Housing.
The village consists of unique mix of housing tenures. There are houses and apartments for sale, as well as some available to part-rent, part buy under a shared ownership scheme.
The apartments with balconies range from 4 to 12 storeys high, some fronting on to the lake and some over look the views down the river Thames.
All homes have the benefit of lighting systems, integrated security, and heating and communication systems.
All houses are linked through an IT network as well as cabling systems for information.
Over 250 home have been sold to date, with further 420 currently under construction. The completed and occupied homes are in phase 1 and 2 of the village (Fig 2.1 and 2.2).
Greenwich millennium is home to a wide variety of different people-a rang of income levels and people from different ethnic groups.
Overall I think that the village offers new opportunities for a higher quality of life for all its residents.
What shops and services are available on the Greenwich peninsula?
To show what shops and services are available on the Greenwich peninsula we took pictures of some shops and services available there.
Type of services found.
The Greenwich peninsula has been planned to consist different kinds of leisure and shopping facilities.
The holiday Inn hotel is the closest hotel to the dome (Fig 2.3). The hotel gives the Greenwich people access to the facilities of first class hotel and restaurant. It also provides accommodation for the visitors that Greenwich receives each year.
The peninsula Chinese is the independent restaurant found on the ground floor of the hotel.
The new sainsbury’s store is the first ever-low energy food store in Britain. It serves the people of Greenwich and people from other areas. There is also a star buck’s coffee shop in the store (Fig 2.4).
The multiplex cinema consists of 2,500 seats over four floors. It is designed to serve the people of the Greenwich peninsula and also the visitors (Fig 2.8).
Adjacent to the cinema there are three restaurants – Nandos (Fig 2.5), the Pizza hut (Fig2.6) and Macdonald’² (Fig 2.7).
There are also big warehouses next to the restaurants. The B&Q and Comet (Fig2.9 and 2.10)
Questionnaire survey.
What do people think about the Greenwich peninsula?
We used a questionnaire to ask 10 different people to give us their opinion regarding the shopping facilities that are available there, the transport provision and what effect the friendly development has on them.
From the above graph we can see that most people’s means of travel to the Greenwich area is the use of a private car. More people use the Bus services than the train services to travel to the area. There were also very few people who walked to the area.
From this we can say that the use of a private car is popular around the Greenwich area. The second popular means of transportation used around the area is the bus service, whereas the use of the tube is less popular.
This information may be biased as we only asked people who were in very big super stores. People who go to that kind of super-store are likely to use a car, as it is very hard to carry the goods they buy to the train station or home. Since then the use of private car becomes essential.
From the above graph we can see that it took most people between 10-30 mins to travel to the area.
The number of people who took less than ten minutes to travel to the area are equal to the number of people who took 1 hour +. It only took one person between 30-60 minutes to travel to the area.
From this we can say that it usually takes people between 10-30 minutes to travel to the Greenwich area. This may be due to either the fast and sufficient public transport or the traffic free roads and motorways.
This information might be biased as we only asked people from one particular area, where the means of transportation they used to travel to the area is similar. Therefore the time it took them to get there is likely to be the same.
From this graph we can clearly see most people feel that transport provision available in the Greenwich peninsula is sufficient, but we can also see that there are a number of people who are dissatisfied with the transport provision available.
Overall we can conclude by saying that Greenwich peninsula provides a sufficient transport provision to the people.
The information we got may be biased because of the time of day we asked this question which was from 11.00pm to 1:30pm. If we asked people who use the transport in rush hour we might have found different answers. This is because the efficiency of transportation facilities matters a lot at rush hours, so it makes it easier to judge the efficiency of the facilities.
From the above graph we can see that most people who travelled to the Greenwich area are not residents, but commuters.
The number of people who travelled to the area for shopping are equal to the number of people who are residents in that area, whereas there are no people who came to the area for leisure reasons.
