Poundbury is an experimental

planned community A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

or urban extension on the western outskirts of Dorchester in the

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

, England. The development is led by the

Duchy of Cornwall The Duchy of Cornwall ( kw, Duketh Kernow) is one of two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Lancaster. The eldest son of the reigning Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarch obtains possession of the duchy and the ...

, and had the keen endorsement of King

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

when he was

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the ruler ...

and

Duke of Cornwall Duke of Cornwall is a title in the Peerage of England, traditionally held by the eldest son of the reigning British monarch, previously the English monarch. The duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in England and was established by a ro ...

. Under the direction of its lead

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

and planner

Léon Krier Léon Krier CVO (born 7 April 1946) is a Luxembourgish architect, architectural theorist, and urban planner, a prominent critic of modernist architecture and advocate of New Classical architecture and New Urbanism. Krier combines an internatio ...

, its design is based on traditional

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

and New Urbanist philosophy. Due for completion in 2025, it is expected to house a population of 6,000. Poundbury currently provides employment for over 2,000 people in over 180 businesses. Poundbury has been praised for reviving the low-rise streetscape built to the human scale and for echoing traditional local design features, but it has not reduced car use, as originally intended. A 2022 report said "Poundbury has been highlighted for its pedestrian and public transport links and not being as 'car-based' as other developments across the country."

Mission

Poundbury has been built according to the principles of

, who is known for holding strong views challenging the

post-war In Western usage, the phrase post-war era (or postwar era) usually refers to the time since the end of World War II. More broadly, a post-war period (or postwar period) is the interval immediately following the end of a war. A post-war period ...

trends in town planning that were suburban in character. Since starting in 1993, the town has received both criticism and praise from architects and design critics. The development is built to a traditional high-density urban pattern, rather than a suburban one, focused on creating an integrated community of shops, businesses, and private and social housing; there is no

zoning Zoning is a method of urban planning in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into areas called zones, each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for a s ...

. The planners say they are designing the development around people rather than the car, and they aim to provide a high-quality environment, from the architecture to the selection of materials, to the signposts, and the

landscaping Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal o ...

. To avoid constant construction, utilities are buried in common utility ducts under the town. Common areas are maintained by a management company to which all residents belong. It consists of 35 percent social housing and is designed for

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...

, which includes

carbon neutrality Carbon neutrality is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This can be achieved by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal (often through carbon offsetting) or by eliminating emissions from society (the transition to the " ...

. To some degree, the project shows similarities with the contemporary New Urbanism movement. The development brief outlined having a centre built in a classical style and outer neighbourhood areas in a

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

style, with design influences taken from the surrounding area. The development includes period features such as wrought iron fences,

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...

s, gravelled public squares, and 'bricked-up' windows; known as blind windows, these traditionally serve an aesthetic function and are widely misattributed to the

window tax Window tax was a property tax based on the number of windows in a house. It was a significant social, cultural, and architectural force in England, France, and Ireland during the 18th and 19th centuries. To avoid the tax, some houses from the ...

History

In 1987, the land was included in the West Dorset District Council local plan as a preferred location for development to expand the town of Dorchester. Charles III, at that time Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall, had already taken an interest in architecture and urban design, and was writing his book '' A Vision of Britain: A Personal View of Architecture''. Seeing an opportunity to put his ideas into practice, the Duchy of Cornwall chose to lead on planning the development itself, rather than simply sell the land to an established housebuilder. The Driehaus Prize-winning New Classical architect

was hired in 1988 to design the development. Construction commenced in 1993, and is expected to be complete around 2025, with the north-west quadrant being the last built. The final configuration will support approximately 5,800 people. Greetings card entrepreneur Andrew Brownsword sponsored the £1 million development of the market hall at Poundbury, designed by John Simpson and based on early designs, particularly the one in

Tetbury Tetbury is a town and civil parish inside the Cotswold district in England. It lies on the site of an ancient hill fort, on which an Anglo-Saxon monastery was founded, probably by Ine of Wessex, in 681. The population of the parish was 5,250 i ...

. As of 2018, Poundbury had a population of 3,500 residents.

Economy and employment

In 2010, Poundbury increased Dorset's county local economy contributing over £330 million; it is expected to contribute £500 million in the next 15 years. In 2010, more than 2,000 Poundbury residents were working in 180 local businesses. In 2017, the number of businesses increased to 185, providing 2,345 jobs. Businesses include a

Waitrose Waitrose & Partners (formally Waitrose Limited) is a brand of British supermarkets, founded in 1904 as Waite, Rose & Taylor, later shortened to Waitrose. It was acquired in 1937 by employee-owned retailer John Lewis Partnership, which still sel ...

store, a technical company which produces parts for aeroplane wings, and a chocolate factory. One notable local employer is the breakfast food manufacturer and exporter Dorset Cereals, which since 2000 has employed more than 100 people at its purpose-built barn factory. Dorset Cereals moved to another location in Dorset in 2019. Reportedly there is space for about 80 additional businesses.

Education

Poundbury has two primary schools in the catchment area: The Prince of Wales and Damers First School. The latter was an existing school in Dorchester, but in 2017 relocated to Poundbury where a new school building was constructed.

