Contested Peripheries - Bryn Lee

The production of peripheries involving rigorous mapping methodologies to reveal conditions and social experience...

A report on:

CONTESTED PERIPHERIES

Bryn Lee

Extract

This atelier aims to capture how design, architectural practices and material interventions are involved in the production of peripheries in todays metropolises. It seeks to critically assess how the notion of periphery has shifted in the last 20 years, shaping a new kind of research agenda for architecture. We will explore how peripheries are produced, examining the process of innovation, addressing the modes of articulation that enable new forms of socio-material expres-sions to emerge. This atelier, thus, intends to read and understand the periphery through its multiple meanings and across conceptual, politi-cal and material registers. It will do so through theoretical readings and seminars and material master classes that approach the periph-ery from a variety of angles, as well as through the confrontation with concrete cases: Stockport/Cheshire and Brussels. These sites serve as vehicles for understanding and testing peripheral tactics.

Stages of Investigation

First Impression 2 Beginning Vs End 8Is there an end? 10

Stockport Vs Cheshire 12How do we define Urban and Rural? 14

Evolution of investigation 16Establishing Pole to Pole 18Revealing Continuity 20

Evolution of Understanding | Overlaying 22

A tool for analysis 24

Brussels Master Class - RE:Work 26Extract 26Introduction 26Methodology 28

A CDU in the city 30The site: Batelage 32Process 32CDU in the city 34

System Strategy 38 Function of the CDU centre 40

Summary - Stockport/Cheshire Vs Brussels 42Bibliography 44

First Impression

What is experienced negatively as fragmentation and incoherence through the inhability to perceive the whole can also be perceived as a high degree of complexity through richness in discontinuities of social and physical niches.Myers, Tracy, Lebbeus Woods, and Karsten Harries. Lebbeus Woods: Experimental Architecture. Pittsburgh, PA: Carnegie Museum of Art, the Heinz Architectural Center, 2004. Print.

CONTESTED PERIPHERIES | 2

Image Source: Sieverts, Thomas. Cities without Cities: Between Place and World, Space and Time, Town and Country. London: Routledge, 2002. Print.

Neighbourhood A group of urban tourists on a waste deposit Small WoodlandNeighbourhood

First Impression


The centre radiates and the pe-riphery absorbs its energy*

It is clear that areas along the periphery are confusing and the dissection of the periphery by motorways and railway enables spatial sequences which form surprises that are more interest-

ing than the event in the form of retail park on its own.

Collection of the fractured points of a periphery [RIGHT]...fragmented in political and administrative terms, which means that they cannot fulfil their major potential (e.g. Regional burden-

sharing, privatisation, joint development of regional parks and

industrial estates, etc.)**

Notes: * Myers, Tracy, Lebbeus Woods, and Karsten Harries. Lebbeus Woods: Experimental Architecture. Pittsburgh, PA: Carnegie Museum of Art, the Heinz Architectural Center, 2004. Print. ** Sieverts, Thomas. Cities without Cities: Between Place and World, Space and Time, Town and Country. London: Routledge, 2002. Print. P 6.

A new form of city: an increasingly fractured form of boundaries between urban fabric and open space and nature; the gradual disappearance of the transitional hierarchical pattern; and the mutual penetration of built forms and landscapes.**

A B

A B

Where one element ends and another begins

Preconceived idea [personal]

A B

A B

Experienced/ Actual [personal]

The social experience during transition from one

point to another is unclear and almost impossible

to determine

River Mersey

Note: Boundaries only shown for readers reference. At this stage of investigation NO boundary lines were mentally stored

First Impression

Where does Stockport end and Cheshire Begin?

As mentioned in the extract, Stockport/ Cheshire and Brussels have been selected to act as a vehicle to develop an under-standing of changing peripheral conditions. Initially the focus will be concerned with Stockport and Cheshire as in depth ethno-graphic research can be carried out. These two contexts will provide a test bed for analysing and exploring peripheries, taking into account the political, economical, spatial, cultural and social conditions. The variety of conditions found in the above contexts offer a fruitful base for testing and questioning different manifes-tations of the periphery

[RIGHT] An ethnographic investigation focusing on the first

impressions portrayed when moving from one place to another. In particular, attempting to identify where one situation ends and another begins... or not.

This exercise simply involved driving/ walking from the centre of Stockport into the defined Cheshire county along an arbitrary

route. As it appears in plan view, the fringes of each Local Au-thority (LA) are clear and prominent and suggests a clear divide

between one place and another; where one place ends and another begins. However, the actual social experience proves almost impossible to determine the beginning and end. In sum-mary, this initial study highlights that the fringes of one place and another are somewhat blurred and reveals an opportunity to reveal and explore the conditions found along the fringes, in

particular edges of Local Authorities.

A

B

Map: Local Authority Boundaries set by Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LBCE).

Cheshire West

Cheshire East

WarringtonTrafford

Manchester

Stockport

River Mersey

Initial arbitrary route taken

Cheshire boundary set by the LBCE

Note: Boundaries only shown for readers reference. At this stage of investigation NO boundary lines were mentally stored

Notes:CONTESTED PERIPHERIES | 6

Beginning vs End

A boundary is a lie that reveals truths. Sharp edges -- distinctions are indispensable to clear thinking. On a map, the UGB looks perfectly clear. It says we are separate. But in fact we are connected.Peterson, Paul E. City Limits. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1981. Print.


