the Covid era?”

Oliver Wainwright

Negative outlook for WFH

Negative outlook for the office

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

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DESIGN TACTICS

A view beyond the pandemic A renewed desire to be in the office... But it needs to work harder for us Access to greenery and air

important places in the City are outdoors and the pandemic has certainly taught us that.”9

The pandemic has disrupted our daily routine. The French refer to this as “metro-boulot-dodo”, literally meaning tube-job-sleep. The disruption to a lifestyle that was so ingrained and unchallenged, has offered a rare chance to pause and reflect on how we want to work.

A focus on collaboration

Carolyn Steele writes in her book ‘Sitopia’ that the ‘Good Life’ is at odds with modern ways of working, and we must connect with nature and food in more meaningful ways to be happier in ourselves.8

Lockdown has taught us the importance of physical closeness.

Ziona Strelitz, a social anthropologist and veteran workplace consultant, explains that the best “collaboration happens in the immediacy of a horizontal surface and two bums.”

Indeed it is the proximity, the intangible ‘buzz’ and those face-toface encounters that have been the foundation of doing business in the City since medieval times.

Peter Rees would agree. “The most

“The impact of environment needs to be much higher in people’s consciousness regarding mental health.” Geraldine Strathdee, NHS Foundation Trust Above: ‘Meetings Rock’n’ Roll10: Meeting Design’, Kongres Magazine

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

‘Back to normal’ isn’t good enough High value land means demolition is rife Tax advantages for demolition over retrofit “The cost of refurbishing a dated, 1980s office block is high at around £130 per sq ft. Since the rental value is unlikely to match a new development, only a small number of situations can be considered viable.”

London Office Policy Review 2017 Greater London Authority

The extremely high land prices in the City create a scenario where it is financially tempting for developers to knock down the existing building and ‘start again’, taller and better

equipped to respond to modern market requirements.

This however can no longer be acceptable. By some estimates, production of Portland cement is responsible for 5% of total global CO2 emissions.

As the AJ RetroFirst campaign has highlighted, the simplest way to drastically cut emissions on a project is to recycle existing fabric on a given site. However, retrofits still face tax discrimination, with VAT being charged at 20 percent, whilst new builds do not require VAT payments.10

Above: Lack of embodied carbon regulation “huge blind spot” says Architects Climate Action Network.

Children’s Hospital, Chris Dorley Brown, 2014

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

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The Climate Emergency We are breaking all of our planetary boundaries, and for what?

Doughnut Economics Kate Raworth’s book, “Doughnut Economics” indicates that the UK, although breaking five out of seven of our planetary boundaries, is still not achieving adequate standards of social equality or employment.11

problem: a free-market capitalism, of which 135-175 Bishopsgate is an ultimate symbol, that exploits both natural and human resource to maximise profits. It is this ‘race to the bottom line’ that is at the heart of the major issues we are facing on the horizon and must be dismantled.

She argues that this will not change unless we tackle the root of the

Above: The UK Doughnut, Doughnut Economics Action Lab

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Brexit: an existential threat The City is in a precarious situation A threat to its modus operandi The fallout from the UK’s departure from the EU is still yet to be felt, but we know there is potentially a real threat to the way the City, and the whole UK economy is structured.

We see an existential threat to the City’s modus operandi which relies on its status as the gateway to Europe.

The City, of which 40% of employment is within the financial services industry

could be extremely negatively affected if European firms start to move their premises out of London and back to EU member states. This could feasibly happen if firms feel inhibited or penalised due to their UK location, due to changes and tariffs in cross-border exchange.

Recently, news emerged that Amsterdam has overtaken London as Europe’s top trading hub, amid reports about the security of London’s financial service sector, and fears that things were about to get worse.

Above: “Amsterdam leaps ahead of london in European Share Trading”, source CBOE Europe

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

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DESIGN TACTICS

A better way forward In challenge lies the opportunity to re-invent A future in emerging markets Fears over the outstripping of London’s share-trading by the Dutch capital are mounting, giving commentators the rise to reflect on possible ways to boost the economy.

Proposing an economic alternative to the City’s modus operandi of “too much finance” is a specific goal of this project, something in which we do not engage in isolation. 12 In the City AM Article “City’s professional know-how matched with UK construction expertise could be a global titan”, Hannah Vickers writes:

“Post-pandemic recovery will be centred on pro-active investments in the built environment to act as a catalyst for wider recovery. In this context, even our work as a strategic partner to delivering ambitions on Net Zero - where the global market for environment expertise and technology alone is estimated at $1 trillion a yearand leveling up the regions can be exported too.”13 In Nov 2020 the UK government announced a 10-point plan to kickstart a Green Industrial Revolution.14 Prior to this The Green Finance Institute was established in 2019 to fund Green solutions.15

The pressure to be an attractive trading partner President Joe Biden has publicly expressed his dedication to fighting climate change, as is evidenced by his immediate re-signing of the Paris Agreement following the inauguration.

Our own dedication to the Paris Agreement, combined with the hard fact that post-Brexit, the UK needs to nurture trading relationships outside of the EU, gives us extra reason to dive into the emerging market of Green Technology.

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A crucible of crises Why change now?

There is an imperative to change the way the City functions. We are at a unique time in history where several crises are colliding and if we don’t change, the future looks extremely bleak.

We have already seen many negative effects not only on the UK economy, but also in the division and social outlook of UK society, as a result of our departure from the European Union.

Covid has brought immense disruption to every aspect of our lives, as long as immense pain and suffering to many people. As we begin to see a way out of the pandemic, we have been afforded

Brexit

a unique opportunity to reflect and engage in imagining how the ‘engine’ might work better for us as citizens and workers.

With the planet warming at an alarming rate, the climate crisis threatens our very existence in the not-so-far future and has been ignored too long.

As Churchill darkly said, ‘never waste a good crisis’. It is our intention that the Green Mile doesn’t aim to simply mitigate the problems we are facing, but seeks to actively improve the City of London for both the planet and people.

Covid-19

Right: Image courtesy of Youth At Work Partnership

Environment

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Problems acknowledged What is happening already to address issues in the City The mixed-use office

Retail expansion in the City

As office design changes to reflect modern, flexible ways of working we see a rise in the number ‘mixed-use’ office schemes.

