Creating a welcoming and diverse neighbourhood with people at its centre was a major motivator across the panel when it comes to creating mixed-use schemes.
Lisa Deering focussed on the human aspect of creating communities and the need to create a lasting sense of place that will have multi-generational appeal:
If you move somewhere in your twenties, your needs are going to be vastly different in your thirties and forties, so will you be able to stay and grow old there? What about if you have children? Are there schools nearby? Is there a green space where you feel safe? What about later-living and the ability to downgrade? Do you have your shops in close walking distance?”
Lee Davies of Ramboll UK Limited agreed and said that’s why “it’s all about flexibility when it comes to creating communities.”
Lee went on to speak about the Happy Homes research commissioned and facilitated by Ramboll.
The research builds upon The Happiness Research Institute’s 2019 The GoodHome report which found that 15% of happiness is correlated with our homes.
From this, the Happy Home research presents what homes and neighbourhoods should possess to make the most positive impact on people’s wellbeing.
How do you create the kind of spaces where people feel part of a community in a tall building, for example? It's about making sure the coworking and amenity spaces work well to create that sense of community, but also the connectivity to the wider vernacular, and I think activation of the ground floor facilities are key to unlocking a development's sense of community."
Spaces certainly need to be experiential and differentiated now to appeal to ever-more discerning consumers – particularly office space, which plays a pivotal role in mixed-use schemes.
As hybrid working continues to be popular in various sectors, and amid the ongoing ‘war on talent,’ progressive employers are looking to provide an engaging, stimulating, welcoming and comfortable work environment to attract and retain staff.
Lisa Deering said: “Flexible working is very much coming forward in every scheme and stakeholders are realising this is probably more important to somebody than a gym is, for example.” She emphasised the need for amenities to last and stand the test of time.
George McBride of the University of Warwick said it is a similar story in the education sector. He spoke about the huge shift towards flexible spaces in a university context:
There is a huge drive for flexible rooms and spaces where students want to socialise, they don’t just want to be isolated in their rooms. For example the Faculty of Arts building we just opened which was intended just for the faculty - it's a busy, vibrant environment that attracts lots of business because it’s got flexible seating, an amphitheatre, coffee shop – it’s just a great sociable space.”
Pivotal to the University’s masterplan is the desire to activate all ground floor space so there is no sleeping accommodation or lecture theatres.
He says this is so the floor becomes “a shop window” where people can look at what’s on offer and engage accordingly, making spaces more interactive and open.
Speaking on her approach to the role transport plays in mixed-use schemes, Maggie Grogan addressed the huge shift of focus over the last decade:
“If we were delivering Arden Cross 10 years ago, we wouldn’t be as focussed on sustainability, or futureproofing for tomorrow’s challenges, as we are now. One of the main considerations now is the future of the car and how that is fundamental to big masterplans for schemes moving forward.”
Maggie added: “It’s easy to say we won’t be using the car in 10 years, but that’s probably not true. If we move to electric cars, do we still need as many car parking spaces but with the infrastructure needed for electric vehicles? But with schemes like Arden Cross, it should be mostly accessible via sustainable transport links?”
She spoke of the excitement and considerations the project offers “It can go green and potentially not rely on fossil fuels for the whole scheme, but that obviously requires a lot of upfront infrastructure and funding, which is where you get tension.”
