The panel includes three international architects: Munich-based Latz and Partners, US masterplanner Koetter Kim and Rotterdam-based practice West 8. There will also be 10 UK architects involved, including Alsop Architects, David Lock Associates, masterplanners EDAW and Urban Initiatives, landscape architect Camlin Lonsdale, housing expert John Thompson & Partners and Derby-based Latham Architects.
Alan Simpson, Yorkshire Forward's head of urban renaissance, said: "We've had an overwhelming response, with high-quality companies interested in our approach to developing world-class town centres – places where people want to live, work and visit."
Teams will work with local authorities, business leaders and community representatives in drawing up urban design strategies for the first "renaissance towns". This will involve assessing developments currently planned for the towns as well as new development sites.
The teams will examine solutions to problems experienced by the towns at the moment and decide what kind of development is needed in each particular location. Yorkshire Forward launched the initiative in July.
The selected towns and cities are: Scarborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Huddersfield, Halifax, Grimsby, Rotherham and Barnsley. The initiative is supported by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.
