Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
found to be relevant to the inclusivity of
disciplines mentioned earlier, to all cultural and
national circumstances thus far explored, and to
all historical periods.
planning process at local or national level), actual
boundaries and designations do not always correlate
to these geographical concepts. The boundary of
Bradford's Little Germany area (Box 24.1), for
example, was, for convenience, the new ring road.
Townscape conservation is not static; society's
concepts of what it is acceptable to retain, and the
values placed upon these monuments and areas,
change. In the UK, this can be seen with the
acceptance of particular architectural and
morphological periods as conservation-worthy,
with the consequent foundation of related
pressure groups:
Problems in identifying areas for
conservation
The identification of individual buildings or
monuments, and of areas, that might merit
conservation is a historico-geographical activity,
and there are many examples of such work in that
literature. Two key problems arise.
•
Ancient Monuments Society (1921)
•
Georgian Group (1937)
Areas and their boundaries
The delineation of area boundaries, in particular,
draws on geographical concepts of 'area',
'character', locality/proximity, and identity.Yet, since
conservation is a political activity (part of the
•
Victorian Society (1958)
•
Thirties Society (1980)
•
Twentieth Century Society (renaming of
Thirties Society) (1992).
Box 24.1
Industrial heritage problems: Little Germany, Bradford, UK
Bradford, 13 km west of Leeds, is an industrial city
suffering from economic decline, a problem clearly visible
in the physical fabric of older quarters of the city centre.
The industrialising of the woollen industry in the
nineteenth century demanded large new warehouses,
many of which were built close together on an 8 ha site
adjoining the town centre between 1860 and 1874: with
the strong German connection, this district became
known as 'Little Germany' (Figure 24.1).
A comprehensive redevelopment scheme began in
the city centre from the late 1950s through to the 1970s,
although several key late nineteenth-century public
buildings were retained. This scheme did not encroach
upon Little Germany, although it, together with vague
plans for an inner ring road, blighted part of the area.
The main perceived threat to the area was from
commercial developers purchasing buildings and
demolishing them to provide surface-level car parks—
future development sites. The changing nature of the
textile industry, and the decline of manufacturing industry
in general in this part of the country in the late twentieth
century, led to the redundancy of many of these large,
bricks and stone-built, five- or six-storey buildings. No
suitably extensive uses were available, and the area
became run-down and neglected. Yet it is well positioned,
immediately adjoining the city centre, although the recent
completion of the inner ring road has isolated Little
Germany from other quarters of the industrial town.
Conservation area designation, and the collapse of
the property market in 1973, helped to ward off threats
from commercial developers. The area was designated
as 'outstanding' in the mid-1970s, which allowed
applications for grant aid from central government. The
local planning authority (LPA) was then concerned to
retain the confidence of the remaining occupiers and to
prevent further neglect and demolition. By the early
1980s, fifty-five of the eighty-eight buildings in the area
had been listed: England's highest concentration of
protected Victorian industrial structures. By the same
time, however, about 50 per cent of Little Germany's floor
area was vacant—although most buildings were in use
as the vacant space was concentrated into the largest
buildings.
In March 1982, much of Little Germany was declared
a commercial improvement area to improve the
appearance of old industrial and commercial properties
in the inner cities for those who work, live, visit and pass
through them…to help improve the image of the city and
district'. In 1985, the LPA and the English Tourist Board
felt that a more pro-active approach, going further than
traditional physical planning, was needed. They
commissioned URBED to produce a strategic direction
for the revitalisation of Little Germany. A new public open
space was created in Festival Square, and a Little
Germany Festival was inaugurated in 1986. Further
initiatives in the late 1980s included a considerable
extension of the environmental improvements,
particularly to pavement and street surfaces, and
including new street furniture. Central government grant
aid for the repair and restoration of various properties
was offered: the LPA's commercial improvement area
and sites and premises schemes both