Trail-blazed by Google at their Googleplex Office in California, we see developers offering more and more activities to their employees. The new 22 Bishopsgate is an example: a rock-climbing wall, restaurants, bars, gym and even a GP surgery.

The City of London is paving the way for investors to add 122,500 square metres of retail space in the district over the coming 15 years, according to its Plan for 2030. In this way they are encouraging increased weekend and evening traffic, as well as opening up the space to those who don’t necessarily work there.

The Culture Mile The City of London Corporation leads the development and expansion of the Culture Mile, “a major destination for the culture of today in the heart of London’s financial district”, recognising the need to improve the public realm and diversify the offering of the City beyond the 5 day week.16

We think the City can go further Although the cultural offering and retail expansion go someway towards opening the City to those who would not have entered it before, we think the City can go further. Retail offerings can still exclude many, which still excludes many. The tokenistic attempt at ‘mixed-use’ office developments do very little to encourage new users into the City outside of working hours, as the target audience still seems to be the existing user: the employee.

Above: The internal rock climbing wall at 22 Bishopsgate ‘The Wodge’

Above: Olaf Breuning’s smoke installation as “Station to Station: A 30 Day Happening at Barbican Centre17

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

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The residential argument An ongoing debate From its inception as a roman settlement over 2000 years ago, to a medieval trading town, to today’s square mile, the City has always been a place of commerce. Having said this, since the mid 19th century, the City has de-populated on a large scale.

Where there once existed trading and residential communities alongside, on top and underneath eachother, there is now over 5 million sqm of office space and only 7100 residential units.

The question over re-introducing an increased residential population into the City was certainly evident in the debate surrounding the construction of the Barbican in the 1970s. ‘The Barbican Archive Mixtape’ produced

by Matthew Harle features voices and concerns surrounding this new residential community designed to ‘bring life back into the heart of the City’.18 “It’s always been a commercial area, and probably the most valuable bit of ground in Britain, why change its function now?“ “The city of London should have more to offer than just profits, without a living community, it’s just a factory town.”

“The city’s function is to create wealth, purely and simply, and on that basis the whole Barbican, including the flats, was misguided from the first. More office blocks should have been built on the area of the Barbican.”

Beyond a factory town

Many recent articles, and indeed the original brief for this Design Think Tank, speculate about a future for the City that integrates more residential development in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

This argument puts forward the case that

in order for the City to break out of its week/weekend polarity, we must introduce more residents to create a truly mixeduse, 7 day a week place.

Agglomeration benefits

Spatial clustering allows for a variety of external benefits such as labour pooling, sharing of suppliers, and specialization; these in turn contribute to increased productivity and economic growth. The intense clustering of business premises in the City has undeniably contributed to London’s unique position as a global financial centre, and an economic engine that drives 22% of the UK economy.

Residential communities a hindrance to business

The City’s unique form of self-governance in the form of the Remembrancer is only possible due to a lack of interference from local residents. As discussed previously, with financial growth comes physical growth. The sheer volume of construction that occurs in the City would not be possible with the political power of significant residential communities existing in tandem.

Apartments don’t always mean residents

Although many would like to see another Barbican built in the City, the economic reality of today cannot be overlooked.

Land prices have sky-rocketed by over 2000% since the Barbican was completed.

The extremely high price psqm in the City creates an environment where the average apartment price is over a million pounds, and in reality are vacant investment assets, rather than lived-in homes.

Above and below: Stills from ‘The Barbican Archive Mixtape’, by Matthew Harle19

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A unique opportunity The Groundscraper on the City Fringe The site’s ‘fringe-ness’ is an interesting factor, not least because it exists very close to the boundary of the three distinct boroughs.

Indeed, Bishopsgate forms the boundary line between the City and Tower Hamlets. It is a distinction that is keenly felt, even just by comparing the two sides of the road.

The site’s proximity to the liveliness of the East End, with Brick Lane and

Hackney

Spitalfields Market, and Shoreditch to the North could be of huge benefit to the site, but in actuality the building does everything it can to turn this footfall away.

The extreme length of the building makes it a ground-scraper rather than a skyscraper, offering a huge potential for significant public impact at Ground Floor, which is currently underutilised.

Tower Hamlets

City of London

Above: The building is roughly 3/4 of the length of The Empire State Building

Above: The site in relation to the City of London, Hackney and Tower Hamlets

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1

Brick Lane

Beyond the fortress A barricade from east to west Where the City of London has historically spread into neighbouring parts of London, our vision is that the neighbouring boroughs push back.

This photo journey explains a trip westwards, from the lively and diverse, finely grained Brick Lane, to the fortress of Bishopsgate, which is a visual and physical barrier to movement.

From the trendiness and vibrancy of Brick Lane, a destination for food, art and shopping alike, it is noticeable diverse and multi-cultural in its social make-up.

2

signifies a defensive stance against to Tower Hamlets, as if to say: “Only certain people are welcome here.”

Spitalfields Market

The only permeation through the colossal expanse taking you through to Exchange Square is a small dimly lit arcade that opens only according to shopping hours, and takes you across the service road at the back of the building.

3

The Bishopsgate Fortress

The Historic Spitalfields Market is again a vibrant destination offering retail and dining opportunities of varying range.

When you reach Bishopsgate, you are met with the enormous stone, ballustraded undercroft that spans the length of the building from 135175. Emotionally it is a rebuffal, and

4

Above: A section through the existing Wall, indicating a necessary level change to the street due to the train station beneath the building.

The Arcade

Below: A journey East to West, starting at Brick Lane and ending at Broadgate Circle. Corresponding photos opposite.

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Broadgate Circle 4

5

3

2

1

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Momentum is growing Government Ten Point plan for a Green Industrial Revolution

Paris to be Europe’s greenest City by 2030

Four months ago the UK government announced their ten-point manifesto for a Green Industrial Revolution, planning to invest 12 billion pounds of public funds into Green Technological advancement. This major move will inevitably further catalyse investment in the private sector and thus the City of London has a real opportunity to support trailblazing businesses in the progression towards a Greener future, whilst simultaneously securing London’s future as the Centre for Green Technologies in Europe.

