So it was ironic that on the day that the report was launched came the dramatic news that HTA Architects had parted company with the project amid protest that many of the scheme’s proposed “innovative approaches” were being watered down or abandoned altogether in the run-up to construction.
Taskforce deputy chairman and Housing Corporation chief executive Anthony Mayer has been actively involved over the past year in pushing innovation. Special funds have been ’top sliced’ from the Corporation’s approved development programme for demonstration projects, and he was the motivating force behind the establishment of the Housing Forum.
How did he react to the news? “I can’t comment specifically on the Greenwich project and I don’t know how things will end up,” he says. “But if you are going to have a design competition there ought to be contractual expectations that the winner abides by the conditions on which the bid was won. It should be made quite clear in the competition documents. I don’t know whether that was the case in Greenwich. But in principle, I commend the idea of design competition and demonstration projects to show people what can be done.”
One of the report’s key recommendations was that urban regeneration companies should be established, the first of which has already just been launched in Liverpool. URCs are expected to be a partnership of local authority, social landlords, private developers and land owners, community representatives and Regional Development Agencies representatives. Their collective objective is to intervene in selected inner urban areas, buy up land and housing, improve existing homes - or even knock them down ‘if that is essential to the success of the project’ - then sell or rent them.
“I see these as being independent of local authorities but directed by them - they would take a very close interest and should have representation on the board’, says Mayer. “There will be public money going in, thus they will be non-profitmaking.” He believes they will provide an exciting new opportunity for housing associations. “They are the expert providers, and have access to private finance,” he says.
URCs could well be under the wing of associations as subsidiaries. This would require the extension of permissible purposes of associations. This could be achieved by changes to Housing Corporation rules - something that has caused controversy over recent months. “We will define social housing in a way that embraces these purposes,” Mayer says. Alternatively, URCs could be free-standing - particularly if they have very wide roles and would require legislation.
Another underlying theme of the report is that the urban problem relates to the inner urban ring rather than city centres and suburbs. The Taskforce decided early on to recommend urban priority areas, and believes that these should be selected by local authorities. These areas would be subject to fast-track planning permissions and compulsory purchase order powers.
Mayer sees the report as ‘the start of a great debate’ and was astonished by the degree of interest shown at its London launch. But he does not think that any one organisation will be given the task of overseeing its implementation, and he says that there is definitely no prospect of the Housing Corporation broadening its responsibilities to become the regeneration corporation. “The ‘great national project’ as our report says, should be led by the deputy Prime Minister. You don’t need an overarching, all-powerful organisation,” says Mayer. “You need a large number of bodies working with each other in a positive manner, sharing a similar objective.”
Source
Building Homes
