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the cross fertilisationo f ideas, academics UNIVERSITY AND CITY rubbing shoulders with other disciplines in the h ostelrieso f cen tral Cam bridge. The Next Thirty Years Surely it would be disingen uo us to pre-

sum e that the co flee ba rs of the n e w The University o f Cambridge is Faculties will reproduce this kindo f ad expanding and will continue to expand hoc socialisation? into the foreseeable future. This was the University expansion westwards m ust message given by David Todd-Jones, the learn from the south Cambridge experiD ire c tor o f Es tate Ma n a g e m e n I, o n Tuesday the 16tho f March toa packed e n c e o f the n e w A dde n b ro o kes s ite where an unprepossessing conglomeraMo Ile r Cen tre Iecture thea trea I the Cambridge Forum forthe Construction tiono f buildings generatea daily influx Indus try (CFCI) se m ina r “Ca mb ridge o f vehicles which swamp thesite and the University Buildings". The University has surrounding residential area. The master man y buildings througho ut Cambridge plan sho uld take up the challenge preand b y way of illu s tra tion we we re sented by Cambridge City Council in the *

sh o wn currenI developmenI proposals for both the old and new Addenbrookes sites.

During question time it became apparthat the Estate Management Department, asa democratic institution, leaves fundraisin g for ne w b u ildings, decisions on re-location, and the man a gem en I o f departm ental b uildings to the individual Faculties. Ho we ver they ackno wledge theirneed fo r a m aster p la n to coo rdina te expa n siono n the west Cambridge sites and it would seem that negotiafions to appointa consultant for this work are wella dvanced. Most architects endeavour to work within their client's brief and cost constraints appertaining toa ch osen site. Fe w ge I the opportunity to ch oose th e site. Th ese factors place considerable on us on the client's brief and it sho uld go witho ut sa ying that good buildings need good clients as we II a s g o o d a rch iI ec ts. It behoves Cambridge University to be a good client. ent

A

quarterly reviewof current architectural, urbanist and environmental Issues and events in the Cambridge area produced by theCambridge Association of Architects. The views in this newsletter are those of the individual contributors and noto f the Association.

Cambridge University lies at the heart o f the city enabling students to walk or bicycle between their Colleges, Faculties and the river. Mention was made during

the seminarof the importance Qlaced on

depo s it dra ft Ca m b ridge L o caI Plan which calls for an extensiono f the city's cycle route network and links with longer dista nce c ycle rou tes. The Un ive rsiIy needs to acknowledge the importanceof the city infrastructure and use its po wer an d in fluen ce to imp ro ve co mm u n icati”ons throughout Cambridge. Providinga citywide cycleway network wo uldbe a magnanimous gesture for the University to make towards the city!

Anne Cooper

PRIMARY VIEWS During the week prior to the workshop, the pupils of St. Lawrence's R.C. Primary School took pan in their own exercise. Organised by the teachers of the Form3 and4 classes, in the first session they were taken ona site visit and set to work in groups of four on proposals for the site. In the second session, in which two architects from the Cambridge Women in Architecture Group took part, they were given insight into the way architects would approach the urban design issues. Overall aspects of the site context, location, approach, orientation, and sociali mp I icatio ns were looked at, including appropriate uses. Once these had been explored, the subject of housing was developed asa design exercise. Particular attention was drawn to scale, and how to understand the site in relation to its surrounding buildings. The history of different types of housing was briefly touched on, and examples were shown, before the more intricate design problems of orientation, access, layout and landscaping were addressed. F inally, each proup was given the opportunity to talk a bout their own design proposals, which were then commented on by other pupils, teachers, and the architects. The children had responded with interest, and produced imaginative and adventurous projects. Their schemes included inter alia, garden centres, parks, footpaths, sports facilities, shops, leisure and entenainment centres, and evena cash point in one proposal. On the following day they were given a clean site plan and lego blocks, the right scale, to represent detached houses, or rows ofterrace houses. Using this, they were able to explore aspects of three-dimensional design. Some had already begun to build abstract models, but had not yet combined this with the concept of scale. The whole session proved to be both e nlighteni np and rewardi np to all involved. The children learned much by their interaction and from input from teachers and architects. In all, it was an excellent opportunity for young children to be made aware of the social importance of architecture and urban design issues. Cathy Fisher Rosalind Bird

Viren Sahai. Chair CUF

VISION FOR THE

NORTHERN FRINGE The Cambridge Urban Forum, formed last year out of the Gateway toCambridge Urban Design Workshop, has just carried out its first workshop looking at the Histon Road allotment site and prospects for its development. This issueo f Cambridge Architecture providesa description of the weekend event over 4th, Cth and 6th March involving members of thelocal community, councillors and professionals. The workshop opened on theFriday evening with Gala and Buffet and an introduction and briefing by local councillor Kevin Southernwood. He spent much ofthetime reassuring the residents and allotment holders in the gathering that nothing had actually been decided, that all interest groups would be consulted etc. etc.A brief was in course of preparation by the City but the tight schedule seemed to leave little time foreffective local consultation. 0 n Saturday mo rning City Director of Plann ing Peter Studdert gave usa planning overview of the northern fringe and allotment site. Given the projected population increase 200/250 affordable housing units need to be built per year within the city boundaries. The Allotment site in the City Council's ownership lends itself to low cost housing together with some leisure and community uses for local residents associated with the recreation ground. Arbury Camp adjoining to the north is planned for Park and Ride to relieve congestion on Histon Road. the busiest of the village radials. Sainsbury's are also interested in openinga store on Arbury Camp andHigh Tech and other employment uses are envisaged forthe land to the east together with open space and leisure activities. The designation of the A45 asa trans-European highway may i nvo Ive closi ng the H iston Roadju nctio n and the dualling of Kings Hedges Road is being considered. Vehicular access to the allotment site is envisaged from Kings Hedges Road rather than from Histon Road. The north and west areas of the site therefore need to be protected from the adjoining traffic. They envisage the allotments occupying 14 acres on the western side of the site adjoining the Histon Road allowing the new housing to be linked directlv to the existing to the south and east. An outline brief was suggested - 200-250 housing units of 1-4 bedrooms, Council or Housing Association,a Day Centre, decentralised office for the Council and possi blya Garden Centre. Methods of encouraging allotment use should be considered and problems ofwaterlogged land, sandy soil and pollution should be addressed. Followi ng this overview we werei ntroduced by Tony Gibson to the concept of ‘Planning for Real’ -a method of bridging the gulf between ordinary people and the institu-

