October 5, 2007 08:09 AM
All regeneration and strategic planning professionals need to have excellent formal qualifications and wide experience; the job is far too important for anything less. But what other characteristics are also required to make a good regeneration official into an outstanding agent of delivery on the ground? Here is a list of such characteristics, from a rather specific observational position.
Here are some suggested stereotypical characteristics of the ideal regeneration or urban / rural planning worker:
Ø Willing to listen and learn; everyone has something to offer
Ø Open to the idea that communities change over time
Ø Realistic about the balance in plans and designs of art and application
Ø Knowledgeable about the area’s infrastructure and transport arrangements
Ø Involved in the community and active in establishing good local facilities
Ø Not afraid to challenge the status quo, but also keen to keep the peace
Ø Gets quickly to the bottom of the issues; there’s lots to do!
Ø Manifestly focused on what works and what’s sustainable
Ø Ultra-aware that time is precious; opportunities need to be seized
Ø Motivated by making things better for all stakeholders
Ø Sensitive to the requirements of those less able to articulate their needs
Have you spotted the tongue-in-cheek subtext of this list?
The 'hidden message' is of course offered only fun; but the actual listed characteristics are in my view a fundamental requirement of any competent regeneration worker, however formally qualified they may be.
What do you think?
This list was devised as part of a discussion about developments inhigh-rise living, for an Urban Design Week Coffee Shop Debate in Liverpool, September 2007. It was also published as a New Start external blog.
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