WILL ALSOP'S VISION
FOR CROYDON MOVES TOWARDS IMPLEMENTATION
31 Oct 2008
A major international design competition launched by Croydon Council promises
to realise Will Alsop's ambitious plans for Croydon. The competition marks
a significant milestone for the implementation of Will Alsop's Third City
Vision, presented in November 2007, after a series of consultations with
the local community.
Plan by SMC Alsop 2007 - Park Lane is down-sized and Queen's Gardens become
larger, stretching across towards Park Hill
The competition invites architects to respond to a key component of Alsop's
Vision - the re-development of Wellesley Road, a heavily trafficked dual
carriageway which at present cuts through the heart of central Croydon
making east/west access movement difficult and uncomfortable. Architects
are asked to propose how they would inhabit the significant real estate
that will become available along both sides of the one-kilometre long
Wellesley Road when the road dramatically decreases in size from eight
lanes in some places to a possible two.
The competition brief envisages that a mix of building types and forms,
parks, meadows, squares and other aspects of public realm could exist
to the east and west of the downsized road. Diversity is a key word -
Will Alsop talks of a series of external 'living rooms', the furniture
being relatively small-scale buildings sitting against the backdrop of
the existing skyscrapers.
Alsop's role in the implementation is to monitor the process and act as
consultants to Croydon Council. Will Alsop sits on the competition judging
panel along with representatives from London Borough of Croydon, CABE,
Design For London, Transport for London and London School of Economics.
Proposed project area
image by Croydon Council
Will Alsop said of the competition: "This is a very exciting competition
which is extremely important because it will be at the root of the regeneration
of Croydon City Centre"
The competition is open to practices of all sizes; Croydon Council is
keen to engage with a range of creative architectural practices. The competition
asks for financial stability (rather than a financial track record as
such) to extend eligibility to young and innovative practices.
The deadline for Stage 1 submissions is 1 December 2008 and the Stage
2 brief will be presented to shortlisted practices 15-16 January 2009.
The winning designs will be announced end of May 2009.
PR 14 Nov 2007
London's Third City - Alsop's Ambitious Plans for Croydon Unveiled
November 13th, renowned architect Will Alsop unveiled his far reaching
plans for the regeneration of Croydon, to a packed audience in the town’s
Braithwaite Hall.
Commissioned by Croydon Council and developed following an extensive consultation
exercise, Alsop’s vision addresses the major issues of both the built
environment and the public realm, and how these affect the economic and
cultural health of the town. His proposals offer a revitalised cityscape
that realises the community’s aspirations and Croydon’s potential
to become London’s third City.
The key elements of the vision are centred around bringing residential
accommodation into the heart of the town centre where it is currently
lacking, revitalising Croydon’s key retail offer which is central
to Croydon’s success, and subsequently repositioning the commercial/office
market in central Croydon. In addition, a key feature of Alsop’s
proposal is to improve the quality of the public realm and alter the perception
of Croydon’s town centre by introducing additional green spaces and
integrating existing underused green spaces. The vision aims to capitalise
on the existing swell of developer interest in Croydon’s town centre.
Central to the Vision is breaking down the barriers to pedestrian movement
currently created by the busy road and rail systems that dominate the
town centre. Through a series of bold but considered rationalisations,
significant land will become available, facilitating the introduction
of new commercial, retail and residential development alongside a varied
public realm of squares, parks and landscaping. Dramatically improving
the quality of the environment for the pedestrian throughout the centre
of the town is a crucial component of the proposals
As the town centre environment improves, so Croydon will be rejuvenated
by the introduction of green spaces and water. In bringing the submerged
River Wandle to the surface; in redeveloping the massive footprint of
the Whitgift shopping centre; in the arrival of University status and
the construction of its campus; and with the commitment of the town to
the design and development of architecture of quality, Croydon will emerge
as an influential, desirable and vibrant city.
Confronted by a town centre dissected by virtually impenetrable dual carriageways
and railway tracks, a major challenge for the architect /masterplanner
was how to meet realistic ongoing transport demands whilst also providing
a safer, more accessible and pleasant town centre, within a viable economic
and environmental framework.
Barriers in four definitive areas that needed to be addressed were identified:
At the western edge of town Roman Way, a busy four-lane highway, separates
Wandle Park from the rest of town, and gives St John the Baptist’s
Church a dismal setting. It is proposed that the road is re-directed through
an underpass here, so freeing up the land at ground level to become a
landscaped green space with meadow and water. Instead of facing directly
onto Roman Way and the entrance to a pedestrian subway, the church will
have views across water and a tranquil green sweep.