Large scale, transformative change to the fabric of our cities is not a pipe dream. The French capital is transforming itself for Parisians and the Planet, by planting hundreds of thousands of trees, banning petrol and diesel cars and committing to cover 50% of the City in planting by 2030.

100,000+ jobs

100,000 jobs

5200 jobs

£4bn

£12bn

£4.5bn

Point 2: Delivering the Growth of Low Carbon Hydrogen

Point 6: Net zero aviation and Green shipping

Point 10: Green Finance and Innovation

Above: Extracted from the UK Government “Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution”, Nov 2009. We believe these points could manifest in programmes appropriate for our building.20 Right: ‘How Paris plans to become Europe’s greenest city by 2030’ Huw Oliver, Time Out21

Two: Our vision

1. The IGR: Institute for Green Research 2. Connecting Miles and boroughs 3. Investing in an emerging sector 4. Democratising the City 5. Prioritising re-skilling and retraining 6. Reconnecting with nature 7. Disrupting the linear economy

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

The IGR: The Institute of Green Research The First Beacon of London’s Green Mile With the EBRD vacating 135-175 Bishopsgate in 2021, there is an opportunity to set alight the first beacon of London’s Green Mile and create a catalyst for the Green Revolution in the heart of the City. Finding ourselves at the crossroads of three crises, the City must adapt to survive in the turbulent global landscape.

Green technology is a rapidly growing market, and The City is perfectly placed to take centre stage and capatalise on the economic and social benefits this boom will bring. 135-175 Bishopsgate is among the most connected buildings in the City. Located next to Liverpool Street Station, the area has strong transport links to major cities throughout the UK; and London Stansted Airport providing links to the wider globe.

The possibility of attracting high skilled workers and academics is important in igniting the flame of the First Beacon of London’s Green Mile. There is also a strong social agenda to the Institute of Green Research which seeks to engage with the residential boroughs of Tower Hamlets and Shoreditch, creating a platform of education and employment that is inclusive of people from all backgrounds.

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OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Expanding the Green Mile The missing piece of the puzzle 135-175 Bishopsgate is surrounded by the Culture Mile to the west, the Square Mile to the south, and Tech City to the north. The proposed Green Mile forms the missing piece of the puzzle and is in a position to take advantage of its proximity to the industries which enclose it. The Green Mile seeks to open the gates of the City to everyone and create an inclusive and socially diverse environment.

The first step to achieving this is by creating green routes between the City and Tower Hamlets, and providing amenities to people from all backgrounds.

Tech City

Culture Mile Green Mile

Square Mile

Tower Hamlets

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

Investing in an emerging sector

It is estimated that the global market for environmental expertise sits at $1 trillion a year. With the climate crisis ever worsening and the call for solutions ever louder, green technology is an emerging sector with near limitless potential to positively impact upon the economy and social inclusivity.

The Green Finance Institute was established in 2019 to fund growth in this emerging sector, which is also acknowledged as vital in Britain’s growth - outlined in the UK Government’s 10-point plan to kick-start a Green Industrial Revolution.

Learning from the successes of the Francis Crick Institute and their pioneering research in to biomedicine, this project envisions 135-175 Bishopsgate to become the centre of Green Research and business; and be the catalyst in forming a knowledge cluster within the City of London.

DESIGN TACTICS

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DESIGN TACTICS

Democratising the City

A core tenet of our manifesto is that all should benefit from this Green Revolution. Given its wealth, The City must work harder to be more propositional in its social offering, opening its eyes to the inequalities that exist at its fringes. With nearly half of the residents of neighbouring Tower Hamlets claiming some level of benefits, there is a large social and economic disparity between those who work in The City, and those who live in its shadow. The Green Mile seeks to engage with this issue by creating opportunities of education, employment, and leisure for all.

Existing user

New user

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OUR VISION

Prioritising re-skilling and retraining

The new workspaces will put an emphasis on re-skilling and retraining. As large corporations are reducing their carbon footprints and governments are putting measures in place to reduce global emissions and global warming, jobs that were previously in high demand will begin to diminish.

The re-skilling and retraining will be focused around the green technology sector, into which the UK government is planning to investing £12 billion, along with a 10-point plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. This will give those at risk of losing jobs a chance to transfer their skill sets into a newly emerging sector that is projected to soar in the coming years. In doing so, newly skilled workers in this industry will provide London with a key asset for taking a lead on green technology and setting the standard for cities in the future.

DESIGN TACTICS

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DESIGN TACTICS

Reconnecting with nature

As developed in the previous chapter, the City of London lacks quality green space, with examples such as Finsbury Square poorly planted and offering little separation from busy traffic. As Carolyn Steele would argue, the ‘Good Life’ is one of symbiosis with nature and food, where natural biorhythms are considered and respected. This is at odds with a working life in the City, where, as Peter Buchanan puts it, “the alienating environment bequeathed by modernity” is an obstacle to progressing to a place where “we again feel at home in the world.”22 This therefore, is also a manifesto for a slower way of working; a more connected and greener way of being, where we support nature-driven processes and enjoy the thrilling and enriching effect they can have on our planet and on our lives. By re-connecting with nature; breaking through the concrete and laying down tree roots, encouraging wildlife and plant diversity, we signal a shift towards an integrated town and country, where previously they had been artificially opposed.

We are a part of nature, not apart from nature, and through the planting of the Green Mile we aim to reinstill this fact into our psyche.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

Disrupting the linear economy

The City of London’s ‘throw away attitude’ to buildings of less than 50 years in age, as documented in the previous chapter, needs to be disrupted. As we learn that cement production is accountable for 7% of all CO2 emissions, our manifesto for the re-adaptation of existing structures becomes clear. We must change the discourse surrounding ‘outdated’ buildings and embodied carbon.

As a contentious behemoth of a postmodern office building, the threat to demolish this building is real. Whilst recognising the building needs serious improvements to make it fit for purpose in the future, we want to use the building to promote the circular economy and re-adaptation of existing structures in the City of London.

Adding new green infrastructure such as biophilia, natural ventilation, we can intervene in the conventional timeline of a building and the linear cycles of its components. We hope this long-term approach ultimately sets a precedent for further ambitious projects in the new Green Mile.