tions who make decisions on their behalf. ‘We know how to build houses but we don't know how tobuild communities ...people won't safeguard what they have not helped to create’. The method is to establisha physical model of the area in questio n which acts asa toolo r consu Itati on ga m e. Panicipants are asked to identify landmarks, problems, opportunities etc by selecting froma range of issues and choices which are identified beforehand and by those participating. From thisa picture is built up of what people want. Chris Browna landscape Architect with the County gave us some historical background to the area of geological interest on the s/w corner of the allotments and to Arbury Camp tothe north. He discussed the value of allotments in recreational and psychological terms, the need to increase demand andto develop more sustainable lifestyles for the future. He identified the need formajor structural landscaping and suggested that allotments, roadways and carparks should be made more aesthetic and more heritable. He talked about the need fora good housing mix, young families, single person families and the elderly with flexibility of housing movement with the surrounding community. Adventure spaces for children should be provided together witha range of defensible/managed and personal spaces to the dwelling. James Connelly of Granta Housing gave some background to the development of Housing Associations and the process to be faI lowed with the City Cou ncil and the No using Corporation in this particular case. The Housing Association h as to ta ke o n the fuII develo pm ent ri sk an d H o u s in g Corporation costs are becoming increasingly stringent makingit difficult to maintain housing quality bidding in competition with other Associations. Anne Cooper of Rickaby Thompson Associates, architects and energy consultants, proposed an ‘affordable vva ›h approach to dwelling design based on an analysis of ri costs and an understanding of occupancy patterns in ..al housing rather than on traditional notions of firmness, com modity and delight. Her approach stems froma number of housing studies, work with Cambridge City Council on their existing housing stock and research work by others at Oxford Brookes University. An intermediate review of group work was carried out at the end of the Saturday session in which each team identified their priorities and objectives which would lead to design solutions on the Sunday. There was also some discussion on the short time scale available to local people to influence the development of the actual brief by the City Council and the likely cost constraints on the scheme to be implemented. In the final review on Sunday thework ofeach of the5 groups was presented and thend iscussed by thei nvited panel. Solutions varied widely from an outline strategy or brief to the developer, to quite detailed proposals for the design of the buildings, with varying allotment arrangements from single to dispersed, from the most formal almost classical approach to the layout of buildings, ‘to createa unique and special place’ to the most informal and variegated, some witha village feel, some suburban, some more urban. All groups identified the need fortheoverlooking/supervision of the allotments to minimise vandalism, for protected gardens, for defensible open space and forthe definition of cycle and pedestrian networks linked to surrounding areas. Housing arrangements in salllttq,°. cases achieveda close physical integration with thee !g aod in othersa more finite new development was envisaged. The recreation ground with new community uses was seen as a focus of local facilities for all age groups anda wide range of activities were suggested. The discussion which followed raiseda number of important questions. Who makes thestrategic decisions and at what point? Who is actually preparing the brief for the site and co-ordinating the input of others7 How are local residents to be consulted and taken along in the process? Is the brief to be a fait accompli ora consultation document? It appears that there has beena working party advising the City Housing Co mm ittee, there arep roposals be in g p repa red by the Council Architects Department,a brief is in course of preparation by the City Housing Department,a development brief could be forthcoming from the Planni ng Authority, South Cambridgeshire District Council, and the Housing Corporation are being consulted. There fragmentary approaches would seem tobe unlikely to lead toa well considered brief to the 7 Housing Associations in the 4 weeks remaining following the workshop weekend. The workshop ended witha celebration gala. David Raven

Public Workshop, Private Agenda

Robert Armstrong Ina school hall on the northern edge of the City, some 100people engaged ina workshop on good design in town planning and building. They proposed community facilities, shops, bicycle paths, playgrounds, open spaces, sport and health centres, allotment gardens, schools and houses ona

41 acre (16.6 hectares) site until recently in Green Belt on the northern fringe of Cambridge.A few who came tothe open ing eveni ng suggested that it would bea waste of time; the Council's brief could not be moved. Some openly asked if anyone would spend Friday evening and all of both Saturday and Sunday in workshops listening arguing, compromising and drawing schemes. Many doubters returned the next day, and their ideas for the future became programmes fo r design despite the absence of official intentions. The de bati ng voices ofd o u bt and ho pe rebou nded among members offive studio groups. In the end, more than fifty people stayed the course and a few, significantly, residents of the adjacent areas came tolook, listen and join in. They generally agreed that standards of design for noise abatement, energy conservation and open spaces should be higher than those applied elsewhere in the City. Some schemes emphasiseda ’village’ setting,g iving residents scope for evolvi ng a separate identity. One scheme suggested that links to neighbouring areas and the Centre knit the s ite to existin g serv icesa nd sho ppi ng, a idi ng the growth of nearby facilities and buildinga maximum numberofhouses. Another poseda place of refuge,a garden green ina town where hyper-development has appeared on its edges in recent years. One went further, putting emphasis on studios, workshops anda garden market to reflect the present uses of the site and a future‘ City of creative employment and living‘. This attention to community needs and planning brought responses from developers and financing agents. Their attendance at the weekend undoubtedly reflected curiosity and self preservation.A New officers courageously participated in the debate. All of the schemes posed thata community must evolve f building design, pu blic spaces and paths and not left dance or to fortuitous future decisions. Some teams .edatthevision‘s edge more quickly than others. Some individuals pressed fora planned future, others fora broad framework forthe community toemerge. By Sunday afternoon the schemes were called in and the last marks on drawings, lists and plans made (in the manner ofexcellence attending people of conviction and vision). The City Council's own plans had not been made public. In debate the defence was that to do so would jeopardise competitive bidding arrangements. These were privately known toCouncillors, Councils Officers and a few dozen primary schooI child ren and their teachers. The latter were given the privilege before the workshop in order to encourage their awareness of good design in town planning and building