River Mersey

Greater ManchesterCheshire?1Representation of experience (Scale 1:1)

ABUrban

Rural

Beginning Vs End

? How do we define Urban & Rural

Cheshire West

Cheshire East

WarringtonTrafford

Manchester

Stockport

Route taken following the LBCE* boundary line. From A to B (East to West)

Cheshire boundary set by the LBCE

A

B

Is there an end?

The previous pages of this document highlight a somewhat broad understanding of peripheries in a wider context. However, In order to obtain further in depth understanding of the periphery it was understood that by using the context of Stockport and Cheshire it would be possible to map in detail and un pack the conditions of the periphery.In order to cover a large area in detail a group was formed containing 2 MArch Year 1 students, Alice Taylor, Mariam Iqbal and myself.

Firstly, a relatively direct route was taken from Stockport centre (East) to Preston Brook (West). This route was in close proximity

to the Cheshire boarder and allowed us to establish an overall view of the peripheral areas along this route. At this point it was intended that the route be taken with no previous research on the route. This allowed the initial analysis of the route to be mapped purely on personal perception of place from point A to B. We were looking for significant signs where one place ends

and another begins, again this proved to be un-achievable. As a result we called the area mapped a peripheral zone and decided to re track the route, breaking it down into fragments to

assess each area in more detail. [see next page]

Map: Initial red route tracked through GPS device

River Mersey

01 (Scale 1:25,000)

0


Stockport vs Cheshire

Instead of looking to the physical, measurable world around us, we must turn to the social reality: how do people perceive the site they live on? Two issues are relevant to this question: the direct question whether the identity they constructed is rural or not, and whether the social environment they act in has characteristics different from urban social settings.

Terry Van Dijk, 2007, Shades of Urbanity. Available online at http://www.enhr2007rotterdam.nl/documents/W20_paper_VanDijk_VanderValk.pdf


Major Urban

Large Urban

Other Urban

Significant Rural

Rural-50

Rural-80

Southampton

Nottingham

Leicester

Northampton

Norwich

Oxford

Stoke-on-Trent

Ipswich

Birmingham

Lincoln

Cambridge

Reading

Lancaster

Taunton

Blackpool LeedsLancaster

Southampton

Liverpool

Southend-on-Sea

Nottingham

Exeter

Leicester

Northampton

Carlisle

Brightonand Hove

Sheffield

Kingston upon Hull

Norwich

Bristol

Oxford

Stoke-on-Trent

Ipswich

Manchester

Birmingham

Stockton-on-Tees

Newcastle upon Tyne

Bournemouth

Plymouth

Guildford

Reading

Portsmouth

Lincoln

London

Folkestone

Cambridge

The Rural/Urban Local Authority Classification (England)

Major Urban

Large Urban

Other Urban

Significant Rural

Rural-50

Rural-80

Southampton

Nottingham

Leicester

Northampton

Norwich

Oxford

Stoke-on-Trent

Ipswich

Birmingham

Lincoln

Cambridge

Reading

Lancaster

Taunton

Blackpool LeedsLancaster

Southampton

Liverpool

Southend-on-Sea

Nottingham

Exeter

Leicester

Northampton

Carlisle

Brightonand Hove

Sheffield

Kingston upon Hull

Norwich

Bristol

Oxford

Stoke-on-Trent

Ipswich

Manchester

Birmingham

Stockton-on-Tees

Newcastle upon Tyne

Bournemouth

Plymouth

Guildford

Reading

Portsmouth

Lincoln

London

Folkestone

Cambridge

The Rural/Urban Local Authority Classification (England)

?

Source: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/hub/population/migration/international-migration>.

Section A

Section B

Section B

Section A

Scale 1:10,000

Stockport Vs Cheshire

How do we define Urban & Rural?

In order to fully understand the hidden conditions of the peripheral zone a rigorous mapping, re mapping and overlaying of all sources of information was adopted. At this point arose the question of: is a place urban or rural? Based on sectional drawings and photos it was decided that the continuous patches of urban fabric were neither urban nor rural. This is in contrast to data taken from the Office for National Statistics [LEFT] which

defines the area between stockport and Altrincham as major

urban. As illustrated this is the same blanket title that has been given to the centre of London and raises questions as to whether the data is misleading. At this stage, it seems that the peri-urban environment is made up of a series of moments, who themselves oscillate little in scale and density in relation to each other, yet alter in tone and social construct. Terry van Dijk discusses that

when assessing the environment around us we should address the social reality: how do we perceive the site we/ they live on? We began to question whether the notion of urban and rural can be accurately applied to the peripheral zone based purely on quantitative data represented in plan and in turn began to search for a method to incorporate social perception, qualitative, as well as quantitative data.

Image: Working at macro, meso and micro scales in search for clues and questions

Scale 1:10,000

Notes:

Frey and Zimmer (2001) a state of "peri-urbanity".Frey, W.H., Zimmer, Z. (2001), Defining the City, in: Paddison, R., Handboek of Urban Studies, Sage Publications: London, 14-35.


