A hole in Exeter’s heart
20th November 2016
Media coverage of the fire that destroyed a large and historically important part of a central Exeter block was widespread. The Royal Clarence Hotel was all but destroyed by the fire that raged through several properties and took an enormous fire team days to control. The Clarence is thought to be the first hotel in the country; it and adjacent buildings were Listed and included much fabric of historic value, including mediaeval parts. Local press coverage was continuous, with more [...]
Housing
11th November 2016
As figures emerge from the government that the rate of new home-building is falling behind their target of 1,000,000 by 2020, the CPRE offers an interesting take on the hidden potential of brown-field sites across the UK. They claim in their press release here that there is sufficient brown-field land available to meet a significant proportion of that target. This would certainly remain a favoured direction for development, densifying existing urban areas and using infrastructure already in place, [...]
Inspiring sustainable community action
7th November 2016
Take 15 minutes to be inspired here by Cormac Russell’s frank plea to ‘shift the focus from what’s wrong to what’s strong’. He’s encouraging a pro-active and positive approach to sustainable community development, working closely with communities to build on their strengths and help them respond and develop in ways that are close to their heart, and can be sustained with the support of their inherent skill-sets. In a refreshing and heartfelt talk given at TEDxExeter earlier this [...]