"The Woolworths store in Dudley High Street in 2004."
"Winter sale in Dudley High street during a cold January in 1958."
Building Deterioration
There was a familiar aesthetic regarding the buildings during the initial site visit to Dudley High Street. However, a large proportion of the façades that look onto the street have noticeable damage, graffiti or structural issues.
With that said, these images (right) are an insight into some of the damage. If the local authorities saw the high street as a priority, then damages and aesthetics would have been resolved and fixed. However, as there are multiple damages, this assumes that this high street is not one authority wish to preserve.
That said, this opens an opportunity. Instead of being a conservationist and repairing these buildings to their former glory, why not make them a statement piece within the high street. Possibly by placing a blanket ban on all of the current materials seen on the street. Instead, any repairs must be in Zero carbon / Carbon negative materials. This could then become an educational street with great architectural character. Both combined may increase the high streets footfall.
The first step would be to highlight any listed buildings or monuments within the high street.
The top edge on the Duncan Edwards Memorial statue in the market square. What you're looking at is fossilised sea life of a good million + years ago.
"A tram travels along Wolverhampton Street in Dudley.."
We initially collaged together all the facade images taken and then annotated them with further reference to key areas. The right hand side looking at materiality, street furniture and observations of people. The
left hand side looks at observing some of the most dominant features - the traffic, shopping centre and busy public market in the centre.
The Spiers home furnishing store in Dudley High Street in April 1970 - "Plans to demolish the Spiers home furnishing store in Dudley High Street were met with opposition in April 1970, with campaigners voicing fears the town would become subject to rectangular uniformity and called for the building to be preserved."
A timely reminder of our times with COVID. Almost 100 years ago this gravestone is in St Edmond’s (bottom church) it’s a fine reminder that respiratory illnesses have alway been with us. It reads;-
In memory of Mordecai, son of Meredith &Tamar Ingam, who died Jan 10 1823, in the 19th year of his age. ‘Apple consumption gave the fatal blow,The stroke was certain tho’ the effect was slow,With ling’ring pain Heaven saw me sore oppressed, Pitied my sighs and kindly gave me rest’.
Not the stonemason’s error on the 19 of his age, or was it 29?
There is a clear presence representing Dudley with the bold red ‘Bostin’ sign at ground level. Chosen for its cantilever first and the second floor, this building could be adapted to have an external space. Also, there is a slight ‘hotel Fouquet barrière’ about the facade as its bricked-up windows represent change over time.
"Dudley High Street, pictured in the mid 1980s when Cooks department store was a major focus of the town."
"The interior of William Granage cake shop and cafe in Dudley High Street, taken in 1912."
Materials analysis 2.pdf
Material analysis
"The new market in Dudley market place in 1983 had a little more aisle space between the stalls, making shopping easier for customers. The market had just reopened after three months spent in Stone Street while it was refurbished. Traditionalists had bitterly attacked the replacing of wooden stalls with metal and the removal of the old-fashioned cobbles. This was taken on May 15, 1983."
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Dudley market had had very few black traders this is Pitshuo is from Congo and her business is RPA fabrics and hair. She has journeyed from Congo to Dudley high street.
"Dudley High Street, viewed from the recently-pedestrianised market place, as it looked in May 1985."
"Dudley Market Place looking west in 1955."
Here's some stuff in a locked yard (that just happened to be open) down Wolverhampton Street. There are what look like two chapels in there.
"Dudley Market Place, pictured here in the early 1980s, with the Trueform shoe shop being rebuilt."
"Dudley Market Place where archaeologists found the foundations of old market buildings while preparing for the redevelopment of the area in April 2014."
Dudley Market pictured in May 1982
With the current High Street, there is very little to entice people to spend their time there.
"Dudley's Edwardian Market Place pictured around 1905."
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Ryan is the owner of Slick Barbers he was born and grew up in Dudley and has been a long standing black business owner on Dudley High Street. He opened his shop when he was in his late teens and continues to be a role model in Dudley's Black community.
"Four Debenhams staff with 100-years service between them were bidding a fond farewell as the store in Dudley High Street closed for the last time in January 1981. Manager Douglas Spalding, who was with the company for 26 years, was photographed with Nancy Robinson, Kathleen Jackson and Marion Sutton."
Spiders web
Making a new home on the high street with the perfect view
Creating a stronger connecting between the current food spaces by:
- Pedestrianising the road with a grassland
- Utilising abandoned building for education centres and community farming.
Linked to the Food Hub is an education centre sharing information on edible insects and Dudley’s biodiversity. Also offers insect cooking lessons to the local community and schools.
Immersed within the grassland is areas where existing buildings can extend out onto the street to create a stronger bond with new sustainable environment.
Redesigning the Market Place with more levels of outdoor seating to create a new experience and environment of eating food on the High Street.
Gardening and insect farming spaces integrated within the buildings. By bringing all the food production onto the High Street will help reduce food waste and also offer fresh produce to the locals.
Glasshouse existing elevations
Flower for the High Street
Pick up your flowers on the way home
This graffiti image is on the wall at ACCN- Dudley African Caribbean Network, I would like to know how and when this was created. One Love is a reference to a Bob Marley song and is written in the image.
