Work/Place DesignThinkTank by WorkPlaceDTT

A Framework For Rebalancing The High Street Ecosystem

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Who Are We?

Students

Ryan Hart

Cameron Angus

Oliver Flew

Frankie Taplin

Dougie Haseler

Carlos Pereira

Think Tank Leaders

Esther Escribano

Yasir Azami

Andrew McEwan

Studio Weave

Orms

Chapters 00

Our Aims

Work

Place

Work/Place

A Tale of Two High Streets

Church Street

Kingsland Road

M I S A

00 Chapter

Contents

04-07

Project Objective

08 - 11

High Streets and Town CentresAdaptive Strategies

12 - 13

The New Locality

14 - 15

What does work and place mean to us?

Project Objective

To imagine new high street typologies ingrained in the characteristics of their local neighbourhoods that promote and develop the local economy and create socially inclusive and sustainable neighbourhoods. Fundamentally, our project imagines an alternative future for the High Street, where local community is put first and given autonomy to enact real change in their neighbourhood. By challenging the immediate boundary of the High Street, we are looking to broaden the public sphere beyond the facade and create opportunities for a more versatile and equitable High Street 4

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Work/place aims to:

1. Question the current context of the high street and working along with associated legislative context. 2. Investigate how social patterns and interactions can be reflected in architecture. 3. Create new typologies that embrace the ever-changing needs of working and our localities 4. Engage with society, commerce and poetics while fostering the growth of small business and local communities. 5. Look at how the existing infrastructure and environment can be leveraged to promote the high street and localism.

UN Sustainable Development Goals To promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for us all. 8.3 Promote developmentoriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, smalland medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services

8.4 Improve progressively, through 2030, global resource efficiency in consumption and production and endeavour to decouple economic growth from environmental degradation, in accordance with the 10-year framework of programmes on sustainable consumption and production, with developed countries taking the lead

8.6 By 2020, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training

To make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable. 11.3 By 2030, enhance inclusive and sustainable urbanization and capacity for participatory, integrated and sustainable human settlement planning and management in all countries

11.6 By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management

11.7 By 2030, provide universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public spaces, in particular for women and children, older persons and persons with disabilities

To promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for us all. 12.3 By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including postharvest losses

12.5 By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse

12.8 By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Work/place aim to promote community inclusion, the importance of social activity and engagement by integrating the possibilities of home working within Hackney. Whilst home working may be the catalyst in regenerating our localities, we also want explore want impact our localities have on our work. We want to build up a narrative that spans from maker spaces to offices, from kebabs to supper clubs and from cinemas to civic centres and create innovative propositions that respond to local environments, challenges and needs of local communities. 7

High Streets and Town Centres- Adaptive Strategies The following outlines the main spatial strategies that the GLA report on ‘High Streets & Town Centres - Adaptive Strategies’

West End, Westminster

Church St., Westminster

Case Studies

Cultural Participation Social Value

Retail Retrofit

3 Mixed - Uses Adapting Existing

Adapting Existing

Community Value Public Space

Dig Techn Public

Old Kent Rd, Southwark Harlesden, Brent

1 GLA, High Streets & Town Centres - Adaptive Strategies, p. 79-216

Dalston, Hackne

Walthamstow, Waltham Forest Totenham High Rd, Haringey

gital nology Space

Social Value

Civic Streets

Adapting Existing

Public Space

Stratford High St., Newham

Cultural Participation Adapting Existing

9 Work Spaces Adapting Existing

Sutton High St., Sutton

High Streets and Town Centres- Adaptive Strategies The following analyses some key aspects of the report. Key findings also inspire our first steps towards tackling the project.

Case Studies

Cultural Participation

Retail Retrofit

Mixed - Uses

Harlesden, Brent

Our Findings from the GLA Document...

West End, Westminster

Old Kent Rd,

Community Value

Digital Technology

Social Value

Civic Streets

Cultural Participation

Work Spaces

Church St., Westminster

Dalston, Hackney

Totenham High Rd, Haringey

Stratford High St., Newham

Walthamstow, Waltham Forest

Sutton High St., Sutton

1 GLA, High Streets & Town Centres - Adaptive Strategies, p. 18 2 Ibid. p. 21 3 Ibid. p. 64 4 Ibid. p. 64

1. All case studies are programmatic, and do not suggest the resultant experiential sequences that users will benefit from through any architecture. 2. Case Studies do not suggest new typologies. Instead, they focus mainly on adapting existing buildings along the high street. 3. Case studies put more weight on incorporating new social and cultural programs, than focussing on enhancing the existing successful functions. 4. All case studies are fragmented in exampling different concepts across different high streets. No comparison is made on how these concepts would adapt contextually to different high streets. 5. In most examples, these studies do not provide answers for designing for placespecificities, instead they are presented as a series of concepts that can be applied to all.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Key Inspiration from the GLA Document...

The GLA recognises that the high street is a supportive urban ecosystem, where its extends much farther beyond the facade of the facing shops... “It includes not just the premises fronting the street, but also all land use within 200m of the high street, several blocks back and all the floors above. Jobs, businesses, other non-residential uses and the homes we live in are all part of our understanding of the high streets as places.“ 1

...that must accommodate for more than just workers and shoppers....

“51% of people who visit high streets

27%

are not in work, compared with per cent of Londoners overall.” 2

... and for those who need to use the high street as a place of work, must be accommodated...

Things to take forward... This analysis has outlined the importance of developing a project that is specifically place-driven. By first defining the key constituents of placemaking, it will enable our approaches to be grounded in the context. By demonstrating that each high street represents a unique urban ecosystem that demands a different set of conditions, in response to social value, it will enable our architectural proposition to be applied to a much wider variety of high streets.

“Working culture and practices are also changing and becoming increasingly decentralised, flexible and agile. As a result, there are increasing numbers of people working in less conventional environments.” 3

... and finally, premises on the high street must continue to enhance the human experiential qualities that cannot be achieved online. “There is potential for the high street’s main draw to be based on personal service and delivery of face-to-face experiences.” 4

The New Locality

Covid

Nature

Beach Shopping

Gr ea ter Lo nd on

text on

Local High Street

Lo cal c

Work

Home

Café’s

Pubs Sports

t ex nt

Galleries Holidays

ndon er Lo eat Gr

Gigs

Friends

Food Shopping

Parks

Restaurants

Local Co

Theatre

University

ater London re Kids

Pubs Work

Garden

Partner Street

Café’s

Parks

Restaurants

l Conte Loca x

t ex

Shopping

Gyms

Takeaway

Lo cal con t

Local High Street

Room mates

Home

Places of worship Pets

Neighbours Local Markets Community centres Food Shopping

Family

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

2020 has highlighted the vulnerability of our societies to large scale pandemics. It has also shown us how adaptable our jobs are to the shift from the office to the home office. During the height of the lockdown 49% of the adult workforce were working from their homes. Technology has played a crucial role in enabling this but the question remains: if work can be conducted from the comfort of our own homes, then what is the need of the office in the future? This move to the home office may present a lifeline to our dying High Streets. If the long term trend is towards spending more time in our localities then this may serve as a catalyst to repurposing the High Street. With the centre of gravity shifting to our local areas, it provides us a chance to view the High Street through a different lens and affords us the opportunity to explore untapped latent potential and realise the social and economic benefits. Globalisation has divorced the metropolitan High Street from the communities and networks they serve. Most of the retail property on our High Streets is developed on behalf of large, institutional investors with control coming from the boardrooms of distant corporations instead of being nurtured in the hands of local communities. High streets and their immediate surroundings are home to over 200,000 businesses equating to 41 per cent of all businesses in London, hosting nearly 1.5 million jobs. Our High Streets need better ideas and infrastructure to ensure their true potential as hubs of social interaction, civic value and employment for our local communities. As architects we have the passion, knowledge and skill set to develop solutions to the problems we perceive around us. Work/place aims to question the ecology of the local retail stock by engaging, empowering and guiding the civic economy - using the ideas, resources, passions and expertise of the people. How can a focus on human interaction and new technologies, rather than a retail monoculture, create a relevant urban future?

What Do Work And Place Mean To Us?

Work

/we:k/ ‘Activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to acheive a purpose or result.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Place

/pleis/ A particular position, point, or area in space; a location.

O R

01 Chapter

Contents 18 - 29

The Evolution Of The Workplace

30 - 37

The Impact of The Pandemic on Work

Lorem ipsum ament

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T h e E vo l T h e Wo r Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture

l u t i on O f r kplace

Evolution Of The Workplace

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Evolution of Work

Trades Age (Home)

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Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

Since the beginning of time, humans have been finding innovative modes and settings to make the working process easier.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Agriculture Age (Outside)

Prior to the 19th century, we were in an agricultural age where the high majority of people were expected to work outside, raising animals and harvesting crops for sustenance - a very manual form of labour.

