Sir Peter Hall

The TCPA tonight honoured the great contribution to British planning by Sir Peter Hall, whose 80th birthday has also been celebrated this week by UCL where he is an ever-present influence. David Lock led the tributes, which hailed SPH's vision of places designed for people and their complex lives, when too many were thinking of cars. The very pleasant evening ended with a rendition of Love, Life and Liberty, a poetic and musical reminder of what planning is all about: land.

Place East London

Just ahead of the launch of our Tech City report, I was asked to speak at the Place East London conference on what the cluster could mean for East London jobs. I said our in-depth analysis shows the much-hyped cluster is larger than anyone had previously thought, but the entrepreneurs within it are less diverse than London SMEs or British digital economy firms. To open access to a wide group requires rethinking the entrepreneurship culture, making financing easier for people without contacts to rich people, encouraging skills training and networking in local populations, and a more female-friendly environment (a theme from my undergraduate anthropology degree).

I came after Sir Robin Wales who spoke about Newham's great efforts - and success - about getting local people into jobs with some of the new employers (not least Westfield) coming to town. GLA Chief of Staff Sir Edward Lister told how the £9-24 billion cost of the Olympic Games will be the "least expensive of the projects" planned to upgrade infrastructure in East London.Newly annointed London Legacy Development Corporation Chief Daniel Moylan closed the event vowing that the park would not become a "shard of prosperity" - like Canary Wharf.

How the Olympics can help... Lille?

In the Paris metro, I was handed a promotional leaflet "on the road to the Olympic Games".... for Lille. Interesting that the Northern French city is hoping to attract some of the tourists flocking to London. The 10 reasons is offers are standard enough: it's not far from London (80 minutes), the food is good, it's a change of scene, culture, shopping etc etc.  

Digital Shoreditch

Kam Star's Digital Shoreditch is a boutique conference for East London's digital geeks. Fed by the hype and energy of the government's Tech City initiative, the much talked about event is growing - and likely to gain in strength. The acoustics of Hackney House weren't brilliant, but the crowd was attentive and committed and the speakers (including Centre for London's Rob Whitehead talking about our Tech City research project) were top class!

Neighbourhood Planning

An interesting overview of neighbourhood planning in London hosted by the RTPI showcased 4 front-runners funded by the CLG. One of these, Ealing, recieved £40,000 by the CLG fo a bid inspired by community groups West Ealing Neighbours (WEN) and the organisation it co-founded Save Ealing's Centre (SEC), made up of 27 local groups. Pre-localism arrangements meant it was Ealing Council who wrote and submitted the application. Eric Leach, vice chair of WEN, presented a critical assessment of relations with the council, where many planners resent residents' involvement (the word 'amateurs' has been heard). He also questioned whether there would be enough money to do the job properly......

Regenerating the British seaside

This weekend I was invited to the seaside town of Hastings, where the Jerwood Foundation has recently established an art gallery. It joins the "string of pearls," cultural or art centres in South-East coastal towns including Bexhill's De La Warr Pavilion (more of which later), Eastbourne's Towner (opened in 2009), the Turner Contemporary and others. The success or revamping of many owes something to a government initiative called Sea Change, whose mission was "to use culture to make a difference to seaside resorts, contributing to sustainable, social and economic regeneration".

Culture was the prescription for rundown seaside towns - but the locals often didn't like the medicine. In Jerwood, anti-art-gallery signs still dot the  black-painted tall fisherman's huts whose 19th-century architecture the gallery emulates. As a visitor, it seems strange that this investment in Hastings should have generated such opposition. I can only assume that while great care was obviously taken to ensure the building is in harmony with its surroundings, less care was taken with the people who live and work in the area. All too often in Britain, projects imposed for the good of the people are done without proper consultation, causing resentment. A shame really, as the gallery is fabulous, even if the cost of a cappuccino is exagerated (we opted for jellied eels in the stall outside the gallery as a better value snack). I'm sure it would not have taken much to get people on board.

We also visited neighbouring Bexhill, whose once-crumbling 1930s pavillion was given a facelift thanks to Sea Change. It is a fabulous place, blustery seafront and bracing winds. A wonderful exhibition by Cerith Wyn Evans, described as a 'love letter to the building,' used light, heat and sound to help visitors experience the pavillion and its views in new ways.

The centre, and its program of events, made me think Bexhill might be quite a nice place to live. Reflecting on this regeneration, I couldn't help thinking that while the Sea Change initiative is timely, if these towns are starting to perk up it is also because fashions are changing. Environmental and financial concerns means English people are weekending and holiday-ing closer to home and resdiscovering  the charms of the seaside, temporarily overlooked in favour of the Spanish costas.

 

 

Expert seminar

Today, we presented the draft findings of our Tech City report to an expert rountable of stakeholders and entrepreneurs at Google Campus. A very stimulating debate!