20/09/2012Arbitrary route from Stockportto Cheshire

24/09/2012Stockport to Preston Brook | 40 Miles

30/09/2012Previous Route + Preston to Manchester via Warrington 64 Miles

06/10/2012Previous Route +Manchester to Shrewbury via Cheshire

Datum Point (Stockport Centre)

Stockport Vs CheshireEvolution of Investigation

Map: Red route tracked through GPS device across a 3 week period

Summary of Route

Stockport to Preston Brook, 24/09/12, 40miles

Preston to Manchester via Warrington, 30/09/12, 64

milesManchester to Shrewsbury via Cheshire, 06/10/12, 153

milesManchester to Warrington, 08/10/12, 52 miles

The GPS maps to the left highlight the routes taken

in order to build a library of images and recordings. A series of journeys in and around the area of focus

contributed to further understanding fabric. As a group we felt his type of methodology was key to enable us to construct, analyse and draw conclusions regarding the

nature of this new typology of land/ space.

River Mersey

Cheshire West

Cheshire East

08/10/2012Previous Route +Manchester to Warrington


Stockport Vs CheshireEstablishing Pole to Pole

A Literal representation

A tool for understanding & relaying of information

At this stage in the research process it must be understood that the research carried out was intentionally predominantly qualitative, and it was our intent to relay and diagram based on rigorous ethnographic recordings and representations of the peripheral zone. This has allowed us to build up a knowledge based on perceptual opinions which we can now begin to overlay and dissect information. As a group of three we understood that it was possible for us to further map along the Cheshire boarder yet within a strategic refined zone of interest.

Based through on-site research and simple maps [previous pages] a strong sense of horizontality emerged. The East/ West

area between Stockport and Warrington was highlighted as a natural axis for further investigation as Stockport in contained by Derbyshire to the East (largely hilly and un developed) and

Warrington which is bound by estuaries and wetlands to the West. In addition the zone is bounded substantially by the M62 to the North and the M56 to the south accentuated by the

Manchester Ship canal following a near identical route.

Zone criteria and research tool establishment

Establish a tool for analysis at a specific pointAbility to layer over policy/ limitations (quantitative data) for immediate side by side analysisBuild up a record of social interpretation vs prescribed quantitative dataEnable ability to map with specific reference to any point from East to West

Can a place be accurately understood with one piece of data be read in isolation?

B Massing leads to misinterpretation (loss of detail)

C Social experience as a series of moments recorded

Ship Canal

M56

Sketch based on highlighting horizontality and containment of the zone by various natural and man made bounda-


CHESHIRE

Repetition (and difference)

No rhythm without repetition in time and space, without reprises, without returns ... But there is no identical absolute repetition, indefinitely. Whence the relation between repetition and difference ... Not only does repetition not exclude differences, it also gives birth to them; it produces them

Lefebvre 2004: 6-7

Stockport Vs CheshireRevealing Continuity

GREATER MANCHESTER

Why is the code appropriate?

Although it was our intention to relay the experience of the

peripheral zone, we also wanted to represent the notion of

duration, made famous by Bergson:

never as unitary and cohesive as Bergson (2004) suggested, but fragmented and made up of disparate elements*

The code [ABOVE] begins to highlight the fragmented nature of

the peripheral zone based in the rules set on the previous page.

The code avoids the rigid boundaries so obvious in a map and in

turn relays instances of an actual experience in space and time.

The stress on the mode of analysis is what is meant by the rhythmalanlysis, rather than an analysis of rhythms.*

Notes: * Elden, S., 2004. 1st ed. Translation, Rhythmnalysis. pp. xiiCONTESTED PERIPHERIES | 20

02000

4000

6000

8000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

POPULATIONDENSITY

!"#$"%#&"'&()*+

CheadleGatley

Baguley

Timperley

Altrincham

LymmWarrington (centre) Stockport

Bowdon

3 mi*

1 mi* 1 mi*

3m*

3m* 3m*

3 mi*

1 mi*

1.5 mi*

2 mi*

An aspect of this indicator that receives suprisingly little attention is the issue of scale: how large should a grid-cel be of which population density is meas-ured? On what scale are we measuring? The more we zoom out the less rurality is measured in a urbanised country. The larger the gridcel, the less geographical variation is measured. For instance: a gridcel containing one whole country would probably calculate a population density that will be classified as rural, although several cities may be included. The other extreme would be a

Data B

Data C

Conservation restrictions (CR)

Green Belt (GB) CR

CR CR CR

CRGB GB

GB

GB

GB

CR

CR

Warrington

Tra ord

Manchester

Stockport

Population Density of LA (Local Authority)

CHESHIRE

Warrington

Dotted lines highlight boundaries set by the LBCE.

