How will the town and city centres of our future look?

When we think about what our town and city centres should look like in 20 or 30 years’ time, what do we see? 

Lots of green space and trees, for one. Social inclusivity, so that people from all backgrounds can go there and spend time – this would mean installing public services access points in city centres so that people have a reason to go there other than to shop. 

Any new buildings should be built up to the highest environmental standards, and include energy-saving technologies such as shared power generation and storage. Local businesses should be supported, not just national or international chains. 

In Nottingham, the Broadmarsh Shopping Centre was in the middle of being demolished, ready to be replaced by a more modern shopping and entertainment centre, when the developer, Intu, went out of business, leaving a half-destroyed building. 18 months later, it was still standing. 

A petition was quickly started to turn the Broadmarsh land into a park, following the example set by towns such as Stockton-on-Tees. A public consultation by the council reflected wide support for a green space, with about 10,000 people giving their support to the idea on social media. Nottingham Green Party submitted a proposal to the council jointly with the Nottingham Lib Dems, designed by a local architecture graduate. 

Joining forces with the local Wildlife Trust, Nottingham Good Food Partnership and Nottingham Co-Housing, the two political parties campaigned for a truly nature-friendly and sustainable plan for the site. Together, the five organisations asked for at least 70 per cent of the land area to be devoted to nature, as well as insurance that all buildings would comply with the UK Green Building Council Framework, achieving net-zero carbon impact. The Nottingham Greens called for the redevelopment to address needs such as food security and social inclusion. 

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