February 2010 • The City Square Project

A group of young graduates of the Robert Gordon University will today wade into the debate on Union Terrace Gardens.

Three Master of Architecture graduates are releasing a range of designs illustrating the wide possibilities for the the City Square Project.

Leading the group is 25 year old architectural assistant, Graham Edgar. He said: “The proposals for the City Square Project are tremendously exciting with huge potential for Aberdeen City and Shire.

“My colleagues and I were concerned that the images associated with the project suggest that the design is complete when it is not even at the design stage. There is a need to provide illustrations with any proposal, but these conceptual illustrations from the technical feasibility study don’t do the project justice.

“We thought that if we put together a range of thought-provoking aerial montages based on ACSEF’s criteria we could help people see the full potential and understand that the current concept is not a final design.

“The design possibilities are endless and this is a fantastic opportunity for Aberdeen to create an iconic civic space and gardens, not a flat concrete square.

“The on-going public consultation exercise is trying to find out if the public supports the vision of a more attractive and accessible, greener, better-connected and safer city. If people demonstrate they want transformational change, then a full design brief would be compiled and the project would go to an international design competition.”

Architectural assistant Elaine Lourdes who led the production of the graphics said:

“Our aim is to get people thinking about what could be so that they support the City Square project and get involved in shaping what is in it.  We think it is important that people share their own views on how the design should progress.

“As we have studied amazing examples of urban design from around the world, we want to see something exciting happen in such a strategic city centre location.  The proposal has the potential to drastically improve the pedestrian experience of the city and raise the profile of Aberdeen internationally.”

“Our eight designs meet the criteria of a civic space with at least 2.5 acres of gardens, an all-weather concourse underneath street level and a contemporary arts centre. All show walk-on, walk off access from all four sides and sympathetic use of the existing topography with hard and soft landscaping.”

Architectural assistant and design enthusiast Linzhi Lau said:

“The potential for a stunning contemporary arts centre in the cultural hub of Aberdeen is very encouraging for the city’s art scene.

“We don’t want this project to fail because people were unenthused by the conceptual drawings, so we have invested our time in illustrating various provocative ideas that we hope will motivate more people to participate and vote yes so that the project can proceed to the design competition stage.”

Demonstrating the depth and accessibility of the City Square Project consultation process it has been revealed that more than 7,500 people have shown an interest or registered their opinion about the proposals.

Participation in the City Square Consultation looks set to be one of the highest in Scotland.  Already, and with almost two weeks still to run, official participation is higher than consultation on the Forth Crossing, GARL and Edinburgh Trams.

Commenting on the unprecedented participation rates, a spokesman for the City Square Project said:  “Already over 7500 people have been involved in the consultation by responding to our consultation leaflet via a freepost address, filling in the online survey form or visiting one of our exhibitions.  From the huge response received so far it is clear that people know how to get involved.

“The consultation process for the City Square Project not only follows but exceeds best practice guidelines.  We have created many opportunities for people to get involved, be that by freephone, text, postal survey, online survey, 8 public exhibitions and 9 focus groups.  Information about how to get involved has been widely advertised in the media, through mail drops to local households in the vicinity of Union Terrace Gardens, and posters in community centres and libraries.

“At the conclusion of the consultation we will compile all the information and produce a very detailed and transparent consultation report.  As far as possible, within data protection laws, we will publish the raw consultation data and we will provide an analysis of comment trends and the feedback received.

“This report will be used to decide whether there is enough support to take the project to the next stage.  Crucially the report will also provide ACSEF with valuable information to help the design of the scheme if it is to progress.”

The public have also been represented at focus groups to which almost 200 different sectors and organisations have been invited, including the arts community, charities, businesses, hotel and bar trade, festival organisers, music groups, schools, housing associations, senior citizens forums, clubs, community councils, youth projects, utility providers, transport groups, disability organisations, civic societies, MSPs and councillors.

