25 years later

Having viewed Canary Wharf from a distance, a far cry from the solitary tower and the perceived white elephant of 1989, from the high places of the city, the Shard, Dome and Emirates Airline, to standing on bridges over the Thames, and Royal Docks and viewing the impressive skyline, what does this mean on the ground?

Wandering around the glass and steel landscape in the rain, contemplating the journey that has taken 25 years. The streets are almost deserted, office workers are all inside following the morning rush, shoppers are under ground in the mall which is an environment that works very well in the rain, a few delivery vehicles circulate on the surface on the loop road known as the Colonnade, with red brake lights reflecting off glass and off the shiny road surface as drivers wait for the traffic lights to change. The setting between the vertical shear planes of the offices framing views to the docks feels a bit like scaled down midtown Manhattan albeit without the constant stream of yellow taxi cabs, as though it is five in the morning as opposed to eleven.

In the past 25 years, Taking an abandoned industrial zone and transforming it into what is now a very lively environment, a thriving employment hub for East London and a catalyst for its broader regeneration. Although it has not always been so, Richard Rogers referred to the uneven development in the London Docklands leading to left over spaces and ghettos In ‘Cities for a Small Planet’ in 1997. Whether that comment alone made a difference or whether it is just coincidence, some of the left over spaces have been developed like the apartment towers at East India DLR Station for example. There is still a way to go to integrate Canary wharf with the surrounding fabric. 

The greatest challenge being the arterial route into central London the A13, dominated by its own flyovers and intersection in addition to the elevated DLR above the traffic and getting into the right lane. Traces of high street still talk of decline and the painted sign on the brick gable reading ‘Sorry, The lifestyle you ordered is out of stock.’

The full story is available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble published by Xlibris — Do We Need ARCHITECTS? A Journey Beneath the Surface of Architecture

Is Architecture Enough?

In the book Do We Need Architects? A journey Beneath the Surface of Architecture, I explored cities and urban development over a time frame of twenty-five years. Over that time I was also exploring the changing environment in which architecture is practiced. The journey does not end there, and the stories keep on coming, there are more cities that are experienced for the first time, others that have been revisited and new aspects experienced, since the publication of the book, my journey has taken me to Lahore, Pakistan where I was based for six months, working on a strategic plan for one of the largest urban development projects in the world.

During that time, my journey has also taken me back to Dubai and experienced the developing public transport infrastructure in the shape of the metro and new tram at the Dubai Marina, as well as exploring some of the developments on the ground, to London on two occasions and explored different aspects of the ever changing city, along with experiencing the first tangible evidence of the worlds largest, probably most complex infrastructure project Crossrail on the cityscape.

A later visit to Pakistan and provided the opportunity to experience Islamabad to present proposals a new major urban development project. A visit to the UK revealed Birmingham undergoing significant change, Manchester is in a similar state as public transport infrastructure is being upgraded in the city centre, there is a first time visit to Liverpool and a return to my home town on the English Riviera now being viewed not through the eyes of a child growing up in the town, but after being involved in significant urban development projects and viewing as an urban designer, planner and architect. Bahrain is continuing to evolve as more elements of the masterplan set out in 2030 vision emerge from the sand.

The journey in a sense is never ending, and as new adventures loom on the horizon, my aim is to share insights and observations of working on projects, in different environments, visiting existing cities and developing areas against the backdrop of what we are doing as a profession ,in addressing the global needs of a growing understanding of the impact that cities have on the health of the planet, the guiding question shifting emphasis from Do we need Architects? To Is Architecture Enough?

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