Planning and Architecture
The Regeneration of Oatlands is proceeding in accordance with a detailed Action Plan and Design Guide, produced by Glasgow City Council’s Development & Regeneration Services after extensive local consultation. The document was given a full Award by the Scottish Executive/RTPI as part of the Scottish Awards for Quality in Planning, 2002 - the judges were particularly impressed by the plan’s emphasis on urban design quality. The Royal Fine Art Commission for Scotland also commended the brief's recognition of this vital aspect, while the Glasgow Institute of Architects was “greatly heartened by its very positive attitude and determination”. And the urban design approach is endorsed in the Scottish Executive’s Planning Advice Note 67 on Housing Quality. All development partners are therefore aware of the need to satisfy high expectations.
The Action Plan/Design Guide contains a ‘Test Map’ which was prepared by the Project Manager to demonstrate the practicability of the planning guidelines contained elsewhere in the document and which confirmed the housing capacity of the site.
The Test Map was also used as the basis for a scale model which demonstrated the proposals to local people in a more ‘user-friendly’ way.
As required by the Oatlands Action Plan and Design Guide, the basic principle of the development form is to integrate the bulk of the housing with Richmond Park by diverting Rutherglen Road (A730) to the southern edge of the site. The layout recognises the following basic principles of urban design which accord with the Scottish Government's policy statement, 'Designing Places':
- ‘Permeability’ – through routes for walkers and cyclists
- Buildings facing streets/roads to improve supervision and security
- Parking at the front wherever possible to ensure security and seclusion of back gardens
- A hierarchy of building heights
- A clear distinction between public and private open space
- Avoidance of vulnerable, unsupervised, left-over areas of open space
- Inclusion of street trees and high quality ‘streetscape’.
In addition, a distinctive architectural approach, based on Scottish tradition, is advocated.
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