JOHNSTONE SOUTH WEST CHARRETTE 01 - 05 November 2011
Introduction 
The South West area of Johnstone has been selected as the first project to take part in the SSCI charrette mainstreaming project. Johnstone South West will be the location for a five day community design charrette where a series of workshops will be run to help local people engage in a design process for their community. The charrette event will be held in the South West Johnstone area from the 1st to the 5th of November and will be open to the public. This round of charrettes builds on the SSCI Charrette Series that ran in March 2010.
What is a Charrette?
A charrette is a multi-disciplinary design process, held over a number of days, where the public, local design professionals and project consultants work together on developing a detailed masterplan for a site. A number of workshops and meetings are held during this process which enable all stakeholders to discuss the key policies and issues relating to the site. A charrette is a dynamic process in which the community plays a central role in designing plans for their neighbourhoods and places. It is an interactive and design-led event that focuses on engagement, quality and speed.
Johnstone South West includes the residential areas Corseford, Spateston, Cochrane Castle and Johnstone Castle.
The Johnstone South West charrette is being supported by SSCI and taken forward by Renfrewshire Council. A design team led by Glasgow based Austin-Smith: Lord (urban designers & architects) and Douglas Wheeler Associates Ltd (economic regeneration specialists) have been commissioned to facilitate the Johnstone charrette.
Johnstone SW Charrette Aim
An overview of the charrette proposal can be found in the Johnstone South West submission to the SSCI Charrette Mainstreaming Programme.
The aim of the Johnstone charrette is to prepare a feasible, affordable and integrated masterplan and development framework for Johnstone South West through the interactive charrette process. This will establish the character and form of development over the next ten years and ensure that the vital local knowledge of local residents, businesses and key stakeholders is considered in a positive and practical way. Key issues facing the Johnstone South West charrette include:
· Considering the potential to accommodate new housing in a series of distinctive, connected neighbourhoods that reinforce existing and new local centres;
· Investigating appropriate proposals for the development of 'brownfield' former school and housing sites and informal amenity space within the area, so as to address the fragmented urban form;
· Testing innovative solutions to infrastructure constraints, particularly in relation to flooding and surface water management;
· Improving connectivity between local neighbourhoods, community facilities and public transport and
· Identifying a viable delivery strategy to take account of phasing, infrastructure requirements and funding.
This is not a consultation on an existing plan. The design team will start with a blank sheet of paper and the views of residents and local businesses will play a key part in shaping the future of the area.
How and when to get involved
The Design Studio, where the design team will be working to progress and review options, will be located at the Spateston Bowling Club, 72 Spateston Road (PA5 0SZ) and will be open to the public at specific times over the five days. Details of the exact design studio programme can be found here.
In addition to the workshops running each day, other key opportunities to get involved are:
· Opening Event: 7.00pm Tuesday 1 November at Johnstone High School Assembly Hall;
· Interim Public Review Workshop: 7.00 pm Thursday 3 November: Design Studio at Spateston Bowling Club;
· Closing Event: 10.30am-14.00 pm Saturday 5 November at Johnstone High School Assembly Hall.
In the week just before the charrette (24, 25 & 29 October), community animation teams from WAVE will be in the Johnstone South West area and will be engaging with the community in a variety of ways to harness information that will be used at the charrette.
This web page will be updated with events in the build up to the charrette and as the event progresses and features will also be run in the Johnstone Gazette. The Johnstone South West Charrette is a great opportunity for the community to contribute in a meaningful way to designs for their future environment. Anyone who is interested is encouraged to attend the charrettes where you will be made welcome and invited to contribute to the charrette process.
Progress can also be monitored by reading the daily blog of the Charrette which can be accessed by the links below.
Day 1 Blog