DESIGN TACTICS

Four: Design tactics

1. Liberating the Ground Floor 2. Extending the atria 3. Diversifying the facade 4. Refit, reduce, recycle 5. Integrating education into the workplace 6. Wilding the roof 7. Implementing over time

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DESIGN TACTICS

01 Liberating the Ground Floor Our first architectural intervention opens the building up to become an internal public streetscape, establishing itself as a vibrant gateway between the Eastend and The City.

New entrances align with key crossing points from the streets opposite, and a more welcoming sloped threshold of vegetation mediates the step change into the building, improving its connection to Exchange Square and to

the plaza outside Liverpool St Station.

This intervention activates a new public programme, connecting a food market, welcome centre, community workshop and materials library space to the institute above.

A new entrance from Liverpool Street on the southern edge becomes a visual experience from outside where you see the entrails of green courtyards within

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OUR VISION

Existing condition a barrier to east-west movement Despite its proximity to the lively and permeable fine grain of Brick Lane to the east and Shoreditch to the north, the fortress of Bishopsgate does everything it can to turn this footfall away, hiding its only route through the building at ground floor.

Above: Currently a barricade against East-West movement.

DESIGN TACTICS

Stretching 260 meters in length, this landscraper offers huge potential to impact the public realm, and meet our ambition to open the City gates and offer more than just retail for local people who want to venture inside.

By creating multiple routes in to the building, the ground floor connects Bishopsgate to Exchange Square, and creates a gateway between the East End and the rest of the City.

Above: Connecting divided territories.

Above: Creating spaces and connecting through a permeable ground floor.

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DESIGN TACTICS

Spitalfields

Silicon Roundabout

- Food stalls, small businesses - A space for locals as well as passerby to interact with the space through food - Having space for food in the building would help small local businesses as well as help people come together.

-High tech companies and startups - A cluster of people who share space and knowledge - Bringing in tech into the building would encourage cross insemination of information between art and technology which would be very beneficial both parties

Brick Lane

Exchange Square

- Open space with several routes connecting to the surrounding - Provides a space for office workers to sit and enjoy lunch - The building would benefit from being more permeable

Liverpool St. Station

-Big chain cafes and food to grab on the go.

- A space that allows for locals and people commuting from outside of london to pass through - Having direct access from the station would allow the commuters to benefit from all that the area has to offer

- Workspaces, artist, sense of ownership of the space, a lot of culture - Its a Hub for artists due to access to workspaces - Creating a sense of ownership withing the building would help to engage people from Tower hamlets and the surrounding borough more

Broadgate

- Cafe, restaurants, public space - A space that draws people in by having multiple access points - Multiple access points would help people from all sides to be drawn in.

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SESC 24 de Maio, Paulo Mendes da Rocha and MMBB Arquitectos Servico Social do Comercio is a non-profit private organisation, with over 600 buildings in Brazil. In contrast to most of the city, 24 de Maio’s seamless open thresholds connect to the surrounding arcades and sheltered streets.

As a social condenser it is funded by a 1.5% tax on commerce workers. Whilst some specific services are

Above: SESC 24 de Maio’s armature belonged to its previous incarnation as the Mesbla Department Store

Above: Rooftop community pool

reserved for paying members, the building is open for all to enter, notably welcoming and supporting the homeless. Located in the most densely populated trade and service sector worker area in South America, it receives around 10,000 people on an average working day and feeds 1300 lunches.

DESIGN TACTICS

rout e Exis ting

The routes carved through the building and the introduction of atriums creates courtyard spaces within the ground floor which are flooded with natural light and surrounded by nature. There is a huge opportunity to introduce a diverse set of uses at ground floor which attracts new users in to the City and creating a place for the many, not the elite few.

St

The ground floor has huge potential to become a permeable gateway between the City of London, Shoreditch and Tower Hamlets. The existing ground floor experience is that of a fortress, creating an abrupt end to people traversing from east to west.

The proposal seeks to create a new internal streetscape offering a vibrant passageway parallel to Bishopsgate.

Links to Exchange Square to the west and further afield to Broadgate are vital in drawing people through the building and connecting this part of the city to the Eastend.

field

Reimagining the inbetween spaces

Brus h

Carving out new routes into the building

dles ex S t

Right: A series of diagrams showing the existing fortress of Bishopsgate, and how we aim to increase permeability by introducing new routes and entrances that align with the streets opposite.

Mid

OUR VISION

New St

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

Exchange Square

Atrium

Atrium

Atrium

Liverpool St Station

N BISHOPSGATE

New Street

Brushfield Street Middlesex Street

Resource Library / Workshop

Retail

Welcome Centre

Vibrant Food Market

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DESIGN TACTICS

Resource Library and Community Workshop

IGR Welcome Centre

Food Market

Cafés

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DESIGN TACTICS

Connecting through food Eating and sharing food is the one activity which brings people from all walks of life together and interact with one another.

The Food Market is strategically placed by Liverpool Street Station and is focused on attracting diverse street food vendors.

Moving away from large café and restaurant chains, the Bishopsgate Food Market is focused on attracting local food vendors from the neighbouring boroughs culminating in a vibrant array of cuisines and a bustling atmosphere.

Above: Kerb Seven Dials Market, London

Resource Library and Community Workshop

Food Market Community workshops

Above: National Theatre Extension, Haworth Tompkins. The workshops can be viewed from the street.

The Resource Library and Community Workshop seeks to instill the ethos of ‘Fix, Fix, Fix!’ and be the interface between the public and the uses of the building above. The workshops can be viewed from the street, provoking the passerby to venture inside and discover about the Green Mile and green tech revolution.

The workshop is targeting the residential neighbourhoods in Tower Hamlets and artisans from Shoreditch by encouraging them to bring broken items and learn to fix instead of replace them. The workshops create a strong ethos of skills and knowledge sharing between one another.

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DESIGN TACTICS

Accessible main entrance Along Bishopsgate the existing ground floor is raised above eye level with a wall running along the majority of the street. Accessibility for anyone with disabilities or parents with pushchairs is woeful.

The proposed main entrance greatly improves the accessibility to all users by creating an even mixture of stairs and gently sloping ramps in to the building.

