NEW masterplanning

NEW Masterplanning was appointed by Torbay Council and Torbay Economic Development Company to produce a site vision and masterplan for the phase 2 development at Great Parks, Paignton. The phase 2 site comprises approximately 11 hectares of undeveloped land on higher ground on the western edge of Paignton, approximately 2km from the town centre.

In March 2013, an ‘Enquiry-by-Design’ (EbD) event was held over 3 days, attended by over 100 local residents, Councillors, Torbay Council officers, landowners, statutory agencies and other key stakeholders. It enabled key decisions to be made openly during the process and a level of mutual understanding and trust to be established between key parties. A continuous and intensive event encouraged a more collaborative design process with a greater sense of ownership.

The EbD Vision for Great Parks phase 2 responds positively to the site and surrounding area to provide a framework to deliver a high quality environment for new homes and community facilities with improved connections and access to green space. The masterplan provides more certainty on the development potential of the site and assists the landowners to establish new agreements to address historical legal issues which have previously constrained phase 2 coming forward.

The Torbay Design Review Panel praised the masterplan process, stating ‘the careful engagement with residents and other stakeholders that has been a feature of the project thus far and the EbD appears to have made a great deal of progress in establishing the basic principles of the development’.