Live with Water, Waterfront Development in Hull

It is all about balancing residential security/quietness and public accessibility to the waterfront

Public domains are Residential domains are closely related yet tactically divided.

Humber Quay West site:

Zoning: This master planning features closely related yet tactically segregated two main zones: residential and publicly accessible areas.

Waterfront apartment blocks with ground and roof level commercial spaces;
Townhouses blocks with semi-private commune gardens with ground floor under-croft parking

It is also proposed to set up security control lines (one way accessible for the residents) between the commercial/public accessible water front area and the quiet high-quality residential development.

Traffic:

Vehicle: a back-bone road linking brunch private roads to townhouse block under-croft parking and flat blocks under-croft parking, this is to eliminate surface parking to provide a high quality residential zone.
Pedestrian: Both waterfront pedestrian areas and rooftop skywalks are linked on the west to the trans-Pennine trail on the east to the existing office area plazas, footpath, with a preferred footbridge over the retained access link to the industrial part of Albert Docks. The skywalk is expected to add value to the apartment block roofs overlooking the estuary/dockyards, articulating a serial of cafetières along the path.

Landscape: Along with the central 5m one-way road, there are three-point landscape key areas: two entrance gardens, one core landscaped area featuring one ground level playground and a planted roof over parking.

On the waterfront, paved hard-landscape form a part of continued Trans Pennine Trial and dock land further ahead, however it is suggested to use moveable plant/tree-ports /flowerbeds to soften this zone whilst stilling catering for flood defence.

Architecture: Townhouse block: a new type of closely related houses with higher level shared commune gardens that is protected from city traffic and wintery wind. This unified sectional strategy applied in various building lengths, typologically varying roof massing and material claddings, to offer modest level of variation and diversity over similar spatial strategy. Townhouse blocks apply ‘warmer’ texture in cladding.

Cladded in ‘cooler’ materials, the liner shaped apartment blocks are tapered both on roofline and ground-touching areas, while the buildings have very different expressions towards the low-rise houses and the waterfront.

Economics:

Number of townhouses: 60 Number of flats/apartment units: 75

GFA of ground commercial/retail/restaurants/bars: 1800sqm

GFA of Roof-top sky-walk cafés: 600sqm

GFA of ground parking: 1700sqm (under-croft of flats or roof-planted)

Arena site:

Echoing the square shaped site boundary, a cruciform landscaped core subdivides the development into four smaller scale neighbourhood with secured commune gardens in the back, possibly for urban agriculture horticulture. With most of the front gardens facing the streets, the development is pro-urban while still enjoying a high level of privacy and security.

Above similar repetitive block footprints, a modest level of variation and diversity are delivered using different roof massing and external claddings.

To achieve a comfortable setback from the surrounding roads and fences, Perimeter parking over grass-crete is proposed, which is linked by a 4m one-way outer ring road. This can best secure a safer pedestrian and landscaped area, which is centred by a children playground.

existing through-site public access right of ways is also retained by the landscape strategy.

Number of houses: 66