From this we can conclude by saying that the Greenwich peninsula is a residential and shopping area.
The information we got may be biased because of the day we went to the Greenwich peninsula, which was Monday. Monday is a day of work- most people are at work and teenagers are at school. Therefore there are a minimum number of people around leisure areas.
From this graph we can see that the residents of the Greenwich peninsula and the people who come to shop in the area feel that there are adequate shopping facilities in the area. There was only one person who was dissatisfied with the shopping facilities that were available there.
Overall Greenwich peninsula consists of adequate shopping facilities.
This information might be biased, as most people who filled in our questionnaires were not residents. These people may not know the particular needs of the area as well as the local residents do. If we had a chance of asking the local residents we might have had a different response.
From the above graph we can see that most people who filled in our questionnaire were between the age of 26 and 40. There were also some people who were between the age of 18 and 25. Very few people were between the age of 40 and 65. There were no people who were over 65 years old.
The people’s age actually affected the answers we got for our questionnaires. E.G. There were no teenagers who filled in our questionnaires. Teenagers would most likely have a different reason for travelling to the Greenwich area, or they may even use a different means of transportation to travel to the area.
On the other hand some of the Greenwich developments are not sustainable. The Dome cost taxpayers billions of pounds to build, but it made a net loss in billions, which resulted in its closure. The Dome is still losing money due to its closure. To keep the Dome running taxpayers are still paying money for the guards and caretakers (Fig3.1).
The regeneration scheme was not planned in order to benefit the whole Community. The houses built are extremely expensive which cost millions of pounds. It is only the rich people who can afford to buy these houses. The affordable houses available are very few in numbers.
The Greenwich peninsula does not provide sufficient social and cultural needs. We did not see any sign of a secondary school or religious centres such as mosques or churches. There were also no facilities for the disabled people.
Problems with regeneration and sustainability
When considering regenerating a certain run down area there are many issues, which should be taken into account. One of the main issues of regeneration is the high start up cost. The funding might not be available or it may be hard to find someone to invest in run down areas. Using Brownfield sites for developments such as the Greenwich peninsula is more expensive as the land may be polluted and must be cleaned up first.
Before they can start implementing the development plan they should consider some of the following issues.
- How resources should be used. For example using money wise resources, or recycling raw materials.
- How is it going to be beneficial for the whole Community? For example building affordable houses as well as luxurious houses.
- How are they going to make it sustainable? For example not creating too much pollution while developing the area.
Local residents should be relocated to a prepared accommodation elsewhere before starting the development. Dust, air, and noise pollution are the main problems experienced once the regeneration has started. The above problems are the short run problems. In the long run people will be attracted to the area that may result in traffic congestion, pollution of air and noise, littering and the use of more energy resources.
To make the regeneration sustainable they must make sure that resources are being used properly. E.G. they should employ skilled workers who can use the resources efficiently. Good management is also needed. However the cost of hiring skilled workers and a good manager could be quite expensive.
Energy must be used efficiently for sustainability. This may require the use of solar, wind, or tidal energy. This may not be attainable or feasible as the energy sources depend on the location of the area and are not reliable.
The pollution made while developing the area should be kept to its minimum. They should also use recycled raw materials and water. These processes might cost more money in the short run but in the long run they may be worthwhile. Sustainable development must also include the building of affordable flats.
Should other new developments adapt the ideas in place at Greenwich?
Sustainable development leads to an improvement in people's quality of life and standard of living enabling them and the future generation to become better off economically.
The demand for and use of different natural resources continues to grow at an increasingly rapid rate. Therefore there is a need to manage the earth’s resources.
AS explained in page… the Greenwich development is sustainable which fulfils the great need to manage the earth’s resources. Therefore it is important for other new developments to adopt the ideas in place at Greenwich.
Redevelopment in John Harrison way
Buildings under construction
Conclusion.
Overall I think the development of the Greenwich peninsula had been a success except the Millennium Dome, which made a net loss in billions.