The existing walls along the street are removed allowing views in to the ground floor experience and internal atriums.

Above: Village centre of Meilen, Zurich, Switzerland. Blättler Dafflon Architekten, Horisberger Wagen Architekten.

Photography by Studio Vulkan.

Above: A short section through the building illustrating the new stairs and ramps introduced to deal with a necessary level change in a more sympathetic way. The level change is necessary due to the train station below the building.

Democratising the entrance “Either way, all democracies need champions. It’s our role, as stewards of the urban realm, to will public space into existence and to democratize our progressively privatized cities.” Elizabeth Diller

IGR Welcome Centre

The restructuring of the entrance, to dismantle the ‘Wall’ and introduce new planted ramps and steps, create a new accessible piece of public realm on Bishopsgate that can be a place to dwell and congregate, rather than just a necessary level change.

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DESIGN TACTICS

02 Extending the atria The existing building is designed around four atrium spaces of varying depth and width that punch into the deep floor plate. Capped with large glazed roof lights these spaces are thermally sealed and provide access to natural light in the offices adjoining.

One of our key design moves is to further widen and deepen these atria spaces to improve light into the plan, as well as activating them with

planting and activity. Visibility from one space to another is integral to our vision of a collaborative and lively working atmosphere.

The building is of steel portal frame construction with steel decking floor slabs, offering us more flexibility in terms of cutting away floor space than if it had been pre-tensioned concrete.

Above: Diagram showing the steel portal frame construction of the existing building

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DESIGN TACTICS

Above: Existing section showing existing atrium spaces.

Opportunities for light and ventilation By widening and pulling down the atrium’s, natural light is able to flood down to the ground floor of the building and penetrate into the lower floors, which currently suffer from a lack of natural light. This lack of natural light has resulted in a ground floor that currently fails to interact with the public realm. Opportunities for natural ventilation are also made possible, enabling cross ventilation between the new facade and the atrium volumes as a continuous air flow.

Above: Proposed section showing proposed atrium spaces.

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DESIGN TACTICS

Atria to be activated with biophilia and circulation The new atrium’s perform as new circulation spaces within the building which bring a diverse spectrum of biophilia into the building, offering natural air cleansing. The central atrium functions as a public intervention that connects the ground floor to the public rooftop. A treetop walk leads up to the top of one of the forest canopy conservatories, allowing people to truly immerse themselves within nature and enjoy

Above: Atrium volumes providing connections between the public rooftop and public ground floor.

views over the London whilst up in the tree tops. Ramps that wrap around the circumference of the atrium’s provide circulation between different works and educational spaces within the building, some spaces, such as start up spaces, more connected than other to encourage collaboration and conversation. Surrounded by nature, these circulation spaces will provide a pleasant change of scenery for workers to move around the building, positively contributing to mental health.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

Introducing treehouses for congregation and collaboration Treehouse-like pods sit within the three atrium’s, providing an array of different public and private functions. The central atrium provides public amenities within the treehouses of varying size - a cafe along the treetop walk, a public auditorium, and multi-functional spaces for public and educational programs in the smaller pods. The two outer atrium’s hold treehouses that provide spaces to collaborate, hold meetings and hot desk for the workspaces. The treehouses will provide exciting work environments that inspire and motivate.

Engulfed in a rich amalgamation of vegetation and greenery, workspaces like this are unheard of in the City of London.

DESIGN TACTICS

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DESIGN TACTICS

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03 Diversifying the facade Our third tactic considers how the outdated existing glazing envelope is replaced, with a sensitivity to the existing postmodern facade.

By pulling the new glazing from its existing position, new outdoor areas are created, introducing more areas of greenery around the building.

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DESIGN TACTICS

A new thermal line The current facade is in good condition, but has few openings or windows that can be opened. By removing the existing glazing and creating a new inner facade, the facade becomes more domesticated and creates a new relationship to its surrounding context.

The solid-to-void ratio study highlights the rhythmic vertical and linear sequence of the facade. The large void openings will work successfully with a new inner facade, allowing plenty of light into the building and providing large outdoor spaces.

These new outdoor spaces can provide breeding grounds for wildlife in the City, as well as places to enjoy a breath of fresh air and have conversation whilst overlooking the busy street below.

Above: Office to residential conversion by MOATTI-RIVIERE. Charenton-le-Pont, France.

Above: Solid-to-void study of 135-175 Bishopsgate’s existing facade.

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DESIGN TACTICS

A green facade that reflects the identity of the building From the stone clad cathedral of capitalism, to a vibrant and wild adapted structure where environmental learning thrives, it is important that the building’s identity and public facing programme are readable from the street. The interventions to the facade aim to impress upon the viewer, that this is a different kind of office space, where the building’s ecological motives are announced from the onset.

Existing facade.

Existing glazing is removed re-used elsewhere.

Glazed sliding doors are fitted inside the existing facade, forming an inner facade.

The existing openings are fitted with balcony railings, creating balcony spaces within the original frame of the building.

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OUR VISION

A pushed back facade enables space for balconies and planting With a sensitive intervention to the existing facade, the glazing is pushed back at certain moments to introduce new pockets of dual aspect greenery into the building. Laboratories, lecture rooms and green workshop spaces are located deeper into the floor plate, with a variety of different types of collaborative spaces on the perimeter.

The inventive re-use of waste materials is key to the circular economy, and it is our intention that the outdated windows are put to use as partitions elsewhere in the building, in new internal configurations.

DESIGN TACTICS

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DESIGN TACTICS

04 Refit, Reduce, Recycle ‘Cities are the mines of the future’ Jane Jacobs Free from the constraints a residential population would impose, the City has greater freedoms to do as it pleases with its existing building stock.

In light of the environmental crisis, our fourth tactic strives to retain the embodied carbon within the building through an extensive retrofit approach.

Whilst recognising the building needs serious improvements to make it fit for purpose in the future, we want to use the building to promote the circular economy and re-adaptation of existing structures in the City of London.

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OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Rotor Deconstruction As one of the leading experts in deconstruction and circular building economy, Brussels based Rotor DC shed light on the material underpinnings of the discipline of architecture, sending their teams into buildings undergoing renovation or demolition to salvage a wide range of building elements and furniture. This material is processed and resold.

