Future of UK Cities: Unlocking the power of public space

As England enters lockdown once more, the importance of public space has never seemed so acute. A nearby patch of green has become more precious than the trendiest address, streetscapes have revealed their naked selves without the activities that usually animate them. “During this pandemic we have come to love and value our open spaces,” says Nalin Seneviratne, Sheffield’s director of city centre development. Speaking as part of the EG Future of Cities event, he reflects on his team’s work reinforcing Sheffield’s brand as “the outdoor city”, linking more of the city to the Peak District National Park. In May, in the teeth of the first lockdown, a report was published suggesting that urban green spaces were so important to our physical and mental health that they should be handed over to the NHS. And those who lived closest to them should be taxed more. “The health aspect was there before Covid,” says Fletcher Priest Architects partner Dipa Joshi. “But post-Covid it has become even more meaningful.” For Nick Shattock, chief executive of Impact Developments, the health agenda will be transformative. “You have to change the way that you do real estate development and regeneration going forward,” he says. “It is going to be a new way, it’s going to be about wellness, it’s going to be about outside exercise, it’s going to be about areas where people can rest and recuperate during busy and stressful days.” But how do we ensure that we get the public space we want and need, whether that is green space that helps us stay healthy, or the shared space that makes our cities feel vibrant and alive? Seneviratne argues that we should take a leaf, or even a couple of trees, from the book of those who did it best. “When you look at our successful Victorian parks, which was the last time this country invested heavily in those public spaces, they were designed in such a way that they are still true to their form today,” he says. And their focus was health, too. The key to success over time is quality, he says. But what sort of quality is less easy to gauge. “The critical aspect is that we design places that are essentially timeless,” Seneviratne argues. Rigby agrees. “It’s very important that the quality of that public realm isn’t just a moment in time,” she says. There is no point creating the world’s most beautiful, serene public garden, if the plants all die after three months and the place falls into ruin. “You have to create something that is embraced by people in the long term.” Of course, back when the likes of Joseph Paxton and John Loudon were piecing together the great Victorian parks, they weren’t attempting to be timeless, but appealing to a very Victorian mindset. Parks were for promenading. Landscapes were views to be looked at more than interacted with. Health was important, but not as important as gardening, with great open airy spaces giving way to ornamental banana groves or flower beds wherever the resident botanist felt like showing off. Boating lakes and bowling greens were added for interest and exercise, bandstands and tea houses for entertainment and nourishment. Growing apples in the city centre In Sheffield, Seneviratne believes they are following a similar genius. He has helped to convert almost two and a half acres of roads into green space. They are now growing apples in the city centre. “You should see the joy on people’s faces,” he says. LCR’s partnerships and property director Rick Lawrence takes a similar view. His team is currently creating Manchester’s first urban park in 100 years. Lawrence argues that LCR’s role as the government’s “placemaking expert” allows it to take a wider view. “We don’t have to purely look at it as a developer,” he says. Network Rail may own the land and dictate the uses within the red line of “core” development, “but we can look beyond the red line”. It can focus on public value where others would have to focus on profitability. But the two are not distinct, says Joshi. Connecting the public realm to the ground floors of buildings has proven hugely successful in breathing new life into dying quarters. “That can happen everywhere. We can see those little pockets all over cities where we can make those small improvements.” Yet while the small details can reap dividends, vision on a larger scale is also required. “People are no longer going to accept small amenity areas,” says Shattock. Simply tacking on the minimum legal requirement, or designating an awkward development dog-leg as “public amenity space” is no longer accepted by the public, investors or planners. Nor can the new public realm simply ape some Victorian ideal. Modern public space has to be multi-use and incredibly sophisticated. “Its an absolute imperative,” says Shattock. “You need to look carefully at wellness, how you can build exercise into that space, full accessibility, planting needs to deal with carbon capture,” he says. “Spaces need to be fully wifi-enabled, because that is what is going to swell the dwell time and make that public realm work.” People will also need reasons to stay – the celebrity chef or retail pop-up will be the equivalent of the Victorian bandstand and the tea room. “What we build now,” Shattock says, referencing Ebbsfleet Garden City, “will have to work for the next 100 years.” Setting the scene for development In Sheffield, Seneviratne believes the care they have taken over the public space has helped to “set the scene for development”. “Occupiers are now saying ‘right, that’s a really nice place to be’ and that is driving investment.” And this is the key. “Public realm is fundamental to regeneration, because regeneration is also a business,” says Shattock. “The reason people regenerate is to persuade other people to come to places that they wouldn’t have thought of going to before,” he says. “Public realm is core to actually triggering that regeneration kicker that makes regeneration possible.” After all, says Nicola Rigby, Planning and development principal at Avison Young: “It’s people that make places successful. “People vote with their feet. They choose places where they enjoy being, within environments where they feel safe, where there are activities and vibrancy and experiences that they want to be part of.” Without quality public realm, you just have a lot of shiny buildings that no one really wants to go to. “It’s all about people making the choice to come to your space,” says Rigby. In a post-Covid world, the importance of getting our public spaces right cannot be underestimated. “Effectively, these spaces should be classified as essential infrastructure,” says Seneviratne. Shattock is even more blunt. We need great public space. “In the post-Covid realm, it’s just really good business.”   Main image © HLM Architects