Street Life Theoretical and Technical report

STREET LIFE MODULE

Title of report: Does Gillett Square design represent the cultural diversity of Dalston area

Report by:

Asha Farah

Ko721804

Kingston University

2009
 STREET LIFE MODULE
CONTENT

Theoretical appraisal

Project Partnership 3

Introduction 4

History 6

Land ownership and management 7

Design Intention 8

Technical appraisal

Analysis

Site plan 12

Circulation 13

Pavement study 14

Cross section : Market pod 15

Tree detail 16

Conclusion 17

Bibliography 18
 STREET LIFE MODULE 3
PROJECT PARTNERSHIP

Client for New Square : Matthew Carrington, Groundwork East London

Client for Culture House : Adam Hart, Hackney Co-operative Developments
Enabler from GLA : John Fannon, Architecture and Urbanism Unit
Architects/ Co-ordinators : Russell Brown, Hawkins\ Brown
Landscape Architects : Ian Turkington, Whitelaw Turkington
Vortex Jazz Foundation : Oliver Weindling, Vortex Jazz Foundation
Introduction
Gillett square is a newly designed square aimed to be
a focal point for residents living in the Dalston area, The
Square carries a theme to allow diversity of cultures to
be celebrated and exhibited, as the region undergoes
a transformation both through gentrification and
redevelopment.
Dalston compromises a mixed population, of which 59% is
white, 25% black, 3% Chinese and 4% mixed heritage.
This report aims to explore the challenges of designing a
public open space to represent cultures, and how this may
be achieved given the added complexity of diversity.
Cultural landscapes, have a diverse and very expressive,
symbolic connection to heritage and beliefs. They
encapsulate the imagery and associations to create a
recognizable identity with that group. However at times
this imagery may not give the real sense of culture, and
thus leads to distortion. Although this is not explored in this
STREET LIFE MODULE 4
report, it may raise questions into how the designers could
overlook this point when designing and therefore not
properly representing a particular group. This leads on to the
point, that much of our judgements about representations
may be solved thorough community delegation on cultural
representation and can be used as a primary resource to
form understandings.
The report will look into how cultural landscape are currently
designed, through three approaches, Symbolic referencing;
create a landscape or landscape design element to
symbolise a cultural group or a region, Experimental
referencing; creating a subtle linkage to cultural groups’
native environments, and Facility provision; providing
activities that aid in the settlement and contribution to the
well being of a community for example. Facilities that may
be found in the native environment of the group.

Introduction
Gillett square, in Dalston, is located in east London and is.in
the borough of hackney. This was previously used as a car
park with a north and south bay and dividing the two was
Gillett street connecting the main market street, kingsland to
Boleyn road.
Gillett Square, has been modelled to celebrate the cultural
diversity of Dalston. Hackney Co-operation Development’s
(HCD) vision was to transform the south bay car park into,
‘A new cultural and creative arts hub for the East London
Gateway’, aimed at giving space back to the large
community of Dalston and to alleviate the conflict between
pedestrian and car flow on Kingsland High street which is
adjacent to the square. With a wide selection of cultural
STREET LIFE MODULE 5
activity in and around Hackney, such as the Rio cinema (the
only independent and community run cinema in the country
show casing Turkish films), Dalston cultural house and Hackney
empire, cultural expression is never in scarcity.
The new Gillett Square would be competing with well
established cultural venues and therefore may not achieve its
aimed vision. This could result in limited usage of the square.
Through my observation during the day time, the square was
almost empty with a few people using the kiosks on site. This is
in direct contrast to the Kingsland High street, where the real
cultural difference can be experienced. This shows the square
has not embodied the successful diversity of the Kingsland
High street
 STREET LIFE MODULE 6
HISTORY