GROUP1

GROUP1

Left to ourselves, we would probably still be deep in animated discussion! Comprising the head teacher ofa local nursery school,a resident (and allotment holder), two building students, economist (also allotment holder), architect, and urban designer, we spoke for, and mulled over,a wide range of social/economic/cultural/local/city/built-form variables. Guiding issues often became, ofcourse, those of reconciliation of interests. As, between the site's local and citywide roles, between allotments and other uses, between residential, social and commercial provision, between high and low p rofi ie develo pment, betweend ifferentb u ilt de nsities, between common useandindividual/group security. From early on, we felt particular need to developa focus and a strong sense of place that would work both within the site and well beyond its boundaries. Helping to cohere, and to increase legibility and use of, North Cambridge asa whole. The Urban Village pattern of graduated density and mixed use, linking-in comfortably with the surrounding context, guided our ’centre‘ to the inner edge ofthe site, as the new hub of a wide area. With the site‘s rural character already well represented by its city-edge situation as well as by the allotments, we soughta deg ree of the urban even urbane, witha fairly formal (partly higher-rise) square with the surprise juxtaposition of paved and arcaded enclosure bounded east and west by theenhanced recreation ground - now doubling as village green - and the allotments. As many uses as possi ble surround the square, from housing office, clinics and day centres, to offices, shops, workshops, and flats. The workshops, particularly, are seen as having wide appeal, forminga new ’artisans quarter’ for the city asa whole The allotments, rather than being tidied away outofsight, becomea major element, agriculturally echoing the craft th em e. Avoid ing the p rison -fence look by theu se ofa perimeter canal (stocked, it is suggested, with piranhas). To north and south, residential areas - their density diminishing with distance from the centre - offer the allotmentsa degree of surveillance. Apart from access, motor traffic is restricted as far as possible. With main parking, and bus routes, using the central area, and with designated bicycle and minibus routes, and pedestrian ways - the canal, with its landscaping, forminga very pleasant focus here. All in all, we sought to makea varied area that works and that is robust and flexible enough to carry on changing and developing asa lively, organic, part of the city.

Anne Cooper architect CUF Stephen Conrad Surveyer

Margaret Downing

GROUP2 We crossed Arbury Road to visit the site, ablyg uide d by a Io cal resid ent and alI ot m e nt h o Id er wh o ex p ressed forthrig hto p in ion s on m atters rang ing from so il fertility to the negotiating abilities of the incumbent Allotment Societv Committee. AI lotments a re solitary places at the best of times and ona blustery Saturday morning inearly Ma rch theya re bleak. We scurried back to base where insider knowledge sup pliedus with the requ ired d e ns ity and m ix of dwellings to be provided, and a personal synopsis of the ”responsive environments” theories be ing developed at Oxford Brookes University informed the discussion. By the Saturday afternoon review we, the Green Team, hada checklist,a bald brief, of wh at we collectively wanted to achieve in proposinga scheme forthesite. We werea pragmatic and optimistic team. Sunday was spent attempting to illustrate our ideas. Th ere wa s a little question of scale and com in g to terms with just wh at 14 acres of allotments looks like. This resulted in some reappraisal! With the hel p of plaste rcine m od els a n d felt pen d raug htin g the Green Team scheme em erged. Whether it even began to answer our brief is for you to judge but this is what we were trying to do! Integrate the edges - by addressing the housing to the south, providing access to the local sh op on th at estate, encompassing the existing recreation g round within the new leisure facilities, providing buffers to the main roads on the north and west, and looking for ways ofsafelv connecting St Lawrence's school to the proposed leisure facilities. Disperse the allotments - to alI ow better vehicle access for allotment ho lders, and im prove security of the allotments. The layout of allotments sho uld protect the site of special scientific interest (SSSI), keep the allotments away from the heavy traffic routes and g iv e t h e m a c c e ss to I h e b e st s o iI o n t h e s it e. AdditionaI allotments of varying sizes to be provided for incom ing residents. Provide leisure facilities for a II a g e g roups by ex pan d in g th e exi stin g recreatio n g rou n d to incl ude an all-weather flood-lit football pitch,a bowlin g g reen, an adventure playground, and a childrens' p I ay a rea. All to be g rou ped around the n ew

Margaret Downing graphic designer& urban design student CUF David Yandell architect CUF Robert Armstrong economist CUF Bruce Miller Anglia building student Sue Bainbridge College Nursery Head Teacher Bob Bricklow (Ms) Allotment holder& voluntary social worker Darren Wright Anglia building student

GROUP2 Cdmbs CC Medumi Kometani CRC Student Pauline Brown local resident Renee Taylor architect CUF Mich aeI U nd rill architect Nigel Howlett Housing Society Manager Margeret Reynolds architect, local resident Kate Collins landscape architect

GROUP3 David Raven architect CUF Nick Winder allotment holder Catrina Campbell landscape architect Annette Copping allotment holder Rob March architect Kohei Watanabe university student Audrey King local resident Neil Green CRC student Lawrence Stockwell - CRC student Julie Canning RIBA bookshop

GROUP4 Peter Pope ecologist Sue Crowther teacher Ben Fur CRC student Gaynor Griffith Lib Dem COUPH illOF Jo Nunes LibDem Councillor Justin Plumb CRC student Peter Savill CRC student Roman Znajek Lib Dem Councillor

GROUP5 Christophe Grillet architect Ian Cooper Eclipse Arch. Research Valerie Cooper architect Carolyn Delahooke FOE CCV Cam/ets Darren Tassell CRC student Viren Sahai architect CUF Ben Walsh Railway Development Society Tony Males Arbury Community Church Jane Taylor planner