One of their most ambitious projects reclaims a vast quantity of building

Above: The careful retention and renovation of building materials used in the transformation of the WTC towers Source 51N4E and Rotor

material from the reconstruction of the Brussels World Trade Centre by 51N4E, feeding much of it back into the project “I think the goal for this project is to really test a new way of urban governance, where you work with what is there, you work with the existing fabric of the building, which is very different from the tabula rasa we usually start with and you try to incorporate as many urban actors as possible.” - 51N4E

Above: Harvesting building materials for the renovation of the WTC towers Source 51N4E and Rotor

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Regenerative building cycles

1. The application of circular economy principles to structure, facades and internal partitions, use easily demountable construction systems to enable the building to be used as its own material bank.

We want to challenge the conventional timeline of a building and the cycles of its components, ranging from more resilient structure to temporal media.

2. Biophilia acts as new green infrastructure to the building.

Challenging the linear hopping from start to end minimises the frequency in which interventions [•] need to be made, and the impacts this has on our environment.

4. Future developments in building technology may one day enable biophilia and technical systems to become one ecology, improving over time.

3. Implementing natural ventilation into the technical services of the building becomes a more long term system, which aims to be replaced less frequently.

5. Introducing a new educational programme to the building strives to create a more resilient, long-term typology, harnessing the feedback loop between work and education to create a microcosm of spaces within.

Adapting the following diagram enables us to consider a framework for this to happen.

6. There is also the possibility to use research which is taking place inside the building and apply it to the building’s own infrastructure and components.

6

Circular Economy

1

Circular Economy

Circular Economy

2

Biophilia

4

Nature knows best (natural ventilation)

3

5

Above: Conventional design temporalities diagram - 51N4E, Metropolitan Hybrids

Above: Adapting 51N4E’s diagram to consider more regenerative building cycles

Education as a regenerative programme

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Re-using the outdated glazing envelope In light of the environmental crisis, perhaps a softer architectural approach is required to reimagine the internal renovation of the building. Our approach uses the existing outdated glazing envelope to create new internal configurations.

These spaces challenge and compact the mono-climatic nature of conventional office spaces by creating a series of variable climates.

New protected outdoor spaces enable those who use the building to regularly get outside in the fresh air.

1. The conventional office environment manufactures a controlled internal climate

2. Introducing more efficient glazing compacts these climates into new internal configurations

3. Re-using the less efficient existing glazing to create more variable and responsive climates between inside and out

Above: The existing glazing envelope

4. New protected outdoor spaces are created

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OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

05 Integrating education into the workplace Integral to our vision for Institute for Green Technology is the inclusion of spaces for education and re-skilling, harnessing the connection between work and education as a more resilient long-term typology.

Using the City’s forces of agglomeration to establish this new Institute in the wake of Covid and Brexit, a network of interconnected programmes aim to benefit a wider

demographic of Londoners than the corporate office currently does, whilst encouraging a buzz and gossip between all those who use the building.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

The existing office

Private ‘director’ offices tend to line the outside of the building with windows out...

With the option of work from home, dull offices are now inexcusable.

What is the potential of simply removing these outdated internal configurations to liberate the floor plan?

... then big communal spaces with rows of desks going into the building, so no views out of windows!

Above: A current EBRD employees description of the office floorplate

“

“

Very little has changed internally since the 1980s when the EBRD moved in, and private director offices flank the perimeter of the building and block access to natural light within.

Above: Inside the current EBRD office

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Threshold spines Given the scale of the floorplate, we are interested in focusing our energy into the key, irreducible elements of the new education and office spaces.

The existing partitions are reused to create new spines which span the short width of the building.

These act as porous thresholds between more private corporate work and the more open education and research spaces.

A sea of more open and flexible workspace surrounds these spines, more responsive to office market conditions and developments to research taken place within the building.

1: The existing floor plate is cleared of its outdated partitions

Office

Education

2: Core thresholds are identified along the boundaries between education and office spaces

Above: RTS, Office KGDVS - Due to be completed in 2024

RTS contains four separate volumes housing the core broadcasting spaces, surrounded by a ‘field’ of fluid office space.

The volumes define separated zones within the field and the major supporting beams create a system of patios to organise the contents of the field, endlessly adaptable to the ever-changing world of media.

3: These contain the irreducible areas on the plan

Office

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DESIGN TACTICS

Integrating educational spaces into the plan The spines contain a variety of spaces such as labs, testing facilities, classrooms, green workshops and social workstations, and support the energetic collaborative environment necessary to attract people away from working at home.

By reusing both the outdated glazing and internal partitions of the building, a patchwork of climates is created amongst these spines.

Above: Strategic placement of hybrid workspace throughout the building to foster internal collaboration

Collaborative meeting tables, social spaces, kitchens, workshops and outdoor terraces

1

2

3

An auditorium and accompanying break out meeting areas

Social spaces and presentation rooms sit alongside an outdoor terrace

An enfilade of meeting rooms is nestled between laboratories and an outdoor space, which connects through to the atrium

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

Dedicated fab labs and workshops enable green engineering firms to test, prototype and experiment in large and high ceiling rooms.

Open plan hubs outfitted with bespoke work tops offer communal hot desking spaces.

Offering views to the East of London and into the Western central atrium.

Large breakout rooms accent medium and small “quiet“ spaces creating a variety in places to work, meet and engage at one another various levels of intimacy and privacy.

The public atrium has walkways to connect the IGR at various points providing security and direct access throughout.

DESIGN TACTICS

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DESIGN TACTICS

06 Wilding the roof The roof, currently inaccessible and home to clusters air conditioning units, will be transformed into a re-wilded forest canopy that will sit as the crown of the project. The forest canopy will provide safe spaces for wildlife to thrive in the City, from parakeets to butterflies and bees. The roof will also provide places for the public to look out over the Green Mile and the iconic London skyline to the south.