Quan

titat

ive

Data

(O

NS)

Qual

itativ

e Da

ta

(Soc

ial e

xper

ienc

e)

Hybr

id U

nder

stan

ding

I N F O R M AT I O N O V E R L AY

B r i d g i n g t h e a n a l y s i s o f t y p e s f o r i n f o r m a t i o n e x t r a c t i o n

Stockport Vs CheshireEvolution of Understanding | Overlaying

02000

4000

6000

8000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

POPULATIONDENSITY

!"#$"%#&"'&()*+

CheadleGatley

Baguley

Timperley

Altrincham

LymmWarrington (centre) Stockport

Bowdon

3 mi*

1 mi* 1 mi*

3m*

3m* 3m*

3 mi*

1 mi*

1.5 mi*

2 mi*

An aspect of this indicator that receives suprisingly little attention is the issue of scale: how large should a grid-cel be of which population density is meas-ured? On what scale are we measuring? The more we zoom out the less rurality is measured in a urbanised country. The larger the gridcel, the less geographical variation is measured. For instance: a gridcel containing one whole country would probably calculate a population density that will be classified as rural, although several cities may be included. The other extreme would be a

Data B

Data C


Green Belt (GB) CR

CR CR CR

CRGB GB

GB

GB

GB

CR

CR

Notes:

Warrington

Tra ord

Manchester

Stockport


GREATER MANCHESTER

Trafford Manchester Stockport0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

POPULATIONDENSITY

!"#$"%#&"'&()*+

CheadleGatley

Baguley

Timperley

Altrincham

LymmWarrington (centre) S tockport

Bowdon

3 mi*

1 mi* 1 mi*

3m*

3m* 3m*

3 mi*

1 mi*

1.5 mi *

2 mi*

-


Green Belt (GB) CR

CR CR CR

CRGB GB

GB

GB

GB

CR

CR

Code:

The change in rhythm, pace, or magnitude indicates alterations in the environment: socially, spatially, or in tone. A translations of our observations and encounters.

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

POPULATIONDENSITY

!"#$"%#&"'&()*+

CheadleGatley

Baguley

Timperley

Altrincham


Bowdon

3 mi*

1 mi* 1 mi*

3m*

3m* 3m*

3 mi*

1 mi*

1.5 mi *

2 mi*

-


Green Belt (GB) CR

CR CR CR

CRGB GB

GB

GB

GB

CR

CR

Conservation areaGreen DevelopmentNew tram link

Unitary development plan

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

POPULATIONDENSITY

!"#$"%#&"'&()*+

CheadleGatley

Baguley

Timperley

Altrincham


Bowdon

3 mi*

1 mi* 1 mi*

3m*

3m* 3m*

3 mi*

1 mi*

1.5 mi *

2 mi*

-


Green Belt (GB) CR

CR CR CR

CRGB GB

GB

GB

GB

CR

CRPopulation density people/mi2

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10,000

12,000

14,000

16,000

18,000

20,000

POPULATIONDENSITY

!"#$"%#&"'&()*+

CheadleGatley

Baguley

Timperley

Altrincham


Bowdon

3 mi*

1 mi* 1 mi*

3m*

3m* 3m*

3 mi*

1 mi*

1.5 mi *

2 mi*

-


Green Belt (GB) CR

CR CR CR

CRGB GB

GB

GB

GB

CR

CR

Method of deducing population density


Warrington

Tra ord

Manchester

Stockport


CHESHIRE

Warrington

Dotted lines highlight boundaries set by the LBCE.

A tool for analysis rather than just an object of it...

Elden, S., 2004. 1st ed. Translation, Rhythmnalysis. pp. xii

In contrast to An Urban Portraits methodological approach of random drills, it was

our intention to use the poles of Stockport and Warrington as a tool to identify chang-

ing conditions and shifts from urban to rural in a pragmatic way. The above code

allows us to isolate varying gradients in context an contributes to graphically repre-

senting fragmented yet continuous nature of the fabric between each pole. The no-

tion of duration is never as unitary and cohesive [...] but fragmentary and made up of

disparate elements.

Swatch 2

Condition 2: LymmEconomic activity Residential activity

Context responsive programme

10% 90%

Stockport Vs CheshireA Tool for Analysis

Warrington

Tra ord

Manchester

Stockport


GREATER MANCHESTER

Trafford Manchester Stockport

Looking beyond physical conditions

Previously the code above acted as a representation of social

experience from East to West across the peripheral zones of

Cheshire and Greater Manchester .

However with further layering of qualitative and quantitate data

the code begins to evolve into a tool which can allow for accurate

de fragging of precise areas in between the highlighted poles

of Stockport and Warrington. For example Swatch 1 which is on

the border of Manchester, Trafford and Cheshire [LEFT]. From

what was an initial macro scale study now facilitates rigorous

meso and micro analysis at any point and is but by any means

inconclusive. This is in contrast to the methodology undertaken

in the study Switzerland - An Urban Portrait* where the maps

highlight peripheral zones yet struggle to deduce usable data at

which we can begin to understand the periphery, fringe, edge in

greater detail.

Criteria AEconomic/ Industrial activity

Criteria BResidential activity

Condition 1: Baguley

A B

12

6

12

6

12

6

Morning Evening

A B

12

6

12

6

12

6

Morning/EveningProgramme time scales depending on activity

Zoomed in view/ isolated analysis

Swatch 1

Conflict in scale

50% 50%

Swatch 3


Brussels Master Class/ RE:WorkMAKING PLACE FOR INDUSTRY, LOGISTICS AND WHOLESALE IN BRUSSELS

Organized by the ULB and VUB (Erasmushogeschool Brussel), the

RE:WORK International Master Class will work on creating favorable condi-

tions in Brussels for the reintroduction of strong relations between the city

and its employment centres, and for the creation of new hybrid typologies

and efficient functional mixing where needed. By extension, as the main

challenges faced by 21st century European cities converge in Brussels, the

developed reflections and strategies will serve to inspire European cities in

their reflection on how the next urban economy could take form on their own

soil.