Evolution of Work

Industrial Age (Inside)

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Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

We then saw a shift into the industrial age where factories were built and people were expected to work inside. The advent of the steam engine brought about seismic change in the working world in terms of productivity, along with cramped conditions and large scale congregation.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Information Age (Office)

Progressing to the information age brought the inception of the corner office. And more recently we were once again at a shifting point of work. Office workers find themselves digitally connected, yet tied to a computer in a small cubicle.

Evolution of Work

Flexibility Age (Anywhere)

Quisque nec nunc mollis, ellaut voloreraes eicabor roviti imenem corent ommost expeles es remperum qui blabore perferum que dolore, tet quistio omnis et mi, non plabo. Ut labo. Et fugit voloris.

Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

Moving away from the office into the age of flexibility. With ultimate digital freedom and efficiency time is given for people to be creative and entrepreneurial, often working for themselves and thinking outside the box.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Health & Welbeing

Communication

Creativity

Sustainability

Lighting & Daylight

Collaboration

Culture

Expression of business

Commuting to city centre for work

Evolution of Work

Pandemic Age (Where?)

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Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

A global pandemic forced everyone indoors and many find themselves forced back into working in confined conditions - this flexibility was taken away from us and restricted to the 4 walls of our homes. Whilst only temporary - this offers a new lens with which to view the way we work - and the ubiquity of the potential working location.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Working from home and local environment

London Density Shift

To look at work in relation to the city, we started off by looking at London’s density change from weekdays to weekends, and it is a clear shift that has drastically been affected by the global pandemic and the ever present lockdowns.

Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

Where is everyone?

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Pre Lockdown

During Lockdown

Home Office Worker

Comparing how our interactions were before lockdown, the freedom of the open-plan office enabled many spontaneous casual collaborations and conversations. Since then, many of our interactions are more likely to take place outside during a shorter period of the day, which can cause loneliness and isolation.

Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

Office Activity

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

Current Activity

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Social Interaction is mainly confined within the office floor.

Social Interaction

Office Plan

You are invited to go out and explore your surrounding local context.

Social Interaction

Home Office Plan

Frances Holliss WorkHomes Taking inspiration from Francis Hollis, she categories 9 types of people that work from home and some to note in terms of individual need are the 24 hr Artist and Craftworker, who may need some sort of workshop space and the backbone of the community, for example a vicar, who may need space to accommodate a large number of guests.

Juggling Parents

Backbone of the community

Professionals

24/7 Artists

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

“People have lived at their workplaces or worked at home for hundreds if not thousands of years, often in buildings specifically designed for the dual uses of dwelling and workplace. We call these buildings ‘workhomes’.”

Top-up

Craft-workers

Live-in

Start-up

Student

A Work Hybrid A survey in May 2020 showed that 55% of US workers want a mixture of home and office working. In the UK, employers expect the proportion of regular home workers to double, from 18% prepandemic to 37% post-pandemic. In China, employment expert Alicia Tung has predicted that in 10 years’ time, there will be a 60/40 split of onsite/remote work. All research suggests that the home will become the new office to an extent and therefore the buildings we design moving forward need to be equipped to accommodate this necessity.

Remote Work

On Site

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

P L

A C

02 Chapter

Contents

40 - 41

What Makes Place?

42 - 69

History Of The High Street

72 - 75

The High Street In 20 Years

78 - 81

Policy

26 - 28

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What Makes Place?

Place in itself is a word that comprises so many things. Primarily the physical and social aspects together contribute to its overall perception. From how we initially perceive it with our senses, to how we navigate it, its heritage, and the impact it has on us after we’ve left. When we think about place, we find that the majority of components are more identifiable in the urban centres, and particularly the High Street.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

A CH

RACTER

Connectivity Memory

BOMB CHURCH ST. WAR

LANDOWNERS

HISTORY

FIELDS

SAV E T H E CONVERTED

FAMILY-RUN RESERVOIRS

WHAT MAKES P L AC E ?

MANOR

MEMORY

Sen

Wayfinding Social Interaction

History of the High Street

The morphology of the High Street has progressed throughout history, developing symbiotically with the evolution of the settlement. Evolving for arterial trade routes in the Roman age, to the retail focussed urban centre we see today, the High Street is the catalyst for a sense of place, forming a critical axis in its locality.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Roman Road

Medieval build up to serve travellers using the road

Infill in Victorian and Edwardian era creates the modern day High Street

Evolution of the High Street

The modern day High Street finds its roots from the traditional marketplace, and architecture has formalised this exchange over time. Key points in history have impacted the progression of this model, from the advent of mass production with the industrial revolution, to the competition of virtual shopping, yet the High Street now finds itself, as ever, with the need to adapt to the current socio-economic circumstances of society.

Evolution of the High Street Market Stalls

Market Place

Victorian Shops

The Departmen

1200

1700

1870

1909 - ‘selfridg

1796 - 1st Department Store Victorian Era

Industrial Revolution

UK Popu

lation London Population

WW1

WW2

nt Store

ges’

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

The Shopping Centre

The Current Model

The Future?

1960

2020

1976 - First Out of TownShopping Centre 2015 - Major Supermarkets hold 73% of grocery market

2009 - Woolworths close

total retail sales ratio Internet sales as % of

22.9 %

2.8 %

Evolution of High Streets

Market Stalls

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Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Market Place

Evolution of High Streets The Victorian Shop

Quisque nec nunc mollis, ellaut voloreraes eicabor roviti imenem corent ommost expeles es remperum qui blabore perferum que dolore, tet quistio omnis et mi, non plabo. Ut labo. Et fugit voloris.

Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

Victorian shops were predominantly independent and family run with specific services. Before the rise of large supermarkets, shops would sell specific goods and the High Street would be a place where you were able to buy everything you needed. Shopkeepers would typically live above or behind the shop, and products would be made in the workshops behind the store.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Economic Model

xt te

Independent Business Owner

t tex on

Manufacturing of goods

Lo ca

Independent Business Owner

Consumer

Local Con

Evolution of High Streets Department Stores (Historical)

The historical department store model marks the beginning of the procurement of goods from outside the local context. Independent business owners supplying these stores now come under the economic influence of the department store owner.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Economic Model

Lo ca

t tex on

Manufacturing of goods

Department Stor eO w

wner eO

Independent Business Owner

tment Stor Depar

xt te

Independent Business Owner

r ne

Independent Business Owner

Consumer

Local Con

High Street Models Through Time Out of Town Shopping Centres

The out of town shopping centre is completely removed from its local context. Visitors may travel from nearby towns, the shops inside are large chains, and everything is dictated by in house marketing and profit.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Economic Model

Manufacturing of goods

Agent er n Ow e ntr e gC n i pp itect h ca

ontext lc

ntext Co

Large Business Owner

S h o In-House A rc

Large Business Owner

keting ar

Large Business Owner

entre Owne r gC in

Sh op p M

Consumer

Local

High Street Models Through Time The Current High Street

The modern day High Street is dominated by the risk adverse landowner, meaning that larger chains and proven profit making businesses like cafes dominate the High Street. Therefore small businesses and those that only serve a narrow demographic are pushed out.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Economic Model

er n w

Large Business Owner

m agement an

Independent Business Owner

ne r

Large Business Owner

Land O

t en

Mass Consumption

d an

Inv est m

Manufacturing of goods

Local c o nt

Local Contex t

Consumer

t ex The High Street of the Future

With the High Street in Crisis, how can the age old model adapt to meet the needs of current and future generations?

Northleach Market Square Examining how we use the High Street in terms of locality and what it means to us, we noticed both physical and intangible constituents that make up its composition. The first High Street is outside the city and closer to the traditional vernacular Northleach Market Square.

Where. Curious Wine Cellar Why. Drinks with friends How long. 90 minutes

In the rural High Street, where the population is smaller and people visit the square frequently, there are quality interactions, and a sense of character and community. This is further enforced by the morphology, which encourages random interaction through open space between shops. The square in particular encourages a slow movement and place to dwell.

Where. Cotswold Pharmacy Why. Prescription How long. 7 minutes

Where. Cotswold Stores Why. Grocery Shopping How long. 10 minutes

Where. Fish Market Why. Grocery Shopping How long. 30 minutes

Where. W.J.Castle Why. Butchers How long. 10 minutes

Clapham High Street In contrast, many inner city High Streets such as in Clapham are constantly in flux and used predominantly out of convenience. Ribbon developments are more common in places that are more arterial, which brings about a contrasting set of conditions to those out of town, or away from primary roads into the city.

