Comments on: Chelmsford Fellows lead the way

By: Places UK « Branding for Cities

Places UK « Branding for Cities — Thu, 13 May 2010 15:12:58 +0000

[...] there’s other activity percolating, for instance the RSA’s work with the town of Chelmsford towards a more assured and engaging projection of its town centre’s dull persona, not to [...]

By: Adam Roake

Adam Roake — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:50:27 +0000

I am intruiged by this initiative and your intention to instigate several similar projects. I am engaged in something similar at Whitstable Harbour, a small working port (fishing and roadstone import in particular), which has also become busy leisure destination. The Harbour is owned by the local authrity and after some years of failing to properly engage the local community, the Harbour Board,of which I’m a member, are currently consulting on a Strategic Plan (http://www.canterbury.gov.uk/buildpage.php?id=5516 ).

The Harbour is at the heart of the town and has an iconic significance for the community – in consequence there as many strong views on its future as there are inhabitants!

I’m not sure what synergy there may be with Chelmsford, how what we have learnt may help there and vice versa or what help John Smith Street can offer, but it seems to me it’ might be worth meeting to discuss.

By the way I’m an architect but unlike Paul Evans, I think I still have the ability to care and be caring!

By: Designing your environment | Local Democracy

Designing your environment | Local Democracy — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 08:21:45 +0000

[...] a short observation, in the light of Matthew Taylor’s post about the RSA’s work in Chelmsford that is being launched today. “….a vision for the town centre must be based on a rich [...]

By: Ed Bowie

Ed Bowie — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 08:05:41 +0000

I wish you well in Chelmsford tomorrow. Other British cities suffer from the same identity problem. Lacking a Haussman to design our city centres, many of them lack a focal point which is clearly the centre. Where is the centre of Manchester and Bristol? I am sure that the inhabitants of both cities would come up with many different answers.

The other problem is cultural. We have not learned to value our city centres as the inhabitants of Milan, Barcelona etc do. The weather and attitudes to the consumption of alcohol do not lend themselves to a pavement cafe culture.

At the end of the day, maybe its the planners fault. The incoherent mish mash of architectural styles to be found in many city centres and a careless attitude to preserving the best of the past may have led to the instrumental attitude that Matthew mentions.