Prints" by Helen Tookey… within some strata the footprints ofthe animals, birds and humansfrequenting the coast at that time havebeen preserved … The females, oftenaccompanied by children, would haveappeared to be mainly occupied withgathering food, eg shrimps, razor shellsand other seafood. At one site therewas a wild confusion of children'sfootprints as though they had beenmudlarking …

This site is not a Tabula Rasa – ancient and modern memories etched into the land, captured footprints and desire lines, lines of movement. The concept

builds on this notion of walking, purposely or wandering, where the new buildings become an incident rather than a final destination.

Mapping existing and establishing new routes, buildings will be placed, reinforcing desire lines

"...children at play follow un-hindered their

own artistic instincts in drawing or modelling

... The parallel is to be seen in their favourite

winter pastime of building snowmen. These

snowmen stand on the same spots where,

under other circumstances and following the

old method, monuments or fountains might

be expected to be located. Imagine the

open square of a small market town in the

country, covered with deep snow and

crisscrossed by several roads and paths that,

shaped by the traffic, form the natural lines of

communication. Between them are left

irregularly distributed patches untouched by

traffic. On these stand our snowmen,

because the necessary clean snow was to be

found only there“ Camillo Sitte

Formby …’by’ Scandinavian for ‘Homestead’Buildings placed to enclose a space, creating a protected sheltered courtyard

Diagrams Illustrating pathways and buildings

Patience you need and a strong back for digging

razor-clams, wheedling them up with salt and

tugging them out, blind snouts curling. Bored, the

children play catch-me-if-you-can, reeling from

each other's muddy hands, filthy and shrieking

with laughter. Minding the tide and uncertain sky,

sifting for shrimp, you try to keep count: no little

ones lost in the creek or sneaking away to the

hunting.

What you need's eyes in the back of your head.

Like two voices shifting into pitch, our coastline

after four thousand years maps yours. Your fen and

creek are gone, you wouldn't know this fine sand

drifted with pines, but here are your mud-flats,

become lithographic, and here your people: four-

toes, twisted, no use at the hunt; this girl, months-

heavy, inching her way, clawed feet curled hard

into the mud; and the children, quick, unhurried,

knowing themselves alone possessed of the future.

Formby

Meeting place

Spirit of Place

–

horizontal

Gordon Roberts,

"The Lost World of Formby Point"

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The concept demands that the wider site design is part of the development

A Windswept Tree Jesse Stillwater

2018

Standing alone,

a windswept tree

leans downwind;

conspicuously wrought,

naked and bowed

by the grinding

silent forces

at nature's whim

Pathways form two dimensional marks on the

land, articulated in sunlight, impressions into soft

ground or eroded by frequent movement.

Three dimensionally, articulation is created by trees

and grasses, people, movement.

Wind and Waves have sculptured the site to

create an extraordinary beautiful landscape – Fragile,

constantly shifting, protecting, held by grasses, by

trees.

The form of the trees and grasses witness to the

strong winds which sweep across the sea and land.

Shelter sought hunkered down in the dunes and

within the pine plantations.

Local conditions influence all – form, bleached colours, textures, movementIn three dimensions the concept for developing the building form builds on the understanding of the wind

and sea sculpted site. Buildings, will cluster around the Homestead, roof forms reflecting the movement

etched on the site. Roofs sloping into the courtyard, allowing sun access and wind protection. Material

reflecting the bleached natural colours of the site.

Precedent of form and materials

The site enjoys pockets of security and shelter and it is in these places that people, wildlife and fauna collect. These areas are easily identified and become reference points within the landscape. They are supported by trails and eco-corridors and have a hierarchy. These places develop organically and can change and more importantly need little support to exist and flourish

Spirit of Place –

vertical

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The Visitor Journey - site development:

Key to this development is the retention of the ‘loose fit’ character and habitat of the site whilst improving the infra structure in terms of amount, accessibility and safety. Focussing on the existing developed or adjacent areas on the site the strategy includes:

• Removing the loop road from use by the general public . The west carpark is retained for coaches, staff and volunteers, deliveries and for use by blue badge holders. Control will be via signage.

• The car parking layout is extended as shown, organised so not to be too formal, allowing vegetation to colonise. Path ways pick up on existing and suggested new pedestrian routes.

