The Overall Vision – 2011 Draft

The Carriageworks development will make a positive contribution to the economy, culture and environment of Stokes Croft and the surrounding area. It will be home to many activities, businesses and people and will be a buzzing vibrant place, busy with people not just from the local area but who have travelled from further afield. The local community wants to see the dereliction of this site addressed as a priority and it will work with any organisation that shares its vision for the future.

Do you support this overall vision?

6 thoughts on “The Overall Vision – 2011 Draft

  1. My reservation against this vision is that it claims there is some urgency to ‘develop’ the site. I’d actually rather keep the ruin as is than agreeing to a development that is led by for-profit developers. Extracting rent from property is exploitation and threatens the regeneration of the area. People in this neighborhood have made Stokes Croft attractive, not property developers. Why should developers profit from the work that others have done to improve the area?
    Development should be not-for-profit as a matter of principal.
    I am happy for a development of the site that is not capital-led, for example based on public sector investment, including co-operative housing development on site. For this to be achieved, the current owners need to agree to sell the site, which could then be handed to a not-for-profit community interest group or the community land trust. Funding for this needs to come from the public hand though.
    If this is not achievable, I’d rather keep the ruin.

  2. Yes, I do support the vision for these buildings. An open ground floor with through route and shops. Upper floors to be largely residential. It should now be a priority to progress this project.

  3. I too support a vision for the development of these buildings. As far as the expressed vision I don’t think that the primary positive contribution should be to seek development of the economy. It seems to me that we have an opportunity here to creatively use a space which could build community as a priority. Of course development of the economy of the local area can contribute to this but the primary purpose needs to be for the good of the community that surrounds the building and those who pass through.
    We have an opportunity here to contribute to improving the quality of communal life and understanding which will be missed if we merely seek to make it look nice and be profitable for non-local business. I hope that we have the courage to seek that together. I look forward to the continuing conversations and hope that partnership between the local community and charitable stake holders seeking the growth of community can make a real difference.

  4. I see poor employment prospects as the biggest problem in this area and the high cost of workspace, be it offices, studios, workshops or retail units, reduces the likelihood of new businesses starting up in the area and creating new employment. Hamilton House has shown that given the opportunity and reasonable, flexible rental arrangements new enterprises can flourish. Some affordable rent flats would not go amiss either. Community ownership commited to retaining low rent start up business space and residential units, perhaps some combined live-work units as well, would be the best way to develop the existing buildings and site to meet the current needs. Space could also be provided for a range of local facilities for the wider community. The development should be arranged in a fairly unplanned way with a wide mixture of uses and tenants to meet the needs of today and provide a vibrant active place that would sit well with the character of Stokes Croft. It should also be flexible so that it can respond to changing needs in the future as economic and social demands and the goals of the community alter over time. Personally I would like to see wildlife and ecology included in the wider aims of the development with green space introduced and an abundance of wall and roof gardens. Bringing nature back into the city to give a healthy addition to this urban area.

  5. It would make a real improvement to Stokes Croft to see this site redeveloped. I’d like to see the ground floor as an open plan “Multi Culture” market, which would then naturally change to reflect the communities that move in and out of the area. The area behind would benefit the community if it was turned into a skate park. Maybe this could be funded by recreating a car park or other profitable structure with an agreement that some of the profit is used to sustain the park. The upper floors could provide a mixture of low rent accomodation, then perhaps reserve the top for some high end Penthouse suits with roof gardens. The redevelopment would then cater for a wide cross section of the local community. If I was fortunate enough to own the site, that would be my plan anyway.

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