C O N T E X T 1 7 1 : M A R C H 2 0 2 2 23 CHANGE ON THE HIGH STREET was when it secured £25 million in funding from D2N2, (the local enterprise partnership) to demolish the western half of the shopping centre, something that would have been unthinkable even five years ago. This has coincided with a flurry of suggested proposals from a variety of local sources. Perhaps the best known are Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust’s proposal to re-wild the area and conservation architect Peter Rogan’s sensible suggestion to simply reinstate the lost routes and block structure. Such has been the level of interest, news of it even crossed the Atlantic, with a big article in the NewYork Times. To get a handle on the debate, the city launched its excellent Big Conversation on the Storymap platform. Using archive illustrations and photographs, this has presented the fascinating history and significance of the area to the general public in an accessible way that reveals the challenges and opportunities that the site represents. It resulted in over 3,000 responses. Nottingham has a strong creative culture, and the Nottingham Project, funded by Arts Council England, provides a capacity beyond that of the city council to convene conversations about the city’s future. Its chair, Greg Nugent, also now chairs the Broadmarsh design and delivery advice panel, a group of local stakeholders and national experts. This commissioned a vision for the site from Thomas Heatherwick Associates, best known for Coal DropsYard in London, and the controversial Garden Bridge project. The vision Heatherwick unveiled his vision at a highprofile event at Nottingham College City Hub in December. Overall, it represents a refreshing level of aspiration for the city, but largely it defines rather than responds to its context.This is intentional: the thought of simply reinstating the lost urban structure has been dismissed as insufficient for the city’s needs. The proposal would introduce a mixture of homes, offices and shops, with the addition of a boutique ‘art hotel’ in a retained Severns House, the unlovely office building which sits opposite Caruso St John’s flamboyant Nottingham Contemporary. Redevelopment of the western part (including the old People’s College site) is set against retention of the concrete frame on its eastern side, to be populated with structures that will sit within it. This chimes with the city council’s ambitious carbon neutral 2028 pledge, but also recognises the inherent difficulties in redeveloping this area, which accommodates the greatest changes in level. If this proves feasible, it could be a truly epoch-defining piece of design. The opportunity for an entrance that does justice to Nottingham’s City Of Caves visitor attraction, a set of scheduled rock-cut caves dating from the medieval period, is a tantalising prospect, as is the desired reinstatement all the main historic routes on the site. Perhaps the most questionable part of the vision is the central public space. Described as equivalent in size to the Old Market Square, the extent to which this can be activated, and thus be made safe, is a moot point, and the profusion of planting that forms such a key motif of it will require a great deal of maintenance. The size of the space has perhaps also influenced the height of some of the buildings near to the Castle, which may prove controversial. This intriguing vision is unquestionably a product, perhaps a blend, of the many aspirations for the site, and the chorus of approval from many quarters seems to confirm this. Does this equal successful place making? Time will tell. Clive Fletcher is principal advisor and lead specialist (historic places) with Historic England. An image of the proposals by Thomas Heatherwick Associates
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