Where. Joe Public Why. Takeaway pint with mates How long. 5 minutes

Where. Evans Cycles Why. Bike Service drop-off How long. 40 minutes

When High Streets are arranged on either side of a busy through route, our interactions are often more transactional and we have little loyalty to individual shops. They lack an overall sense of place thanks to the fast-paced vehicle dominated atmosphere. Where pedestrians are not awarded priority, it impacts significantly the pace and connection with which people use the High Street.

Where. Tube Station Why. Connection to rest of London How long. 2 minutes

Where. Q for Hair Why. Haircut How long. 25 minutes

Where. Clapham Home Care Why. DIY Supplies How long. 7 minutes

A High Street In Crisis

Taking into account the number of store closures in recent years, this detriments more so High Streets and less so out of town retail and shopping centres, and so it is clear that the High Streets in general are in crisis. Vacant shops and lack of visitors has set the High Street off on a trajectory that will relinquish its sense of place, due to independent and family-run small businesses being overtaken by chain outlets that are void of character and heritage.

Source: Pwc, Local Data Company Via BBC News

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Comparing Store Closures between Years

Comparing StoreClosures Closuresbetween Between Years Comparing Store Years

Jan - Jun 2020 Jan - Jun 2020 Jan - Jun 2019 Jan - Jun 2019 Jan - Jun 2018 Jan - Jun 2018 Jan - Jun 2017 Jan - Jun

2017 Jan - Jun 2016 Jan - Jun 2016

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

Total ofStore StoreClosures Closures and openings Total Number Number of and Openings Total Number of Store Closures and Openings

Retail Park Retail Park Shopping Centre Shopping Centre

Standalone Standalone High Streets High Streets 0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

The Impact of Covid-19 on High Streets

For almost a year many of us have had to adapt to a new way of working and adjust our daily rituals to new ways of working. For a large proportion of the population, the social and intellectual engagement that once took place in an established setting, now must be found from the confinements of the most personal and informal spaces within our homes. The High Street, although a local nucleus to each neighbourhood, is not currently designed to accommodate all forms of working, particularly manual labour and other non-desk jobs.

Working from business and city environment

Working from home and local environment

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Spending Online has increased from 20 to 25% over lockdown Pre-covid, 1 in £5 was spent online. Post-covid, 1 in £4 was spent online Net decline of over 6000 stores

High Street Is Place

Present from the inception of the settlement, primitive urban development stems from this High Street, giving it the potential to provide all necessary amenities to everyday life. High Streets Equal Place

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

What W Hi g h S t r e Like In 2

Wi ll The e et Loo k 2 0 Year s ?

Scenario 1: The Effects Of Gentrification

In light of this changing typology, we imagined how the future High Street would look after 20 years if no fundamentally new and different ways of thinking were applied. In one reality, the High Street becomes an exclusive, fully fledged product of gentrification which serves only the affluent and has no loyalty to its locality.

20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0

THEN

Food & Estate Agents

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Photographed By Robert William

Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

£££££ CHAINS BOUTIQUES FRANCHISE SOLD!

GENTRIFIED AFFLUENT

EXCLUSIVE REPETITIVE

CRAFT INDEPENDENT

FAMILY-RUN MANUFACTURE TRADE

DIVERSE

NOW

THE FUTURE?

Scenario 2: The Effects Of Online Retail

Alternatively, the High Street has been completely shaped by the internet of things. Amazon dictates the way we shop so much that it has taken over the physical realm as well as the digital. We imagine High Streets will become local distribution and logistical hubs, which occupy all retail real estate, as all necessary amenities can be obtained online.

20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0

THEN

Manufacturing & Hand Craft

Food & Esta

ate Agents

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Photographed By Robert William

NOW

Proyect Status Project Year Client Location

: Completed : 2006 : Lorem : Ipsum

THE FUTURE?

Pol

ic y

Use Class E

The Government has published the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2020. The Regulations will collate existing town centre uses into one new class, Class E. Shops, financial and professional services, restaurants, cafes, indoor sports e.g. gyms, medical services, day nurseries, offices, research and development and light industrial all fall in to the new Use Class E, subsuming previous Classes A1 to 3 and B1. By placing all of these uses within the same class it means that it will be possible to move between the uses without the need for permitted development rights or express planning permission. This is clearly aimed at injecting new life in to High Streets that are suffering from the fall in demand for retail shops. Two new classes F1 and F2 are also created. F1 is for learning and non-residential institutions, covering education, galleries, museums, libraries, public halls, public worship and law courts. F2 is for local community uses, covering a shop mostly selling essential goods, including food, where the shop is no more than 280sq m and there is no such facility within 1,000m radius. F2 also covers local community halls, outdoor sports and swimming pools. F1 and F2 subsume some of the previous D1 and D2 use classes. This provides valuable opportunities for flexibility and responsiveness of the high street to local and global conditions.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

D1 OFFICE

A BC D1

B1 SHOP

A3 A1

SEPTEMBER 2020

E USE CLASS

Permitted Development

The Government has also passed legislation, the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) (Amendment) (No.2) Order 2020, to introduce, from 31 August, new permitted development rights to allowing the creation of new flats through upwards extensions to existing properties. These are: Class AA – construction of up to two new storeys of flats on top of detached buildings in commercial or mixed use, including where there is an element of residential use; Class AB – construction of new flats on top of terrace buildings (including semi-detached buildings) in commercial or mixed (including residential) use; Class AC – construction of new flats on top of terrace dwelling houses (including semi-detached houses); Class AD – construction of new flats on top of detached dwelling houses. With the ever-growing need for housing in the city, this may be crucial to providing adequate accommodation around the high street, such that it can serve the people it was built for.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

OP FR

K R O /

C A E PL

03 Chapter

Contents

86 - 111

Manifesto

114 - 115

Framework

116 - 141

Life

142 - 159

Space

160 - 175

Buildings

M anif

fe s t o

Our Manifesto

Our manifesto proposes a High Street that focuses on vitality and wellbeing. One that Places Community over Commodity. With flexible and adaptable uses, and home to a variety of workplaces. A High Street that supports local business and inspires collaborative thinking. And it needs to be welcoming, safe and diverse, enabling meaningful relationships to evolve. We see the future High Street working just as hard for its people as its people do within the place itself.

Forms An Ecosystem Disrupts The Current Working Time Model Accommodates All Forms Of Working To Build A Lively And Healthy Urban Realm Provides A Platform For A Civic Voice

Our High Streets will be a hub of vitality and well-being. A holistic High Street. A green High Street. Provide spaces to sit. To relax. To watch the world go by. One that places culture and community over commodity. A landmark in its locality. A place of celebration and festivities. A space of continuous activity. One of shared resources. A flexible and adaptable High Street. A more resilient High Street. A High Street that works hard for everyone. Home to a variety

of workplaces. A place for new businesses. Independent businesses. Support for local businesses. A space for collaborative thinking. One that enables meaningful relationships. A welcoming space. A safe space. A diverse space. A place with purpose. One that elevates minority voices. Encourages. Enables. Empowers. Works for the neighbourhood. With the neighbourhood.

Forms an ECOSYSTEM The future High Street will be a place of meaningful connection, interdependence and symbiosis as both a physical and figurative network of the people who make it work. Taking precedence from nature, and beginning to understand how places and environments function organically, the Yellowstone ‘Trophic Cascade’ is a perfect anecdote to apply to our High Street model today.

A High Street That Works For Everyone

1920’s Extermination of the grey wolf

1995 Reintroduction of the grey wolf

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

The extermination of its apex predator in the 1920s led to a massive imbalance in the ecosystem of the Yellowstone National Park, with certain species gaining monopolies over others and dwindling the forest’s resources. It was only until this key component was reintroduced in 1995, that the ecosystem began rebalancing itself and functioning again as a whole.

Disrupts the current working TIME model Imagining the future work-time model of the High Street, we see a liberation from the existing confinements of time, to create a sense of continuous activity on the High Street. With this sense of occupation and animation comes a saferfeeling street for locals and visitors at all times of the day, providing space for alternative working routines and using spaces beyond their imagined purpose outside of their normal opening hours.

The Night Time Economy

The night time economy is a lucrative one, with 1.6 million people working in the city at night. A High Street that serves everyone must accommodate this and provide spaces for work and play, as well as essential amenities within a more flexible model.

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Crime

51%

4.3%

Drop in night time offences involving alcohol from 2010 to 2017.

1/5

2/3

of all trips are for work. This is the same both day and night.

75%

of all crimes at night are alcohol related.