Historically Hackney is a place where migrant communities installation of 5 market pods, by Hawkins /Brown architects,
arrived, but as transitory residence in the late 1940s and facing the north side of Gillett Street. Market pods gathered
eventually some migrants began to settled in the mid 1950s. some interest with its design, winning the Design Week Award
as well as receiving the Civic Trust
Gillett street, first under went it’s transformation 9 years ago In 2000 Mac Donald Egan obtained planning permission for
when Hackney Co-operation Development implemented a high density mixed use scheme to the north side of Gillett
its plans to regenerate the low quality car park, on the street.
north and south side of Gillett street. The regeneration
would see a 1390 sq.m, if cleared, with a potential of over
40 business/trading stores. This formed the first phase of the
implementation with London Authority making improvements
to the surfacing on the adjacent streets to initiate work.
The second phased saw the new Square materialise with an
 STREET LIFE MODULE 7
Land ownership and management

Hackney Co-operative Development has, over a period opting for alternative parking and created more time
of time formulated a working body to transform the for negotiations to take place with the developers for
Dalston area. One such projects was the creation of a Stamford Works to integrate their design into the Square.
new public space in Gillett street.

Hackney Co-operative Development implemented a

policy to work with several stakeholders to form the Gillett
Square Partnership ,which included,
Hackney Co-operative Developments - as the
managers and leaseholders,
Hackney council- as the owners of the site to be Legend
transformed,
Mac Donald Egan- the managers and owners of
Stamford Works
Stamford Works at the North end of the site,
Residentical
Groundwork East London - who are the major funders
for the developments, and, the Greater London Mixed commerial and
residentical
Authority Architecture + Urbanism Unit - developing The Jazz club
the site for a project: 100 Public Spaces programme, Hackney Cooperative
managed by the Mayor, Ken Livingston. Deveopment (HCD)
The Culture House and the
Vortex
In 2002 Gillett Square Partnership commissioned Ownership
architects Hawkins/Brown to initiate the first stage of Macdonald Egan
the development of the new square by redesigning Hackney Council
prefabricate units and the layout of the south side
HCD
of the proposed square and in the same year, the
partnership consulted with landscape architects
Whitelaw Turkington.

By March 2004 Gillett Square Partnership was granted

its first funding of £850k, although the sum was relatively
constricting, this turned out to be an advantage as it
gave time to the car park uses to adjust to changes by
 STREET LIFE MODULE 8
Design intention

9
1

8
7
3
4

1 Flood lights 6 Natural granite Setts

5 2 Column light with lantern heads 7 Hardwood timber stage
6 3 Timber bench 8 Gabion fenced wall
4 Steel screen wall 9 Hackney Co-operative Development
5 Natural granite slabs building

The design framework highlighted in the Landscape Design local community and by extension it is anticipated that they will
consultants Brief, July 2002, focused on 6 criteria to demonstrate use the square. However the market pods cover only 5% of the
how the proposals meet key goals and visions, of which were: square and may not attract enough people.
The character of the space is also represented by two cultural
Character: a place with its own identity. The Dalston area has houses these are the Vortex jazz club and Dalston culture house.
a strong cultural identity, Consultants needed to acknowledge Both mediums attract people to the square. Therefore the
this within their design proposals. square is depending on the success of these two venues. How-
ever,
The square is made active, with people enjoying the market
pods or visiting the Vortex, attending to the car park or simply
sitting or passing through. The market pods are owned by the lo-
cal community and provide services which are targeted at the
Design intention STREET LIFE MODULE 9

1. Hackney Co-operative Development

2. Gillett Square
1 4
3. 5 Market pods
5
4. Residential housing
3
5.The Vortex Jazz club
6. The Dalston Culture house
2
7. Car park
7

this does not satisfy the objective of the square, because on
days when there are no events the square lies empty.
The main vision of Hackney Co-operative Development was for
the square to be ‘A new cultural and creative arts hub for the
East London Gateway’, given that the square is heavily reliant to
attract people to the two venues, the vision of the square is not
met.
Architecture comes about as an expression of what already ex-
ists rather than creating that social connection. Not only that,
but it ignores the dynamics of cultural make up of communities.
I believe square in its current form can not exist on its own, as
mention above, it is dependent on the surrounding architecture.
Over time the cultural diversity may change this would not be
reflected in the architects.