"The days were numbered for these historic buildings when this picture of Dudley High Street was taken in November 1970. A public inquiry was being held to decide whether five listed buildings in the street could be demolished to make way for the new Trident Centre shopping complex. Permission was granted, and it was discovered during demolition that parts of these buildings dated back to the Middle Ages."
Here are a few pics from some Archeology taking place adjacent to Flood Street. Sadly the fencing wouldn't allow me closer to take better pictures. The excavations show the evidence of former back to back housing, floor tiling laid directly onto the earth, street or yard cobblestones, a coal hole/cellar and possibly a garden path? Then there's a mysterious line of embossed bricks. Tho' not to be seen there'd have been outside WC's. All rather romantic as the past is often portrayed but such housing tended to create insanitary conditions with rising damp, open indoor fires & lack of ventilation.
"Dudley High Street in the early 1900s."
First collage mock-up of one side of the highstreet
Dudley Vernacular
"Dudley High Street looking towards Lower High Street and Bottom Church in September 1983."
"Owner Alan Caswell outside the Arcade Toy Shop in the Fountain Arcade in July 2011."
The image shows what this space could look like as a productive landscape. Where all the space is used. Vertical growing space can be utilised for pollinators for heights out of human range and for fruit and herbs in the lower regions that lie within our grasp. Trees can provide shelter, pollen and fruit, as can shrubs.
"The Co-operative store at the top of Dudley High Street in 1969"
High street facade colour palette
Street scale patchwork
Investigating Facade Damage will highlight where the repair needs to be undertaken.
It is creating an irregular pattern of repair that evolves.
Only intervene when necessary; this proposal will not ‘repair what does not need fixing’ as it appreciates there could be a negative effect on an already declining high street.
Repairs will be constructed with the materials grown on the street as part of the Macro-scale intervention.
A bowl of nature
Nature's cereal, only to be consumed by wildlife.
Street plant sightings
The charted planting is a selection of the current extent of the high street. As discovered, the area has little to no variance, with the exception of the more developed properties at either end of the high street. These properties generally have more trees and mature planting around them, making them more appreciative of the biodiversity.
Facing the high street, there is approximately 2690m2 of greenery, the majority of which is situated at either end, on the property of the two churches. Ignoring these numbers, the area of greenery drops significantly due to the limited overgrowth around lampposts, bins and along the store fronts.
For the wider biodiversity of the high street the select amount greenery provides very little benefit for nesting wildlife. Within the developed properties more thought and appreciation can be given to accommodate a more diverse spread of wildlife and planting. Along the high street there is little consideration for interactions with the wider biodiversity, a few trees (provided by the council) and strip of high level planting along a store front.
As for the rest of the ‘greenery’ along the high street, this could be seen more as neglect from the cleaning and maintenance of the street. The remaining biodiversity identified comes from areas that have retained water from lack of drainage and moisture retention. Seen around the street furniture, grass, weeds and moss can be seen growing along the gaps between paviers and along gutters. Despite being ‘greenery’ these areas provide no benefit to the biodiversity and are more of a sign that the council have no intention to improve the state of the area.
Within the developed quarters, the majority of the biodiversity is grassland, which too only has a limited positive environmental impact. The two churches provide an excellent coverage of their respective sights and can provide a good quality of air and absorption of CO2 due to the large number of trees and bushes . Whilst the grasslands are a welcoming sight, they play a very little roll in absorbing CO2 and to provide other positive environmental impacts that the larger greenery does.
"Ted North ran his Black Country Bakes traditional baked potato business in Dudley High Street for decades.This is his potato baker stall in 1982."
Explore The History Of Site Voids - This will provide an opportunity to reimplement these to allow vertical green corridors to occur.
Explore Vacant Buildings - To avoid damaging an already deteriorating high street, I aim only to take over vacant plots.
Investigate the opportunity for Miyawaki planting - understand the conditions required to grow a sustainable material source on-site, including ground, water, and space conditions.
It takes over a building that leads directly to an open space where a community hub is the centre of the thesis, offering education, community engagement and material celebration.
This building has been chosen due to the clear retrofit it has already undergone. The building has two halves, a modern function on street level with roller shutter doors. These doors seem very out of place as they are not shy in hiding their presence. Then the top half is traditional stone and mortar with some elements of detailing around the windows. I wonder what the addition would look like with the zero- carbon material repair pallet.
"Locals would pop into The Hen and Chickens Hotel for a quick pint and a chat in December 1982. The popular watering hole dominated the corner of New Street and Castle Street in Dudley Market Place."
This building has been picked because it is significant as it represents the language slang used in the local area. Not only that, the facade clearly looks worn and requires repair throughout. This is the best place to start as the locals would easily refer to it via slang. So when spreading the news of repair, people would instantly know which building it is.
"Hanson's Brewery at the top of Dudley High Street, pictured here in November 1991, shortly before it closed. An Asda supermarket now stands on the site."
Dudley young people of black ethnicity worked together to put on a Fashion Talent and History show to celebrate Black heritage and fashion for Jamaican Independence day 2021. This show took place at the African Caribbean Centre in Dudley.