Source: GRAU

Extract:

Economy and City on the Periphery of Brussels, in the centre of logistical economic activity

This necessary coexistence has been the source of many debates in Brussels planning. Already the first strategic planning

document focusing on Brussels (Regional Spatial Plan 1, 1995)

stated the need for new forms of hybridity between housing and economic activity. This prescription however was not a priority: planning documents of the last two decades have focused mainly on the protection and promotion of housing in the city, which had long been threatened by the rush towards tertiary activity. As the pressure on the city from demographic growth keeps increasing, the balance has now shifted: new zoning regulations, allowing for mixed use in formerly industrial zones, are risking to wipe up economic activity due to more lucrative real estate operations in the housing sector. Aware of this risk, planners are struggling to find a concrete balance between these

essential urban functions.

Nurturing a diverse economy means thinking beyond zoning or

a mere tertiary economy. It means bringing manufacture and industry into the urban debate. How did industry evolve in recent decades? How can it coexist with, or even reinforce, other urban functions and commodities? This question is highly architectural. For policy makers to develop accurate visions and strategies, concrete proposals are needed to feed their imagination and ambition.

Introduction

Brussels, like many other European cities, is engaging a thorough reflection to develop ambitious policies for a better

future. The stakes are high, as five major challenges define the

conditions for an augmented metropolis: the creation of new, affordable housing to accommodate demographic growth; the development of a more diverse economy to offer prospects to all members of society; an integrated and efficient mobility policy;

the design of new public facilities to improve quality of life and cohesion in the city, and the redevelopment of Brownfield areas

into vibrant parts of the city.

The Brussels Master Classes aim at involving students and young professionals in the prospective debates on the pending transformations of the capital of Europe, each Master Class taking as a starting point one of these five major challenges.

As such, the 2012 Brussels Master Class will focus on how architecture and urbanism can contribute to the development of a new urban economy. Recent evolutions in industrial activity as

well as in Brussels urban condition are calling for a new, morediversified economic model, a model in which industry will need

to find new ways of coexisting with the city and the metropolitan

condition.

RE: WORKMASTER CLASS

SITE PACKAGEBATELAGE

M A K I N G P L A C E F O R I N D U S T R Y, L O G I S T I C S A N D W H O L E S A L E I N B R U S S E L S


CHALLENGE

Manage to think both space (m3)and economy (m2)city (red)and economic activity (blue)

DATA

Each group receives a site-specific package, containing all the information needed to start designingand economic activity (blue)

TO START

Separate Architecture and Urbanism

Architecture and Urbanism cannot function without each other but need to push their own boundaries in order to better unite for the project and the city.

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kMethodology

300 m

50 m

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

WORK IN PROGRESS

Each day ends with a small pinup(5 A5) explaining the current state of work.

At the end of the masterclass there will be 50 A5 of process for each site.

All drawings GRAU

WEEK 1

The Architect stays in his parcel, understanding and challenging architectural pro-grams.

The Urbanist plays around the parcel, understanding and challenging the city, drawing the urban situation ina speculative way

WEEK 2

The Architects and the Urban-ists unite, confronting their ideas. Together, they define the scale of the project and its objective they have to dis-cuss the relationship between each other.On some sites one may win over the other, on other sites, there may be a perfect bal-ance.

WORK IN PROGRESS

Each day ends with a small pinup(5 A5) explaining the current state of work.

Notes: *Diagrams above provided by GRAU. They acted as an representation example which was to be adopted throughout the 2 week Master ClassCONTESTED PERIPHERIES | 28

Challenge:

How can City support Economic activity?

It is important to maintain zones of economic activity

within the city. With the possibility of a new CDU (Central

Distribution Centre) being implemented at Batelage the site

will be further strengthened as an activity zone. The city

needs to adapt to the economy and find ways to offer urban

conditions in favour of economic activity.

The Situation (Brussels)

Red = CityBlue = Economy

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kThe Situation - Batelage

5. BATELAGE

C hal lenge:How can City support Economic activity?

It is important to maintain zones of economic activity within the city. With the possibility of a new CDU being implemented at Batelage the site will be further strengthened as an activity zone. The city needs to adapt to the economy and find ways to oer urban conditions in favor of economic activity.

SITES

5 . BATELAGE

C hal lenge:How can City support Economic activity?

It is important to maintain zones of economic activity within the city. With the possibility of a new CDU being implemented at Batelage the site will be further strengthened as an activity zone. The city needs to adapt to the economy and find ways to oer urban conditions in favor of economic activity.

SITES

How can the city support economic activity?

1. How dense in economic activity could Batelage become ?2. How could the canal locally act as an infrastructure for economy ?3. Could the implementation of a CDU at Batelage strengthen its

position?as a major central activity zone ?

4. What would be the impact of a new CDU on the large urban

environment ?