A square is a place where people come together to preform

their public communion. A vital element with in our cities. Com-
munities are constructed not through architecture but through
social connections
Design intention
Quality of the public realm;
a place with attractive and
successful outdoor areas
A sense of place grows as
we becomes accustom to
its identifiable element.
The key identifiable element
in Gillett Square is the
Gabion fence wall with
stone infill and rusty metal
frame which is in the east
side of the square, this is an
unusual feature but adds a
strong and composed look
to the square, this rust effect
is carried on through to then
north side with a decorative
steel screen separating the
car park from the square.
Another strong feature is the
raised timber decking near
the south entrance from
Bradbury Street. This also
follows the theme of the
rusty look but has 4 Pinus
nigra Austriaca trees to
create a seating and shade.
The rusty metal colour
scheme also fits well with
the Dalston Culture House
design.
The high quality finish of the
pavement also blend in with
the main features of the
square.
The overall square has a
lot of coherence and the
choice of materials is of
consistent high quality.
Ease of movement, a place
that is easy to get to and
move through.
The whole square is
covered using hard
landscape materials and is
open through three main
entrances and exists. The
large expansion of open
space allow pedestrians
to move freely and
accommodates the large
crowds attending events.
The west and east entrance
give access to the car park.
Legibility, a place that has a
clear image and is easy to
understand.
I feel that square has a clear
and defined layout. Much of
the furniture is located along
the pavement walkways
along each entrance. There
is a uniform arrangement of
light columns and bollards
with each lighting columns
separated by three bollards.
STREET LIFE MODULE 10
Adaptability: a place that
can change easily.
Adaptability in this instance
could mean how easy the
square can accommodate
its guest, and in this
light I feel this is not very
adaptable.
With a large space at the
centre of the square for
the public to initiate their
private events this is not
an easy enough task. In
the square there are no
retreats or secluded areas.
This, in the design process
was discussed with the
agenda to solve the issue of
drunken people gathering
in the square. This led to
compromising this key
element.
To analyse whether the
design of the square
showcases the cultural
diversity Dalston area, I will
use the three approaches
outline in the introduction to
the report.
 STREET LIFE MODULE 11

T E C H N I C A L A P P R A I S A L
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Analysis : Site plan

Legend
Pinus nigra ‘Austriciaca
7-8 meters, 3m clear stem

Column mounted lumaries 5m

Timber bench

Cycle rack

Litter Bin

Decorative steel screen

Stone steps granite

Stamford Works
Removable bollard

Signage

Gillett Sqaure entrance sign

North side Car Park

Retained wall

Pavements
Natural granite Setts

Natural Granite Slabs

300 x 600 x 600mm thick
Raised Hardwood Timber
Staget

Natural Granite Slabs

The culture house 150 x 300 x 60m thick
the Vortex

Market Pods HCD

The Jazz Club

1:200 N
 STREET LIFE MODULE 13
Analysis: Circulation

Legend

Gathering of people
1-5 indivualszz

Pedestrian movement

Cyclist movement

Vehicle movement

1:200 N
The site has a good and broad circulation with all floor space being used.
The two popular site has good access points with all three entrances/exists roughly at equal distances.
The car park is the most used function, when there is an over flow demand of car park space, the est side of the square is
used as the an extended car park, illustrating the adaptability of the square.
Event days sees the square at its fully function, with all three entrances providing good access to the square.
 STREET LIFE MODULE 14
Analysis : Pavement study

h.
f.
e.
b.
g.

g.

d.

c.

b.

a. a. Natural granite Slab mixed with silver grey and

light pink granites 150 x 300 x 60 mm thick The pavement is finished to a high
Natural granite Setts Grey granite 300 x standard and 3 years since it’s
b. opening is still sustaining its desired
600 x 60mm thick
aspiration.
c. Timber decking- Hardwood with corundum inlay The material selection has meant
that the maintenance cost was
d. Raised timber stage- Hardwood cut as well ensured the square a
longer service life.
e. Macadam paving

b. f. Infill between kerb tooled concrete finish

g. Tactile paving
a.
h. New 50mm macadam wearing course to existing carpark
 STREET LIFE MODULE 15
Analysis : Cross section of the market pod

45 mm stainless steel handrail- brushed finish. Finish brackets 40x 20 mm

with secret fixing, welding to 20 x 30mm galvanised MS bar set into
concrete foundation.

