Brentford High Street - Making the connection
The high street in Brentford is failing, with decreasing footfall and shops closing as people shop elsewhere. However, a ten minute walk north along the River Brent is the 'Golden Mile', a section of the Great West Road (A4) leaving London, where thousands of people work in a number of large companies such as GlaxoSmithKline. The brief was to create a legible and stimulating route along the canalised River Brent to encourage more people to walk and cycle into the town centre.
Our approach was to develop a series of spaces that are activated with cultural and social events to entice the different communities in Brentford to use these spaces.
Proposals include a floating cinema in the canal sheds along the river and a re-vitalised farmers market along Brentford High Street.
Indepth engagement was carried out with the local community and proposals were advertised in a newspaper and a website in order to reach a wide and diverse audience. I helped to put together the bid which won the project, and was involved in the engagement and initial designs.
Whilst at Kinnear Landscape Architects - 2012 - Brentford - Client: London Borough of Hounslow - Value: £800k - Collaborators: Meanwhile Space and the Decorators