Travel

1/4

of trips at night are for leisure reasons.

of Londoners and visitors feel safe walking alone at night.

10pm - 7am

of trips on public transport happen at night.

2/3

is the biggest area of growth in public transport .

of trips at night are for leisure reasons.

Night Time Workers

62% are men.

31%

1.6m

are BAME.

191,000

people in London work at night.

178,000

work in health.

work in professional services.

168,000 work in leisure and culture.

Sleep

29% of Londoners sleep very well, the highest in the U.K.

24%

54% usually go to bed after 11pm.

usually go to bed after midnight.

Other

65% of Londoners are active at night.

36% of Londoners say it’s too expensive to go out at night.

2/3 of babies are born at night.

The Time Model Our position is that the existing working model of the High Street concentrates most public activity between a certain time of the day, that is, around the dominant 9-5 working structure. There is an abrupt transition between activity and inactivity and this results in the street feeling unsafe when empty. Going forward, we aim to accommodate for the new influx of people working locally around the High Street, and by facilitating a mixed programme, it will ensure the High Street remains a hub of continuous activity.

The Current Time Model

00:00

03:00

21:00

18:00

06:00

09:00

15:00

12:00

Work/Place The London School of Architecture Delivery / Logistical Night-time Economy Civic (community) Service Professional Convenience Leisure Residential Homework

The Proposed Time Model

00:00

03:00

21:00

18:00

06:00

09:00

15:00

12:00

0 100

Accommodates ALL FORMS of working We understand that the High Street has historically been home to a complex variety of modes of working from production through to purchase, however this diversity has significantly diminished over time.

Using The High Street

Workers who are able to work from home generally use the High Street as a place of social interaction, for refreshments and groceries and as a change of scene to break up their day. However, those who are unable to work remotely from their homes due to more specialist requirements, or who must travel a significant distance to their normal place of work, have been left without anywhere to operate within their locality. From conventional home working and collaborative meetings, to independent craft and manufacture, the new High Street must accommodate every kind of worker.

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The local High Street as a playground for social interaction Home Office Worker

Exercise

Meeting Friends

Grabing a Coffee

People Watching

The local High Street as the new workplace Pottery Maker Jewelery Maker

Requires Local Kiln

Requires Flexible Workshop

Artist Requires Flexible Studio

Student Requires Collaborative Workspace

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Build a lively and HEALTHY urban realm

As a primary local centre, our High Street must stimulate the mind and nurture the soul. It is a space for collaborative thinking and forum, and through these interactions becomes a landmark in its locality, that provides a hub of vitality and wellbeing.

Healthy High Streets

A report published in collaboration with Public Health England and the Institute of Health Equity details the key constituents to a High Street that remedies the ills of urban living, such as noise and air pollution, crime and degradation and non-inclusive design. It encompasses good quality design and furniture, accessibility, and safety, and places cohesive local communities as a priority. This is critical from the outset in designing the High Street of the future.

Source: Halthy Streets For London

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People feel safe Not too noisy

Clean air

People feel relaxed

Pedestrians from all walks of life

Healthy High Streets

Things to see and do

Easy to cross

People choose to walk, cycle and use public transport

Places to stop and rest Shade and shelter

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Provides a platform for a civic VOICE The High Street must provide a platform of inclusivity, and individual contribution. It must actively encourage participation and amplify minority voices, making it a place that is equitable for everyone it serves.

The Agora As Precedent

Although a formal architecture, the ancient Agora is an example of a public platform, where open space was arranged to facilitate interaction with citizens. Spatially arranged as an assembly space, it was the perfect place for citizens to affect change and progression within their community.

Proyect Status Project Year Client Site Area

110

: Completed : 2006 : Ipsiquor : Area

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

The definition of Agora is “gathering place” or “assembly”. It is the best representation of a city-state’s response to accommodate the social and political order. The Agora was the centre of the athletic, artistic, business, social, spiritual and political life in the city and acted as a catalyst for all civilisation we know today.

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Frame

ewo rk

Jan Ghel’s Life, Space, Buildings

In considering the spatial arrangement this High Street must now take in daily life - we looked to Jan Gehl to clarify our place in the urban realm- he allocates three components: life, space and buildings He believes the key to success for any urban project is first to focus on life. By understanding the needs of the people, it will inform the space they occupy and then consequently, the buildings they inhabit. With this in mind, our propositions have been structured according to this narrative with the aim of a holistic and authentic municipal design.

Life 114

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

“First life, then spaces, then buildings, the other way round never works” Jan Ghel

Space

Buildings 115

lif e This section comprises a multifaceted platform for encouraging local engagement amongst all those who need to use the High Street. The Life propositions all fall into three categories: physical, digital and legislative. Centralised around elevating the civic voice, the platform remains the same for all High Streets. Whether the physical platform occupies an existing urban centre or designates a new one, the proposal aims to activate the space and create the nucleus for local collective voice and activity.

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N 16

Reclaiming Ownership - The Civic Plaza Connceting Communities - A Flexible Time Model

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LID

N16 A pp

N16 A p p

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LID

N16 App

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Re cl aiming o w n e r ship

The following component summarises our legislative approach to allowing more people to have a say in the future development of their High Street. By comparing against the existing Business Improvement District model, the following proposition outlines an alternative that is more inclusive to all those who depend on their local High Streets. Whilst the traditional governance of the typical High Street comprises the distribution of power and voice through investors, developers, the council and the government, our proposition is to create a transparent and simple model, that redistributes the power within the ecosystem and ultimately puts the autonomy in the hands of the local people.

The Local Improvement District

Similar to the aims of the Business Improvement District, we offer an alternative that includes the community as stakeholders. The LID will become a place-driven strategy that allows High Streets to evolve specifically in line with the needs of the local people. This is possible with the introduction of Use Class E, that allows a change of use class and programme throughout the day without planning permission- allowing our High Street to become responsive. That being said, every High Street in the future will curate its own identity.

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture High Street Business Owner

h Street urc

A cts

Community Voice

r Buisness High Street Improvement Business Owner District

Community Organisations

r Buisness Improvement District

Community Organisations

Land Owner

Dialogue wi t

A cts

Community Voice

e with logu a i D

e with logu Dia

Land Owner

Local Council

Dialogue wi t

Local Council

Church Street LID

High StreetCivic Business Build Owner

LID

Stores Local Improvement District

Land Owner

Dialogue wi t

LID

e with logu a i D Local Council

Local Improvement District

Land Owner

Dialogue wi t

A c t s Fo r

e with logu Dia

Urban Spaces

A c t s Fo r

Community Organisations

A cts

Community Community Voice Organisations

High Street Business Owner A cts

Community Voice Services

LID

Local Council

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Proposed High Street Model

The Business Improvement District model prioritises shops and companies on the High Street, who each have to pay a levy to council, where they get a voice to decide what happens with the development of their proximities. This excludes those who do not have a business, but yet still depend on the High Street. The key differences between the existing model and proposed LID model, is that all developments and actions that take place going forward in the enhancement of the High Street will be deliberated and decided on between more than just the business owners. Locals, residents, shopkeepers, servicepeople, all who depend on the High Street as part of their daily operations, or social dependency, will have a voice in its development.

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L Large Business Owner

Large Business Owner

h Street urc

Large Business Owner

agement an

Independent Business Owner

ne r

Land O

er wn

Mass Consumption

t en

d an

Inv est m

Manufacturing of goods

Local con t

Local Contex t

Consumer

Civic Voice

t ex

Church Street LID

Civic Build

LID

Lo cal con te

Urban Spaces

Outsider

Manufacturing of goods

Stores

LID

Social Platform

Socialiser

Pensioner Civic Forum

Community Organisations

Independent Business Owner Job Seeker

Worker

Sports and Leisure

Green Space

Student

Neighbour Wellbeing

Healthcare Entrepreneur Support System

Maker

Cultural Celebration

Local Civic Voice

Loc al I mp rov em en tD ist ric t

Newcomer Services

Consumer

l Con t e Loca xt

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T h e Ci v ic P laza

One of the consequences of gentrification, is that many residents are priced out of their local High Street. Since the spaces along the street are therefore not tailored to them, they are excluded from the intricacies of the civic fabric.

The civic plaza aims to tackle this. The civic plaza is the heart of the proposal and the Local Improvement District model, whereby a physical space in the urban context will facilitate informal assembly, congregation and conversation.

127

Forming A Nucleus

Unlike a traditional town hall, the civic voice will be located in an unobstructed and public setting, always visible to passers-by. Manifesting as a plaza and unprogrammed open space directly off the High Street, it aims to provide three actions: Deliberate, Reciprocate and Disseminate.

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Linear Route

vs.