Fixing bracket
Stainless stell warning bars set into timber at 50mm centres
for 800 mm depth top and bottom of stair.
Timber joints 75 x 225 mm bolted to galvanised, angles which are
bolted to concrete base.
Based to be laid to fall with gully/channel to collect water

38 x 138 mm hardwood timber

Fall along the length

Stainless steel marker
of concrete base
bars set into paving
10mm movemnt joints against base

Concrete base ontop of existing ground

10-40 mortor bed

Stainless stell marker bars set into paving

Gulies
 STREET LIFE MODULE 16
Analysis: Tree detail

Pinus nigra austrian pine

4.5 container grown x 4

Pinus nigra Austrian is a fast growing pine

tree and can grow up to 40 to 60 feet in
height. Grown on highways and parking
lots as it is able to cope in area where there
is low levels of water.
As Austriaca pine is difficult to transplant Timber deck stage Hardwood
so should be planted from containers or Cor ten weather steel deck
moved burlapped after being root pruned.
The Pine could suffer a cottony growth on
the bark producing a honey dew which Granite setts

may support sooty mold. Mortar bed

Concrete bed
Hardcore
 STREET LIFE MODULE 17
Symbolism referencing: a landscape design that implements
symbolises cultural groups
Hackney is made up of very diverse cultural groups, however it is not
clear how this is represented in the design of the square. As discussed,
the usage of the square is reliant on the events of the surrounding
buildings, this suggests that the square does not have an independent
function.
The ease of movement is enhanced by having three entrances to the
square. The square also lies adjacent to a very busy high street this
may encourage the interaction of the people from different cultural
backgrounds.

Given that the square does not have a identifiable symbol or image
depicting particular cultural groups, it can be used by different cultures
independently. However users may not feel attached to the square.

Experimental referencing: creating a subtle linkage to cultural groups

The overall design did not experiment with different ways of
representing culture. I believe if this was implemented in the original
plan the community would have identified more with the square.

Facility provision; providing activities that aid in the settlement and

contribution to the well being of a community

Since the square is an open space the community can use the space
for their functions, this could enhance cultural interaction, however the
square space is limited and can only accommodate a small number
of people at a give time.

Overall culture is represented through the existence of the venues the

cultural diversity of the square could be opened up and linkage to
the Kingsland high street, where cultural diversity is evident through
food, colour and smells. Gillett square is aimed at the local community
to enjoy and interact, however it remains empty for most part of the
day. This suggests that Hackney Co-operation Development has not
achieve its vision.
 STREET LIFE MODULE 18
Bibliography
BOOKS

Gehl, J 2006, Life between building: Using public spaces,

Danish Architectural press, Skive

Jackson, J B1994, A Sense of place, a Sense of time, Yale

University press, USA

Bacon, E N 1978, Design of cities, Thames Hudson, London.

JOURNALS

Rishbeth, C 2001, Ethnic Minority Groups and the Design of

Public Open Spaces: an inclusive landscape?, Landscape
research, Vol. 26, No. 4, pg 351-366

PUBLICATION

Hawkins B, August 2004, Contextual Information

Landscape design consultants Brief, July 2002, Gillett

Square Partnership, HCD, Mac Donald Egan, Groundswork
Hackney

Dalston, May 2008, Arts Space of the Future Exhibition and

Project Launch.

Local Development Framework- Dalston Area Action Plan,

Mayor of London And LBH.