Chapter 2
Master Planning

Miles Keeping1, David Shiers2 and Malcolm Smith3

1Hillbreak Ltd, Buckinghamshire, HP18 9TH, UK

2Oxford Brookes University,, School of the Built Environment, Oxford, OX3 0BP, UK

3Arup Associates, London, W1T 4BQ, UK

Master planning is the generation of an overall development concept which incorporates the present and future use of land and buildings in a particular location. A master plan can be required for almost any scheme, ranging in scale from entire cities and 'New Towns' to development zones, business parks, city blocks or even a single site.

Master planning is needed for projects where:

• regeneration or urban growth is required
• new settlements are proposed
• there are multiple developers or landowners who require a coordinated, integrated development strategy
• a future major event is to take place which can be a catalyst for regeneration (such as the 2012 London Olympics)
• there is a need to protect assets such as Conservation Areas, National Parks, Environmentally Sensitive sites or Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty
• there are complex issues between developers or landowners
• neighbourhood development has to be carefully managed for economic, social, conservation or community infrastructure reasons

An understanding of place is critical in the development of a successful master plan if it is to create a clear, consistent and sustainable framework for development and one which can respond to future changes in use requirements and the local environment.

See PAN 83; Planning Advice Note on Master Planning:

1. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/11/10114526/2

Master plans can be devised by Urban Designers, Town and Transport Planners and Architects; usually in collaboration with a developer and in consultation with Local, Regional or National government, local businesses, community groups and other stakeholders.

The key stages in the development of a master plan normally include:

• Inception - establishing a clear brief of what is required, based on the needs and expectations of the stakeholders (the eventual users and the fundraisers of the project).
• Feasibility - following the appointment of a multi-disciplinary team to ensure that the requirements of the stakeholders are achievable, financially, practically and within the anticipated time frame.
• Design - based on thorough appraisal of the physical, social, environmental and economic constraints and opportunities of the site and through consultation with Local Planning Authorities, communities and business organisations. Detailed proposals are developed which can deliver the necessary architectural, transport, amenity and utility requirements of the project:
• The physical aspects and constraints of the site including the topography, orientation, geographical and features or barriers such as rivers, rail and road networks and existing buildings must be taken into account in the initial phases of the design alongside any legal or planning restrictions.
• Existing and possible proposed routes giving access to and from the development area are often the first master-planning issues to be addressed. Whether the context is urban or rural, pedestrian and road traffic access and circulation is of critical importance. It is the location of these routes which will provide the framework for development. In many schemes, it is along the principal routes to, from and across the site that the most significant buildings or features of the scheme are located. In some projects, the most important access roads are also given special visual importance by the creation of significant vistas and architectural or landscaping features.

In the typical master plan shown on the website below, the existing physical features of the site have informed the master planning of the scheme. Adopting formal, rectilinear road patterns on those parts of the site near existing city blocks (top left), the proposed road layout changes to respond to the curve of river and the existing main road at the bottom of the plan and to give a softer, more 'organic' edge to the river frontage, park, and landscaped lake.

1. Ibid. http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/11/10114526/2.

The route leading to the footbridge across the river has been given special significance by making it tree-lined and running it across the entire site to link the town, the new development, the riverside path, river view and an existing park. The main access road to the scheme is at the bottom of the plan, designed to take the visitor directly to the main public realm features of this project - the ornamental lake, parkland and stream.

• In parallel with the development of an access and circulation strategy, 'zoning' and architectural design issues are normally addressed. Building use types (i.e. residential, commercial, industrial, etc.) are strategically located within the scheme and such issues as building heights, densities, massing and architectural style and types of materials are considered.

Regeneration - Master Planning in the Existing City

An example of how areas within an existing city are zoned for specific uses can be seen in the spatial master plan developed by the City of Bath as it sought to develop its Western Riverside area - a site with significant architectural heritage and conservation challenges and constraints (http://www.bathnes.gov.uk/sites/default/files/sitedocuments/Planning-and-Building-Control/Planning-Policy/SPDs/BWRSPD-Part2SpatialMasterplanPlan2-1to2-4.pdf).

On the plan 2.3, page 21, in the City of Bath, Western Riverside Area Summary Masterplan, the relationship between key pedestrian routes (shown by red dots), the three main vehicle access points (red circle/white arrow) public realm leisure/cultural activity areas (blue dotted circles), architectural landmarks (white star on purple background), proposed uses on the site (residential, retail/offices/leisure mixed use and the new offices for Wessex Water) are shown on this zoning diagram. Note how the proposed landmarks and public realm areas are located on the access and transit points and along the 'prime' river frontage in order to draw people to the site.

Property developers are always keen to get the most out of the land and buildings they own and measure this in terms of financial return. In order to maximise this, they will seek to ensure that any emerging local planning policy is favourable to development potential they may perceive and work with local planning authorities to try to achieve as successful a planning approval as possible. Within that context, developers will seek to derive as much utility from their sites as possible whilst recognising that providing a mixture of property uses and high-quality public realm is often likely to improve overall performance of a development scheme. It is for this reason that leading developers have policies which seek to provide for the amenity of residents and local workforces, a good example being British Land's "Places People Prefer" approach (http://www.britishland.com/; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbgGVLrcdqs):

High-quality schemes such as British Land's Regents Place and Paddington Basin provide excellent examples of a mix of office, retail and leisure uses on urban sites.

On the City Core master plan for the Curzon Street neighbourhood of the City of Birmingham (http://bigcityplan.birmingham.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/Big-City-Plan-Part-2.pdf - pages 36 & 37):

1. the designers propose new public realm open spaces for theatre and exhibitions etc. at the edges of the site (see plan at locations 7, 9, 10, 15-17) and improved public squares to provide retail and restaurants within the existing city blocks at the heart of the scheme (at 1, 4, 5, 11-13). Both devices are intended to attract visitors and to generate vibrant and commercially viable neighbourhoods.

Primary and local walking routes (shown in green and black dotted lines) are also identified on this plan, showing main access ways to and across the site as well as linking important transport hubs (Metro stops and rail stations). Identifying principle walking routes is important in identifying potential retail use along thoroughfares with good footfall and well-known retailers and restaurateurs can also be used as a magnet to draw people to parts of a scheme which might otherwise remain peripheral. The existing city blocks are shown in white and whilst others have been earmarked for regeneration (orange) or new development (pale blue). Improvements to some of the surrounding roads including making them less of a barrier to pedestrian access are shown in red.

Throughout the master plan, architectural massing, height, style and materials of proposed buildings as well as the design of public squares and thoroughfares, landscaping and street furniture are shown using CGI and...