Civic Core

129

C o n necting C o m m unitie s App

The digital vehicle for the civic voice will be through our connected N16 app. This is an online community of purpose that enables decision making, circulation of information of events and interconnected relationships that form a cohesive neighbourhood ecosystem.

131

The Neighbourhood Group

By allowing each High Street to have its specific app, daily events and local changes to the proximity can be accessible to all. The app will allow anyone to see what’s happening on their High Street and be kept up to date. People will be able to find spaces along the work remotely, or see upcoming events happening at the Civic Plaza. It will also connect people to local trades, community groups, and finally provide a shared economy network for new and existing shops to make connections and share resources.

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133

A F le xible T i me Model

We also envisage a liberation from the existing confinements of time, to promote equity on the High Street and create a sense of continuous activity. This is possible with the introduction of Use Class E, that allows a change of use class and programme throughout the day without the need to acquire planning permission.

135

Programatic Organisation

By utilising the vacant spaces for alternative uses outside of their normal opening times, we propose the provision of space for activities that activate the street beyond normal hours.

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture

06:00 - 18:00

19:00 - 04:00

06:00 - 18:00

19:00 - 04:00

137

Precedents The following two precedents example a dynamic occupancy. Crowd at Majestic Laundrette, is a space which transforms into a night club. Activating this unit beyond the existing confinements of time is a way of providing the High Street with a sense of continuous activity. Tottenham Grow Community Garden also demonstrated this symbiotic relationship between programme and place. During the day it is a community garden, and at night it transforms into an events space. The profits generated are used to fund the garden.

Crowd at Majestic Laundrette, Glasgow

Laundromat SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP

Provides space for cultural event and re-animates night-time deadspace

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Grow Tottenham, London

Community garden (Hackney Gardening)

SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP

Event and club space - profits go to run community garden

139

Licensing Proposal Alongside this we have looked at the current issues with licensing, and propose a streamlined ‘community license’ that enables a broader range of activities that benefit the community and encourage social cohesion, within a meanwhile use programme. These will be granted with ground level approval from community and council members, who are most affected by the licensed activities in their area.

Issue

Proposal

Licensing legislation is inconsistent, fragmented and sometimes outdated.

Government undertakes a comprehensive review of licensing legislation to determine what can be scrapped, or amended and consolidated.

Licensing is underpinned by multiple Acts of Parliament with regulations overseen by different government departments.

A reformed licensing framework should be overseen by a single government department.

Licensing has long operated on the concept of full cost recovery, ensuring the cost of operation is borne by businesses rather than taxpayers. This principle has been undermined by nationallty set fees.

The Government should deliver on their overdue commitment to localise alcohol fees.

Not all licensing frameworks have clear objectives and do not allow relevant considerations to be taken into account.

Licensing decisions should be reached locally based on a broader set of licensing objectives that includes the protection of public health.

Business have to apply for separate licenses for each licensable activity they undertake.

Businesses should be able to apply to councils for a single license tailored to their business needs.

The frequency with which a license must be renewed varies considerably, as does the amount of work involved in each renewal.

The license for life should be consistently applied to all licenses, with clear mechanisms for addressing issues with non-compliance.

License appeal processes vary considerably.

The process for appeal should be transparent and consistent across all licenses, ensuring no applicant is disadvantaged.

Community involvement in licensing is patchy and often restrictive.

When granting licenses councils should be able to effectively consider local representations, where there is public interest.

Businesses are not alwayss offered the same flexibility of payment options that are available to tax payers and suppliers.

Government should ensure that councils have the legal flexibility to offer diverse payment options to businesses. Councils should consider what more they can do to assist businesses, including direct debits and instalments.

140

EXAMPLE

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

CHANGES SINCE COVID Using Pavement Space Outside Your Shop / Restaurant Under the Highways Act 1980 any business that wants to use pavement space outside their premises to serve customers must obtain a licence from their local authority. Previously the process of licencing varied between local authorities and the costs of obtaining a licence could run into the thousands. The new rules make the process of obtaining a licence quicker and cheaper by capping the maximum fee that authorities can impose at £100 and reducing the consultation period which applications are subject to from a minimum of 28 days to a maximum of 5 working days from submission. Any applications which have not been determined within 5 working days of expiry of the consultation period will be automatically deemed to have been approved meaning more businesses will be able to take advantage of vital trade that the good weather will bring about.

Shops Able To Open For Longer In Run Up To Christmas And Through January Sales Extended opening hours will help keep shoppers and retail staff safe In a much-needed boost for the high street, retailers will be able to extend their daily opening hours from Monday to Saturday in the run up to Christmas and through January, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick has announced today (30 November 2020).

SOLUTION

From Wednesday 2 December, as England returns to a system of tiered restrictions, all non-essential retail across England will be able to reopen, and planning rules limiting opening hours will be eased to allow shops to be open for longer Monday to Saturday. While being a boost to business, these measures will help ease transport pressures and make socially distanced shopping easier by giving people greater flexibility to choose when they shop and avoid peak times. The majority of shop owners have already made their premises Covidsecure. Allowing retailers to extend their opening hours from Monday to Saturday will mean an even safer shopping experience in the run up to Christmas and through the January sales, when shops are usually much busier.

Implement a Community license - benefits urban realm and social cohesion under new high street model Free of charge Voted on by local community and connecting communities app for ground level approval Covers a broader range of activities as part of the flexible time model. Allows for short term changes to existing license and lasts for short period Licensing limits are applied to organisational and not to individual venues

141

space In light of social distancing, queuing and temporary and permanent shop closures, High Streets have become more and more uncomfortable places to dwell. Why shouldn’t these places become tailored toward civic engagement, rather than transit routes that add little to no character or activity to the place? In line with prioritising the civic voice, we believe that it is also vital to then provide a safe and engaging space that surrounds it. By dismantling the current hierarchy of most High Streets with cars sitting atop pedestrians, we will look to reorganise this public space by rebalancing priority. Encouraging slower and more purposeful movement, the High Street will become a place of engagement rather than a transial through route. This approach needs to be tailored to the type of High Street it is designed for. This proposition is more about creating a balance between vehicles and pedestrians, as opposed to completely removing traffic from the streets. For busier arterial High Streets, respect will be given to public transport, but ultimately increasing the existing space pedestrians have to claim as well.

142

The Civic Street - Pocket Parks The Cultural Corridor

The C i vi c Street

A more civilised local community demands a more civilised street setting. We imagine the High Street putting people first by reducing priority to drivers, and enacting a more equitable traffic management structure according to the immediate street space and its connection to the wider city.

145

A Street For All

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Precedent

Traffic management strategies are widespread and varied, but it’s clear with the imminent need to reduce emissions that they are becoming more commonplace. It is possible to allow pedestrians to have priority whilst also permitting vehicles in certain circumstances. The concept of ‘shared-space’ aligns to this, where a reduced segregation of pavements and roadlines makes way for an increased perception of risk, and thus pedestrians have ultimate priority.

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow

Oxford Street, London

149

Pock et Parks

By Identifying and activating ‘pockets’ of vacant spaces for the primary use of play and interaction, the intersection of public, private and green space is challenged. Casual conversation, mindfulness and escape from the busyness of the High Street is provided through a multigenerational intervention.

151

A Playful Pocket Oasis

Aiming to provide a thoughtful and safe place for the younger and older generations to engage, pocket parks will be distributed along openings and underused spaces directly off the street. By activating these underperforming sites, we create intermediate parks for more accessible local green space and a broader green corridor.

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153

Precedent

Pocket parks are created on infill sites and other overlooked city corners. Aside from the obvious ecosystem benefits, they can be a small but significant step towards achieving equitable architecture. Pallis is a pocket park that unexpectedly pioneered a change in how citizens can adapt their built environment – democratic architecture in action.

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Shanghai, China

Stockholm, Sweden

155

T h e Cultural C o rr idor

The next proposition centres on reclaiming sections of the block along the street and repurposing the central space of a chosen building as a cultural corridor. These key nodal points will start to appear along the High Street, facilitating a programme of civic engagement and community events. They will consequently activate the passage through to spaces behind the High Street block, unearthing a wealth of underused urban space that we can activate through our following propositions.

157

Spaces For All

Activating key buildings along the street with cultural assets and information will elevate the area’s heritage. With each becoming somewhat representative of the area, through history, representation of communities, it will be more than a transitional space. It will encourage the diverse breadth of communities to engage with each other’s heritage and enable a passive learning of cultures.

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159

buildi n gs As the life and spaces have been introduced, finally therefore makes way for addressing the buildings. By dismantling the physical recognised boundaries of public space on the High Street, the existing buildings facing the street will become less of a physical condition where products are simply viewed, and instead will become dynamic and permeable, allowing activity to either spill out onto the street, or draw public activity into the realm of the building.

