Lawnmarket Temporary Urban Gardens
Project Brief
Contents
1. Project requirements
p2
2. Background to the project
p5
3. Design aspiration
p7
4. Appendices
i.
Site location and dimensions
p11
ii.
Urban garden examples
p12
iii.
‘Starter for 10’ design
p17
Page 1 of 17
1
Project requirements
What we want from you
We are looking for a professional team to undertake the design and delivery of two
temporary ‘urban gardens’, to be situated in the Lawnmarket for one year (see
design aspiration for more details).
We anticipate that the team would be likely to be led by a landscape architect,
though would also consider bids from teams led by architects or urban designers.
However it is led, the team should include expertise in landscape design, public
realm, architecture, and engineering. There may also be a role for lighting
designer(s) and artist(s), and bids should indicate who you would bring in to perform
those roles should they be required.
Project programming
The project is to be delivered in two parts. Bids should include separate financial
breakdowns for each part. The following sets these out in the context of RIAS/LI
stages.
Part 1: Design (RIAS stages C-E / LI stages E-G)

The design team will liaise with the selection panel to develop and refine
detailed design and construction drawings. The selection panel will consist of
a range of Council officers representing relevant services, plus key external
parties.

It is anticipated that there will be 3-4 client meetings to discuss design
developments. One of the members of the selection panel will operate as
project contact for communications, arranging meetings, etc.

The design team will be expected to provide costings and manage all
consents, road safety audits, public safety, etc. It is anticipated that the
structures will need planning permission, but will not need a license to occupy
the road or Traffic Regulation Order.

The design process is likely to include some engagement with the local
community in the form of an exhibition or drop in day (which could be done as
part of a wider project if suitable). Full consultation is not anticipated.

The final design will be agreed by the selection panel.

At the end of the design process, the panel will review the project based on
the funding requirements and will move to part 2 as appropriate.
Part 2: Delivery (RIAS stages F-L / LI stages H-L)

Part two involves managing the construction and delivery on the ground,
including the tender process for manufacture and installation.

Depending on the design detailing, there may be an opportunity to reduce
construction costs through use of the Council’s workshops to construct the
structures.
Page 2 of 17
The winning team will take on full management of both parts, including research,
design creativity, consents, technical knowledge, tendering and managing the
construction.
Budget
The Council has a budget of £35,000 to cover consultants’ fees for the design and
management of the project, as well as construction, installation, planting and
maintenance costs.
The tender process
This will be a single stage tender process to select a preferred partner to deliver
parts 1 and 2 of the project. Tenders will be judged solely on the information you
submit to us.
Tenders will be evaluated by a cross service group of council officers and others with
relevant expertise. The four evaluation criteria will be:

Architectural quality (general)

Architectural experience (relevant to this project)

Meeting the client aspiration/vision (design approach)

Delivery
More detail on the analysis criteria is given in the Award Criteria Questions.
What we want from your tender
We want you to be creative within the budget restraints. Our aspiration is to deliver a
high quality design within our limited budget, which means using low cost materials
and construction techniques to create a high quality outcome that sits well within its
context.
We particularly want to deliver the five ‘core’ requirements of seating, planting,
permeability, activity, and promoting Edinburgh’s literary connections, as illustrated
below (see detailed design aspiration for more information).
Page 3 of 17
Bids should be made on the assumption that both gardens will have a literary theme,
though it should be noted that there may be potential for one to be delivered through
sponsorship and with a different theme.
During the design development stage, the selection panel may consider increasing
the construction budget for the ‘right’ design, and/or the possibility of delivering the
two structures in two separate stages. However, in the current funding climate no
additional funds can be assumed, so the design team’s assumption must be that the
project has to be delivered within the stated cost.
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2.
Background/story of the project
Where the project came from
The urban gardens are a strand of the wider Royal Mile Action Plan, which looks to
achieve improvements to the public realm, management, and retail offer in the Royal
Mile.
The action plan has been developed in conjunction with significant public
consultation: first to identify the areas in which the street is not working as well as it
could, and then later to develop actions that would help to improve it.
The finalised Royal Mile Action Plan was approved in August 2013. Since then, a
cross-service project team has been working to cost, programme and work out the
next steps for the priority projects in the action plan.
One of these priorities is to make the Lawnmarket a more pedestrian-friendly place,
through widening pavements, resurfacing the carriageway, and transforming the
loading bays into pedestrian space.
This will be a big and costly project that we do not currently have funding to deliver.
In the meantime it is intended to deliver a low cost temporary project that will utilise
part of the loading bays as pedestrian space.
What we want to achieve
The aspirations for the temporary project are:
1. To improve the quality of the pedestrian environment in the Lawnmarket,
through creating seating, planting and permeability.
2. To act as a showcase for the way the space will be improved for pedestrians
in the longer-term permanent proposals.
3. To be used as a learning tool to identify what works and what doesn’t, so that
the final permanent project represents the best possible solution for the
Lawnmarket.
4. To reflect Edinburgh’s literary connections, as well as providing navigation
from the Lawnmarket to other key parts of the Royal Mile and locality.
Project development
The project team has undertaken detailed preparatory work, including:

