Ross Miller wrote:
This is an opportunity to be bold and imaginative, not only with the style of units but also with the level of community involvement and construction methods.
Absolutely Ross, but realistically, how many houses or housing developments can you think of over the past say 50 years in the district which are of any architectural merit or worth?
Why the Hell for example could we not have built the local equivalent of the Brunswick Centre in St James providing both retail and a mixed- use residential development rather than a car park surrounded by some sheds selling stuff?
Photo - Brunswick centre (above)
IF we are going to build 300 homes somewhere why are we not building high density high quality housing for people rather than a load of Letraset semis arranged around acres of tarmac so we can all park our 1.6 cars outside our font doors?
There IS good design out there. There ARE excellent talented young architects champing at the bit to build housing for the future rather than a 2/3 scale model village based on a past which never actually existed.
Unfortunately there are far too many planners and councillors who have no background in design and who spend their time providing supposedly what the people 'want' rather than showing them a future they could have.
Here's a load of pictures of what the future could look like. Sorry about the lack of parking spaces for 1.6 cars! And before any prat says would I live in one, the answer is I already live in a four story terraced house with inadequate parking.
It's called a Victorian terrace and apparently it's 'much sought after' and worth a small king's ransom.
https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/261208847109373146/