Cambridge Nonhern Fringes 1927 - 1982

Community centre. Additional toddlers' play areas to be dispersed within the new housing areas. Centrally locate the new Community Centre - to be the focus of the wider area and to have varying funcIio n s in c Iu d in g a h o u s in g m a n a g e m e nt b a s e, a refresh ment area,a youth centre, and a sports club. Createa permeable housing layout - by keepin g desi reI ines str a ight and accessi ble. Access to be from as many points as possible. Vehicular access to be p rovided from Arb ury Roa d, and KingsH edges Road, witha bus exit ontoH iston Road. A b icycle ro ute to cut d iagon alIy across the site fromH iston towards the City centre and the bus route to run from Arbuv downH iston Road. Also pedestrian lin ks to be made between residential a reas, where vehicular traffic is restricted. Integrate the site layo ut using soft landscape Screen planting and hedges as habitat. Green and built areas to be integ raled. Design forn aturaI surveillance - H o u ses to be arranged in perimeter blocks with protected private gardens and parking in front of the dwellings within the curtilage. Allotments to be overlooked. The weekend wo rksh op was a n exh il arati ng and exhausting experience and it raised many important questio ns. From what was reveal ed the re isa wilI and a way to develop the site with social housing but there was a distinct dearth of anybody, or any organisation willing to take responsibility when it came to thequestion of whether it was sensible or desirable to house 250 vulnera ble fam ilies together on the city fri nge. An ne Cooper W e sa w th e main a i m ofthe wor ksho p as to influence the final brief for the project. However, the City Council's requirements appeared very vag ue and d urin g th e co urse of the wee kend Ihe a pp a rent po I itic a I c h a o s in I h e City H a II sh o we d, w ith politicians publicly accusing each other of deception and the preparation of secret plans. Despite the City Council‘s request for ’social housing‘, no precise or actual definition of the term was given. The houses will be built by Housing Societies wh o wilI sub m it ten d e rs to the I oca I a uth o rity to design and build the houses; the lowest bid will be awarded th e p roject. I was al so to Id by a h o us ing society m ana ger that if any of the occupants of the sociaI housing needed special care, this would have to be provided from the housing society's resources.I beg an to fee I a se n se of i m pe n d in g d isa ste r for wo rkin g c Ia ss h o u s in g. L i ke oth e r state we I fa re services, this housing was to become competitive in the open market. It m ust functionbv makinga profit. As the housesa re to be built for those who have no financial resourcesh ow is this possible7 We feared that th is wiII I ea d to I ow c o st/h igh ma i ntenan ce con stru cti on, with m ini m u m I eve Is of ins u I atio n. With in twe nty vea rs, unIe s s I h ere is m o n ey for maintenance, we will have sl urns forming part of the northern gateway to Cam bridge. MichaelU nd ri II

A

Housing Associations View

Camb rid ge H ou sin g Soc i ety is o n e of the seven housing associations invited by the City Council to put forward proposals for the development o1 social housing on the Histon Road allotment site. As the Society‘s DeveI op m ent M a n a g e r, I h o ped th at t h e weekend workshop would provide me with additional informa tion and ideas to use in working up these proposals. The associations have been involved in preli m inary d iscussi ons with the City Cou ncil a bo ut the site for so m etim e. The Co u ncil h as been wo rkin g town releasinga substantial part of the site for socialI ing for several vears. I th erefo reh ad a su bstantial background knowledge ofthe proposed project. This affected my view ofthe workshop intwo ways. FirstlyI knew how theCouncil planned to organise the development. It became clear during the first day that manv other people at the workshop were unaware of this. This situation could have seriously undermined the point of the weekend soI felt it was very important for me 1o contribute my understanding at this point. SecondlyI was very conscious of the importance of me saying as little as possible.I wanted to learn from other people‘s contributions rather than promoting my own ideas. Given these two conflicting positio ns,I found it quiteh ard to strike an adequate balance at times. The City Council identified the site for social housing because it is owned bytheCouncil. This allows the Council to provide the land cheaply and thus to keep scheme costs and therefore rents down. Inthese days of public expenditure cuts, social housing is coming u nd er considerab Ie p ressu re to cut standa rds a nd raiserents. The Council and local housing associations are trying to resist this. To meet thefunding timetable, the Council is sending a site b ri ef to the associ atio ns in ea rly Ap riI. Associations will then have four weeks 1o cost an submission. The successful association will be sele in May and will then have two months to completea detailed bid for public funding forthe project. This timetable is very tight and therefore substantially rules out the participative style of public consultation discussed in the Plan ning for Real presentation. The Council's brief is the key to the project. Associations will submit bids in response to this Oncea cost figure has been setinthis bid, any subsequent consultation will be restricted toa nil cost affect. Perhaps four key points came outoftheworkshop forme. 1. Building large edge oftown social housing estates is not the most desirable way to provide affordable h ousing. However there is little cho ice g iven the housing pressure forced by the Council in this case. We must work together to encourage the provision of social and community facilities. Th e Council‘s funding fora community centre will be critical. 2. Th e standa rds set in the Cou ncil‘s b rief wilI be critical.I hope that many oftheissues discussed e.g. security, energy saving, etc. will feature strongly in the brief. 3. Local information was inval uable, e.g. the water and hedges currently existing on the allotment site.I will be looking at ways of incorporating these details in our proposal. 4. Planning for Real may havea key role in future planning consultations where more time is available perhaps even forthe proposed community centre. Nigel Howlett, Development Manager The Cambridge Housing Societv Ltd

GROUP3 We had twoa ctive me m bers ofIhe AII otm ent Association in our group and others with local knowledge. The allotment holders were concerned that sufficient area was retained for their use, that the best land should be utilised and that it was kept in one parcel to preserve identity and control vandalism, that is, nat broken up into separate enclosed areas. The allotment holders who are not necessarily local to the area havea strong sense ofcommunity and identity. We allocated the southern third of the site for the allotments which includes much ofthebest land and the area of scientific interest at the west end which cannot be built on. This allows the path network to be retained as it is together with their clubhouse and principal access from St. Albans Road. This allows much ofthenew housing to look so uth over the allotments and reta ins the open aspect which the present houses inHazelwood Close and St.Albans Road enjoy. Vehicular access to the housing is envisaged by the City Council from Kings Hedges Road which reinforces this basic zoning ofthe site. We were told that with the A45 becominga transE u ro pean route th e H i sto n Roadj unction m ight be removed in which case there would be greater east-west town traffic and the dualling of Kings Hedges Road is being considered. Our approach was to think of Kings Hedges Road being downgraded and made safer and more attractive as it directly fronts much existing housing to the east as well as the new housing envisaged. We considered it best to put any new east-west distributor immediately next to the A45 and running to the north of rñ' .a hierarchy taking the noise and pollution away from the housing and allowing the future development of the Arbury Camp site to be linked. The recreation ground tothe east of the site is presently bleak and underused. We saw the best site for the community facilities fronting this on the west side. Vehicular access would be close to the Arbury Road/Kings Hedges Road junction perhaps as part of an improved intersection with traffic lights and pedestrian crossings linking the a Ilotment site, St. Lawrence‘s School etc and Arbury Camp. We envisageda bus loop serving the community centre and the new housing from the established local route along Kings Hedges Road and Histon Road. East-west pedestrian and cycle routes are needed across the site and these were proposed at the interface between the allotments and the new housing forminga link beMeenH iston Road and paths beyond to the west and the community facilities, recreation ground and the Arbury Road area to the east. We also proposeda northsouth footpath and cycle track continuing from the allotment holders access to the south also linking the recreation ground and the new community facilities and crossing to the Arbury Camp site to the north. The housing needs to be planned to give protection from the strong westerly winds, to exploit views over the events tothe south and to achievea sense of identity enclosu re.We envisageda m ix of Council an d Housing Association with sheltered housing looking into communal gardens and fam ily houses of varying sizes with individual gardens. We felt that terrace housing of up to 3-4 storeys wo u Id be appropriate to meet budget restrictions. We started to develop some patterns with generous enclosed courtyards to minimise overlooking between dwellings. We felt it was important to havea frontage to Kings Hedges Road with direct vehicular access and parking. The spine road/bus loop would provide vehicular access to the interior of the scheme. We envisaged publich eavily landscaped courtyards with g rouped parking bays giving vehicular and pedestrian access to the dwellings and private divided gardens and shared landscaped courtyards behind David Raven

