This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Waterfront developers can learn from Dutch - Minister
03/09/2004
Culture Minister Frank McAveety, accompanied by
representatives from Scotland's cities, met today with
representatives from Holland's key architectural institutes
to learn about ways in which the Dutch are leading the
world in urban design and waterfront redevelopment.
The Minister, who is responsible for the Executive's
policy on architecture and the built environment, is
visiting the Netherlands this week as part of the Scottish
Executive's 'Scotland in the Netherlands' promotional
campaign.
Mr McAveety said:
"The Netherlands has a great tradition of governmental
support and policy development for architecture, and we
have gathered ideas from our Dutch colleagues today to
inform our thinking about how Scotland can re-ignite its
waterfront developments.
"Because of the Netherland's geographical challenges,
the Dutch have long experimented with new and
ground-breaking designs in housing, cultural and commercial
development on waterfront locations. I believe that we can
learn from the adventurous approach and the commitment to
quality that the Dutch have employed in regenerating their
waterfronts.
"Across Scotland we are enjoying a rebirth in waterfront
redevelopment and rediscovering the charm that riverside
life provides. Today's discussions sparked an exciting
exchange of ideas. We explored how we can benefit from best
practice examples in a country which has led the world in
architectural innovation and waterfront regeneration over
the past ten years."
The Minister and city representatives from Stirling,
Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee, met with Mr Paul
Dikstra, Gemma Bakker and Wessel de Jonge from the
Netherlands Architecture Institute, Ms Herma de Wijn-van
der Meer from the Chief Architect's Office in The Hague,
David Alderdice who is Director of the British Council in
the Netherlands, and Stuart MacDonald, Director of The
Lighthouse (Scotland's Centre for Architecture, Design and
the City), among others.
The representative from Stirling City Council is John
Skinner, Development Control Manager. John has full
responsibility for all categories of planning applications,
regardless of scale. He is also interested in the
mechanisms for achieving affordable housing, both in urban
and rural settings, and also the use of innovative design
solutions for varying scale and locations of developments.
He is particularly interested in the re-use of brownfield
sites in a city context.
Mr McAveety is the first of four Ministers who will
visit the Netherlands during September and Ocotber. Each
Minister, who will be undertaking a series of engagements
relating to their portfolio, will be using their visits as
opportunities to promote Scotland to a European
audience.
The Minister's programme is part of a wider initiative
to promote Scotland as an attractive place to live, work,
study visit or do business with, and showcase the best of
everything that is Scottish - from our culture and art to
our food and drink, music, fashion, textiles, and design.
The visit also provides an opportunity to hear from our
Dutch counterparts what work they are undertaking in the
areas of urban regeneration, and arts in education
curriculum initiatives, among other things.
For more information on Mr McAveety's visit, go to
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/By-Topic/Q/Topic/13