St Mary's Island Masterplan

We were appointed to review the original masterplan, with a vision to create good quality, sustainable living for the local community. Addressing typical restraints associated with a waterfront area, whilst also linking to the wider context of surrounding areas, increasing legibility and providing a sense of place and identity.

We established a masterplan that was capable of flexing with changing needs and requirements across each plot or 'sector'. The layout of the masterplan was designed to maximise the waterfront views and includes viewing corridors serving as vistas to the Marina and River Medway.

The identified dominant site themes were the central landscaped bunds, which was to act as the "spine" of the development, the loop of the highway system, pedestrian network, hierarchy of green open space and the location of the homes for best access to community facilities.

We prioritised pedestrians and cyclists, establishing a pattern of movement around the masterplan which minimised car dependency. The inclusion of home zones assist in traffic calming without the need to use physical features, improving the safety of pedestrians and cyclists without compromising on the design code.

We developed three character areas to create cohesion between each sector through the relationship between the buildings and the streets, the building styles, different densities and heights as well as materials and landscaping. Zone one (riverside maritime) covered sectors 7,8,9 and 13, zone two (upnor view) was sector 15 whereas sector 11 was covered by zone three (dockside).