Conspiracy or Cock-up? The view froma H iston Road Allotment. We are told that about 80% of the people accepted

from theH o using Lists by Housing Associations are homeless, on supplementary benefit, single-parent families or on ‘carein the community’. This means more pressure on overstretched schools and social services in

a part of town that has more than its fair share of problems and less than its share of facilities. The

Histon Road

Development is viewed with alarm by manv residents who see it as part ofa conspiracv to turn the north of Cambridge intoa dumping ground forpeople too troublesome or demanding to be housed inthe "nicer" parts

of Cambridge. These fears have not been allayed by the City Councillor who tolda Resident‘s Association “If the price of getting roofs over heads isa Portacabin in your

school playground, so be it”.

Th e City wa nt the H iston Road Al I otm ent site to beco me h o me toa rea I community. This isi ron ic because the site is already home to a communitv ofallotment gardeners. For severalvears now, this community has been under attack from vandaIs and froma City Council that wants our land. Those who vandalise and

steal from our allotments are either sem i-commercial

thieves stocking their car-boot staIts or young people from the su rrou ndi ng estates who see that we have something they lack and want todestrov i!.I am sure the City wanted to build communities on these estates too, but they have not succeeded. Perhaps if they were to study the community they are displacing from this site they might improve their chances of success.

An allotment gardener can havea real impact on his or her environment. If we want strawberries, we plant them. If we wanta greenhouse, we makea greenhouse. The result mav look likea shambles but it is our shambles. We look after it and we look after each other. On the neighbouring estates (where many ofus live) things are very different. The housing is uniform, the gardens, the trees, the schools (Community Colleges), pu blic halls (Community Centres) and the shops are all provided by the Council. The result can be very pretty, but it is not

OUrs. We should allow residents to choose and plant their own trees rather than landscape the site. It is better to allow residents to ask for and, where possible, get the playgrounds, parking facilities and public buildings they want than to provide them unasked. All this calls for effective communication between the City and residents. When youlook at previous attempts at consultation on the Histon Road site, you see a succession of cock-ups. About four years ago there was a door-knocking survey

Visions of an Allotment Holder Kings Hedges Road should be traffic calmed (lights at the junctio n of A rb u ry R oad a n d a P e Ii ca n by St. La w ren c e‘s School) and a proportion of the

traffic routed nearer to the A45. The new Co mm u n ityCentre

to be built withina few h undred m etres ofth e B u ch a n St reet Neigh bourhood Centre shouId not duplicate too m any of the faci lities. Its h o uld be located near the recreation ground and should have chang ing rooms,a revamped play area and a bus stop. G o od pe destrian and cyc Ie routes aren eeded to conn ect th e AII ot m e nt s ite to B u c h a n Street, the Regional College, the Scien ce Park, M i lton Co u ntry Park and the footpaths to Girton and H iston. One of the reasons people this side of Arbury Road do not use the Bu chan Street and Regional College facilities is

which must have generateda vast database but what impact these data actually have on the planning process is very hard to see. There was the draft Local Plan too, but you had to consult so many chapters to geta picture of what was actually proposed, onlya bureaucrat could

that King's Hedges and Arbury Road have becomea ratrun. We recommend that some of th e existin g a II otm e nt path s,

residents can be persuaded to attend regular meetings so these have almost no mandate torepresent residents. Sometimes lines of communication are so fractured, the process degeneratesi nto farce. By the ti me the Urban Forum organised itsH iston Road Allotments workshop, the position of the surviving allotments had

soft-I an dscape features for the n ew Estate. Pleased o n'tb ull-

make sense of it. The City has also been encouraging proper!v constituted Resident‘s Associations but very few

already been Jixed, the housing mix was already decid-

ed, the position of the access roads and_jhe Community Centre had all been workedo ut and plansh ad been drawn. The Allotment Association knew this and decided not to attend. Many local residents guessed as much and stayed away. Even the children at St Laurence's Primary School knew this much becausea nice man from the Council came inand showed them all his drawings. One of them was so recent he hadn‘t had time to colour it in!

Yet almosta II the City Councillors who attended the workshop appeared to be unaware ofthis and believed it was

possible to change theshape ofthe development.

Many allotment holders now believe that the cock-up is part ofa fiendish conspiracy to insulate the planning process from the opinions of residents. If they are right, the City Council may be able to build another housing estate on the Histon Road allotments but the community will have towait formore enlightened times.

water pumps and trees sh ould

be retained to form the nucleus ofa network of footpaths and

doze the topsoil off and dump it e I sew h e re, s o m e of u s h a v e

s pe nt ye a rs b u ild i n g a

fe rtiIe

topsoil on this site and the new

residents can make good use of

it!

We a d v o c ate t h a t t h e s ite s h o u Id n ot b e too s an iti sed .