The question of large-scale retail and of urban logistics is crucial to the development of any prosperous metropolis. As such, vivid debates are ongoing as to the creation of an Urban Distribution

Centre in Brussels. Where and how can such a large- scale infrastructure be implemented in a city-region of limited size?

It is important to maintain zones of economic activity within the city. With the possibility of a new CDU being implemented at Batelage

the site will be further strengthened as an activity zone. The city needs to adapt to the economy and find ways to offer urban

conditions in favour of economic activity.

Architects: Could a CDU produce urbanity ?

Urbanists: What could be the role of urban logistics for the city of

tomorrow ?

Notes: * Site map provided by GRAU

Exiting situation: Economy and City existing side by side

Scale: 1:10,000


5. BATELAGE

Challenge:

How can City support Economic activity?

It is important to maintain zones of economic activity within the city.

With the possibility of a new CDU being implemented at Batelage the

site will be further strengthened as an activity zone. The city needs to

adapt to the economy and find ways to oer urban conditions in favor of

economic activity.

SITES

OLD NATO = NEW URBANITY ?

300M

COMPACT CITY

WEAK CITYBIGNESS

? ? ?TYPES OF URBANITY

2 SHIFTING CENTERS

two shifting centers135 000 m2

110 000 m2

55 000 m2

P

? Tomorrow

1350 dwellings

4 000 cars

55 000 m2

P

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

HOUSING

OFFICES

LOGISTICS

RETAILFACILITIES

ACCOMODATION

ENTRETAIMENT

THE CANAL AS A SPINE

the canal as a spine

AV.EXP

RESSIO

NNISME

LN

AVENUE

JULES

BORDE

T LAAN

THE TYPOLOGY PLAYGROUND

the typology playground

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

HOUSING

OFFICES

LOGISTICS

RETAILFACILITIES

ACCOMODATION

ENTRETAIMENT

135 000 m2

110 000 m2

55 000 m2

P

1350 dwellings

5 000 cars

55 000 m2

P

P/S = 0,8

150 000 m2

3

Batelage a central periphery (Urban Machine)

The site of Batelage can be understood as peripheral environment located within a central urban context, a site in which both residential dwellings and the logistics of industry exist.

While in a normal situation the economics of industry and the necessities of residen-tial housing would struggle to co-exist, the presence of the waterway acts as a tool to mediate between the two typologies, creating an interrelationship between the environments of both.

Through careful architectural design the canal can find a place in both the pro-cesses of living and in the operation of economic activity, creating place for living working and urbanity. Working together the site manifests itself into a metaphori-cal urban machine a unique genius loci.

WHAT KIND OF ACTIVITY IN THE "WEAK CITY" ?WHAT KIND OF URBANITY ?

Big warehouses around a small commons facilities

Medium warehouses with own medium facilities

Small office around a big common space

urban mechanism

URBAN MECHANISM

urban machine

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kProcess

BA

C

D

E

W

EN

S

CANAL RAIL

BLACK ACTIVITY LINKURBAN MACHINE INTERSECTION GRIDDED GRADIENT

CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU

(Centre de Distribution Urbaine)

15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED (Blau)

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S

CANAL RAIL


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED (Blau)

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%

UN BUILT SPACE

BLACK ACTIVITY LINK

INTERSECTIONS

ACTIVITY GRADIENT

manipulation

loading

o loading

oce stockage

5 ha

45 ha

Car Wash

Park & ride

Self storage

Self storageParking

Restaurant

Leisure facilities

Enterprise

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S

CANAL RAIL


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED (Blau)

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

8. CDU in the city

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S

CANAL RAIL


10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU (Centre de Distribution Urbaine)

12. CDU is an urban machine

10. CDU is a campus13. CDU is an urban machine

@

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%

11. CDU is an urban machine14. CDU campus

@

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%7. CDU Related Program

manipulation

loading

o loading

oce stockage

5 ha

45 ha

Car Wash

Park & ride

Self storage

Self storageParking

Restaurant

Leisure facilities

Enterprise

15. Numbers

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S

CANAL RAIL


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED (Blau)

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED (Blau)

CDU as a system

95%

CDU recycles

CDU economics

642

1712

636

272

2 ha

43 ha

B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S

CANAL RAIL


10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU (Centre de Distribution Urbaine)

Across the 2 weeks a rigorous recording of ALL drawings and process was imperative. This methodology formed the outcome.

The images to the left form a collection of sketches and diagrams aimed at explaining a process or idea. The purpose was for all drawings to be relatively simple yet descriptive. This allowed for a range of academics, government officials and statisticians to take

part in discussion.

During the 2 week period I was positioned on the side of the Urbanists within a group of 4. It was our intention to establish the role of the CDU within the city and to establish the bigger picture. It was our understanding that the CDU acted as a facilitator for further activity within the city (RED) of Brussels, enabling further economic activity (BLUE) and introducing a new activity (BLACK). The black activity was considered to be a bridging element between economy and city which would avoid introducing mixed use programmes which would conflict with large scale economic activity.


@B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%

CDUs are designed to serve only a CBD

or central areas well inside the city, the facilities can be sited either in inner city or outer locations. A typical example of the first case is La Rochelle, France,

with the UDC located by the train station

and next to the historic centre (Gerardin,

2007, p.13). An opposite example is

Bristol where the CDU is close to a

strategic road network (M4 and M32)

and deliveries to its client base require a 25-minute drive to the commercial district

of Broadmead.