Attractions and landmarks

Due to Poundbury's unique appearance and plan, the town has been visited by architects, government officials, planners, housebuilders, and developers from around the world. Tourist attractions are centred around the Queen Mother Square, which includes Strathmore House in honour of King Charles’ grandmother

Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was th ...

's heritage. In 2016, the Queen Mother statue was unveiled at the square by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. Also in 2016, a pub named the Duchess of Cornwall Inn was opened in honour of the wife of the Prince of Wales,

Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen Consort of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. She became queen consort on 8 September 2022, upon the acc ...

. Every year in August, the Dorset Food & Arts Festival is held at Queen Mother Square attracting thousands of people. The festival showcases the town's fine produce and arts and also raises money for charities. In 2018, the Prince of Wales officially opened Poundbury's first church, the Dorchester Community Church. In May 2022 the Prince of Wales formally opened a huge play area in Poundbury's largest park, the Great Field. The Great Field is now a park under the care of Dorchester Town Council.

Reception

Poundbury's street plan and aesthetics have been variously praised and criticised by several commentators. Writing in ''

Architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

'' magazine, Professor

Witold Rybczynski Witold Rybczynski (born 1 March 1943) is a Canadian American architect, professor and writer. He is currently the Martin and Margy Meyerson Professor Emeritus of Urbanism at the University of Pennsylvania. Early life Rybczynski was born in E ...

said that "Poundbury embodies social, economic, and planning innovations that can only be called radical." Poundbury was intended to reduce

car dependency Car dependency is the concept that some city layouts cause cars to be favoured over alternate forms of transportation, such as bicycles, public transit, and walking. Overview In many modern cities, automobiles are convenient and sometimes nec ...

and encourage walking, cycling, and public transport. A survey conducted at the end of the first phase, however, showed that car use was higher in Poundbury than in the surrounding (rural) former district of West Dorset; but a 2022 report said "Poundbury has been highlighted for its pedestrian and public transport links and not being as 'car-based' as other developments across the country." Among the critics,

Stephen Bayley Stephen Paul Bayley (born 13 October 1951) is a British writer and critic, known particularly for his commentary on architecture and design. He was founding CEO of the Design Museum in London in 1989, and has been a regular architecture, art a ...

described it as "fake, heartless, authoritarian and grimly cute". In 2009, Dorchester Fire Station, designed by Calderpeel Architects, was shortlisted for the Carbuncle Cup award for ugly buildings. Nonetheless, the project has also received praise. In 2013, on the 20th anniversary of the project, the New Urbanist publication ''Better Cities and Towns'' wrote that it was "winning converts". A few years later, British architecture and design critic Oliver Wainwright of ''The Guardian'' wrote, "Poundbury, the Prince of Wales's traditionalist village in Dorset, has long been mocked as a feudal Disneyland. But a growing and diverse community suggests it's getting a lot of things right." He argued that its main success was achieving genuine

mixed-use development Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to som ...

. Countering criticisms of Poundbury's aesthetics, English philosopher Sir

Roger Scruton Sir Roger Vernon Scruton (; 27 February 194412 January 2020) was an English philosopher and writer who specialised in aesthetics and political philosophy, particularly in the furtherance of traditionalist conservative views. Editor from 1982 ...

praised the town for its commitment to pre-modern architectural and planning principles. In the BBC documentary '' Why Beauty Matters'', Scruton exclaimed that

Gallery

File:Poundbury 2019 IMG 9706.jpg, Queen Mother Square File:Dorchester fire station - geograph.org.uk - 1394738.jpg, Fire station by Calder Peel ( Dorset Fire and Rescue Service) File:Poundbury, new housing at the W end of Dorchester - geograph.org.uk - 31302.jpg, Brownsword Hall (front) by John Simpson (compare Tetbury Market House) File:Dorset poundbury 01.jpg, Brownsword Hall (side) File:The_Whistling_Witch,_Poundbury.jpg, Peverell Ave W / Ringhill Street (''Whistling Witch'') File:Apartment block in Poundbury, Perverell Avenue West.jpg, Peverell Ave W / Peninsula Way File:Apartment block, Poundbury - geograph.org.uk - 1587876.jpg, Peverell Ave E / Woodlands Crescent File:Holmead Walk - Poundbury - geograph.org.uk - 981485.jpg, Holmead Walk / Chaseborough Square File:Poundbury 2019 IMG 9697.jpg, Bridport Road / Beechwood Lane File:"Water Tower House" Poundbury - geograph.org.uk - 410251.jpg, Moraston Street / Weir End Road

References

*Charles, Prince of Wales: '' A Vision of Britain: A Personal View of Architecture'' (Doubleday, 1989) *Leon Krier: ''Architecture: Choice or Fate'' (Andreas Papadakis Publishers, 1998) *Sandy Mitchell. "Prince Charles is not your typical radical." ''National Geographic''. May 2006

Retrieved 9/14/06

Notes

External links

*
Poundbury
at

Office
Unofficial Poundbury business guide and local information
{{authority control Populated places established in 1993 New Urbanism communities Villages in Dorset Duchy of Cornwall Geography of Dorchester, Dorset New towns in England 1993 establishments in England Charles III New Classical architecture New towns started in the 1990s