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Bankside Urban Park: Architects Appointed |
Witherford Watson Mann Architects have been selected by Better Bankside to develop a vision and framework for the Bankside Urban Park. The practice were one of eleven invited to make submissions.
Tate Modern’s Head of Regeneration and Community Partnerships, Donald Hyslop, who Chairs Better Bankside said: 'The expectations from the brief are complex and reflect the number of interests which are party to the study. WWM produced a considered approach that addressed the challenges and opportunities that exist.'
Bankside Urban Park is a major project being led by Better Bankside with the support of Tate and other landowners. The plan is to create a dynamic new quarter of London extending from Tate Modern southwards towards the Elephant and Castle between Blackfriars Road and Borough High Street. The Urban Park will connect newly landscaped areas around Tate Modern to open spaces across Southwark, involving the improvement of the urban realm through the creation of pocket parks and other small-scale developments.
Witherford Watson Mann will be collaborating with Ken Worpole and leading a design team consisting of, Peter Brett Associates, Intelligent Space Partnership, Bucknall Austin and PRP Architects.
The client, formed from local stakeholders, includes the London Borough of Southwark, Tate Modern, Transport for London, Cross River Partnership, Land Securities, GC Bankside LLP, the Architecture Foundation, and is lead by Better Bankside BID Company.
Stephen Witherford said: 'It’s very exciting that a young practice like ours has been trusted with this challenge. I was involved in the Architecture Foundation’s 'Future Southwark' initiative ten years ago and it’s amazing to see not just the transformations the area has accommodated, but also what has endured. We are really looking forward to working with the stakeholders and residents to further explore the dynamics of the area.'
The framework is due to be completed early in 2007.
On Wednesay 8th November the Southwark Rose Hotel kindly hosted a workshop that offically launched the consultation phase of Bankside Urban Park.
Over 30 participants representing a wide range of stakeholders were present to hear how Witherford Watson Mann and their team intend to approach the commission. The scale of the challenges in addressing such a broad and diverse area were acknowledged. But there were clear demands that the study needed to produce something tangible which would result in early action.
The consultants are intent on gathering the views of the different constituencies and will deploy a number of devices, including post card size maps of the area. These are designed to encourage consultees to pinpoint their concerns and also to indicate where they see opportunities for investment in the public realm.
All feedback will be translated into proposals which will go to public exhibition early in the new year.
Press Enquiries:
Erica Bolton, Bolton & Quinn Ltd, tel 020 7211 5000 (5 lines). |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 24 October 2008 )
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