With such a large footprint, as well

as varying level changes, the roof offers the opportunity for multiple functionalities. The three extruding towers will be transformed into indoor conservatories with controlled climates, the connecting roof elements will provide outdoor spaces to enjoy on the roof, whether that be reading a book or doing some yoga, and the lower parts of the roof towards the west provide a great space for sports pitches/courts in a cool area protected from constant direct sunlight.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

The Forest Canopy

DESIGN TACTICS

1

2

3

The Forest Canopy brings together a focus on both physical and mental health, with public sports facilities surrounded in the presence of wild vegetation, allotments, grassland, beehives and greenhouse conservatories housing a rich diversity of biophilia. A rooftop bar, restaurant and outdoor cinema supports the buildings public program below. The heaviest of soil depths sit above the existing bomb proof cores, and a new water system lays the groundwork to trigger the conditions necessary for re-wilding to flourish.

1 3

2

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

“Public space as free as the air we breathe” The roof brings together a focus on both physical and mental health, with public sports facilities surrounded by allotments, grassland, beehives, wild vegetation and greenhouse conservatories housing a rich diversity of biophilia.

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

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DESIGN TACTICS

Plants outside the building

Camellia

Pyracantha

Celtis australis

Hedera

Birch

Hydrangea

Prunus serrulata

Conversation with Sam, Kew Gardens Gardener

Stipa

Atrium

Asplenium scolopendrium

Plants recommended to be chosen for both outside and inside the building include a mixture of trees, tree fern, climbers, succulents and ground cover, which encourage a biodiverse and balanced ecosystem.

Beschorneria

Dicksonia fibrosa

Cycas revoluta

Ficus pumilla

Sempervirum tectorum

Birch

Rooftop

Agapenthus

Buddleja

Indoor plants

Malus domestica

Zamia furfuracea

Blechnum

Birch and apple trees are recommended as they are low maintenance and will not become too tall or heavy. Large trees will however need to be located closer to the core, given the structural

support they require. Bushes such as Buddleja are particularly attractive to wildlife.

Gritty mineral rich soil is recommended for improved drainage.

Rooftop plants need to be watered once per day, or two or three times a day in summer. This can be supported with rainwater harvesting systems on the roof, which supply nutrient fed pop-up irrigation.

Platycerium bifurcatum

Cyathea medullaris

Left: Third party images from plantsnet.org Ficus elastica

Vera ting

Hedera

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OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

07 Implementing over time Recognising there are still significant environmental implications of renovating a building of this size, we aim to phase our architectural tactics into short, medium and long term interventions.

Incremental actions enable a live PostOccupancy Evaluation feedback loop, as well as stabilizing the effect of our interventions on the land value of the building.

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OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Social Economic Growth It is unrealistic to make a proposal which reduces the economic value of the building.

Challenging the inherent desire for continuous financial growth, we have therefore explored the feasibility of our interventions within a long-term, equalized economic framework.

‘Growth’ is instead measured through the non-financial social benefits which grow within the building.

Phasing our architectural tactics assumes building work disruption can be managed effectively. The City of London and its main development players have so far illustrated a strong ability to do this.

The following diagrams illustrate changes in the floor area as a result of our interventions, and how this gradually changes over time as the fabric of the building is improved.

Existing

Short-term intervention

Medium-term intervention

Long-term intervention

a. Ground Floor Fortress b. Low light levels c. Inaccessible roof d. Outdated offices with large single tenants

a. Ground Floor Remodelling b. Expand central atrium c. Initiate roof transformation d. Initiate incubators and spatial remodelling

b. Expand atria further c. Expand roof transformation d. Expand incubators and spatial remodelling e. Addition of first conservatory

b. Complete atria expansion c. Rewilding continues d. Expand incubators and refine spatial remodelling e. Addition of second conservatory

Total GEA 1,400,000 GIA:GEA 76% Groundfloor GIA 61,000 Loading Bay 39,000 Passageways 49,000 Core 177,000 Atria 60,000 Lettable space 1,064,000

Total GEA 1,480,000 GIA:GEA 68% Groundfloor GIA 37,000 Loading Bay 39,000 Passageways 73,000 Core 177,000 Atria 86,000 Roof forest 52,000 Lettable space 1,006,400

Total GEA 1,530,000 GIA:GEA 57% Groundfloor GIA 61,000 Loading Bay 39,000 Passageways 49,000 Core 177,000 Atria 129,000 Roof forest 105,000 Conservatories 86,000 Lettable space 872,100

Total GEA 1,530,000 GIA:GEA 53% Groundfloor GIA 61,000 Loading Bay 39,000 Passageways 49,000 Core 177,000 Atria 172,000 Roof forest 105,000 Conservatories 172,000 Lettable space 872,100

All figures in Square Feet

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

Balancing floor reductions with improved spaces Looking specifically at the changes to the new office and educational spaces, a price increase is required at each staged intervention in order to offset reductions in the total office floor area.

This is justified with improvements to the office spaces over these phases, such as improved light levels, access to natural outdoor space and the roof forest, proximity to education and shared resources, and natural ventilation.

Existing

Short-term intervention

£65 / sqft

£71 / sqft

GIA Change from existing: 92%

Medium-term intervention

£81 / sqft

GIA Change from existing: 89%

Long-term intervention

£88 / sqft

GIA Change from existing: 80%

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

How this project could be initiated Are these ambitions to transform 135-175 Bishopsgate possible?

Taking 51N4E’s ongoing development of two towers in the Brussels World Trade Centre as a precedent, we have explored one set of possible conditions which could enable our own project.

The WTC Story “We were users, we were mediators, we were teachers and we were architects”

1.

Two of 51N4E’s partners are running a re-use themed studio at the Faculty of Architecture at KU Leuven, keen to turn attention to Belgiums’ modernist heritage.

2.

They consider the WTC I + II towers as a project, located in the business North District - “The building’s once sought-after spatial flexibility and open floor plans are in little demand in today’s corporate culture”, even before the pandemic.

3.

Meanwhile, with office markets in crisis and larger firms moving to newer buildings, the owners, Befimmo, are interested in applying an alternative framework to the WTC towers .

4.

51N4E and Befimmo are introduced through Up4North, an organisation working with the biggest property owners of the North District.

5.

51N4E are commissioned to initiate an 18 month meanwhile project for the vacant building and team up with Architecture Workroom Brussels, who bridge the gap between architecture practices and policy makers.

6.

