Process

Defining the role of the CABE enablers

CABE enablers and staff met with British Waterways in 2005 and agreed two ways to support the project by:

• ensuring a joined-up approach to setting up a brief for the project and coordination with other regeneration projects in the wider area
• advising on the design competition and selection process.

During the project it became clear that a third mode of support would be useful - helping to broker agreement between the different organisations involved.

Involving all the stakeholders

At the first stakeholder meeting in February 2006, facilitated by CABE enablers and staff, it was clear that there were strong differences of opinion:

• British Waterways wanted the bridge at the northern end of Hale Wharf
• Haringey council wanted it to be further south in line with the masterplan
• Lee Valley Regional Park was worried about the effect of the bridge on the continuity of the park at its narrowest point.

The CABE enablers and staff prepared a paper outlining the concerns of all stakeholders and offered an impartial view of what needed to be resolved for the project to proceed. The report highlighted another important issue that needed to be addressed, that of the bridge’s effect on the Environment Agency’s access entrance and ramps to Pymmes Brook.

As a result, British Waterways agreed to locating the bridge in line with the masterplan and left issues about the park and access to Pymmes Brook to the design teams.

Setting up the design-and-build competition

CABE enabling helped British Waterways run the design-and-build competition process by:

• commenting on the competition brief
• ensuring that design quality of the proposals and design credentials of the bidders are ranked high in the selection criteria
• commenting on design proposals submitted by shortlisted teams
• advising on final selection.

CABE did not run the competition, but helped produce a model brief and supported British Waterways staff so that they could run successful design competitions in future.

Shortlisting the proposals

Two design teams were shortlisted, primarily based on the quality of their designs.

Knight Architects and Flint & Neill structural engineers proposed an elegant solution to many of the design problems. It dealt with access to the raised bridge deck over the River Lea Navigation canal using a land sculpture to extend the Lee Valley Park across Pymmes Brook to the edge of the canal. It avoided having to reconfigure the Environment Agency’s Pymmes Brook access ramps. However, it required about 30m of the brook to be culverted (covered over), raising strong objections from the Environment Agency.

Balfour Beatty, Studio Bednarski designers and Buro Happold structural engineers submitted a proposal that did not require culverting.  It was less successful in regeneration terms as it reinforced the strong north-south elements rather than reducing them. It was more disruptive to the park and required reconfiguring the Environment Agency’s access ramps at considerable expense. It was much less successful in terms of design quality.

Reaching agreement (but running out of time)

British Waterways, with CABE’s support, negotiated separately with Lee Valley Regional Park and the Environment Agency to resolve technical issues with the designs. It was agreed that the Knight Architects proposal should proceed to application for land drainage consent from the Environment Agency.

The Environment Agency were still concerned as culverting was against their policy. Agreement was reached after several months of discussions and additional design development between British Waterways and the Environment Agency. Planning consent was granted in October 2007. 

The government’s deadline for growth area funding was March 2008 and ultimately the construction element was forfeited.  New sources of funding are being sought.