Eastern Curve

The Eastern Curve was an overgrown, abandoned and little known piece of railway land used as an unofficial landfill site for several decades. Located in Dalston, one of the Greater London Authority's priority areas for development and an area lacking in open space, it was identified as one of ten projects to receive London Development Agency funding for redevelopment. Within eight months the site was transformed into a vibrant resource for the local community, who were closely involved throughout the design and construction of the project.

The Eastern Curve has quickly become established as a flexible and popular public space, hosting a variety of events from gardening to dancing. The project is also a good example of temporary use of land, with a ‘meantime' arrangement in place with the local landowner to allow the space to be enhanced for the local community until more long-term development solutions are finalised.

Fundamental to the project is its success in delivering benefits for the existing community. The site's restoration has provided opportunities for volunteers and its design and construction offered apprenticeship schemes for local people.

Overview

  • Project Name

    Eastern Curve

  • Location

    Dalston, London

  • Category

    Parks and gardens

  • Landscape Architect

    J & L Gibbons LLP

  • Client

    London Development Agency, Design for London, London Borough of Hackney

  • Brief

    Redevelopment of a derelict inner-city site into a community green space and eco-garden

  • Awards

    Hackney Design Award 2010, Sustain Magazine 2010 Winner - Public Realm, Commended London Planning Awards 2010 - Community Scale Project

Details

  • Project Team

    Architects: muf architecture/ art and EXYZT | Structural Engineer: Stockleys | Civil Engineer: Stockleys | Cost Consultant: Appleyards DWB | Barn constructors: EXYZT |Civils Contractor: Davies and Davies Group | Soft Landscape Contractors: PGSD | Community partners: Forest Road Youth Club, Hackney Community College, Making Space in Dalston Steering Group

  • Local planning authority or government body

    London Borough of Hackney

  • Year Completed

    0001

  • Project Size

    0.25ha

  • Contract Value

    '£200,000

  • Additional Information

    The little known piece of railway land was identified as a place of potential through conversation with stakeholders as part of the Making Space in Dalston project. Through the initial part of project identification, the opportunity to develop an eco-garden gained much local support. One aspect was the secret nature of its location which enhanced the sense of discovery through an existing old hoarding. The raw beauty and potential of the railway land and its ecology interested the Barbican Art Gallery who, in 2009, were seeking space outside the gallery to extend their exhibition Radical Nature. EXYZT, a French architectural/art collective were commissioned and they designed and constructed a five-storey scaffold windmill with a bread oven alongside a wheat field installation by Agnes Denes. Arcola Theatre cut an amphitheatre in the railway land to create a platform for local performance. During a three-week period 12,000 visitors came through the door serving as a real-time consultation, physically engaging with all stakeholders concerned, demonstrating the site's potential, reframing its value to both landowner and the community. The scheme features as a case study in the LI's 2011 publication 'Local Green Infrastructure: helping communities make the most of their landscape'

Technicals

  • Planting

    Trees have been planted at the site to offer shade, warm weather cooling and improve air quality, offsetting the pollution associated with nearby heavily trafficked roads. Vegetable and herb growing areas have been incorporated into the design of the site, promoting learning and skills development in horticulture as well as reconnecting local people with the natural environment and local food production.

  • J & L Gibbons LLP

    Registered Practice - (3 - 5 Employees)
    Profile

  • Approximate Map Location

    Location

    Dalston, London

  • Share