Sean Griffiths of FAT
Tuesday 20 October 2009, 1:00pm
Sean Griffiths of Fat presents:
Lingfield Point, Darlington, County Durham
FAT’s urban design projects reflect the complexities and contradiction of contemporary urban life, and are inspired by the problems that arise out of the battle between the old and the new, between the automobile and the pedestrian, between the desires of contemporary culture and the needs of the planet.
Lingfield Point is a 42 hectare site in the North Eastern town of Darlington. It is the site of a former wool factory containing over 1,000,000 sq ft of north lit space which was once the most important industrial employer in the town. Some of the existing factory building has been converted into high grade office space suitable for the occupation of large corporations or government departments. However, as the local market will not support the conversion of all of the existing space in this way, 70% of it is to be demolished and replaced by a new eco village containing housing, live work spaces, new offices, arts facilities, new shops, sport facilities, leisure amenities and sustainable power. All of these new parts are arranged around a new park containing a large array of functions ranging from sports facilities to wild life habitat, and ornamental gardens to children’s play areas.
FAT’s approach to the masterplan exploits the tensions between tradition and modernity, and revels in the resultant dichotomies of scale, use and character in creating vibrant heterogeneous places. Above all, it is driven by the desire to create richness, complexity and diversity in modern urban environments.
Chaired by Geoff Shearcroft / AOC