Some wild areas where child ren can hang swings, pick blackberries and catch tidd lers m ight do

more to build a se nse

of com-

mun itythan manicu redI awn s

and flowering cherries

Nick Winder

Historical Perspectives S in ce the e n d of t h e e ig h teenth century, va rious phil anthropists and commentators in Britain and Europe have beg un toadd ress the m selves to the p rob I em s of pove rtyand its appalling effects on h uman life. Robert Owen (1771-1858) devised m ethods to relieve it, b u iId ing fl ats, a sch o o I a n d shop, selling goods at advantag eo us p rices for h is wo rkers. C h a rI es D i cke n s w rote ofth e appalling conditions in London in ‘0u r M utu a I F r i en d‘ an d Gustave Dore,a Frenchg raphic artist visited London in1868 and in 1872 published illustrations of poverty and hopelessness in ’A Pilgrimage’. Slowlv things i m p roved. The n ewlv form ed London County Council built the first local authority flats in 1909 and the g ove rnm ent pa sseda series of statutes, principally initiated by an outbreak of cholera in London in 1840. These ledto vario us pu blich ealth acts and housing legislation, and by-laws were made forcontrolling street widths and theh eight and the stru ctu rea n d I ayou I of n ew buil dings. The fi rst town pI ann ing leg isl ations, the Housing, Town PIan n in g Actwas introd u c e d in 19 09 ’for p e o p Ie in which their phvsical health their morals their character and their wh ole social con dition can be improved’. (House of Commons Vol. 188 May 1908) and in 1919 the H ousing and PIan ning Act was concerned with the provi sion of housing for the working class. Much ofthecost of new housing at this time was provided by Lloyd George's ’war budg et’, a Ii be ral d rive a g a in st poverty to raise money fornew sociaI welfare schemes. Since th att im e, exce ptd urin g t h e S eco n d Wo rId Wa r, we h a ve see n g radu al developments in housing policy by advisory pubI icatio ns, such as the Housi ng Man uals of 1944 and 1949 with its 1951 su pplement. Since the 1970’s, when theDepartment of Environment assumed the functions of the Ministry of Housing and Lo cal Govern m ent, t h e Government has issued design b u Iletinsg iving advice on current housing problems. Michael Undrill

GROUP5 GROUP4 0 ur aspiratio n s for the H i sto n R o a d alI ot m e nt n e ig h bo u r h oo d extend b eyond the p rovision s of basic physical shelter. Our ideal isa qua lityd esign which is ena bling for people, conserving for the envi ronment and creates an atmosphere in which h opes and d reamsa refulfilled. Th e spirit of this place is em bodied in itsa Ilotment trad itio n. Ou r design sha des from theh o rticu ltural quarter in the west to an imposin g, earth sheltered commu nity centrein the east. Between them lie the city farm, ma rket and garden centre, which serve the new community and respect theo Id tradition. If the design beg ins with the I an dscape then th e g reen fingered skil Is of the peoples are immediately eng ag e d . Extens ive tre e p Ia ntin g m o d e rate s the m icro-clim ate,p rovides so und barriers and wild life sites as well as m aking an attractive setting for the built environ m ent.A va riety in the type and appearance of bu il dings is natural to satisfy the diversity of n eeds and this can be put to good effect in creatinga s ky-line wh ich refl ectsa p rog ress from the I arg e scale in the east to sm alI scale in the west. Large scale implies buildings witha substantiaI shell (com m unity centre, terraces, co-housing proj ects)o r high roof-line which looko ut on largero pen spaces. SmalI scale is typicallyh ouses and bungalows withp rivate g ardens. This means thatbothg arden in g a nd no ng ardening ho m es can be offered and the bu ilt an d n a t u ral e nv iro n m ents me rge g rad u aIIy i nto e a ch other. At street level space is allocated primarily to child ren and ped estrian s. The mo d e I of ’pe rm e a b Ie‘ streets which al I ow pa rkin g a nd tortuou s vehicuI ar access but are inviting to pedestrians and cyclists has bee n a d o pted tod istan ce n o ise and d a n g er fro m homes. Furthermore theo rientation of streets is eastwest so that m axim um use is m a d e of soIa r h eat. Both these factors are ai med to reduce dependence o n loss il en ergv and ch aracteriz e a d es ign wh ich gives high priority to desirableh o mes and low priority to cars. Againsta background of hig h u nemployment the n eig h bourhood itself m ust p rovide fertileg ro und in which skills can be made productive and people can retain their self-confidence. Opportunities for wo rk, commerce and self-help are part of the design so that workshops, shops and advice centres are incorporated.0 ur wish is to cu Itivate enabled people. Peter Pope

We agreed very quickly that the necessity of relating the new development tothe existing village was crucial, that this ought to bea two wav process,a matter of social integration, in order that new inhabitants would be adopted as inhabitants of the village and present village people would be attracted to use the new facilities in the new ’estate’. We felt it was just as important to retain as many allotments as possible and that the new houses should be as distant as practicable from the main road. The allotments might benefit from the security of being overlooked from the new houses. We felt thata green barrier of trees planted on an embankment was needed to reduce the effect of north winds and ofthetraffic on King‘s Hedges Road. The entrance to the site would be best placed clue tothejunction with the road into the village which w probably have to havea roundabout. We would enla. the recreation ground to serve the needs ofthe en larged local population and we wou Id retain the maximum number ofallotments. There was great sympathy forthe social and agricultural value of the allotment. In order to sketcha plan with realism without getting into details of building design we evolveda diag rammatic typical block of 16 dwellings most2 storey having some private garden and parking space forone or more private cars each. We were able by this simplified idea to allow the correctg round area forthat purpose, in good timea detailed brief would specify what kinds of dwellings would be most urgently needed. We felt thata population of about 1,000 people would want tolive ina cluster witha distinguishable centre which they could relate to as their own. This centre would be thelocation of group needs:a few shops,a creche, health centre, rentable meeting room; anda pub perhaps. There would probably bea demand forsmall workshop spaces available to residents starting new businesses, in addition to home employment, acceptable toa residential environment, possibly built on the ground floor of some flats suitable as starter homes orbachelor dwellings etc. Sucha provision could help to serve the needs ofsome established residents for part-time employment. The5 existing footpaths; from Hazelwood Close to the south and St. Al bans Road totheeast, should be givr open access to our new village centre,3 for access b. service vehicles, delivery vans etc., in addition to the access road entering the site for residents' cars, removal vans, ambulances, fire brigade etc etc. Our layout is diagrammatic and in the detailing we wou Id aim to avoid its apparent rigidity. We would introduce3 or even4 storey blocks to avoid the usual monotony ofsome oftheneighbourhood. The scale of the centre should be clearly different from theside streets. The lavout allowed us to extend the recreation space by about 50% and leaving about 30% ofthe total allotment land for cultivation. This is about half of the part actively cultivated at present. On our layout each orange-coloured square represents to scalea plot of land required for 16 two-storey dwellings in two short blocks with their allocation of garden and parking space. Between these squares is additional open space and planting of substantial trees need ed to improve the micro-climate. Each block or group would have variedtvpes and sizes of dwellings and changes ofroof design and external finish. The buildings in the centre represented diagrammatically by octagons would be as different as their uses, their sizes and their clients required. This would give the centre an individual character and scale.A place fora multi-purpose hall or place of worship should be dedicated. A town atmosphere would bea change from other residential areas and we felta desirable quality. Should the popularity of allotments dwindle or should another site be found forthem, the new centre would have the capacity to providea ready-made and easilv expanded civic, commercial and social centre. The areas of the retained allotments and the enlarged recreation area would allow for doubling the population. Chrisophe Grilled

