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Public consulted on draft Broomielaw river park plan

February 4 2019

Public consulted on draft Broomielaw river park plan

Glasgow City Council is to launch a public consultation into draft plans for a linear river park along both banks of the River Clyde through the Broomielaw district.

Launching on Friday the park consultation forms part of a wider waterfront masterplan for the city centre which seeks to establish a high-density riverfront neighbourhood flanking the Kingston Bridge, negating some of the pollution, noise and physical disconnection associated with the motorway link.

By introducing attractive green spaces it is hoped to improve east/west connectivity and create a more pedestrian and cycle-friendly environment. Key to this approach will be the active encouragement of high-density residential development to boost the city centre population.

The Broomielaw district is the second of nine areas of the city centre to be subject to its own District Regeneration Framework (DRF) led by Austin:Smith-Lord and MVRDV. Current live proposals for the area include a 200,000sq/ft office block at Carrick Square and a 498-home PRS build immediately adjacent to the M8.

Council leader Susan Aitken, said: “These ambitious plans will help the council and our partners to bring Broomielaw to its full potential and allow the area to take its proper place in the life of the city.  This is a part of Glasgow that has enormous scope to influence the future development of the city centre and the river corridor.”

Upon conclusion of the consultation on 5 April and council approval the final DRF its guidelines will be formally embraced as a material consideration for all subsequent planning applications across the district.

A key challenge for the Broomielaw lies in humanising the Kingston Bridge undercroft
A key challenge for the Broomielaw lies in humanising the Kingston Bridge undercroft
Challenges identified at the Broomielaw include sparse development, depopulation and car-centric public realm
Challenges identified at the Broomielaw include sparse development, depopulation and car-centric public realm

High-density, mixed-use development will be encouraged to enable the city centre to embrace the riverfront
High-density, mixed-use development will be encouraged to enable the city centre to embrace the riverfront
Linear landscaped promenades could extend along both banks of the river
Linear landscaped promenades could extend along both banks of the river

Public space, event facilities and play areas will be woven into the fabric of the urban park
Public space, event facilities and play areas will be woven into the fabric of the urban park
The Broomielaw falls under Glasgow's decade-long city centre regeneration strategy
The Broomielaw falls under Glasgow's decade-long city centre regeneration strategy

14 Comments

Baywatch Broomielaw
#1 Posted by Baywatch Broomielaw on 4 Feb 2019 at 14:00 PM
Bikini-clad paddle boarding on the Bonnie Banks of Broomielaw! A ship, and yachts, that have made it under the 5.5m clearance Clyde Arc! Truly miraculous.

Oh, and don't go near those death steps on an icy day!

Really there is nothing wrong with the public realm along most the Broomielaw as it is - it is well used by pedestrians and cyclists but just crying out for some active frontages/activity. But perhaps not paddleboarding.
Graeme McCormick
#2 Posted by Graeme McCormick on 4 Feb 2019 at 14:27 PM
This does not address the river itself which is dead of any activity or colour. Floating gardens either fixed to the bed or on barges would give a bit of life to it.
David
#3 Posted by David on 4 Feb 2019 at 17:04 PM
Imagine if that first render was actually a reality in ten years time? I have long thought that a high rise corridor along the M8 at Charing Cross would be fantastic.
If that was the vista crossing the Kingston Bridge, Glasgow would be forever changed, mostly for the better!
Jaded
#4 Posted by Jaded on 4 Feb 2019 at 21:21 PM
I love all this. Exactly what my dream vision of the area would look like.

If they managed to get this off the ground it would be a game changer. I would gladly see GCC and the Scottish Gov stop pissing money on peripheral areas for a short while and Big Bang this area of huge importance.
Tom Manley
#5 Posted by Tom Manley on 4 Feb 2019 at 21:37 PM
#4 meanwhile an area such as Govan's graving docks has all the potential ready made to create a truly fitting waterside park for Glasgow and bring back activity and public space on the site of disused shipyards, yet it lingers on as a neglected vacant smear on Glasgow's development and river, as the usual attempt to find an economic strategy that will maximise large scale housing density onto the site at expense of reclaiming some much needed open space to celebrate the river and for people to enjoy the riverside.
StyleCouncil
#6 Posted by StyleCouncil on 4 Feb 2019 at 21:43 PM
#2 agree, the river needs energised...but with actual life/transportation, not just visual enhancements.
These images do look rather good..1 and 4 show a very exciting vision for the city. I particularly like their positivity and lack of dull commercial archi-trends.
Ross
#7 Posted by Ross on 5 Feb 2019 at 10:02 AM
As much as I would like to see high rise buildings stretch across the riverfront and give Glasgow a mini Manhattan feel to it; but I do not feel that high density living suits Scotland.

