Page 21 - Landscape-Issue150

FEATURE

WESTOWN SQUARE: URBAN

DESIGN INTENTIONS AND

LANDSCAPING APPROACH TO

THE PUBLIC REALM

Text and visuals by Erky Wood, Urban Praxis

In the previous issue of Landscape SA, an article on KZN’s Westown Square was
featured, looking at the landscape design concept of Lucas Uys and Ignes De Beer
of Uys & White Landscape Architects. They embraced a strong agricultural theme,
based on the agricultural and equestrian history of the area. In this article, urbanist

Erky Wood discusses the interface of urban and landscape design, and the essential
link between the two.

estown is strongly defined by its
landscaping ethic, reflecting the
Wspecial ambiance of Shongweni’s
rustic character. It also projects the spirit of a
new place based on the urban sustainability
agenda and finally, it blends the ‘discipline’
of an urban landscaping ethic (driven by a
complex mixed-use node) with the ‘organic
nature’ of the vast amounts of open space
into which it is inserted.
The extensive network of open space that
frames the Westown new town centre is an
opportunity for a ‘greenfields’ development
node and its future expansions into further
precincts; it provides the underpinnings of
an ecological logic to everything, creates
belts of biodiverse linkage and habitat, and
becomes the basis of the special lifestyle
offering that is at the core of Westown’s
value proposition. It is the fundamental
armature of this nascent town’s public
domain, and its landscaping enhancement
Westown sits in the eThekwini Metro Outer West corridor, spanning the wealth divide of Hillcrest and the is a hallmark of this.
Shongweni Valley. The 2000 ha of greenfields land is expected to grow into a new town around the recently Wood says: “The Uys & White landscaping
opened Westown Square development.
team, led by Lucas Uys and Ignes de Beer, has
done a marvellous job of taking the character
of the place, and its urban design framework,
and instilling it with a contemporary
vibrancy; the landscape is a ‘language’ that
runs through this new urbanism, showing
us how to mesh human habitat with nature.
This is contrary to an often-held view that
urban development is at odds with nature,
something that is imposed on it, as opposed
to working with it.”
The overall development framework was
always predicated on this green approach.
The re-think of Westown Square as the
heart of a village and village life (as opposed
to the initial idea for a super-regional “mall”)
has presented an opportunity to explore the
very complex nature of village morphology.

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