FUTURE OF WINCHESTER: STRATEGIC VISION

Introduction

The Need for a Vision

In order to think clearly about the future of Winchester we need a concept of the sort of City we want. Only then can we sensibly look for answers to the problems confronting us. We requirethis vision' of what Winchester should aim to become in order to guide the inevitable process of change towards the goal of making a better City. Since privately funded projects have their own agenda, which are unlikely to match the needs and expectations of the City, it is critical for the City Authorities to plan the design of the City employing people of first-class ability who understand the concept. King Alfred said: I desire to leave men who come after me a remembrance of good works. That should be in the front of the mind of all who have a duty of care for our City.

Having a vision of a better future is an acceptance that maintaining the status quo is not an option. Winchester's character is based on a history of change. To resist change now is both uncharacteristic and futile. Creating a vision of what it could become is the way to preserve Winchester's character. Without such a vision opportunities will be lost.

Current thinking is that the best model for the future is the traditional city of streets, squares, and parks. They are the public spaces of the city where citizens meet, and they form the city's permanent framework. Cities like Bath did not occur by accident. They came into being as part of an enlightened, design-conscious strategy. This is why the Trust heartily supports Lord Rogers and the Urban Task Force in their call for design-led planning. The design of the City depends on this essential framework of public spaces, which decides the context for individual projects. The design must also take into account the character of individual districts and develop the potential that exists in each.

Winchester has been extraordinarily successful, and lucky, to have avoided the worst excesses of change, and has managed to keep its historic qualities while adding some good modern buildings. But the City's most important attribute in determining its future is its small, compact, geographically defined form. The principles discussed in this paper seek to retain this characteristic. However, the unusual circumstances that present Winchester with this opportunity will not last long. The high value it has acquired as a place in which to live and work, and the investment that this is attracting, offers a unique opportunity for implementing the vision. But, in the face of Government policy for the South-east, if these forces are left unguided there is the risk of great damage. Nevertheless, if the challenge is taken up without delay, the future need not be compromised.

We acknowledge the significance of the Future of Winchester Study, but it stops short of defining the direction it recommends. The Trust's objective here is to put forward a vision that makes judgments and states preferences. This paper is planned to be the first in a series, and is intended to provide the general reader with a concise introduction to the essential concepts and ideas. Future papers will go into more detail of specific topics.

The Need for Higher Density

In the South-east we are facing the prospect of demands from the Government for the building of more and more homes. This is a reflection of the economic success of the region, of the reduction in the size of households, and in people's demand for more living and working space in their homes. At the same time, increasingn affluence is enabling people to make more journeys by car. If we go on as we are, there will be little or no real countryside left, noise and air pollution will become ever worse, and urban roads will be subject to yet more congestion. Even if we are successful in protecting the historic heart of Winchester, it is not realistic to imagine we can save the whole City from the effects of such an outcome.

We have to change the way we build our towns. Recent residential building in Britain has been predominantly suburban. Suburbia (Housing built at relatively low density, with each house in its own plot of land, served by access roads that are often dead-ends) has served us well, and many people will wish to continue to live there, but its density is too low for the demands of the future. Furthermore, low densities imply that shops, schools, pubs and other services are, for the most part, located out of reach of walking and cycling, resulting in journeys by car to get to them.

Advantages of Streets and Squares

The Trust also endorses the report of the Urban Task Force under Lord Rogers in its conclusion that most new housing must be built at a higher density than we have seen in much of the Twentieth Century. If one were to try increasing the housing density in the suburban model the result would be tiny plots of land and neighbours overlooking each other at front and rear. Another approach, the tower block, has been tried and rejected. However there is an alternative: the traditional town street. Town houses of three to four storeys plus basement, even when provided with generous gardens, give much higher densities than suburbia. The higher density means that there are enough people within walking or cycling range to support local services, thus reducing the number of journeys by car, and encouraging the development of communities. When neighbours are about in the street vandalism and crime are reduced, and neighbourliness is encouraged.

There is one requirement above all others for satisfactory living in the residential street: it must be designed for the pedestrian and the cyclist rather than the car, so that people can walk safely in it, and so that children can play and get to school on foot. In the residential street the car has to give way and proceed at a walking pace.

The benefits of increased density and reduced car use are however enormous. Not only the saving of much countryside, the reduction in noise and air pollution, less traffic congestion, but also support for local shops, pubs and services, and the development of local communities. It is worth noting that the traditional English market town has also been built of streets, market squares, parks and gardens. Increased density of housing, done well, can provide residential communities that many people will prefer to suburbia. We call this the `Good City'. This is the model that we should use. This paper discusses how these ideas can be applied to Winchester.