2 August is the last day for the current consultation on proposals for another radial tube line in London, Crossrail 2 (superceeding what used to be known as the Chelsea-Hackney line). This is my pennyworth sent in today. Continue reading “Crossrail2”
Is our recession a bit 'Japanese'?
Todays’ papers and tweets are drawing parallels with Japan’s ‘lost decade’. That reminded me of our (JustSpace’s) exchanges with City Hall in 2010 where we were arguing that the recession would be long and deep, and exacerbated by public spending cuts. We argued that the London Plan should at least allow for the fact that this might be the future, even if their preference still was to treat the “recent downturn” as a blip. They really were so wrong and I just enjoyed re-reading the two papers they then produced, criticising our position. They aren’t on the GLA web site any more so here they are for the record:
20100903ED82PublicExpenditureLondonPlanStrategy (Japan discussion on page 3)
Has the Olympic legacy lived up to its promise?
Asked by Building Design to be half of a debate on this question
Find it in BD at http://www.bdonline.co.uk/comment/debate/has-the-olympic-legacy-lived-up-to-its-promise?/5057824.article You have to register but it’s free. Continue reading “Has the Olympic legacy lived up to its promise?”
"Regeneration" research note
Arising indirectly from the long saga surrounding UCL’s plans to develop a new campus on the site occupied by the Carpenters council estate in Newham, the UCL Urban Lab took an initiative to convene an informal meeting of London researchers and community groups on the theme of “regeneration’ research. The first meeting took place in July 2013 and my contribution was a short note calling for longitudinal studies of regeneration impacts. Discussion on this will be warmly welcomed – preferably in the form of comments here in the blog.
This is the note I wrote: Regeneration research note by ME
A version of it is about to be published in a November 2013 Urban Lab pamphlet #2
HS2 – a comment
I was trying to keep out of this awful project but we had a request for support from tenants in Camden, part of the pan-Camden HS2 alliance, and I’m glad to say that three UCL Bartlett students offered to help (I’ll name them if they agree). We took part in some meetings, wrote some structuring suggestions to frame the immense local and technical knowledge available and provided some editorial support. We hope it was helpful. Will add some links when I have them.
On the last day for submitting observations on the “draft Environmental Statement”, yesterday, I added my own pennyworth. This is it (links added). Continue reading “HS2 – a comment”
London / demography / ¿new normal?
Rough notes from an LSE seminar (tidied up next day). The question whether the new, larger, average size of London households is a “new normal” is from a presentation by Christine Whitehead, one of the speakers.
Christine Whitehead (slides will probably be on LSE web site in due course). Credits Alan Holmans (who will produce a new London housing needs assessment later this year). Continue reading “London / demography / ¿new normal?”
Letter in the FT today
My letter in response to one from a ¿ThinkTank in Brussels which had called for more migration from south Europe to where the jobs are, as a means to reduce (especially youth) unemployment. I was just stressing the negative housing effects in the destination areas – notably London. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7862b6e6-c867-11e2-8cb7-00144feab7de.html#axzz2VL46VLb7 Not dramatic, but part of trying to haul EU institutions into a more active (or more positive) housing role.
Alain Lipietz talk
At the DPU “The crisis of the “liberal–productivist” model of development: a regulationist analysis, an ecologist response.” 20 May. My rough notes. NB an audio recording is now (later) available here as a podcast http://www.bartlett.ucl.ac.uk/dpu/latest/podcasts and there is a text in English on Alain’s own website here.
[Was economist at CEPREMAP, then elected as a green for the Paris region, the EuroParl… Says he was always connected with spatial issues, and naturally came to political ecology.]
Talk about the present crisis and its ecological dimensions. It is a “major crisis” in regulation – school terms. Characterises Fordism as a period when capitalism was pushed by demand, by demand especially for cars and housing…. and when it came into crisis in 70s… we wondered why it hadn’t happened earlier, since C is such an unstable mode of production. Continue reading “Alain Lipietz talk”
Crossrail2 (aka Chelsea-Hackney line)
Consultations have been opened by TfL on the next massive British tunnelling project – another radial railway line for London. The Assembly asked for experts to give evidence and this is my initial effort. At the end is a comment from Peter Hall. Continue reading “Crossrail2 (aka Chelsea-Hackney line)”
How to nip German house price rises in the bud
6 May 2013 This is part of a Twitter exchange (reproduced below) with @Frances_Coppola and econgirl (@raluca3000) My comment that the beginnings of housing price escalation in some German cities should be ‘nipped in the bud’ met the response “how?”
I can’t reply in 140 characters so here is a longer one:
Surely a combination of some or all of the following should do it: Continue reading “How to nip German house price rises in the bud”
michael edwards 