RIBA Journal Future High Streets competition winner

We are thrilled that our Dover Midtown proposal has won the RIBA Journal Future High Streets competition! The competition was established to seek ideas on re-imagining the high street for the future. And, how to tackle the myriad of issues facing high streets across the country: loss of footfall, less of a dependency on retail space, competition from the internet, changing shopping habits brought on by a slow economy and the need to address the climate emergency.  

Artist’s impression of the cross laminated timber and chalk buildings along the river

Using the Midtown area of Dover, our proposal sought to create a network of interlocking public buildings and spaces - linked by green walking and cycling routes, and punctuated with ‘anchor’ activities: a community art gallery, a flexible workspace building, a reinvigorated town hall and a civic centre.  

A key element was the naturalising of the river Dour, once an important route from the coast, now a somewhat hidden and undervalued asset. The naturalised river sits at the centre of a new park which provides much needed ecological value to the town centre, whilst freeing up land in the flood plain for residential development.