Leeds
- changing for the better? | | Leeds
- who wins and loses in the regeneration game? |
Leeds is changing
fast but is it changing for the better? Everywhere you look, there's cranes
and building work going on as massive new investment pours into the city centre.
But is Leeds missing the opportunity to create a truly great city? Inside
Out asked leading UK architect Maxwell Hutchinson to take a critical look at Leeds'
plans for the future. The sky's the limit?Leeds is one of
the fastest growing cities in the UK, and its skyline is changing daily, but are
its regeneration plans as cutting edge as Birmingham, Barcelona and Bilbao? Britain's
top architectural critic, Maxwell Hutchinson, has warned the city fathers that
they could be building the slums of tomorrow. In a critical attack Hutchinson
says that the city is making many of the mistakes first made in London's Docklands
20 years ago. Five billion pounds of high-rise development is currently
underway in Leeds, much of it glitzy apartment blocks aimed at young professionals.
"They're
forgetting to build communities at the same time as putting up these great ugly
blocks." | Maxwell
Hutchinson |
But Hutchinson says that the boom
is unsustainable, with signs that prices are already falling. He fears that
some developments could end up like the notorious Quarry Hill Flats, demolished
in the 1970s after becoming a byword for squalor. Hutchinson says that,
"There are worrying signs that Yorkshire is about to make the same mistakes
that we have made in London over 20 years ago". One of Maxwell's concerns
is the lack of key services in city centre Leeds, such as doctors, dentists and
schools. He says the city has let the market dictate development with the
result that many residents are forced to drive out of town to find these vital
services. Hutchinson believes that one of the problems that Leeds is storing
up is not building city centre communities. Boring buildings? Maxwell
isn't a fan of some of Leeds' new buildings either. He calls the Clarence
Dock development a "mundane collection" of buildings and an "incredibly
soulless place". "Leeds has a once in a lifetime opportunity
to create a city centre".
Maxwell Hutchinson
 | | Making
the same mistakes as London Docklands? |
Hutchinson believes
that this opportunity is being missed. He found much of the area around
the Canal Basin lonely with no sign of life even during the day. Hutchinson
describes one prestigious development as "an undistinguished collection of
buildings that look like they've been washed up by the river". He describes
Clarence Dock as "an incredibly soulless place to live", adding:
"Youll be able to lose your shirt here if the casino goes ahead
or buy Bulgari in a boutique. But getting to know the people living next door
to your hermetically sealed modern living space will be rather harder."
However,
Hutchinson praises Leeds for some aspects of its inner city redevelopment, but
says the city badly needs an iconic building like The Sage in Gateshead or The
Lowry in Salford. He adds: "Credit where its
due, Leeds has done a terrific job adapting old buildings the area around
The Calls could compete with anywhere in Europe for the quality and sensitivity
of its design. "In my view, theres simply no excuse for new buildings
not to match the gems which share the skyline."
A
city for the people?Inside Out reveals that in many developments only
five per cent of flats are owner-occupied. They are owned by speculative
landlords in Dublin, Dubai and Australia who gamble on a profit from well-paid
tenants working in financial services. With such a large proportion of
properties in the buy-to-let sector, he believes it means "the centre of
Leeds no longer belongs to the people who live in Leeds". Maxwell Hutchinson
believes that: "... in two or three decades these shiny
new buildings will be following Quarry Hill down the spiral of decay."
 | | Leeds
- lacks an iconic building like The Sage Gateshead |
The programme
also reveals that some inner city residents are quitting for the suburbs after
finding apartment life is not for them. Inside Out speaks to one businessman
Jon who believes that many developments could be frightening places to live in
few years time. He says he quit for leafy Wakefield after failing to get
to know his neighbours, even in year living on the banks of the Aire. He
claims that most of the tenants went "home" at weekends, leaving the
areas deserted. What do you think?Is Leeds city centre changing
for the better?
What do you think of the latest buildings - marvellous
or mediocre? And if you live in the city, we want your views about the lack
of services and its sense of community.
Send
in your views
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Inside
Out - Yorkshire & Lincolnshire: Monday September 18, 2006
