Design thinking in process: Starting to think spatially about the Open Brief activities

We’ll have design ideas to share in May but meanwhile we’re sharing some work-in-progress which explores how to allocate space to different activities in the Castle Gateway area. How can we contribute to the design process by applying some of the questions that came out of the last round of engagement to this initial thinking? … Read more

Between the Open Brief and the Concept Designs – Exploring the Challenges

The Castle Gateway designers have been reading the New Public Spaces Open Brief, analysing the issues and crystallizing the challenges. Through a series of My Castle Gateway public events and social media conversations we used this analysis to draw out key questions that can be used by the designers to shape initial design ideas over … Read more

New Public Spaces – from the Open Brief to first designs

Designers have started work turning the My Castle Gateway New Public Spaces Open Brief into first designs. Last summer many conversations, walks and events were turned into an Open Brief for the new public spaces in the Castle Gateway area. The Open Brief describes what people would like to be able to do in the … Read more

St. George’s Field Multi-Storey Car Park

The council’s proposal for a new multi-storey car park on St.George’s Field – to replace Castle Car Park – gained planning approval last week. The requirement for replacement parking has always been part of the brief for the work to the area. That requirement shaped the original My Castle Gateway public engagement back in 2017, … Read more

Castle Gateway Planning Update (25/11/20)

Planning Committee 19 November Last week the Planning Committee deferred the decision on the St George’s Field Car Park.  We are awaiting the formal reasons for the deferral from planning, but our understanding that they include further justification for the volume of and need for replacement parking, including the number of disabled spaces, and the … Read more

My Castle Gateway: Final Open Brief for Tower Gardens

Updated: 3rd September 2020 My Castle Gateway: Final Open Brief for Tower Gardens Updated: 3rd September 2020 Through My Castle Gateway we’ve been talking about Tower Gardens since 2017. Yet Tower Gardens is the area where the least active masterplanning work has been done so far. This was in large part due to the controversy … Read more