Identifying a location and site boundaries for the urban gardens that will
enable part of the loading bays to continue functioning as bus stops, and
which will avoid the need for a Traffic Regulation Order.

Research into precedent projects, predominantly in the USA, where the
‘parklet’ movement has gained real momentum. This project is not a full
replica of the parklet concept, but it is very comparable. The design brief
contains a number of images of existing ‘parklets’ and links to two useful
documents that contain technical guidance on designing and delivering
parklets.
Page 5 of 17

Sourcing detailed topographical drawings of the site. These are available on
request, though unfortunately we only have them in PDF or paper form (no
CAD drawings).

Developing a detailed design brief which includes design and technical
requirements.

Researching potential routes for reducing costs, including making temporary
use of materials such as paving slabs and commissioning the Council’s
workshop at Inverleith to carry out the construction.

Liaising with a local design student to develop some initial design ideas that
respond to the brief. This identified a couple of key themes that we wish to
see brought forward in the design process:
o Utilising the urban gardens as a focus point/promotion for the city’s
vast literary heritage. One of the ideas we wish to explore is the
potential for a book swap/mini library.
o Potential for the urban gardens to have elements that are both
sculptural/artistic and practical, for example through utilising the barrier
as a schematic section through the Royal Mile, which would provide
walking times to various places of interest.
Image © Ross White, ECA Landscape Architecture student
Note that these initial design ideas are not intended to be a constraint or base
for future designs, although elements could be incorporated into your design
approach if you wished.
Page 6 of 17
3.
Design aspiration
The issue
The Lawnmarket is one of Edinburgh’s most important historic streets, right in the
centre of the World Heritage Site, and on key pedestrian routes through the city. As
well as historic buildings, the street has shops, eateries, and attractions, some of
which occupy part of the pavement with tables and chairs or goods for sale. The
street is also a vehicular through route with bus stops, and the large loading bays
along either side of the carriageway are often used as waiting places for tour buses.
The street has an exceptionally high footfall, particularly during the summer months,
and the street has a busy and vibrant atmosphere.
However, the range of activities and people mean that the pavements are not always
wide enough to accommodate the large volume of pedestrians. This also prevents
people having the opportunity to stop and look around, and actually take in their
environment. Additionally, despite the relatively low levels of traffic the loading bays
mean that around two thirds of the area is given over to vehicles and buses often
wait for significant periods in the loading bays. This creates the perception of an area
that is tailored to vehicles rather than people.
Proposed solution
The purpose of the project is to temporarily convert part of the Lawnmarket loading
bays into two ‘urban gardens’.
The urban gardens will be in place for one year, from spring 2015, and will help to
inform future permanent changes to the street.
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We are looking for creative and innovative designs that allow us to create high
quality and high impact spaces on a tight budget.
The site
The urban gardens will be sited within the existing loading bays, adjacent to the
George IV Bridge junction. The remainder of the loading bays will continue to be
used as bus stops. Each platform will be 15m long and the full width of the loading
bays. Further details are available in appendix 1.
Design priorities
The purpose of the urban gardens is to create public spaces that help to mitigate the
problems identified above. We are looking to create flexible spaces that enhance the
appearance of and uses within the public realm. The five design priorities are:
1. Seating to let pedestrians take a rest and to provide a space away from the
busy pavements where people can look around at the Lawnmarket.
2. Attractive structure/spaces/planting that will enhance the appearance of the
historic street.
3. Sufficiently flexible as to allow performance or other activities to happen there.
4. Movement space to help mitigate/reduce pavement crowding in busy months.
5. Celebrate Edinburgh’s wealth of literary interest, both in its aesthetics and in
the creation of space that could be used for events such as book readings.
Appearance
The urban gardens must be more than merely a collection of seats and planters: the
design must respond to its setting including the sloping site, Lawnmarket steps and
historic environs. Planting should be used to ‘soften’ the appearance of the
structures, and to create a feeling of being in a garden or park.
The gardens should complement the streetscape and enhance the appearance of
the area. Overall, the quality of the materials must reflect the World Heritage Site
context.
Page 8 of 17
The two urban gardens do not have to be identical but should use the same design
language and materials.
Operational considerations

Materials
Key requirements are that materials should be hard-wearing and high quality.

