London Wall Place – Hidden gems

London

Even after years studying and working in London, I had never come across this hidden gem. Now I live in Luxembourg region and during my recent visit to London, I finally discovered London Wall Place – a striking office and public realm development in the City, designed by Make Architects with structural input from Schlaich Bergermann Partner and developed by Brookfield Properties.

What makes this place special in my opinion is how it layers contemporary architecture with Roman and medieval ruins, including parts of the original London Wall and St Alphage Church. Elevated walkways (on a bridge) and gardens reconnect fragmented parts of the City – creating a green pause within steel and glass centre.

Coincidentally (or not), I’ve been reading Collaborative Tools for Community Architecture by Raul Avilla-Royo. And this space feels like a successful example of collaborative urbanism: participatory in spirit, sensitive in form. What struck me most is how it bridges eras, its ability to bring together the historic part of the City, the green ‘island’ among the high-buildings and modern business.

The elevated walkways, the way they look today,is a reminder of how the City looked like in post – war 1960s Pedway Scheme, a bold (if flawed) attempt to separate pedestrians from cars through a system of raised walkways. Back then, much of the City’s heritage ( including the Roman wa Make Architects did an amazing job – London Wall Place shows how far urban design has come: from segregation to integration, from erasure to respect. Today’s biophilic, layered, history-respecting design of this project shows how dramatically urban design priorities have shifted.

Lately, I’ve been noticing how well urbanism is moving towards participatory design, but more on that another time.