Arcus Road

Client: Phoenix Community Housing
Status: Planning
Architect: Mikhail Riches Architects

Introduction

This is one of our favourite social housing schemes, with a great design team and client.

The site is in the Borough of Lewisham in South East London. The southern boundary is shared with Bromley Hill Cemetery and surrounded by housing to the west, north and east. The housing to the east is post-war flats with associated ‘garden space’ to the side and rear. This garden space is fenced and gated.

ARC Image block 2200x1430 — Aerial view of the existing site with Bromley Hill Cemetery in the background. Circles denote gated access, arrows denote public access.

Responses to Site

ARC Image grid1 2000x1350 — Forgotten backdrop / Key landscape element / Dominant in streetscape / linking element / Unused / Cemetery threshold / Shadow / Dark

ARC Image grid2 2000x1350 — Homes nestled amongst trees / Wild / Neglected / Overgrow / Brambles and Knotweed / Glimpsed views of houses / Views out onto pioneering and ephemeral landscape

ARC Image grid3 2000x1350 — Amazing boundary oak / echoes of past landscape / demarcation of boundaries / porous boundary / gateway to cemetery / Wild and forgotten - a tight squeeze - open managed cemetery

Design Proccess

ARC Image block1 2200x1430 — GARDENS ON SOUTH WEST FACING SIDE

ARC Image grid6 2000x1350 — The LANDSCAPE linking

ARC Image grid5 2000x1350 — SINUOUS, INTRIGUING & ANIMATED PATH / GATHERING GARDENS MADE MORE OF / STRONGER CROSS STREET LINKS

Design Proposals

We wanted to create proposals that helped link the existing landscape spaces and break down the character of gated and forgotten areas of mown grass.

The existing locked access to the north would be opened up and a new landscape link created into the heart of the site.

New informal play spaces would be designed to be discovered. They have been created to lead people around the more wilder parts of the site with the overall ambition of becoming the start of a woodland walk through the existing boundary woodland.

The heart of the site is the Community Street. It has been designed as a shared surface with a Community Garden on the south facing side. Private gardens face onto the Community Garden breaking down public private barriers and encourage people to meet (the design was conceived during lockdown!).

Landscape Masterplan

1 Winding path with meadow planting and occasional climbers and fruit tree. New fence to gardens

2 Informal community play area

3 Informal seating under the existing oak tree. This area will have a wild naturalistic feel with shade loving meadows, informal paths and a new boundary hedgerow

4 Low key focal point with informal play area, seating and possible communal dining tables. Located to have strong links to the adjacent back gardens and terrace.

5 Community gathering spaces with strong links across the road and with front gardens.

6 The community garden planted with ornamental grasses and perennials. The planting would be designed to stand in winter. The trees would be focused around the community gathering spaces.

ARC Image block3 2200x1430 — Axonometric cross section through the community street

ARC Image block2 2200x1430 — View from the north facing side of the street to the community garden on the south facing side. The north facing side of the street would have a half metre strip of shade loving herbs, a paved footpath and parking area. There would be strong links across the road to the sunny side of the street and the community garden.

ARC Image block4 2200x1430 — Elevation along the northern access route

ARC Image block5 2200x1430 — External elevation along the northern access route (from private gardens)

ARC Image block6 2200x1430 — View upon arriving from the northern access route onto the proposed site. It reveals the shared play and seating area between terraces 1 and 2.

We love bringing together our sense of place approach with our understanding of how people use their private spaces

Get In Touch

+44 (0)1225 424 514

info@seedlandscape.com