Another Day in Norwich

The English Historic Towns Forum is a group set up by English Heritage and the Civic Trust to promote an active interest in the economic and aesthetic improvement of the core of English towns. This year they have organised some ten all-day meetings around England, the morning consisting of lectures on local issues from local architects and the afternoon devoted to a tour of the town/city.

Thanks to the Society I was able to attend the Norwich meeting in mid-March. After an introduction by the Regional Director of English Heritage we were led through "Buildings in Context" by the author, Francis Golding, a guide to regenerating urban areas by looking at fifteen successful projects. (The Society has a copy.) The first case study was of Juniper House, Kings Lynn. The brief written by the Council was for offices, preferably naturally heated and ventilated, residential accommodation and a public garden next to a Grade I church and a Listed cottage on a central site. Jeremy Stacey has designed a scheme which fulfils these requirements and complements its surroundings. (He pointed out that PFI produced poor and expensive buildings.)

We next looked at the Forum in central Norwich. (Lucky old them to have had their library burnt down and doubled the insurance money from the Millennium Fund!) Michael Taylor, a partner of Michael Hopkins, pointed out the difficulties in persuading the librarians that it was safe to have an open library within a building that has to pay its way. Thus much floor space is given over to the food industry, to a Norwich tourist information shop and to the excellent widescreen film on the history of the city in the undercroft. The BBC is transferring there soon. All this makes for good mix of users of the Forum. Michael Taylor was a delightful and unassuming guide to his building. Hopefully even more will come when the Chapelfields (Rowntree) site is completed (being demolished at the time of the visit).

The Riverside site has caused much heartache. Mostly owned by Railtrack and Asda, the reclamation of the land was expensive so that it was difficult for the planners to gain much Section 106 development. Eventually they now have a retail park with the usual chains, of which the largest and most successful in architectural terms is ironically a Morrison's. A large residential development connected by two exciting footbridges across the Wensum was felt by our group to be banal and very dense. The replacement swimming pool has just been opened on an adjacent site.

Finally we returned to the City Hall through the King Street rejuvenation area where not only sympathetic restoration but also an exciting modern building is leading to a thriving new quarter. Live/work units, expensive houses and affordable flats are enlivening this rundown part. As usual pedestrianisation is playing a major part.

I would recommend a visit but I'm afraid you won't have the expert guides I did - Michael Taylor and for the later part the Head of Development Control for Norwich City Council. My thanks to them and the EHTF and the Society for such a stimulating day out.

MIKE COOK