Planting
Planting should be sturdy, and should last year round with minimal
maintenance requirements

Cost efficiency
The project has a very tight budget, so the design should consider simple and
cost-efficient forms and construction methods. The design should explore
opportunities to use reclaimed/low cost/borrowed materials (for example, the
potential to create a level base using borrowed paving slabs from the
Council’s warehouse laid on top of the existing setts but not bedded in).

Safety
The urban gardens will be directly next to the carriageway and vehicular
traffic, so the designs must create adequate separation of pedestrians and
traffic. This must be achieved while still integrating the gardens into the wider
streetscape.
If opportunities for pedestrians to cross the road are incorporated into the
design (either informal opportunities through breaks in the barrier, or a more
formal crossing) the design must take road safety and proximity to the
pedestrian crossing at the George IV Bridge junction into account.
Consideration should also be given to ensuring that the surfaces are non slip
and that the structures will be stable and solid.

Site constraints
The site has very complex changes in level (topographical drawings are
included in the design brief package): the designs must create a level surface.
Surface runoff must still be able to flow to the drains under urban gardens.

Accessibility
Consideration should be given as how best to maximise accessibility. There
may be opportunities for utilising the change in levels to create level access
for wheelchairs etc.

Maintenance
Materials and forms should be easy to clean and reduce opportunities for
vandalism, graffiti, etc.
Page 9 of 17
Other aspirations/considerations

Consideration should be given to providing cycle parking, litter bins and
lighting.

There may be opportunities for actively improving pedestrian routes across
the street, as in the parklet example in appendix 3, p10.

There may also be opportunities to incorporate some degree of
orientation/wayfinding information, such as indication of walking times from
the Lawnmarket to local points of interest, as shown in the ‘starter for 10’
designs.
Page 10 of 17
Appendix 1: Site location and dimensions
15m
15m
3.6m
3.6m
4.5m
15m
15m
3.6m
Note that the urban garden sites are not orthogonal: these images show outline
measurements for information purposes only. Accurate measurements should be
taken from the topographical drawings.
Page 11 of 17
Appendix 2: urban garden examples
Image
Notes
Excellent use of
simple materials
to create inviting
spaces.
Low barriers
ensure the space
doesn’t feel too
enclosed or
separated from
the wider area.
A simple and
attractive
timber/planted
structure.
Safety in terms of
traffic movement
is provided by the
separation
created by the low
planter.
Page 12 of 17
Image
Notes
Interesting
response to a
sloped site.
Simple materials
and construction.
Low planters
create separation
and safety from
vehicular traffic.
Simplicity of
materials and
planting, and
quality design and
detailing: creates
an attractive
seating area
which also serves
to slightly widen
the footway.
Page 13 of 17
Image
Notes
Higher planters
with gaps
between: safety
barrier and
permeability.
Timber slats give
the higher barriers
an open feel.
Page 14 of 17
Image
Notes
Changes in level
and separate
areas with
different functions.
Low wide planters
create good
separation.
Very simple
materials and
construction still
creating a high
quality aesthetic
(the rustic
furniture is not so
suitable for the
Lawnmarket site).
Architectural use
of planters and
shapes, and
space in the
middle to allow
pedestrians to
cross the road –
well thought out.
Page 15 of 17
Image
Notes
Using alternative
materials: safety
barrier made of a
metal/wire fence.
The upside: no
visual barrier. The
downside:
complete
movement barrier.
Utilising alternative
materials:
- Gabions: low
costs and
interesting
aesthetic. Turf
on top is visually
appealing and
suitable for
seating.
- Metal planters:
attractive
appearance and
strong/sturdy.
Design for two
gardens
incorporating a
pedestrian crossing
between them:
creates improved
movement space
and increased
pedestrian priority,
as well as planting,
seating and
relaxing space.
Page 16 of 17
Appendix 3: “Starter for 10” designs for the Lawnmarket
Drawings © ECA Landscape Architecture student, Ross White
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