Summary #10 – Interim Feedback from Summer Exhibition – 3rd July 2015

As promised, I have collated the feedback gathered over the three days of the exhibition at St John’s URC this week and I wanted to share some headline findings. If you have not had a chance to view the material from the exhibition yet you can do so and you can provide feedback here or simply e-mail me your thoughts. The deadline for feedback is the 8th July and I will be circulating a full summary on the 10th July.

Once again we had many people who were new to the project visiting which helps us to extend our reach and awareness locally.

There were four areas around which we asked for specific feedback, but there are an additional three themes that have come through very strongly, which TfL acknowledge they need to address.

Traffic:Whilst Buro Happold have completed partial modelling on the scheme and are confident that it will work, many people have requested additional modelling and data to demonstrate that the scheme works and the expected additional vehicles on the road network, following the proposed development. This information will be available at the exhibition in September having been shared with Hillingdon over the summer.

Parking:Many people have raised concerns over the provision for residential parking proposed. Acknowledging that this is something that people perceive to be unrealistic, TfL will be revisiting this in their conversations with Hillingdon Borough Council. The team will also be looking at dedicated retail parking provision, as this has been another frequent area of concern.

Existing TfL Tenants:TfL have a separate meeting set up with their business and residential tenants, on 6th July, as part of their ongoing conversations about any proposed development.

Common ideas emerging from the specific feedback in-clude:

1. Mix of ground floor uses:

For those of you who visited the exhibition, you will be aware that one of the areas we were discussing was people’s ideas for the retail mix on site. What type of retail

Northwood Futures

people want to see and what uses they do not want to see. This feedback will support the discussions between TfL and their tenants.

There are some important local services that many people identified should be retained:• The Post Office• Dry Cleaner• Cobbler• Gentleman’s Barber• There were some services that people did not want to see (more of):

• Additional hairdressers• Estate agents• Betting shops• Premises with late night licences

Ideas for new or enhanced uses included:

• A better food offer including; cafes, restaurants and delicatessens that can utilise the piazza for outdoor dining.

• There was a particular focus on family friendly dining and clarity that people did not want the area to be a focus for late night bars or venues.

2. Public Piazza:This still remains one of the key perceived benefits of a potential scheme. People are clear that it is important to be able to be there without spending money, but people also see the potential in linking ground floor restaurants, cafes etc. with outdoor eating.

In terms of landscaping, people valued the additional greenery, as well as the idea that there may be a soft landscaping component and trees that reflect the character of the surrounding residential streets.

We received lots of ideas around programming, including: monthly farmers markets, carol concerts, outdoor cinema, food stalls and performances.

3. Architecture and Materiality:This is always going to be a subjective point with some people wanting something much more modern and others wanting something more traditional. The general consensus was that pitched roofs were better than flat roofs and that as the design develops there needs to be more nods to the flourishes and details of the surrounding buildings.

I think it is clear that we may not achieve something that is to everyone’s taste, however, the intention to use quality materials, including brick, and complement the surrounding conservation area is generally welcomed.

4. Scale and Massing:Again this is an area where we received a wide variety of feedback as opposed to one or two key messages. On the whole, people recognised that massing had been reduced since January, particularly with the town houses at the south of the site and, that incorporating a pitched roof along Green Lane would potentially reduce the appearance of massing.

Please do let me know if you have additional comments and thoughts on the above or the exhibition content.