Links tagged with “planning”
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The Barbican Estate: An Architectural Masterpiece Under Threat
The “A History of Continual Expansion” document is fascinating, to see how the school has incrementally expanded over decades.
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Fire insurance maps and plans
The dull title, and initial interface, doesn’t do this collection justice. Really, really detailed old maps of towns - lots of London - showing individual buildings and usage, each sheet carefully overlaid onto Google maps. It’s an effort to find a particular area though.
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Municipal Dreams
A blog with long posts about the history of UK social housing, planning, etc. (via Wowhaus)
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A City of London report on potential options for improving Beech Street (PDF)
The phrase “lipstick on a pig” springs to mind, because there’s so little that’s feasible. Making the road more pleasant, somehow, *and* improving access to the podium level, *and* getting rid of the yellow Exhibition Halls tunnel up there, would all be good.
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San Francisco Scapegoated for Silicon Valley’s Civic Blind Spot
Very good point from Peter Merholz: The poor planning (ie, car-centric, sprawling) of Silicon Valley is one reason for the current problems in (more appealingly planned, dense) San Francisco. A good example of the need for regional rather than town planning, I’d guess.
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The JR James Archive - Sets
The University of Sheffield’s planning archive has been digitised and put on Flickr. Post-war town and regional planning porn. (via @benterrett)
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Whitecross Street Estate - 2010 - Publica (PDF)
A report on the Peabody estate that spans Whitecross Street, from 2010. An interesting read. It sounded like a quite reasonable amount of work would make a big different to a lot of the public/residents’ spaces which are neither car park or useful/enjoyable space. But I’m not sure how much has actually changed since.
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An Independent Appraisal of Henderson Global Investor’s Ltd’s Proposals for Redevelopment of the Western Market Buildings, Smithfield (PDF)
Lots of photos etc, describing the proposals. Mainly: Keep the most of the shallow, street-facing brick buildings (or just the facades?), and replace the large 19th century market space inside with a seven-storey office block. This assessment seems unsurprisingly critical.
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Using The New Sim City, 6 Urban Planners Battle For Bragging Rights | Co.Exist: World changing ideas and innovation
“We brought together some of the most interesting urban thinkers to play the new version of the city planning game to see who would make the best fake metropolis.” I still can’t wait. (via @antimega)
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Anna Catherine Dr to Summer Rain Dr - Google Maps
Impressive: two houses in Florida that back on to each other, but to get from one to the other by road is a 7 mile journey. (via Paul Mison)
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Gamasutra: Mike Rose’s Blog - Using SimCity to diagnose my home town’s traffic problem
Replicating a real town’s traffic problems. I still can’t wait. (via Terra Nova)
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SimCity vs. The Suburban Sprawl - Tested
Different road layouts in the new SimCity. I can’t wait.
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Old Street – putting the genie back in the bottle? | The power of the network
Yes (except when he says “Old Street” he means “Old Street Roundabout”). Putting a big building in the middle of a horrific, people-unfriendly space won’t help much. I’d go further: pedestrianise everything from the Foundry to the roundabout. (via @cityofsound)
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How a high-rise craze is ruining London’s skyline | Art and design | The Observer
“Strata waddles into the background from stage left, like SpongeBob SquarePants in a production of Hamlet.” Yes, all this. (via @cityofsound)
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Henderson - General - Henderson launches new plans for Smithfield Quarter
Description of plans for the west end of Smithfield Market. I am never optimistic about these things.
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Jonathan Meades: Architects are the last people who should shape our cities | Art and design | The Guardian
In fine form. “It is the business of attempting to create places that defeats architects. Architects cannot devise analogues for what has developed over centuries, for generation upon generation of amendments. They cannot understand the appeal of untidiness and randomness, and even if they could they wouldn’t know how to replicate it.”
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Why the Southbank Centre redevelopment plan is sheer folly | Art and design | The Observer
What is it that makes people want to change pleasant, distinctive locations into chain-filled, plate-glass-fronted, shopping centres? (via everyone with any sense)
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Disquiet about confidentiality clauses - Portas Pilots
If having a TV celebrity manage the regeneration of a handfull of high streets didn’t sound like a dumb enough way of implementing government policy, it’s sounding like turning the process into a reality TV show — with all the secrecy, fakery and manufactured conflict that involves — is even worse. Also, #portaspilots on Twitter.
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Let Charles be Charles | Planetizen
In the comments, Dan Hill versus New Urbanists. Interesting. (Comments are in an odd order and the reordering widget doesn’t seem to work.)
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Facebook | SAVE THE FOUNDRY CAMPAIGN !!! The Foundry - re-house/re-locate
You can have all the fancy urban theories you like, but I’m increasingly thinking that if you don’t own lots of expensive property, you can’t control anything.
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County of london plan 1945 - a set on Flickr
“excerpts from a small booklet explaining the ideas behind the official County of London Plan.” Lovely.
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Get Your Walk Score - A Walkability Score For Any Address
Interesting idea for measuring how walkable the area around an address is. Despite appearances it appears to work with UK addresses too.
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Doodle: Easy Scheduling
Another way to arrange group events. (via Haddock)
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Meet With Approval
“Work out which day is good for everyone and keep track of who is coming…” Great idea, but I wonder if it works in practice. (via Haddock)
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Corporation of London - Development & planning - Planning applications
Proposal to create a brand new flat at the bottom of one of the Barbican towers, in a “void space”. See the PLANNING REPORT for some pics.
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PsyBlog: Why Career Planning Is Time Wasted
The group who chose their sandwiches for the week in advance “are significantly less happy with their choices than the group who chose their sandwiches on the day.” (via Haddock)
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BarbicanTalk.com :: View topic - Milton Court - the tower has been rejected
Excellent — the proposed plan to redevelop the Barbican’s Milton Court has been “sent back” by the planning committee.
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PlanningAlerts.com | Email alerts of planning applications near you
New to me. It just works. I even get direct links to the council website to comment on each application. Wonderful. This is how council websites should work. (via Tomski)
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Mallow street skyscraper - a photoset on Flickr
Ridiculously huge skyscraper planned for right next to Old Street roundabout. Only a few days left to get objections in to the planning people. (via Haddock)
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Archinect : News : Jane Jacobs goes to the great city in the sky
Fairly detailed obituary/summary. (via City of Sound)
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Digitally Distributed Environments
Weblog with, currently, lots of models of London buildings for Google Earth.
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Panoramic photograph of suburban sprawl near San Ramon, California | Matt Jalbert
Unreal-looking. Would be great to see this animated over a decade or two. (via Kottke again. He has such good links.)