160

A Dynamic Shopfront - Restructuring Retail Occupying Vacant Spaces

A D yna mic S h o pfront

The shopfront offers a public face to retail amongst the historic fabric of the street. The repeated rhythm and 2 dimensional nature can be unengaging, especially outside of opening hours when glazed facades are blockaded by metal shutters. We propose a harder working façade that implements composite architectures of expression and spatial dynamacy to engage with the street and better reflect the character of the place.

163

Breaking The Facade And Creating Thresholds

As an animated component of the public sphere, a series of dynamic and playful partial boundaries will challenge the existing limits, by questioning where the street ends, and the building begins. These new conditions along the street edge will encourage a greater informal dialogue between passers by and those who occupy the spaces within and disrupt the linear passage of movement along the street.

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165

Learning From Other High Streets

Market Peckham, Rye Lane, Peckham

Market Peckham works in a similar way by occupying a unit along the high street, and reimagining the way the user encounters it from the pavement, and the arrangement of spaces within. Conceived as a community driven antithesis to a high end residential proposal, it comes as the product of advocation by local residents for a participatory, yet business growth driven unit on the High Street

Sheinkin Street, White City, Tel Aviv

With the ambition to create an unobstructed movement pattern between the shop fronts and the street, adaptability plays a key role in the success of Sheinkin Street in Tel Aviv. An array of canopies, overhangs, colonnades and coverings offer protection to visitors. Currently undergoing a testing period, a traffic management scheme is in place with the aim of giving ultimate priority to pedestrians and cyclists.

De Hallen, Oud West, Amsterdam

Making use of spaces behind the typical street frontage is the key move for De Hallen, Amsterdam. Pedestrian routes cut into the block, where work spaces, a cinema, and other civic spaces provide a sense of safety and activity throughout more of the day and night time. The programs aim to enhance the existing qualities of the multicultural community as well as providing an extension to the existing high street activities.

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167

Re s tru c tur ing Re ta il

In line with the theme of rebalancing community and commodity, we propose a radical approach to the overall arrangement of shop units in the form of a new model that flips the current on its head, where now the complex and artisanal processes can take visual precedence over mundane commercial transactions by simply moving the product to the back, and the process to the front, providing an engaging visual display without the associated economic pretense.

169

Flipping Process and Product

Allocating the commercial activity to the rear of the store will create a new condition that entices the user to experience the entirety of the space and provide opportunity to imagine a new public realm beyond. With the aim of engaging the community with processes at work and calling for a new network of interactive thoroughfares this will also connect neighbouring units whose programs are able to function alongside each other. By making more of an exhibition of the ‘behind the scenes’ activities, people will feel connected to each other and more likely to support one another in their local work.

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Process

Product

Product Process

171

Occupy ing Vaca nt Space s

Key to our following propositions has centred on challenging the boundary of the existing High Street model. By reversing the typical layout of a store, it will encourage browsing of products to take place at the rear. This more leisurely activity will then make way for activating the spaces that extend beyond the limits of the shop, into the gardens and yards behind. It will encourage a total rethink of how to utilise such spaces that are typically private and disconnected.

173

Discovering The Opportunity

Whilst initial perceptions imply that the High Street is limited to just the road and the facing stores, there is a vast amount of unactivated space behind. We see a huge amount of untapped potential in vacant spaces along, behind and above the main facade. By imagining a future High Street that accesses more than what simply faces the street, it will accommodate for more of its citizens.

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A Of

Tale

High Streets

04 Chapter

Contents

198 - 179

Our Sites In Context

180 - 181

Gentrification

182 - 183

Relative Deprivation

184 - 187

Identifying The Problem

188 - 189

Comparing Life

190 - 191

Comparing Space

192 - 193

Comparing Buildings

Our Sites In Context

In order to formulate a framework that can address the issues of High Streets that are failing for different reasons. We chose to examine two different sites, each with their own unique morphology and differing strengths and weaknesses. Investigating two contrasting sites will ensure that the spatial propositions are contextual and act as examples for the framework’s application to further High Streets in and around London. Our selected sites are Stoke Newington Church Street and Kingsland Road, in Dalston.

Greater London

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture

London Borough of Hackney Ward Map, 2002-2014

New River Springfield Brownswood

Church Street Stoke Newington Central

Cazenove

Lordship

Hackney Downs

Clissold

Kingsland Road Dalston

Hackney Central

De Beauvoir

Hoxton

Queensbridge

Leabridge King’s Park

Chatham

Wick

Victoria

Haggerston

Hackney Borough

179

Gentrification

Whilst Church Street is aesthetically rich in character, its boujeeness provides a superficial facade, covering for its gentrification, and exclusive patronage. In contrast Kingsland High Street has experienced more prominent retail decline, and the High Street itself today features more generic retail chains, feeling congested and somewhat uninspiring in the wider cityscape.

180

ogate Planning Policy

tage

err

ts c a nt U ni

In t

se Va

P u b li c S p a

l i st

Enc

D r iven by E co n L om

ti v

App

s Po

ce a l p s l Di

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Incons

ri ory t m a i n ur

ni nlcusive

Incons ide r

u Eq

Ackn

arc

o f Engag e m

t en

g Ch tin

ection

cia

ral R ltu

ial History c o ect S l O p p o r

Nond

s c r i mi n a tor Di y

f Her i t a g e o s gard Ex is o s Disre

t is An o

s i v ity

Resp e

un i t

Ne g l

Res

t es

n Etho

e Lo cal C u l t u r

m ote Socia l In cl u

esig

mpath

P ic

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a kin

c eti

C e l e br

Inclu sive D

Inlfu e n c e

ation or

Comm unity Collab e g a r rporate ou rioritise Placem g

tion ifica r t en G

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dge He

n it y C h a n g e

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Relative Deprivation

The economic situation in both areas reflects the nature of the street, with Dalston and general experiencing higher levels of deprivation than Stoke Newington - this is reflected in the prolificacy of budget stores, betting shops and fast food establishments.

KEY Household not deprived in any dimension Household deprived in one or more dimension(s)

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Relative deprivation in Stoke Newington

Relative deprivation in Dalston

183

Identifying The Problem On the surface, Dalston presents quite an abrupt character, that is dominated by vehicles, with endless pavements and a tall, impenetrable facade Church Street on the other hand is very different. It feels much slower and offers a wider variety of attractions that draw in people for a ‘Saturday mooch’ from across London. Church Street though has experienced significant gentrification in the last 20 years. Its instagrammable nature has now made it such that the High Street is more image driven and targeted to a white middle class community with disposable income, leaving other minority groups in its catchment uncatered for.

Bougie cafés, expensive restaurants and estate agents dominate the street. Gentrification has killed a sense of inclusive local community along the street.

184

Church Street

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Gambling shops, poundshops and fast food restaurants dominate the street. The heavy traffic along Kingsland Road creates an unpleasant place to dwell in and explore.

Kingsland Road

185

Balancing The Ecosystem These High Streets need to work harder for their residents. Not just tailoring to the people who are living on them, but for all those communities who are in the proximity to depend on it for pleasure and necessity. On Church Street, reinstating a diverse sense of community into the High Street through new programs that are more inclusive will help it to rebalance its ecosystem into a working model. At the same time, Kingsland High Street must reinstate a more meaningful and thriving commodity and support its vibrant community through shared civic spaces and affordable retail units. By removing the faceless programs and making its existing fabric work much harder for its people, the ecosystem model can be rebalanced.

Reinstating a diverse sense of community into the high street.

186

Church Street

Work/Place The London School of Architecture

Reinstating a thriving commodity and creating a space to dwell.

Kingsland Road

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Comparing Life Reverting back to Jan Gehl’s principles of Life, Space and Buildings, allows us to compare the 2 High streets. On Church St., the intimate axis will be maintained, and the civic plaza will occupy an existing vacant space along the street. Dalston already has a designed square; Gillett Square. The space is host to a range of events, however many have outlined it as being somewhat unwelcoming and unsafe, so by implementing community decision making at the heart as well as an expanded programme, Dalston’s Civic Plaza will occupy a part of the site to promote a stronger presence and inclusivity for the wider community.

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Church Street

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Comparing Space On Church St., Pocket Parks will be distributed along openings and underused spaces directly off the street. By activating these underperforming sites, we create intermediate parks for more accessible local green space and a broader green corridor. Furthermore a civilised street with only a cycle lane will give much more space back to pedestrians and optimise the street as a secondary route. For Kingsland High St., on the other hand, we aim to Define additional axis perpendicular to the dominant High Street that encourages permeable movement through the block. By dissecting the thick block with an open circulation space that connects to underused rooftops, it will respond actively to the semi-private spaces facing the back.

