Two stories related to parks in London grabbed my attention
this past week. First was Rowan Moore’s
excellent review of the proposed London River Park which is quickly turning
into the capital’s new planning saga (see here). The proposal is for a new walkway on the
northern side of the River Thames, stretching from Millennium Bridge in the
west to the Tower of London in the east.
The initial plans include landscaping, seating, a swimming pool and a
series of pavilions which can be used for exhibitions and cultural uses.
But it is the creation of a pseudo-public
space that angers Moore the most.
Drawing on Anna Minton’s highly recommended book Ground Control, Moore
describes how the river park will in fact turn a public river view into a
highly controlled private space. In addition,
the effort from the architects appears to have been spent on the revenue
generating pavilions and not on the walkable areas in-between. So if London is trying to ape New York’s High
Line it will have to put considerably more effort into the ‘park’ element of
the scheme. Latest news is that the planning
application will not be considered by the City of London at the November
Planning Committee and the project will now miss being open for the Queen’s
Diamond Jubilee. Open for the
Olympics? We will see.
You can check out a feature article I have written for the Spacing Vancouver blog here. The blog is an extension of the Spacing magazine which is now covering all Canadian urban and public space issues, following the original focus on just Toronto. I will be looking to make some further contributions to the blog in coming months.