Commenting on the use of an image of Annie Lennox in the initial consultation leaflet, a spokesperson for the City Square Project said:
“As part of the City Square vision we see a space that could be used for a host of public events, including an area that would attract world class performers.  We would be delighted in the future if acts such as Annie Lennox had a venue in the city centre of Aberdeen that they could play in.  We certainly didn’t intend to suggest that Ms Lennox supported the City Square Project, we used an image we thought showed the type of venue that the new civic space could host.
“As it happens we are naturally phasing out this brochure. It has been replaced with a new, more concise leaflet which addresses some of the questions that have been raised during the consultation.”

As a major consultation into proposals to create a new civic space in the heart of Aberdeen reaches its half way stage organisers are extremely encouraged by the high level of involvement from the people of Aberdeen city and shire.

In the space of just four weeks more than 7000 people have participated in the consultation for The City Square Project, including an impressive 5500 direct responses. The project’s website has had 14,000 hits and almost 1000 people have attended the consultation’s exhibitions to date.

The consultation is seeking to establish people’s views into plans to create a new civic space by redeveloping Aberdeen’s Union Terrace Gardens and Denburn Valley.

The public have also been represented at focus groups to which almost 200 different sectors and organisations have been invited, including the arts community, charities, businesses, hotel and bar trade, festival organisers, music groups, schools, housing associations, senior citizens forums, clubs, community councils, youth projects, utility providers, transport groups, disability organisations, civic societies, MSPs and councillors.

“We have seen an amazing level of participation,” commented Tom Smith, Chairman of ACSEF. “Many of these figures already exceed those of Scotland’s largest consultations and we still have four weeks to run.

“This is clearly a matter which people feel strongly about and I would encourage anyone who hasn’t yet taken the opportunity to state their views. Every submission will be logged as part of the process and will be included in the final consultation report. Please don’t sit back and rely on others to comment – you have the opportunity to shape the future of Aberdeen.”

The proposal is for 5 acres of multi-layered open space, incorporating a civic square, at least 2.5 acres of gardens and trees, and potential for a contemporary arts centre.

More opinions and ideas on The City Square Project will be sought this weekend as the consultation heads for the Bon Accord Centre.

The latest exhibition is one of seven shows being held across the North east as part of the public consultation. This weekend’s event will be open from 9am to 6pm on Friday and Saturday (February 12 and 13).

At the exhibition leaflets about the consultation will be distributed, a presentation of possible designs will be shown and the consultation team will be available to answer questions and hear people’s views. Suggestions so far have ranged from a science centre and a Speaker’s Corner to inclusion of a city heritage centre.

The City Square Project public consultation commenced on 11 January and runs until 5 March 2010 and is designed to engage with as many people in the region as possible. Exhibitions have already been held at Union Square, The Mall (Trinity Centre) and Aberdeen University Students Association in Aberdeen, and at Inverurie town hall.

At the exhibitions people are encouraged to complete a feedback form about the plan. This form is also available online at www.thecitysquareproject.com. Feedback can also be given by email, social networking sites, a freephone number or text messaging service and opinion polls are being conducted.

A consultation report, which will be made public, will be produced once all feedback has been analysed. For the City Square Project to be taken forward to reality and detailed plans for the space prepared there needs to be a groundswell of support.

Sir Ian Wood is a prominent backer of the City Square Project and has put forward £50 million of his own money to fund the development.  View our short video to find out why he thinks the Square is vital for the future of Aberdeen’s economy.  Sir Ian also answers a number of questions about the scheme including how it will be funded, the design concept for the square and how Peacock Visual Arts can gain by joining the project.

The City Square Project has produced a handy leaflet outlining some of the key facts and the reasons behind the proposed new civic space for Aberdeen.  Download the PDF here.

The City Square Project has produced a presentation  focussing on what other cities across the world have done to reinvigorate their city centre. We used these examples to inspire us as we develop the City Square Project. The presentation is available here.