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Comparing Buildings The key moves encompassed in Buildings all look to challenge the depth of the High Street. Firstly, dynamic facades create a more complex and exciting interaction with the shopfront. Secondly, a radical approach to the overall arrangement of shop units, in the form of a new model flipping product and process. And finally, revitalizing vacant spaces will house new typologies along the High Street. The contrast between both High Streets is that the components are contextually adapted to working with the existing fabric. Whilst Church street is a more lateral approach of infiltration, the dense nature of Dalston High Street calls for infill, encouraging the existing blocks to work harder as a unit.

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture The Three layers of life, space and building come together to create the framework for future High Street developments.

Kingsland Road

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Kingsland Road Character As a main route through London, Kingsland High Street feels busy and congested, pulled by the current of bustling urban life. It’s position between two train stations, Dalston Junction and Dalston Kingsland make it more of a thoroughfare than a place to dwell and relax, but it’s strong multicultural identity and renowned Ridley Road Market contribute to its vibrant character.

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History Of Kingsland Road Kingsland Road originated as a Roman Road from Londinium to York and as such remains a main arterial route today - the A10. The advent of the railway only encouraged ribbon development parallel to the main road and therefore the High Street we see today is broad yet dense. The 20th Century brought with it widespread immigration into Hackney, which we see today in its complex ethnic mosaic and diverse range of diasporas, and with this sadly racial tension and resultant civic action.

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Kingsland Road starts as medieval Hamlet of Kingsland on the banks of the Hackney Brook. Main economy farming with Kingsland being surrounded by fields and market gardens.

John Rocques Environs of London Map

Ribbon development along arterial routes. Surrounding countryside largely remains as open fields. The demand for vast quantities of bricks was supplied locally from Hobson’s brickfields from underlying clay. Thomas Milne’s Land Use Map of London

Construction of the North London Line in 1848 triggered further widespread estate development. The middle class/wellto-do typically lived on the high street with less affluent residents more widespread across the area. Charles Booth’s London Poverty Map

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Dalston Community Identity Facilities for different communities to congregate are continuously at risk from the threat of development, such as the Centreprise Bookstore - once a highly successful cross-cultural space which closed in 2012. Ridley Road retains a great celebration of culture in Dalston, however there are concerns that new development will price the long standing locals out of the area with a lack of affordability for BAME businesses

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Charedi community established in Stamford Hill, post WWII.

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Turkish Cypriots began to arrive as commonwealth citizens

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Significant numbers of Irish people arrived to work to work in areas such as construction and nursing.

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Significant numbers of people from South Asia began to arrive in Hackney.

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People from African countries begin to arrive originally to Dalston. People from Antigua and Jamaica settling in Stoke Newington.

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UK government accepted quotas of Vietnamese refugees from camps in Hong Kong

Turkish people from mainland Turkey came to live in London for both political and economic reasons

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Kurdish community fled persecution in Turkey, Iraq and Iran

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Dalston bookshop and community centre Centerprise founded circa 1971. CLOSED 2012

After several local public consultations, the Gillett Street car park was designated as as the future town square for Dalston in 1998 - it is now home to the Vortex Jazz Club and Daslton Culture House

Established as a not-forprofit by a local co-operative in 1979, and one of only a few remaining east end cinemas, Rio Cinema occupies a building that has been a cinema since 1909

Ridley Road Market has been an East London institution since the late 1880s, encapsulating the area’s rich history of immigration and cultural diversity

Relative Diversity In Dalston

Key Majority White Ethnicity Majority Non-White Ethnicity

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Dalston Virtual Stall Contacting a mixture of people who regularly pass through Kingsland High Street, the majority of responses were that it does not offer a satisfactory level of pedestrian experience or feeling of safety. Whilst it is noticeable that Dalston has a multicultural diverse community, this does not mean that it is working for everyone. Gillett Square for example, fails to meet many of the aspirations of inception over 20 years ago, according to its locals.

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As the street has been designed with no curb and shared street material, it makes sense for the pedestrians to go cross directly out of the station to the market instead of walk further to the signalled traffic lights. This has made the crossing dangerous

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I love how sociable it is amongst people from all backgrounds and ages. There are very few locations in London as a whole where community is visibly apparent, and Gillette Square is rich in community.

nity... u m m Co D iv d e t erse and Connec

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There are NO green areas for you to enjoy your coffee and sun. All open spaces looks like carparks, abused for drug dealing, dirty and with no where to sit. I also think there should be a big push to improve air pollution as Kingsland road is a big road with constant traffic. More trees and flowers to improve the neighbourhood.

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Development Of The Spatial Composition

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Development Of The Spatial Composition

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Observing the dense composition of the street, its existing condition is not to the human scale it needs to be. By pushing the ground floor facade back by three metres, a colonnade will allow pedestrians to claim more of the public space. Shops facing will benefit from having more engagement as people will be able to move through the space in a slower, more relaxed fashion. The typical deep plan of the block will be dissected to allow each unit to be optimised, by incorporating a larger number of units for selling. Flexible workspaces can occupy the vacant rooftops, creating a semi-private street at the first floor level. Facing the street, pockets that break up the continuity of the facade-line will become civic spaces, semi-permeable to the street facade. Opposite, a cultural corridor will improve connectivity to the existing Gillett Square, whilst also becoming a hub for celebrating the context and diversity of communities. Residential units above the existing buildings will finish the scheme, and all components work together to provide a greater sense of safety and inclusivity for the people who need to use it.

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Gilletts Square With minimal intervention, the civic plaza aims to embrace the sociable freedom of Dalston’s existing Gillett Square - overlooked by residential units for passive surveillance and providing opportunities for exchange and engagement though its mixed community programme- this might include arts festivals, music events, talks and markets.

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Gilletts Square

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The Cultural Corridor Extensive circulation and public art installation connects the plaza with the Civic Street colonnades on both sides restore priority to pedestrians and reinstate time and purpose to the High Street journey

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The Civic Street

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The Civic Street Dalston is an arterial route into London city centre, and so its unobstructed continuous language of built form responds to this. By respecting the fact that buses and public transport rely on this street, our approach is to create a buffer between the pavement and the road, where a green axis will protect cyclists on both sides. To create more pavement space, we have offset the ground façade by 3m to create a colonnade that not only offers another buffer layer to the street, but also to allow certain stores to take ownership of the space directly outside.

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Activated voids along the street sit within the High Street skeleton, filling in the block with architecture that houses culturally significant programmes elevate the area’s heritage. In this section, the proposal provides a new home to the closed Centerprise Bookstore with a cafe at first floor and a reading room and small scale printing press at second floor. These benefit from direct circulation to the colonnade as well as terraces for watching the street life.

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Restructuring Retail

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At ground floor large shops, such as betting shops that are frequent and have no positive impact on the community, are subdivided into units, to be rented to BAME led organisations that make a greater contribution to civic life in Dalston.

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Dividing Larger Stores A Case Study

As outlined in our research and within the “Towards a Dalston Plan” report, the retail of Kingsland High Street has many issues that require attention. Increasing amounts of pressure on the council to respond to complaints from locals regarding the lack of support for BAME businesses and an increasing amount of vacant ground floor space is where we have chosen to apply our framework of Restructuring Retail. When asking how a High Street can provide commodity that engages and responds to the needs of its locality, we have decided to question the role that betting shops play in committing to a healthier and more engaging environment for its communities. As well as addressing the 13% of vacant units that exist along this street, we see opportunity to reconfigure these units for the smaller, struggling businesses that cannot afford to occupy these spaces Within the new reconfiguration of these units, there will be a greater opportunity for smaller businesses and services to set up shop and establish themselves within the town centre. We have chosen a number of BAME organisations that were included in the “BAME Community Research Report” by Suj Ahmed as providing a positive contribution to the ageing population of Hackney. By providing a space for these businesses along the high street, it will increase the diversity of services on offer as well as recentralising the high levels of engagement and interaction that these organisations offer to the community.

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BETFRED

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Dividing Larger Stores A Case Study

HACKNEY CYPRIOT ASSOCIATION

HACKNEY CARIBBEAN ELDERLY ORGANISATION

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HACKNEY ARIBBEAN ELDERLY GANISATION

HOTLINE MEALS SERVICE

SHARED UNIT

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The Wood Workshop Workspaces and flexible community rooms fill out the block to provide facilities not available in the home - these are all linked by multistory accessible circulation that joins onto the cultural corridor via the secondary street

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CHU RCH R ST T EE

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Site Analysis

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Church Street Character It has also established itself over the centuries to become a very civic place, offering public facilities like parks, churches and community halls. But also observing the preservation of the building scale along the street, its sense of individuality and character is clearly a valued asset that is cherished and protected by the community.