Not everyone wants to live a semi detached or a terrace, I get that, but tried and test projects show that we like a traditional model for our future communities.
Chris
#8 Posted by Chris on 5 Feb 2019 at 10:54 AM
#7 Only because wimpy et al have got the monopoly on the residential market. But tastes change over time, and building more and more suburbia is not sustainable in the long term.

If cities in Northern England can support high-rise living then there's no reason why Glasgow can't do the same.
Egbert
#9 Posted by Egbert on 5 Feb 2019 at 11:04 AM
#7 What an odd statement - Scotland has a centuries-old tradition of high-density living; look at the old towns of Edinburgh and Glasgow (as it was) with their densely-packed multi-storey lands, followed by the hugely-successful Victorian tenement model that still provides sought-after housing across Scotland's larger towns and cities. Even the smaller towns still have population densities far higher than their English equivalents - in Haddington where I live, for example, the high street is lined with buildings of 3 and 4 storeys, all residential, a mixture of flats and multi-level town houses, right in the centre of town. There's a separate debate to be had as to whether towers of the type shown in the (indicative) images are actually a sustainable model for urban living, but this shouldn't be used to reject the notion of high density itself which surely has to be the way forward if Glasgow is to consolidate and fix the planning mistakes of the past - it *is* tradition here.
Charlie_
#10 Posted by Charlie_ on 5 Feb 2019 at 12:50 PM
These plans look fantastic, but lets be honest, they pretty much amount to scrawling 'high density new housing', 'undercroft uses' and 'trees' on a map. The more interesting part of the plan is how on earth the council plans to attract the billions in investment needed to turn this into a reality.
Billy
#11 Posted by Billy on 5 Feb 2019 at 20:44 PM
Like this but that will be the kiss of death. Everything I like does not get built and everything I detest does. Let’s hope this one goes ahead unlike Candleriggs where there is still no movement. And the old Bhs store and the student accommodation across from the Galleries.
wonky
#12 Posted by wonky on 8 Feb 2019 at 12:00 PM
Glad to see the city identify the Broomielaw/Tradeston development as key drivers of regeneration, its well overdue. High density, very high if possible, would be desirable for both these riverfront areas. Tradeston is served by 2 subway stations/& another at Shields Rd with Park & Ride, & St Enoch is pretty close by- Broomielaw is close to Central, has Anderston Station, so transport links are pretty good, so density is possible- esp for Tradeston with large gapsites & available underground stations. We need people first, not this piecemeal 'delivering infrastructure' first malarkey, instead utilize density increases as a means of generating demand for greater services/amenities/shops/infrastructure etc- not the other way around.
The city also needs to change its policy provision for car parking per unit ratios- there needs to be a latitude for developments with little to zero parking/or mandatory underground parking (maybe when demand allows), especially at such central areas.
Investment is already coming into the area, with the Atlantic Square, Brown Street Developments, the Platform BTR at Central Quay & the massive Barclay's Campus at Tradeston- so its already happening: what we need are people, numbers, in high density, to grow demand for a vibrant mixed use community, & the infrastructure is already there to sustain such a community- we just need the will to do it & the new bosses at City Hall are making the right noises. We live in Hope.
As a caveat I would like- & maybe this is something for the future, once all else is done- to see areas such as Paisley Road West to be given wider masterplans, particularly around key junctions like the Kingston bridge area, & to find some way of directly connecting the underground station networks around Kinning/Park-Cessnock with the Riverside & wider area around the river- even if it means demolishing some of the factory sheds around Govan Road to do so, as it would be a multiplying positive regenerative effect. Other areas such as Gallowgate, Calton & Barras need more than just painted shopfront, they need systematically regenerated with high density masterplanning to reintegrate them into the wider city centre area. Funding of course is key to any plans- & one would assume the new residents at City Hall will be petitioning their friends in Holyrood for a widening of the city boundary to increase the tax base.
Sohail
#13 Posted by Sohail on 11 Feb 2019 at 00:57 AM
As a millennial, I hate it when older people tell us that the city needs more low-rise buildings.

Enough is enough! This plan is what we want!

I can’t wait for this!
Terra
#14 Posted by Terra on 25 Feb 2020 at 01:48 AM
This is amazing! yes please!

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