• To the West, the site of the new buildings is pedestrian only area, reducing the conflict with vehicles.

• The buildings are sited largely on the flat site of the area where the road has been removed. An aim is to minimise the impact on the dune landscape.

• Orientated south westerly, mimicking the direction of the wind sculpted site, the buildings cluster around a courtyard with pathways allowing the movement of people from all directions through the space.

• The courtyard spaces offers welcome, shelter, a place for refreshment, toilets and activities.

Coaches, deliveries, staff carpark

carparking

carparking

New Visitor Hub

Proposed Site Layout – enhancing the visitor journey, the visitor hub

becomes an incident along a series of established routes and is not a final destination. This reflects the historic nomadic usage and current activities on the site. The new landscape is designed in a manner consistent with and enhancing the existing dune landscape

Energy and ResourcesCarbon/energy neutral or better with a site wide strategy to collect energy whilst the Visitor Hub focussing on efficiency through orientation, understanding of passive gains, energy retention and the use of materials.COLLECTION – ENERGY GAIN. Solar and wind, can be site wide. The existing depot is ideal. EFFICIENT USE. Mimicking nature to provide similar sheltered spaces to those found on site which protect by moderating air movement, create shelter and capture warmth and light, giving a sense of delight. The energy to support these spaces will be minimal due to a robust approach to the design of the enclosing elements with and emphasis placed on modifying the micro-climate, the design of the enclosing fabric and a robust strategy on waste. Re-use and recycling strategies can manage the collection and use of water and natural waste from the building in use. 90% of energy in building use is heating - Use the sand to capture and store heat for use when needed - Humans and animal waste collected for biomass use, energy for external lighting - Wasted energy from equipment and people

extracted and reused in winter. - The ground harnessed for heating and cooling.

Precedent of form and materials

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Construction and

Materials:Untreated Larch cladding to roofs and walls on super insulated timber frame, triple glazed windows, board decking, natural sand. Colours bleaching in

the wind and sun.

Site Plan.The building is positionedon a south west axis, representing the prevailing wind pattern, allowing good sun access

Isometric

Indicative form

The courtyard shelters from the wind and offers a

protected space in the wide wild landscape.

Routes reflect the free flow on the site

A reference point in the landscape for people and wildlifebecoming a focal point for activity and learning.

Flexibility and AdaptabilityThe buildings and facilities could be phased to reduce initial spend, allowing time for the business to grow. The scheme design aids this approach. During quieter Winter periods, the welcome building and shop could close with that offering placed within the café building, part of the toilet building closed to reduce maintenance. Future needs could be accommodated in buildings which follow this typology of site development.

Phase 1 sees the café

and kitchen building built alongside toilets.The café space could be multi functional, offering café, welcome and retail.

Phase 2 develops

the welcome and

retail, allowing the

café offer

to expand into the

existing spaces.

Phase 3

completes the courtyard with a shelter, staff facilities and storage..

Cost The relationship between site, design, procurement and construction are all important factors and in this

proposal we have considered a variety of options. The solution offered marries the site, outline brief, building footprint, form and construction in an appropriate way. This ensures that capital cost and cost in use are both balanced and efficient. All elements have been considered and our proposal excludes the need for complex structural solutions, expensive materials and complex environmental systems. The substructure is to be determined, but importantly the buildings are light and as restricting uplift will be as important as their dead-load there are a number of options that can be used to alleviate the need for heavy plant. The ’System First’ piling and floor is a proven environmental foundation solution and may be appropriate for this site. The superstructure is designed to offer choice of materials for construction(timber, steel or aluminium frame) and is suitable for either site or factory manufacture allowing flexibility in the procurement process. The total footprint area of the buildings are 550m2 and we suggest a construction cost per square metre allowance of between £2000 and £2250 would ensure that the building is to a standard which would match the Trust’s ambition(£1,100,000 - £1,225,000). The landscaping requirements include creating a flexible managed courtyard space (370m2) which equates to that outlined in the brief and the allowance of £350/m2 would support the provision of an adaptable and exciting space(£129,500). An initial outline cost, based on £/m2 for the buildings and enclosing courtyard is between

£1,229,500 and £1,354,500.

Precedent of form and materials

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