start-with-the-park

76 Start with the park
CASE STUDY
Regent’s Park, central London
107 hectares
Plan well ahead
Construction period
1816–26 (although further property development
occurred in the next century)
Background
The area now occupied by the park was once a hunting
ground of Henry VIII. John Nash was asked to draw up
designs by his friend and patron, the Prince Regent.
At the same time he had been instructed to develop
plans for a new street connecting Portland Place
and Charing Cross. Work on the park itself, including
the Regent’s Canal and the boating lake, started in
1816. Over the next 10 years, Nash developed the
fine terraced properties that adjoin the park. The park
has since changed significantly – from a semi-private,
picturesque, semi-rural green park grazed by livestock
to a public park that now includes more formal gardens,
sports pitches and London Zoo.
The architect John Nash developed Regent’s Park
as the centrepiece of an ambitious property venture.
He believed that ‘landowners infinitely prefer living near
open space…a park where there are opportunities
for riding, driving, and walking is an irresistible magnet’.
This park was successful both in raising the value of
adjoining sites and in creating a magnificent, wellconnected
set-piece of urban development.
Planning and design
Nash’s scheme included terraces of housing that
enclosed a roughly circular park, linking in with the major
processional route to Westminster. The park is shaped
by the Inner and Outer Circles and the Broad Walk.
The design is intended to create serially revealed
views of the boating lake and the terraces. The edge
of the park is enclosed and overlooked by an almost
continuous series of terraced houses.
There are areas within the park with a wide range of
different characters, including the secluded and highly
enclosed Inner Circle, the formal planting of the Avenue
Gardens and larger open spaces.
Outcomes
The park is a highly successful green space in the heart
of London, serving a large number of local, metropolitan
and international users. Today it accommodates a huge
range of different uses including sports, theatre, worship,
education, residential buildings and the zoo. The original
Nash terraced housing surrounding the park remains
highly desirable. Around a third of the park’s expenditure
is funded directly by income generated by commercial
concessions, licences and rents.
Lessons learnt
• A well-designed and well-managed park can form
the centrepiece of a successful residential area
• Well-designed buildings of an appropriate scale
can form a spectacular backdrop that enhances
the experience of a park as a green space within
a fine urban context
• The role and success of a park also rely on
its connection to other green spaces and
well-connected routes.