The main task of the agreement is to fill users for the 5,000 m2 spaces, in return for working in the building for free. They move away from the conventional role of the architect to bring together a series of different groups, offices and organisations, with the hope that meaningful relationships come to the surface. The small infrastructure required is financed from the rent.

7.

KU Leuven’s Faculty of Architecture move onto the 24th floor for one year.

8.

Architecture Workroom Brussels organises the ‘You Are Here’ exhibition, part of the International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam 2018. This increases public awareness to the meanwhile project, and with it more funding.

9.

51N4E win Bufimmo’s competition to redesign the towers, thus pushing the project from its meanwhile phase into a long term vision.

51N3E’s ambitious renovation to the World Trade Centre adds a new volume of 14 double-height floors to connect the two towers.

Recognising that office buildings were once an expression of a company’s permanence and exclusivity, offices today rely on the capacity to adapt, reconfigure and be shared both among their occupants and with the city around them.

10. The project is on site, and is due for completion in 2023

Interview with Dieter Leyssen https://www.archetype.gr/blog/arthro/do-you-north

Housing a wide range of programmes and ‘a collection of spaces in which to wonder, work and meet people, surrounded by nature and the city’, it aims to set a new standard for the development of existing European monofunctional office buildings, developing them into a new complexity to become an integral part of the city.

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

The wider vision over time By forming the missing piece of The City’s puzzle, The Green Mile aims to bring the residential neighbourhoods of Tower Hamlets and Shoreditch into a new Green Revolution.

Our long-term ambition for 135-175 Bishopsgate sets a new precedent to trigger ambitious knock on projects in the new Green Mile, using it as a tool to think strategically about a new exciting future for the City of London.

Short term

Medium term

Long term

THOUGHTS & RESEARCH

OUR VISION

DESIGN TACTICS

The Green Mile A core tenet of our manifesto is that all should benefit from this Green Revolution. Given its wealth, The City must work harder to be more propositional in its social offering, opening its eyes to the inequalities that exist at its fringes. Our vision for 135-175 Bishopsgate hacks the

City’s forces of agglomeration to establish a new Institute of Green Research as the first beacon of a green revolution.

This is a manifesto for a different way of working, and a greener, more connected way of being.

Endnotes

Endnotes 1. Booth, R., 2011. Heritage or horror? Row over Broadgate demolition plan. [online] The Guardian. Available at: <https:// www.theguardian.com/uk/2011/may/12/broadgate-demolitionplan-row> [Accessed 15 March 2021].

2. Rogers, C., 2007. City/edge City. [online] Chrismrogers.net.

Available at: <http://www.chrismrogers.net/city-city-edgecity/4546331913#:~:text=In%201994%20the%20borough%20 boundary,its%20(self%2D)assumed%20purpose> [Accessed 15 March 2021].

11. Raworth K, Doughnut Economics (2017) 12. Chapman, B. (2018). UK economy lost out on £4.5 trillion because of ‘too much finance’. The Independent. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https:// www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/finance-curse-uk-economysector-city-london-loss-financial-services-a8571036.html> 13. Vickers, H. (2021). City’s professional know-how matched with UK construction expertise could be a global titan - CityAM. CityAM. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.cityam.com/citys-professional-knowhow-matched-with-uk-construction-expertise-could-be-a-global-titan/>

3. Housing Benefits in Tower Hamlets. (2016). Towerhamlets.gov. uk. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.towerhamlets. gov.uk/Documents/Borough_statistics/Income_poverty_and_ welfare/Housing_Benefit_in_Tower_Hamlets_November_2016. pdf>

14. HM Government. (2020). The Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://assets.publishing.service. gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/936567/10_ POINT_PLAN_BOOKLET.pdf>

4. The B1M. (2019). Transforming London’s Broadgate: 100 Liverpool Street.

15. About Us. (2021). Greenfinanceinstitute.co.uk. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.greenfinanceinstitute.co.uk/about-us/>

5. Wainwright, O. (2021). The Wodge: can London’s tallest new skyscraper survive the Covid era?. The Guardian. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.theguardian.com/ artanddesign/2021/jan/11/wodge-londons-tallest-newskyscraper-survive-covid-era-office-coronavirus>

16. Welcome to Culture Mile. (2017). Barbican.org.uk. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.barbican.org.uk/read-watch-listen/welcome-to-culturemile>

6. Gill, V. (2020). Coronavirus: This is not the last pandemic. BBC News. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.bbc.co.uk/ news/science-environment-52775386> 7. Wainwright, O. (2021). The Wodge: can London’s tallest new skyscraper survive the Covid era?. The Guardian. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.theguardian.com/ artanddesign/2021/jan/11/wodge-londons-tallest-newskyscraper-survive-covid-era-office-coronavirus> 8. Steele, C, Sitopia: How Food Can Save the World (2020) 9. Wainwright, O. (2021). The Wodge: can London’s tallest new skyscraper survive the Covid era?. The Guardian. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.theguardian.com/ artanddesign/2021/jan/11/wodge-londons-tallest-newskyscraper-survive-covid-era-office-coronavirus> 10. https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/introducingretrofirst-a-new-aj-campaign-championing-reuse-in-the-builtenvironment

17. Welcome to Culture Mile. (2017). Barbican.org.uk. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.barbican.org.uk/read-watch-listen/welcome-to-culturemile> 18. Harle, M. (2014). The Barbican Archive Mixtape.

19. Harle, M. (2014). The Barbican Archive Mixtape.

20. HM Government. (2020). The Ten Point Plan for a Green Industrial Revolution. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://assets.publishing.service. gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/936567/10_ POINT_PLAN_BOOKLET.pdf> 21. Oliver, H. (2021). Paris is planning to become Europe’s greenest city. Time Out Paris. Retrieved March 15, 2021, from <https://www.timeout.com/paris/ en/things-to-do/paris-green-sustainable-city-plan-2030#:~:text=How%20 Paris%20plans%20to%20become%20Europe’s%20greenest%20city%20by%20 2030,-From%20sweeping%20car&text=Around%20900%20miles%20of%20 bike,shut%20off%20to%20traffic%20entirely> 22. Buchanan, P. (2013). The Big Rethink Conclusion. The Architectural Review.

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