Top town planner blasts 'dreadful' Jerde development...

[dutchman]

One of Britain’s most respected town planners says the planned £1 billion rebirth of Coventry city centre is “dreadful, disingenuous and silly”.


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Adrian Jones, who oversaw the award-winning regeneration of Nottingham’s tram system and old market square, has slated the ambitious Jerde masterplan.

In a blog he says Coventry should celebrate its “brutal” post-war architecture instead of worrying about keeping up with Birmingham.

And he even encourages people to visit Coventry if only to marvel at its “exceptional” 1950s buildings, before many of them are lost to what he describes as “the next Blitz”.

Mr Jones, a member of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, writes: “Coventry is a fantastic urban experience – it will just blow you away.

“There are enclaves that still recall the character of the pre-war town but the city centre today reads as a dramatic New Town.

“But the council thinks that Coventry has a poor image and is falling behind Birmingham.

“After a period of some sensitive and interesting enhancements to the city centre, a bizarre redevelopment plan for the shopping centre has been commissioned from Jerde.

“This includes an ‘iconic’ egg shaped library, a roof top city park and millions of square feet of shops.

“Its current status is unclear on the council’s fantastically obtuse planning website, but basically it looks dreadful, disingenuous and silly – very bad news indeed for Coventry.

“There must be lots of opportunities to extend the retail offer of the city centre without the destruction of its unique assets.

“Coventry needs to be very careful what it wishes for.

“It is not for the faint-hearted but my advice is to see this exceptional city before the next Blitz.”

Work on the Jerde masterplan is set to start in 2014 and could take more than a decade to complete.

The scheme keeps many aspects of Sir Donald Gibson’s post-war layout, including the precinct, the market and the buildings around Broadgate, but with a 21st century twist.

There are cascading terraces, roof top gardens and parks the size of seven football pitches, along with a water feature recreating the line of the subterrenean River Sherbourne.

A city council spokesman said: “The masterplan takes a very innovative approach to redesigning the city centre so it is not surprising it provokes strong reactions. It seeks to incorporate the best bits of the city centre into the design.

“We welcome all views and indeed consulted extensively with Coventry people who overwhelmingly gave their support to the plans.”

[rebbonk]

I tend to agree that chasing Birmingham is foolhardy.

There is a world of difference between Coventry and Birmingham, I'd like to see that exploited rather like the way the Black Country stands apart from Birmingham.