News 03.08.2020

Leeds team ‘highly commended’ in forward-thinking Leeds Liveable City competition

Our team in Leeds have been highly commended in the Liveable City competition, a competition launched by Leeds Civic Trust to encourage new and imaginative ways to make Leeds a friendlier, safer and greener city for pedestrians and cyclists.

The open competition invited applicants to rethink the Eastside area of Leeds and generate proposals for what the area could look like in 5 to 10 years’ time by creating better connections between the Eastside of Leeds and the City Centre, applying the principles of the Leeds Civic Trust’s Transport Vision.

Gillespies’ submission ‘One Step at a Time’ sets out a 10-year timeline that will transform the area from a dominant car atmosphere to one that promotes a greener, healthier and vibrant life style. The proposals ensure the cultural quarter of Leeds is a safe and welcoming place for all.

The judges praised Gillespies’ entry, commenting;

“The ideas were beautifully and intricately presented with clear goals and aspirations, as well as smaller, short term interventions, all set out in a 10-year timeline. The big idea is to remove cars from St Peter’s Street, add street trees and SUDS to create a north-south biodiverse boulevard.”

Adam Greatrix commented on the award, saying;

It has been a pleasure to join the wider Leeds community to share ideas and contribute to this thought provoking design process. Gillespies have been in Leeds for over 20 years, and many of our staff (both past and present) have graduated, worked, lived, socialised and brought up their families in Leeds. We are proud to be part of this vibrant city and very passionate about contributing to its environment and prosperity for the future.

We believe that our city centres are now at an evolutionary tipping point and fundamentally need to reinvent themselves to provide a viable and sustainable proposition for the future. Our competition entry reflects our wider values to promote cities that are focused on people, cities that reconnect its inhabitants with nature, and cities that are pioneering in reducing their carbon footprint and are more self-sufficient. Gillespies are leading the way in regenerating many of our urban centres across the UK and indeed internationally, and are committed to supporting the city of Leeds and its partners in any way we can to help shape its future.

You can view all submissions here.