Harton Quay Park

Client & Design Award

Project Team
Client: South Tyneside Council & Homes and Communities Agency
Designer: Grant Associates & Mott MacDonald

The Project
Harton Quays Park is the £2.3 million waterfront park in South Shields designed by landscape architects Grant Associates for South Tyneside Council. Scheduled for completion in May 2013, Harton Quays Park will stretch along the River Tyne from South Shields ferry landing to the Customs House. The park will feature curved embankments, an amphitheatre, lawns and colourful planting, a promenade, sheltered gardens and a dramatic pine grove viewing point. A curved ribbon wall made up of 144 precast concrete panels is just one of the key features of the new scheme.

The Park is part of a wider regeneration master plan for South Shields Riverside, jointly funded by South Tyneside Council and the Homes and Communities Agency. The CEEQUAL accreditation was a specified requirement made by South Tyneside Council, happily undertaken by Grant Associates who are committed to integrating sustainability into the landscape

The incorporation of a Sustainable Urban Drainage System (SUDs) channel scored well in the CEEQUAL Assessment as it improved both the water quality and the amenity of the area. Improving the amenity of the area subsequently resulted in the public using the park and making it a destination.

The CEEQUAL Assessment also helped to ensure key public and stakeholder engagement. The consultancy has been involved on the wider South Shields Riverside Regeneration Scheme for over five years, advising on sustainable development principles which have become an integral part of the first key phase of public realm works.

CEEQUAL helped provide a comprehensive sustainability framework to guide the design of the project, helping to symbolise the boroughs vision of regeneration. CEEQUAL reiterated the need to use recycled material, with the development of a reinforced earth design, the project team therefore used more recycled demolition materials, reducing the need for quarried aggregates.

The Park was designed with the aim of providing additional amenity to the area, to offer a cultural focus and spaces for events and with an emphasis on promoting biodiversity. When completed, Harton Quays Park will form a key piece of the on-going regeneration strategy for the area and create an important re-connection of South Shields town centre to the River Tyne.

http://www.archello.com/en/project/harton-quays-park/1028659