Proposed Strategy for Brussels

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kCDU in The City

How can the city support economic activity?

The contributions of the urban freight transport system to the economic vitality of a city are significant, spanning from the

its role in connecting nodes (e.g. Suppliers, retailers, end-

users, etc.) in various supply chains, to retaining industrial and commercial activities and associated jobs, to strengthening

the overall competitiveness of a region. However, urban freight movement does not come without costs, including externalities such as traffic congestion and/or noise and air pollution as well

as private losses such as additional fuel and labour costs during stop-and-go traffic and fees or penalties accrued during legal or

double-parking). Minimizing the negative impacts of delivery trips in congested urban areas while achieving seamless and reliable goods distribution is arguably a daunting task. With the increasing density of residential and economic activity typical of large cities, the distribution of goods to retailers and final consumers enters the

realm of paradox, becoming both something essential as well as a growing nuisance for urban dwellers (Anderson et al., 2005).

In an effort to achieve greater efficiency in urban logistics, a

number of cities in Europe and Japan have implemented Urban

Distribution Centres (UDCs) and Urban Consolidation Centres

(UCCs) schemes, which enable the cooperation among shippers,

carriers, and retailers to consolidate deliveries, thus requiring a lower number of delivery trips by trucks between a distribution centre and final delivery destinations, while achieving the same

throughput (BESTUFS, 2007; Browne, et al, 2005). Such schemes

can address the last mile or final mile problem often the

most expensive leg of a delivery journey since economies of

scale diminish from the point the vehicle has left the road network (Lewis, et al, 2010). This inefficiency refers to the small order

problem with urban deliveries and collections often involving only a small number of parcels and hence vehicles operate below their maximum carrying capacity or less than full truckloads (LTL).

UDCs are seen as one way to solve this inefficiency by bringing

together different parties engaged in small orders distribution to collaborate in joint-deliveries from a common urban freight

platform.

What is a CDU?

An urban distribution centre is a facility involving the trans-shipment of goods directed to urban areas, aiming to consolidate deliveries, and thus provide greater efficiency in the distribution process by increasing the truck load factor and decreasing the number of trucks used, which help mitigate urban congestion and air pollution.*

Notes: * http://wagner.nyu.edu/rudincenter/publications/URBAN DISTRIBUTION CENTERSA MEANS TO REDUCING FREIGHT VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED.pdfCONTESTED PERIPHERIES | 34

15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED (Blau)

CDU as a system

95%

CDU recycles

CDU economics

642

1712

636

272

2 ha

43 ha

The sketch to the right discusses the potential for the CDU in the city in relation to connec-tions with the wider context. We began to discuss the role of the CDU as a facility or

system which serves Brussels centre through import of goods from the south:

Charleroi (Airport)

LilleParis

The connections with the above areas would be by rail, road, water and air which all con-centrate at the intersection, Batelage

CDU and Nearby Surroundings, establishing relationships with the existing context

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kCDU in The City

Notes: * Numbers based on statistics provided within the package

Why in the city centre of Brussels?

Although the brief provided by the Master Class specified that the

site was to include a CDU, we wanted to understand why. It may

be criticised that the location within the city centre could be used for an alternate Urban activity, however part of our process was to

highlight and identify the potential based on existing programme and location.

The industrial area of Batelage is currently an isolated island in-between two neighbourhoods of the city of Brussels. By introducing a large-scale Urban Distribution Centre within the

industrial site, a new identity and urban role is defined for the site

establishing its importance in the context of the city of Brussels. As highlighted on page 30 there is a significant amount of economic activity which functions on a day to day cycle supplying the city independently. The overall size of the site is 1000m x 4000m (approx), with a residual land area of 50%. Our strategy

was to work with existing buildings within the area of focus and to establish a programme or campus which would minimise impact and also highlight the ability to work with existing and proposed transport networks to supply the city sustainably through consolidation of the distribution process.

CDU and Nearby Surroundings, establishing relationships with the exisitng context

CDU and Nearby Surroundings, establishing relationships with the existing context


The image to the right highlights the areas of suggested intervention with Blue and Black activity whilst working with the Red activity. As previously explained before, the site is economically active and we have proposed to work with this existing activity. The heavy blue indicates new introductions of economic activity, forming the centre of the manipulation and distribution activity within the campus. This new blue activity is bridged with Black activity enabling a transition from economic activity to city activity (Blue/ Red gradient). The Black activity programme consists of large scale programmes, such like, concert venues and outlet shopping centres which require large space which is not commonly available within the city. Altogether these ac-tivities sit within the intersection of all modes of existing transport (grey) maintaining a con-nection with the wider city.

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kSystem Strategy

Strategy Summary

The CDU is not a building but a campus, which will organise and

stimulate the singular buildings of the area and convert former borders such as the canal, boulevard and railways into arteries, which reach out into the city.

With a new organisation of the area, each use of the city has its controlled place and role.

An urban machine rises, combining logistics, production, transport, sales and services into one as a whole. Developing in time and space and by opening borders paradoxically the CDU or urban

machine goes towards defining the site, creating its own genius

loci.

