NEWS

Kathryn Gustafson at Art Basel

In March, our founding partner Kathryn Gustafson joined a panel at Art Basel that discussed the importance of sustainability, biodiversity, and the community in shaping public spaces for civic life. “One of the greatest challenges as a designer is really understanding where you are. How do you make spaces that are for all sorts of different people?” The answer lies in the notion of ‘placemaking’ which for Kathryn is about having a deep understanding of the place you are designing for, “it’s different colours, materials, space relationships between people”. “We always do a lot of historical research before we actually start designing” she adds.

To watch this fascinating talk and hear Kathryn talk more on sustainability, placemaking and biodiversity head over to our Linkedin page

Site Tour Eiffel - Completion of first phase around the Fontaine de Varsovie

We have been working with the City of Paris and Spl PariSeine on ‘OnE’; our concept for Site Tour Eiffel for five years. In March 2024 we completed the first phase which was a renovation of the landscape around the Fontaine de Varsovie.

The renovation works have included the reinforcement of the two sloped lawns either side of the fountain with limestone benches, the resurfacing of paths, newly planted terraces with trimmed hedges and cherry trees along with the replacement of lighting masts with LED sources.

The site, which will be a key feature in the Olympics this year, is now closed in preparation for the games. We look forward to it re-opening in July and seeing members of the public from all over the world enjoy its enhanced features.

To read more about the project CLICK HERE

Neil Porter opens the York Design Awards

Earlier this month, our founding partner Neil Porter launched the York Design Awards with a talk dedicated to how our practice creates memorable, sustainable, vibrant and award-winning public spaces. Using examples of our work such as Old Market Square, New Ludgate, HM Treasury Courtyards and Chelsea Barracks he highlighted how it is the responsibility of every landscape architect to think beyond the design brief, understand the context of an area and leave valuable time for research. “We need to be inventive, open to new ideas and be an observer of past and contemporary cultures. Quality of thought, research and care goes into every proposal we make” he said.

Neil concluded his talk by addressing the importance of combating climate change and how this could be achieved: “reducing a cities heat island effect and providing SUD’s systems to manage storm water and space for plants that support wildlife” are just some examples evident in our Highgate Cemetery, Cultuurpark Westergasfabriek, York Central and Museum Street projects.

Celebrating International Women’s Day with Kathryn Gustafson

In celebration of International Women’s Day we shine the spotlight on our very own doyenne of Landscape Architecture, Kathryn Gustafson, who has been busy lecturing at two prominent universities in New Zealand.

In an insightful discussion, ‘Crossing Connections and Breaking Boundaries’, she explored how Landscape Architecture transcends conventional professional boundaries, serving as a pivotal force when designing and building amid environmental concerns. By integrating principles of ecology, urban planning, architecture, art, engineering and design, landscape architects are able create what she sees as “resilient and vibrant environments”.

Andy Hamilton, president of GDSNZ said of her lecture: “Kathryn Gustafson kicked off her New Zealand tour with an utterly inspiring and profound presentation of her work. She personally gave me a great deal of optimism for the role Landscape Architecture can play in navigating a future of climatic and ecological uncertainty”.

In addition, Kathryn led two masterclasses, one dedicated to planting (illustrating the journey from conceptualization to implementation), and the other on the history, environmental impact and concept of our studio’s design for Site Tour Eiffel. Xanthe White, Fellow GDSNZ, Principal XWD Studio said: “Kathryn Gustafson is both a master of imagination and actualization…it is a gift to have been given the opportunity to listen to one of the greatest designers of this generation. Mindblowing!”

City of London approves £200m Gresham Street office makeover

The plans for 65 Gresham Street were lodged with City planners in autumn 2022 and will see the existing eight-storey block extended to 12 storeys with the original building given a wholesale makeover.

The chairman of the City’s planning committee, Shravan Joshi, said: “The 65 Gresham Street proposals represent an exemplary retrofit scheme that will provide benefits for everyone. Future office tenants and their employees will enjoy a well-connected, high-quality office space, whilst local resident and visitor journeys through the Square Mile will be enhanced by the public realm improvements and new retail.”

The scheme is led by architects Squire and Partners for JP Morgan Asset Management with GP+B responsible for the design of the public realm at ground level, a series of roof terraces and a green roof.  

Others working on the project include cost consultant Turner & Townsend Alinea, project manager Opera, structural engineer Buro Happold, services engineer Atelier 10 and facade engineer and facade engineer Murphy Facade Studio.

Developers announced for York Central

Homes England and Network Rail have selected McLaren Property and Arlington Real Estate as the preferred developer for their major brownfield scheme, York Central.

York Central is being brought forward by a partnership between Homes England, Network Rail, the City of York Council and the National Railway Museum. The scheme has the potential to significantly boost the local economy by creating up to 6,500 jobs and delivering over £1.1 billion of Gross Value Added to the economy of York per annum.

There are already £135m of infrastructure works underway to enable this major regional scheme to progress. These include over 3km of new roads, footpaths, cycleways and also include two new bridges over the East Coast Main Line.

The appointment of McLaren Property and Arlington Real Estate as a development partner is the latest milestone in delivering York Central, which will see a key piece of York city centre brought to life by transforming underutilised railway land into vibrant and distinctive residential neighbourhoods, cultural spaces, high quality public realm and a high-quality commercial quarter.

Oxford North’s central landscape, market square and children’s play area given green light

Our detailed designs for Oxford North’s new central park, landscaped areas including a wildflower meadow, woodland, pond and children’s play area along with the new public square located to the north of the Red Hall, have been resolved to be approved by Oxford City Council’s planning committee (Nov 2023).

Oxford North will deliver one million sq ft (92,903 sq m) of laboratory and workspaces, 480 new homes, hotel, nursery, cafes, bars, three public parks and infrastructure.

Oxford North Ventures, the joint venture company of Thomas White Oxford, the development company of St John’s College, Cadillac Fairview and Stanhope, submitted the reserved matters application (RMA) for the central landscape to be delivered as part of phase 1a with the Red Hall cafe-bar, retail units, community space and first two lab buildings which will target practical completion in Q1 2025.