At the Wellesley Road the through traffic that currently dominates the
dual carriageway, bringing little but pollution to the town, will be diverted
elsewhere, allowing local traffic to travel along a two way road in conjunction
with trams and buses. A consequence of this re-planning will be the opportunity
to develop significant amounts of real estate along the length of the
Wellesley Road. These developments will step down in scale from the new
and existing taller buildings which would otherwise line its edge. A mix
of building types and forms will emerge, set in an equally varied public
realm.
The slip roads running down from the Croydon flyover at Wandle Road, create
an oppressive concrete wilderness around them, and were identified as
a third barrier requiring attention. By altering the access points to
the flyover, thereby dispensing with these slip roads, this land becomes
useable for more than car-parking and can be developed into a range of
small and young businesses, and a square of cafes, bars, galleries and
shops that will animate this currently redundant area and provide a direct
linkage with the South End area of town.
The railway tracks at the eastern edge form the fourth barrier that requires
attention. The proposed series of generously sized new bridges that straddle
the tracks will serve to re-connect this part of town, at present almost
entirely separated. Much needed access to the beautiful and at present
under-used Park Hill will also be gained.
Two additional proposals relating to the town’s transport infrastructure
include the regeneration of the area around West Croydon station (in anticipation
of the arrival of the East London line in 2010) and a review of the current
car parking provision in town generally. With over 8,500 parking places
at present, a quarter of which are rarely used, a revised car parking
strategy is proposed which includes an intelligent parking system, new
underground parking and park-and-ride. It is envisaged that this would
reduce the required car parking provision to around 4,500.
Reinforcing awareness of Croydon as a town well located between the urban
activity of central London and the rural idyll of the countryside to the
south, the Vision skilfully introduces into the town centre rich new public
realm. Tree-lined walks, green spaces and landscaping in town create direct
and easy links to the three parks which sit just outside the centre, at
present inaccessible and under-used – Wandle Park, Duppas Hill and
Park Hill.
Reinforcing the impact of new green space is the re-introduction of another
vital component of city life – water. The river Wandle, which was
once an important artery for both wildlife and industry in south London,
has a source in Croydon. It is proposed that the Wandle, culverted and
diverted underground in 1967, be exhumed at four key locations –
at Old Town, in Wandle Park, as part of the proposed new square in front
of the Exchange project at the Pumping Station and, lastly, as the centre
piece of the proposed new development under and around the Croydon flyover.
The reviving presence of water will once again be felt in town. Reintroducing
the Wandle in Croydon ties in with the wider London aspirations for this
once key river and will form part of the Wandle trail project.
With the transport barriers addressed and the town centre environment
enlivened by green space and water, the town will be well placed to support
the new development that will make Croydon a truly a thriving city –
a third City for London.
One such development would centre around the Whitgift Centre, at present
a single block, entirely impenetrable when closed at night. This would
become instead a series of smaller scale retail blocks, criss-crossed
by small roads giving priority to pedestrians and offering a rich mix
of cafes, shops and bars. Above the retail blocks, the site also provides
an ideal location for a series of houses, maisonettes and apartments,
making this one of the town’s major new residential areas, with the
population increasing over time from 4,000 to around 20,000. In addition
Croydon will position itself as a University town with a campus at each
end of town - one to the north of West Croydon station and one at Fairfield
complimenting the Art College. This will result in an animated cross-flow
students through town during the working day and evening.
Speaking of his Vision for Croydon Will Alsop said, “ Croydon needs
to dare to dream – it should set its sights high. This project has
demonstrated to us the tremendous potential of the town – and now
Croydon has the masterplan to transform itself into London’s third
City.”
Croydon Regeneration
architect - Will Alsop
SMC Alsop project team: Will Alsop, Amanda Marshall, Max Titchmarsh, George
Wade, Tim Thornton, Kieran McGlone
London Architects
Croydon
Canyon Competition
London Architecture
World Architecture : e-architect
- a guide to key buildings across the globe
Croydon Regeneration
architects : SMC Alsop
Comments / photos for the Croydon Regeneration Building page welcome:
info@e-architect.co.uk
Croydon Regeneration - page
: adrian welch / isabelle lomholt