The CDU runs in parallel with new infrastructure that is required

for the system to operate as a whole. The insertion of a tramline creates an inner spine that connects three distinct CDU-zones as

well as second tramline leading the traveler from Anderlecht along a sequence of small-scale industrial initiatives to the centre of Vorst.

Instead of giving a solution for a logistics centre within the city, here we understand logistics as a way of making new urban relationships both for the site of Batelage, and the wider Brussels region.


@B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%

Plan: Strategy Axo

urban machine

Original concept: Urban Machine intersection

B r u s s e l s M a s t e r C l a s s / R E : W o r kFunction of The CDU Centre

@B

A

C

D

E

W

EN

S


CDU EXISTING

CDU POTENTIAL

+ +

=CDU


15%5%

80%

CURRENT (Grau)

PROPOSED

2000

1000

560

980

7507.5ha

10ha

30ha 180

= 50ha

95%

Detail Strategy - CDU Centre

As a group we took the stance of establishing a strategy which

would contribute to future proofing Brussels through logistics in

a wider context, using the CDU as a facilitator for further activity.

However, it was important that we began to discuss the interaction

the CDU would have within the local context of the site.

Due to existing canal infrastructure we utilised the ability to import

container goods from the south into our campus plan. The image

to the left explores the manipulation of goods and discusses how

shipments can be re distributed into other transport networks

which serve the city.

The proposal takes into account the phenomenon of internet

shopping and incorporates city activity (people) through collection

of parcels which have been manipulated within the CDU (see

diagram on page 34) to be managed at a human scale.

Instead of giving a solution for a logistics centre within the city, here we understand logistics as a way of making new urban relationships both for the site of Batelage, and the wider Brussels region. Plan: Canal level


Summary - Stockport/ Cheshire vs BrusselsEconomy and City within the periphery

There is currently a shift occurring within the peripheries of our cities as social constructs and physical realities collide. The re-development of suburbia holds enormous promise both as an adaptation to changing sociology and in the potential for a more sustainable approach to existing forms of development. Multidisciplinary approaches to architecture and urban design will be critical in how this transformation takes shape...


utilising the code and explore the cycle of rhythms and breaks in the periphery, in particular the connections between industrial and nonindustrial - Economy and City.

I aim to continue to work with Alice as a duo to maintain the analytical input of the code. At the same time I wish to begin to use the code as a way to potentially revel potential ideal types and characteristics and test these in the form of an intervention. I believe that the code should act as a bridging of conditions and types (not literal) to reveal a

hybrid condition in the same way as the black element, from the Master Class, bridges economy and city.

In order to interpret and understand peripheries in the context of Stockport and Cheshire we undertook a rigorous investigation through ethnographic studies and recordings in the periphery. As a group we addressed the following themes of:

Urban and Rural | Qualitative & Quantitative | Continuity

These themes fed into the development of a tool which is enabling us to re-represent social perception in a form that can initiate further understanding of the periphery through layering of data, both qualitative and quantitative. Through research of policy documents we became aware of the overuse of statistics and questioned whether data of this type, in isolation, could be misleading without a qualitative element. The tool/ code has enabled us to visually detect conditions at a point and allows us to identify types and characteristics at a specific place along the

code, maintaining the experimental element. In short we understood the code to be a process rather than a form, revealing ruptures along the way.

The Brussels Master Class contributed in two ways:

Methodology | Bridging Economy and City through strategy

The element of economy and city is an interesting subject to

compare to our existing research on Stockport and Cheshire and begins to highlight the ways in which both economy and city function through cycles of varying scales in programme and activity.

I aim to continue the ethnographic and scientific analysis

Bibliography


Terry Van Dijk, 2007, Shades of Urbanity. Available online at http://www.enhr2007rotterdam.nl/documents/W20_paper_VanDijk_VanderValk.pdf

Frey, W.H., Zimmer, Z. (2001), Defining the City, in: Paddison, R., Handboek of Urban Studies, Sage Publications: London, 14-35.

Myers, Tracy, Lebbeus Woods, and Karsten Harries. Lebbeus Woods: Experimental Architecture. Pittsburgh, PA: Carnegie Museum of Art, the Heinz Archi-tectural Center, 2004. Print.

Sieverts, Thomas. Cities without Cities: Between Place and World, Space and Time, Town and Country. London: Routledge, 2002. Print. P 6.

Peterson, Paul E. City Limits. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1981. Print.

Elden, S., 2004. 1st ed. Translation, Rhythmnalysis. pp. xii

BESTUFS project database; Project Description - Joint Distribution Center; Accessed online on Novermber 10 2012

Toshinori Nemoto (1997); Area-Wide Inter-carrier Consolidation of Freight in Urban Areas; Transport Logistics, Vol. 1, No. 2, pp. 87-101

Stuart, Keri (2010) Sustainable Urban Distribution Draft Report. Prepared by Colin Buchanan and Partners, Limited for SEStran (July, 2010). Accessed online on August 18, 2010:http://www.sestran.gov.uk/uploads/Sustainable%20Urban%20Distribution%20draft%2 0Report.pdf

INCOMPLETE

Documents

Contested Peripheries - Bryn Lee