The physical and social infrastructure of the area and also the landscaping has been improved.
Through the regeneration scheme a school and a health centre together with recreational areas such as the Multiplex cinema and an ecology park had been established.
The wide variety of shops and services that are available did not exist before the development. For example: -Sainsbury’s, B and Q, and comet. Restaurants include the MacDonald's, pizza hut and Nando’s.
A network of cycle paths and pedestrian routes has been constructed.
The north Greenwich tube station and six bus routes provide links to the surrounding area.
Mixed housing tenures are available for sale, rent or part rent and are energy-efficient. Few affordable houses are also available which the council owns.
The new award winning Sainsbury’s store is the most energy efficient food store in the U.K.
The park land and public open space includes three main areas of award winning park land- the central, southern, Ecology Park and 2.2 Km. of river walkways along the route of the Thames path.
The innovation targets set before the redevelopment started are now more or less reached, but the redevelopment still continues. The completed and occupied homes are in John Harrison way near the lake. Construction is continuing on the John Harrison way near the primary school.
The English partnerships have received a top industry award for its work on the regeneration of the area in 2001.
The environment award recognises commitment to a sustainable redevelopment carried out by the English partnerships. The Greenwich redevelopment clearly is a sustainable one.
The Greenwich peninsula can provide a sustainable blueprint for other urban regeneration programmes.
What do you think it will be like here in 5, 10, 20 year’s time?
In 5 years time the redevelopment will be fully completed. The work, which has recently started on phase 2b, will be completed. This phase comprises 186 homes.
In 10 years time the constructed houses and apartments will be fully occupied. The government is trying to find a use for the Dome, which will benefit the whole society.
When the Dome reopens it will become the centre of leisure and tourist attraction once again. The vast number of visitors will invest their money in local business areas and transportation. This benefits the local business and transportation economically.
The local Government would also make a profit, which can be used to improve local services such as schools, hospitals and so on. However the quality of the environment might be affected.
The roads will become busier than they are currently. The amount of noise pollution, air pollution and littering will also increase with more people living in the area and also more businesses and visitors. This affects the quality of life of people living in that area.
The Millennium Dome
Fig 3.1
Evaluation
Overall the investigation I carried out to see if the Greenwich peninsula had been a successful development went very well.
I used the Internet to research the relevant information on the past history of the Greenwich area and it’² regeneration.
The only criticism I would like to make regarding my work is the methodology I used to collect the data.
The information I got from the data is mostly biased.
If I was to do this coursework again I will plan my methodology to avoid biased information.
For example: - to find out what people think about transport provision available in the area I can ask different peoples’ opinion at different times of the day. E.g. ask twenty people at peak time and another twenty people at off peak time.
I wouldn’t also carry out my survey in one big store like I did first. I would select my questionnaire respondents randomly from different sites.
I would also segment the respondents in their age group and occupation so that I will be able to see how different groups of people’s opinion differ from one another.
I would also carry out personal interviews to see what people think about the development of the area. I would ask them to comment on how successful the development of Greenwich peninsula has been from their point of view and to back up their answers with reasons.
In general the survey I conducted was poorly designed therefore I would design my own questionnaire taking the things that could affect the answers I get into consideration before asking a certain group of people. This would help me get accurate information.
Sphere of influence of Greenwich peninsula
Site one
Site two
To know where people travel from to use the area I recorded where the tax disc was bought for at least ten parked cars at two different sites.
As we can see from fig3.1 Greenwich serves areas other areas outside of Greenwich.
Although Greenwich serves other areas outside of Greenwich it has a small sphere of influence. Most people who traveled to the area are from London, which is not far from Greenwich. E.g. West Ham, Wood Green, and Islington. This is due to the limited services provided by Greenwich. E.g. There was no sign of secondary school, big department stores, churches, Banks and so on.
Geography Coursework by Sophia Sanny