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History of Church Street When we relate our understanding of the origins of place to Church Street, it’s always been the true heart of Stoke Newington. It was the first sign of settlement along the Roman road. Over time, the density expanded from there. And it has for generations been the centre for the people. Church Street has always been an ancillary route, but with an outer London position has long been a refuge from dirty inner city life. Its prominent green space and more narrow development along Church Street has allowed it to retain its suburban character which defines it today.

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Church Street begins as a minor road joining Stoke Newington High Street and Green Lanes Passed middle age Old St Mary’s Church. Stoke Newington became a fashionable area in the 18th century, as a commuter village to London. John Rocques Environs of London Map

Clissold Park created in the early 1790s as the grounds of Clissold House. Abney Park cemetery created later in 1840, providing a permanent open space. Thomas Milne’s Land Use Map of London

Rapid expansion in late 19th Century. All open spaces in Stoke Newington except Clissold Park transformed into suburban streets. Stoke Newington sees majority affluence and even some wealthy residents, with negligible poor population.

Charles Booth’s London Poverty Map

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Stoke Newington Community Identity Over time, this has seen the introduction of businesses such as boujee Cafes and expensive restaurants which now dominate the High Street and in turn has eliminated the inclusive dynamic. There is a significant lack of diversity in the area, from the predominantly white middle class ethnic composition and its position as an area that is home to the highest earners within SN, and that doesn’t cater for the rest of Hackney’s diverse cultural mosaic. This is a key driver into the current tide of gentrification sweeping through the area.

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Charedi community established in Stamford Hill, post WWII.

1930

Turkish Cypriots began to arrive as commonwealth citizens

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Significant numbers of Irish people arrived to work to work in areas such as construction and nursing.

1950

Significant numbers of people from South Asia began to arrive in Hackney.

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People from African countries begin to arrive originally to Dalston. People from Antigua and Jamaica settling in Stoke Newington.

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UK government accepted quotas of Vietnamese refugees from camps in Hong Kong

Turkish people from mainland Turkey came to live in London for both political and economic reasons

1980

Kurdish community fled persecution in Turkey, Iraq and Iran

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The London Irish Womens centre was foundedin 1982 by radical feminists in as a refuge for women who had ‘who had drifted in the slipstream of men’. CLOSED 2012

Formerly Apollo Cinema, the building was bought as a place of worship by British Turks in 1983 and is today the Azizye Mosque

The Claudia Jones foundation is founded in 1982 with the aim of building a culture of aspiration for AfroCaribbean heritage woman

Relative Diversity In Stoke Newington

Key Majority White Ethnicity Majority Non-White Ethnicity

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Stoke Newington Virtual Stall We set up a “Virtual Stall” on the Stokey Folks Facebook page and asked for people’s perceptions on how Church Street provides for the community. There was a lot of positive feedback, however most of the negative comments alluded to the lack of consideration for minority groups, and instead focussing on answering to the larger crowd that came from outside the area. Most commonly, responses aligned to the place currently possessing a poor pedestrian experience and an overall lack of provision for the non white middle class population.

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“ Does n’t C a

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I don’t think the menus have the locals in mind. Stoke Newington is more than 11% Muslim, more than 3% Jewish and many of the black Christian residents follow sects like the Seventh Day Adventists that tend to eat Halal or Kosher. Many families are mixed and friendship groups even more so. There is not a single Halal or Kosher shop.

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I love the buzz of Church Street and it’s fiercely protective determination to stay independent.

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Spaces That Reflect The High Street

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By uniting the rear courtyards and gardens adjoining the existing stores on the High Street, a cluster of community quarters will populate the depth of the High Street Having the quarters relate enhance the specific program of the adjoining shops is one of our strategies to achieving an ecosystem. By doing this, we hope to create an identity in each quarter that produces a greater and more authentic sense of place, formulates a destination, and brings the culture of the shops, and related product of craft away from a heavily monetised model into a more free, and equitable programme. For the purposes of explaining in detail our architectural response, we are centering on one quarter, that is themed on gastronomy. Whilst this might be viewed as a saturated sector already, we’ve investigated ways to recentre the value given to food and its shared culture through a series of spaces within our programme

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The Civic Plaza A vacant site at the centre of Church Street forms the new plaza. A sunken space for music performances, theater and weekend markets.The new Square is the beating heart of the High Street.

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The Civic Street Next, this adjoins the new Civic Street where pedestrians and nature have reclaimed the space where cars once roamed. Cyclists meander amongst the pedestrians who are ultimately given priority in this ancillary route.

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The Civic Street Church Street’s existing uneven façade line meanders the length of the street, and already it offers a dynamic and intimate nature. The existing road however, does not. By re-purposing the current two-way street as a cycle thoroughfare, it will enable the lanes to respond playfully to the meandering façade. This will then create clusters of more expansive pavement along the street, and existing stores will be able to have a greater sense of authorship over the space outside.

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The Cultural Corridor

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The Dynamic Shopfront A new floor of residential units has been introduced to activate the rear elevation of the blocks and ensure that the High Street becomes a place with a stronger sense of locality. These units have a direct connection to the quarters that sit beyond...

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Work/Place The London School of Architecture A new floor of residential units has been introduced to activate the rear elevation of the blocks and ensure that the High Street becomes a place with a stronger sense of locality. These units have a direct connection to the quarters that sit beyond...

Restructuring Retail By simply flipping the overall layout of the store to display the process of making as the first threshold, movement is encouraged through the shop and into the spaces beyond the façade.

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Bridgewood and Neitzert A Case Study

Established for over 36 years in the heart of Stoke Newington, Bridgewood and Neitzert are one of the remaining stores along church street that celebrate the craft and heritage that was once so prominent within the neighbourhood. We see opportunity to further engage the community of Stoke Newington within their process by reconfiguring the layout of the store to champion this amazing process of restoring and repairing instruments. By creating space at the front of the unit that will display this process, it offers new ways of engaging with the product of the high street.

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Bridgewood and Neitzert A Case Study

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Finally the section leads into the gastronomy quarter, that features a large chimney paying tribute to the once thriving Jewish Politi industry that stands as a new cultural wayfinder. The vacant space has been transformed into a quarter that now caters to the multicultural community of Stoke Newington.

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Occupying Vacant Spaces The space will demonstrate every step of food production and consumption. The cultural corridor becomes a large greenhouse, providing food for the restaurants, and a visible beacon of community engagement. The largest building on site will become a food education centre, providing a space for children and adults from the neighbourhood to learn about food. A cookery school continues this learning into the kitchen. A small pop up restaurant provides an affordable space for young chefs to start their own businesses.

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Relating To Its Context

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Cultural Corridor

Journey Of Customer

Journey Of Resident

Access Points

Pedestrian Routes

Vacant Spaces

The Sites Purpose

Carving A Mass

Addressing The Context

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Development Of The Spatial Composition From the High Street, the cultural corridors play a vital role in drawing people into the rear spaces acting as a formal gateway to the block. A customer on the High Street will be curious as to the visible processes on display towards the front of the shop. Being drawn in by this, a journey of discovery is made towards the back of the shop, where the products are on display to buy. Beyond this experience, the public have a space to engage with the processes themselves by getting hands on with the making process.The composition of public and semi private activities will therefore enhance these currently vacant spaces. By housing a variety of civic focussed activities in the quarters, an experiential cycle of learning and engaging will define their identities. The program within the space will respond directly to the facing boundaries and facades. Naturally the residents require more semi private buffer spaces, which lends nicely to positioning of workspaces for example. And finally the centre will act as a sunken square, where public programs look onto and encourage visitors and residents to celebrate their immediate localities.

1. Existing Situation

2. Combine Rear Spaces

3. Implement Shared Community Quarter

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4. Highlighting Civic Spaces

5. A Landmark to be drawn towards

6. Additional Residential and Workspaces Overlook

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By establishing a new framework that can be adapted to address a variety of High Streets that are failing the communities they’re built on, Work/Place is challenging the way we allocate space to give precedence to the new locality.

By enhancing the existing fabric and activating unused space to make it work harder than it does presently, it will pave the way for new typologies that extend the activity and program of the High Street far beyond the recognised limits of its immediate façade.

A rebalanced ecosystem restores a sense of civic life, equality, and autonomy to the people within the neighbourhood, establishing a responsive and adaptable High Street that works for its user as diligently as they work themselves.

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