Disregard

rocess of preparation and consultation for this i.. , ur addition to the city seemed to have been token and inadeqUate. That view was highlighted towards the end of the Wo rks h o p when City Cou nc ilIo r H i pkin realised that the committee, on which he had sat, had not asked enough questions and accused hisChairman of prematurely concluding its business. The process of consultation and the establishing of planning principles had clearly been underserved, but so also had the process of design been hamstrung by the procedures adopted. The form ofthe housing was going to be determined by various Associations working toa fixed overall layout and bidding against each other to submit the lowest budget. Moreover the overall layout was going to be fixed in advance by the pre-commitment to an infrastructure plan. This meant that the design process was consequenti al b ut o n Iy in o n e d i rectio n. The re wo u Id b e n o ch ance forI ayo ut of rooms, the com bination of say sunlig ht and privacy, to affect the overall layout of the wh o I e.S c h e m es wo u Id be stra itj acketed . Even if someone found ways ofachieving economies of overall Iavo ut,fo r instance by i ncreasin g density, thev wouIdnotbea bletoadopt them. If all major rooms were to face south, reducing heating bills by 15%, the lavout of the roads could prevent this being done eco.cal Iy. derail we were left with the sad impression that 350 homes were going to be provided ina prominent location ata point of entry toa famous citv in a far from ideal way. Ingen uity, inventiveness and imagination were notgoing to be required. No detailed needs were going to be identified or met. Cost and num bers were the only factors that would be considered and the city would creep outwards in yet another swathe ofbanality. David Yandell

Planning for Real Neighbourhood Initiatives Foundation PIa n n in g for R e a I is an eye -catc h in g , ’h a n d s-o n‘ method which people use to sort out what needs to be done toi mp rove the irs urroun dings.U sing the kit,a few loca I reside nts m ake a big 3D m odel of their own neighbou rhood: it atiracts attention wherever it goes, and d rawsin people who would never attenda conventional p ub I ic meetin g.0 n a scale of abo ut1 :300 you r own front d oor isa bo ut h alf the h eig ht of yo ur little fin gernaiI b ut it isi mm ed iateIy ident ifiab Ie. Locati ng fam iliarI and m arks is wh at attracts peopIe aro u n d the m odelin the fi rst place. The situation resembI es a jum b Ie sale, with everyone off ie ial s, pol it ie ian s, residents - m il lin g aro u nd it, viewin g it fro m d iffe renta n g I es, co nfe rring with th eirn ext d o o r n eig h b o u rs, w ith sca rce Iya I ook at eac h oth er‘s faces because they are concentrating their attention on the mo del itself and the possibilities it beg ins to reveal. In a trad iti on al confrontation situ ation, people look at each othe r - become angryor bored or dominatedo r bem used ori nfatuated. Arou nd the m odel the eyeli nes

List of Speakers Kevin Southernwood Chair of Housing Committee Cambridge City Council Introduction and Br/eFing

Viren Sahai Architect. Chair of Cambridge Urban Forum Introduction to the Workshop Dr Barry Pearce DOE Inspector and Lecturer Department of Land Economy Cambridge University Introduction

Peter Studdert Director of P|anning, Cambridge City Council Northern Fringe and Allotment Site Dr Tony Gibson

Neighbourhood Initiatives Foundation ‘Planning for Real’

Chris Brown School Governor and Senior Countryside Officer, Cambridgeshire County Council ‘Green Spaces’ Beth Morgan Chair of Environment Committee Cambridge City Council James Connelly Director, Granta Housing Society Anne Cooper Architect, Rickaby Thompson Associates ‘An approach tothe design oF socia/ housing’

tedy

In ‘Songlines’ Bruce Chatwin describes the lack of awareness and insensitivity which transport engineers bring to the process of construction through ancient aboriginal territory. They do not realise the potent significance ofa pile of boulders ora gully to the indigenous Australian. I wa s re m in d ed of t h at a s alI ot m ent h o Id e rs expressed with passion what they felt and knew about the seemingly insignificant bedraggledg ridiron they work on the fringe of the city. Also how surrounding residents and the co mm unity representative of this area have important things to say about what matters and what opportunities should not be ignored. Local people knew forinstance that levels of traffic on Kings Hedges and Arbury Road were unbearabIe a n d n o more couId be tolerated. They knew how hard it was to push sick kids inp ush cha irs m iles to a surgery, but they knew also that families, witha little help, might walk to M ilton Co untry Park. The allotment holders knew aboutthewil d life, the soil and th eir bo re hoIe water and crop-robbers. Most sadlyabsent was any report on consultation with the end users. People from Ho using Associations spoke ina preoccupied and resigned way about procedures for obtaining and spending money. They didn't say what form of housing would be preferred. It was to be hoped that their experience of bungalows, deck access, communal car parking, privateg ard ens, co mm un al playspace, would have been wo rthhearing about, but we didn‘t. N or was th ere any sug gestion that those for who m housing was to be provided had been asked what they

con ve rge o n th e s u bj ect m atter itself,th e ‘co m m o n g round’ which it represents. A su pp Iy of ‘o pti on cuto uts’ isa r ranged besi de the model forpeople to pick and choose. Labels saying preserve’ or ‘rehabilitate’ or ‘demo lish’, representations of allotments, play areas, chemist shops, livestock sheds, police foot patrols, advice centres - every possibility anyo n e can think of. Peo p Iea re free,in d ivid ually, to p ut whatever they choose wherever it seems best to them on the model. Then when everyone has hada chance to do all th ey want, there can be stock-taking: ‘Do we real Iy want 16 adventure playg rou nds on one housing estate? If not,h ow m any a nd wh ere?’ So d iffere ntg rou ps can fo rm, a cco rdin g to d iffe re nt i nte rest,a n d b egin the process of sifting and resorting the cutouts on the model, together. As they do this they draw in the experts, consulting them on technical feasi bility, together investigati ng possible alternatives. Where they find cardboard proposals competing forthe same spot, or perhaps dupl icating the sa me faci lityu n necessari Iy, they meet together there and then in search ofa comprom ise. Havi ng decided what they want to do,they then prioritise their ideas, u s in g the N OW, SOON, LATER sh eetp rovid ed. T h is enables the residents and professionals to decide, with the m ini m um of fuss, what can be done NOW, asthey are, what can be done SOON, and what, realistically, will have to wa it untill LATER.

