Negroni Talks #51 New Towns:(Any) New Ideas?

The Negroni Talks – hosted by architects Fourthspace and sponsored by Campari – were set up to capture the lively and provocative debates that took place in the European café culture of the early twentieth century - www.fourthspace.co.uk/events.

The New Town is now old - about a hundred years old. From their roots in the visionary Garden City Movement of Ebenezer Howard, to their mid-20th century iterations like Milton Keynes, they have long been touted as a solution to relieve urban overcrowding and housing shortages. It was hoped they would usher in an era of improved health and prosperity, as these newly-constructed places would combine the best of rural and city life. Their creation was seen as a way to better organise the planning and development of the built envrionment, when compared to the historical nature of cities that grow organically over time, whilst also stimulating economic growth in areas that urgently needed support.

But as the Labour government revisits the idea of New Towns to tackle today’s housing crisis, we must ask whether they provide the answer to our modern housing needs, or are they destined to become overspill hubs for nearby cities? Can we re-envison them as amazing places to live, complete with schools, hospitals, transport links and thriving communities? Or would it be more practical to focus on building housing within existing towns and suburbs, leveraging their established infrastructure? And what is this call for New Towns within the boundaries of London? Surely that’s just more city!

There is now a geographical and economic history to the new town idea, so what becomes of the 21st century version? Should the design of new towns be the same as city or urban design, where there is need to accommodate social and cultural identities, to be mindful of civic realism, to consider infrastructure and amenity, to allow neighbourhoods to more easily connect and interact, and to address the challenges of climate change?

The past ‘phases’ of new towns merged / expanded upon existing peripheral settlements and relied heavily upon car culture, so does a ‘future phase’ revert back to a sense of Utopian Ideal, or are there more innovative alternatives about the interplay between landscape, region, place, town and city?

Our panel of speakers, including urban planners, architects, and housing policy experts, will delve into the pros and cons of New Towns. We’ll reflect on whether they’ve delivered on their promises in the past and debate how we should approach the housing crisis of the future.

Speakers include:

Kathryn Firth, Arup

Tom Mitchell, Metropolitan Workshop

Jessica Arczynski, Trowers & Hamlins LLP

John Nordon, igloo Regeneration

Biljana Savic, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

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