A model of the future

For some while now I have been interested in New Urbanism. Not so much the neo classical position taken by but the process of master planning undertaken by studios such as Urban Design Associates and Duanny Platter Zyberk. I like the plot driven approach, run in parallel with say something like a pattern book. With this approach we don’t have to rely too much on any place making attributes of

West Gorton gets go ahead

Last week my master plan for Manchester’s first low carbon community was awarded Outline Planning Permission by Manchester City Council. The master plan is a great example of how to ‘re-stitch’ a Radburn plan back into a more recognisable community. Re-linking roads, removing cul-de-sacs and reconfiguring blocks to ensure that there is clearly defined, defensible space, which is clear and unambiguous. In other words making sure there are proper fronts

Productive Simplicity

This is one of my favourite expressions. Its also the key to all creative work. If you think creatively for a living, its imperative that you understand how you manage and control creative energy. Good quality work completed quickly doesn’t come from anxiety states, nor does it come being under utilised or simply bored. When you work with and lead creative people you need to be very conscious to keeping them

It’s all about the space…

The point about ‘feeling’ a sense of place is intuitively knowing where your place is and what defines it. Most of the time its about boundaries, event, time, enclosure and views. A great example of this can be seen in the painting. ‘A Courtyard of a House in Delft’. Pieter de Hooch (1658). I use this a lot. Just look at how its implied perspective draws you the view into