What hashappened since Soon after the workshop weekend Viren Sa hai and Rob Ho I mwood oJtheCambridge Urban Forum met with Councillor Kevin South ernwood, (who was n ot able to attend the final review)in order to discuss the way forward. Six key areas were identified which it was hoped wou Idbe incorporated in the brief to the Housing Associations. 1. Considerations of size and location of the allotments in relation to the new h ousi ng and associated landscape. 2. The size of dwelli ng g roups suggested at 18-20 (60-70 perso ns) to achievea sen se ofn eighbourly identity. 3. The kind of community facilities to be provided stemm ing from local needs e.g.a vil lageg reen and possi bly an associated garden centre. 4. The deg ree of integ ration with the surroundi ngs a nd the h and Iin g of ve hic u Ia r traffic eg. n o through roads. 5. Achieving varied densities acco rding to ho use types and other uses and establish ing generous areas of open space. 6. the need to use local knowledge to hel p est a blisha local community. Viren Sahai emphasised the importance of clients input in establish ing the right brief without which it wou Id not be possi ble to geta design sympathetic to creatinga suitable envi ron ment. T he main poi ntsin the a p p roa ch sh o u Id b e to est a b Iis h the p I an n in g b rief and to get the rig ht infrastructure and to follow this up witha well consid e red d esig n b ri ef a n d fin a I Iy to a d d ress the vital i ss ues of m a n a ge ment of th e sc he me after the builders have left. AII otm ent h old ers an d local residents h ave m et with the City Council Director of Ho using David Poole who stated that it was too late for them to have any influence on theh ousing brief, and he was reported Iy n ervous of any ‘PI an nin g for Real’ exercises. They ha ve mo rerec entIy m et w ith t h e D ir e cto r of Co mm un ity Services, Ken Hay, to discuss the p roposed Community Centre on the allotment site. H e exp ressed su ppo rt for fo rm al co nsu Itation and had e xperien ce ofa ’ Plan n in g for Rea I‘ exerc isee Isewhere. The g roup are seeking to raiseE1500 principally for traini ng in the ‘Planning for Real’ process. They have had an info rmal offer of E500 from the City Council. The i mention is to use the process for the developm ent ofa b rief for the Co mm u n ity Centre and the open space associated with the new ho us ing. Th ey wo u Id Ii ke to Ioa k ata II I h e o pen s pa ces o n the Arbury estates asa future project and also to apply the approach to the consideration of traffic issues in the area. The Fo rum h as now received a copy of th e City Council‘s brief and tender documents to the Housing Associations and it appears than the wo rksh op has had some inputinto the City's thinking. David Raven

Review Panel Viren Sahai. Chair Cambridge Urban Forum David Hussell. Planning Director, South Cambridgeshire District Council Paul Finch. Editor, Building Design David Yandel |. Chair, Cambridge Association of Architects Sponsors Cambridge City Council Cambridge Association of Architects Cambridge Women ArchitectsG roup Coulson and Son Ltd Eternit Uk Ltd Hussey and Knight Lowland Nursery Ridgeons Ltd St.Laurence RC Primary School

Conservation Courses

wasfounded by Allan in 1983 on his return from l5years abroah working on diverse civil and structural engineering projects. Since last year the organisation has ceased to act part-time as sub-consultant to other engineering firms. It has recently moved tooffices in Fen Ditton and has several associates in Cambridgeshire who are covered under the indemnity insurance for the practice. Allan and his associates cover disciplines associated with the building industry. They aim toprovidea rapid and competitive service to archtects, developers, builders, local authorities, surveyors, estate agents, building and housing societies, and private individuals. The service includes report work,

design and drafting, surveillance, and feasibility studies. Charge out rates are competitive for the area, and fee quotes may be obtained on an hourly basis or fora fixed sum. To date the project area has ranged from King's Lynn (N), to Thetford (E), Hertford (S) and Bedford (W). Some work hasalso been undertaken inLondon. Allan may be contacted on 0223-292959 (tel.) or 293458 (fax.) at: The Barn, Musgrave Farm, Horningsea Road, Fen Ditton, Cambridge CBS 8SZ

University of Cambridge Board of Continuing Education 2 year evening courses leading to certificate in Historic Building Conservation. Further details from Beth Davis, Course Director, tel. 0223 351795 Ang lia Po lytechn icU n iversity postg raduate cou rse I ea d in g to M Sc in the Co n se rvatio n of B u ild i n g s, plan ned to commence October 1995. Further detai Is from Courses Adm inistrator, tel. 0223 493131

STOP PRESS...

Cambridge architects David Joy and Nigel Walter have beeng ivena special mention fortheir submission in the Europan3 Architectural Competition fora site in the centre of Quarrata near Florence. On the site ofa disused furniture factory, their scheme includes the provis ion of a c raft m u se um and wo rks hop s,Iib ra ry, hotel/conference centre, shops and housing surroundin g a n ew p ia zza.T h e p roje cth a s atrea d y wo n Euro pean U n ion funding and they have been asked along with the two Italian and Fin nish prize win ners and another Finnish team who obtaineda special mention to forma working group to assist the Local Authority in taking the p roject forward. The sche m es are to be exhibited at the RIBA Gallery in Portland Place.

CAMBRIDGE Landscape architect seeks spacious traditional house, City or near village. 3-4 beds plus studio. Garaging required. Around £250,000 available. Tel (0223) 329832 Tel/Fax (0742) 352660

Letters and contributions to Cambridge Architecture are welcomed. Copy deadlines for 1994. Summer Issue 25 June Autumn Issue 24 September

Editorial Board: David Raven t co-editors Colen Lumley

Richard Brimblecombe Anne Cooper David Yandell

Cambridge Architecture c/oT rumpington Mews Trumpington, Cambridge CB2 2LS Tel843931/3531 15 Fax 844426/353112