DEVELOPMENT & PLACE

Amix of uses is integral to any urban regeneration scheme. But precisely which uses should make up the mix, and in what proportion, for optimum outcomes. PICK ‘N MIX B rave (or foolhardy, and possibly both) would be the stakeholders who today would base a significant town or city centre regeneration scheme on a single use. Historically, the UK’s urban hubs have always comprised an assortment of uses, born out of a combination of organic growth and practical necessity. Only towards the middle of the 20th century, in sync with the dramatic rise in car ownership, did mono-use development start to become popular. While its rise was swift, relatively little time passed before the pendulum began to swing the other way and mixed-use development started to make a come-back in the 1990s. However, at this stage, mixed-use was something of a misnomer: dual use would be a more accurate term, as many developments were based simply on a major and subsidiary use. For retail-led schemes a typical split would be 90% retail and 10% leisure. There were exceptions: Argent’s landmark Brindleyplace in Birmingham (1993 onwards – see Birmingham Spotlight feature p.30) led the move towards a genuine mix of uses, with retail, leisure, offices and residential occupying the same site. Fast forward a quarter of a century and the current mix of uses proposed at Battersea Power Station Development Company’s eponymous scheme in central London has half of its total dedicated to residential. This reflects a complex and interconnected shift in demand towards greater housing provision, more communal facilities and the emergence of more sophisticated consumer behaviour patterns. It is clear that future major redevelopment projects will encompass a similarly wide mix of uses and that the inclusion of a broad mix will be embedded into the DNA of regeneration proposals from their inception. The UK’s largest mixed-use regeneration schemes currently in the pipeline offer valuable insight into the key factors likely to influence city centre redevelopment proposals over the coming decade. Holly Russell- Kennedy, Cushman & Wakefield Words by: Source: Cushman & Wakefield Source: Cushman & Wakefield N.B. Outline planning submitted KEY UK MIXED USE PIPELINE REGENERATION SCHEMES Westgate, Oxford Pre-redevelopment (built in 1972) LEISURE RETAIL RESIDENTIAL LEISURE RETAIL HOTEL RESIDENTIAL OFFICES INDUSTRIAL CAR PARKING Westgate, Oxford Post redevelopment (Autumn 2017) MIX OF USES COMPARED (1999 VS 2017) Ebbsfleet Central Eastern Quarry, Ebbsfleet Bamber Bridge, Lancashire East Float, Wirral Waters Royal Pier Waterfront, Southampton Millbay Waterfront, Plymouth Silvertown Quays, London Greenwich Peninsula, London Canada Water, London Battersea Power Station, London Kings Cross, London Wembley, London Swansea Central, Swansea Heart of the City II, Sheffield St Johns, Manchester Edinburgh St James 38 39 CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD DEVELOPMENT & PLACE