As reported here on 3 June, when the Council commissioned Ironside Farrar’s report on future Design Principles for George Street, it was with a view to restoring the thoroughfare as the pre-eminent jewel in Edinburgh’s architectural crown.
George Street is now intended to become a flexible shopping, business and events space, attracting visitors from across Edinburgh, Scotland and the world.
The Principles spell out a way to simplify the street in favour of pedestrians, to rebalance its layout in ways which rediscover the original elegance, symmetry and beauty of its design.
What, then, could be more natural than chucking in a load of digital advertising hoardings?
That’s the alternative future City of Edinburgh Council’s media partner JC Decaux (JCD) has been mooting, most recently at a public consultation on 28 June. Spurtle was not told about the meeting, but the relevant exhibition boards can be viewed here.
JCD – the world’s ‘number one outdoor advertising company’ – sees its proposals as in line with one of the George Street report’s stated objectives: to promote ‘a key 21st century street offering connections (movement/active travel/digital/smart technology) that allow users to connect to civic infrastructures meeting modern lifestyle and business needs’.
It would do this, it says, by introducing ‘Five new bespoke bus shelters to replace bus stops that were previously on George Street ... [and effect an] overall reduction in the number of bus stops along George Street]’. When Spurtle visited today, we counted five stops on the street, of which only one was a shelter. As well as digital advertisements, the new shelters would include phone charging points and interactive Livetouch screen technology providing bus tracking and tourist information.
JCD would also like to introduce four additional ‘free-standing double sided advertising and community information panels – with the opportunity to present [Council coordinated] local news and information alongside commercial advertising’ and a local business directory.
Three of the panels would be positioned on pavements between Frederick and Castle Streets, one between Castle and Hanover Streets. All the new bus shelters would be between Frederick Street and St Andrew Square, and would be smaller than the one currently in position and those recently installed on Princes Street.
What’s wrong with the plans?
The prospect of being bombarded with CEC-controlled good news stories is gruesome enough, but JCD also propose arty roofs and poetry inscriptions on their bus shelters.
These meaningless folderols look very like attempts to put a cultural gloss on the new structures’ principal function as platforms for profit-making.
Advertising sets out to catch the eye and engage the attention of potential consumers. No amount of dressing can disguise the fact that far from enhancing George Street these intrusive additions would necessarily distract from it.
In a nutshell, overcomplicated bus shelters and unnecessary billboards are commercially driven clutter, something which no amount of community engagement or promises to preserve amenity by turning down the brightness will address.
JCD has unsuccessfully tried to improve George Street in the past (see e.g. 29.12.14; 26.3.15), and these latest proposals are no better.
But there are now concerns among Heritage insiders that this time councillors on the Development Subcommittee may fly in the face of their own Guidance on Advertisements, Sponsorship and City Dressing (see pdf at foot of page) and concede to some or all of the proposals in a misplaced spirit of compromise.
The deadline for responses to the consultation has now passed, but no matter – the point at which objectors need to become active is when JCD comes forward with its next planning application.
Spurtle is watching carefully, and will keep you posted.
Got a view? Tell us at spurtle@hotmail.co.uk and @theSpurtle and Facebook
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@theSpurtle Bye, bye, World Heritage Site?