lilTommy
Jr. Member
Posts: 1,820
Political Matrix
E: -6.32, S: -5.04
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« on: August 12, 2011, 08:50:59 AM » |
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Bastian De Wilde
Agreed, the DRC was the right idea but the city has a vital role to play. I will use the experience we had in Kristiana. Our port was decaying decades before St. Marks; smaller, overshadowed by the capitals port, its prominence as a shipping port collapsed and it too became a wasteland of sorts. Under the council i led, what was done was a complete rethink of the portlands; the eastern half was purchased by the city to be redeveloped as a community while the western half would undergo a "refocus" as the buzz word of the day. This was done in partnership with the government of the day.
The Western half was refocused into the primary port of call for tourist cruise liners and ferries (the primary maintenance and building yards). It also became the focus of the city's already established industrial complex, this was done in conjunction with a citywide rezoning (light industrial areas in the north were moved to the south). The area became the central focus area for the cities push towards new jobs in preserved industries (garment, distilleries, mills) and in green industries (windmill, solar manufacturing). Housing was already in existence in the northern fringes of the western ports, but these were militantly working class and fought gentrification, as a stronghold for the left, we worked to appease their concerns and let the development in Bomullham and Millhaven be direct by the Agnesham council.
The Eastern portion became Portlandston; a new mixed retail/residential/tourist community. Large portions of the land, in particular around Aegir Point and along the shore were reclaimed into parklands with trails. Kristiana, like St. Mark's built a Hockey arena in this new area, but also relocated and built cultural attractions in Portlandston like the National Theatre Company who perform open air summer performances. Another success was to extended an existing pedestrian promenade from The Villages community into Portlandston, this allowed for ease in access from a busy popular area into the new community. One area of regret was that too much focus was placed on market value housing, the dominance of condos out priced many low/low-middle class and there are very few rental units.
In both areas historic buildings like the customs house (Portlandston) and the Ferry Terminal (New Port) were preserved and continue to be utilized.
My Point with this example is that it was a success, and lessons learned should be looked at by St. Marks, but this success was a unique success to Kristiana. St. Marks is a much larger port, and will continue to be used and the nations primary shipping centre. To look at what would work best for Castle and Darside, the DRC will 1) need to work with the city to develop a plan (and yes planning will be instrumental) The DRC alone has failed and only in a partnership (three way with the city and private developers) can it succeed. 2) Local consultation is vital, as is diversification. As mentioned above, the Kristiana redevelopment went in many directions and both New Port and Portlandston were utilized to address needs the city had to fill
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