On first reading, the Cardiff Council green paper Rebuilding Momentum appears to be littered with numerous
contradictions, clichés and lazy assumptions. Section1 is entitled A New
Economic Vision and appears to offer little that may be considered original or
visionary. It opens, for example, with the claim that perceptions of the city
have been transformed from ‘an industrial backwater’ to ‘a vibrant small
European capital. However, one of the challenges listed later in the green paper,
is that the city still suffers from a general poor perception, and that the
traditional image of heavy industry and coal mining valleys still pervades the
consciousness of many people outside Wales.
It would be interesting to see some evidence to support this. One might
claim that the image outside Wales
is one of flashy, trashy waterside development, litter, binge drinking and
related casual violence. A quick search of ‘Cardiff’ on Youtube will quickly demonstrate
negative imagery. The same word search on Google reveals an entirely positive
aspect of the city whilst ‘Cardiff
night’ in Google Image reverts to the negative. Clearly any external perception
of the city will depend on the source of available information - but neither of
those sources offer coal mining valleys by way of an initial impression. What
is consistent is the presence of cultural and educational institutions on both
sources.
Leisure and culture are associated with the beneficial transformation of
perceptions of the city in Section 1 of the green paper. It is claimed that the
‘new cultural vibrancy has succeeded in attracting and retaining talent’
particularly in respect of higher education. These elements no doubt play a
part and it would be interesting to see a definition of ‘culture’ and to what
degree that attracts and retains post-graduate and international students. The
dominant culture which has been supported by the City may be said to be
populist and collective as exemplified by the mono-culture periodically imposed
on the city centre by the Millennium Stadium. At risk of going over very old
ground, the support for the Millennium Stadium over the proposed Cardiff Bay
Opera House had a lasting impact on perceptions of Cardiff as a centre of ‘high culture’. The
proximity of that and other new stadia and sporting arenas may well be an
attraction to students. This may not be the case among those who control the
flow of investment and development capital, who we must assume are a principal
target for this document. For those, Cardiff
may be considered a place of ‘low culture’. Opera may be performed at the Wales
Millennium Centre but for many outside Wales the abiding associations of
that building are with Torchwood not Tosca.
In claiming youthful vigour the city once again demonstrates its
adolescence. As with aspects of commercial development in this green paper,
which I will address elsewhere, the city has little by way of historical
achievement in ‘high culture’. Those associated with the Welsh National Opera and
other institutions will contest this but name a creative artist of
international reputation born and bred in Cardiff?
My point is made if the first name that came to mind was Shirley Bassey. Cardiff is principally in
the entertainment business and culture, such as it is, remains a fringe
activity. In the visual arts, that which is of truly international quality is a
legacy of Victorian patronage in the form of an outstanding national art
collection and a unique architectural set piece. These are supplemented by some
excellent initiatives and facilities of purely regional reputation. It is only
in sport and the performing arts can Cardiff
claim any recent international distinction. The failure of the Centre for
Visual Arts is now long forgotten in the afterglow of several Grand Slams and
the windfall international exposure when the Millennium Stadium was temporarily
the home of English Football. Cardiff, and for
that matter Wales,
is primarily associated with sport and popular entertainment. The ‘assets and
attributes’ that the city has to build upon relate to these. No matter how many
times the word ‘culture’ is used in this green paper it is to event led tourism
and leisure activity that proposed investment in our ‘cultural infrastructure’ is
being directed.
The point to be considered by the average citizen and ratepayer in the
city is to what extent they will be the beneficiary of this? Presumably there
is some economic development rationale given the context of the proposals for a
bigger, better indoor arena, a conference centre and other mega projects. At
this point in time I cannot see the linkage to the stated aspiration of the
green paper for higher value jobs and higher wages. The principle beneficiaries
of event led tourism appear to be the hotel and catering sector together with
transport and security. Detailed studies will no doubt evidence that job
numbers are impressive but the quality of such employment is, in the majority
of cases, low. A bigger, better indoor arena will still be a privately owned
and operated commercial venture as may a conference centre. These are not civic
assets in any sense other than being perceived to be an essential part of the
standard offer of a city. Page 14 of the green paper proclaims Towards a New
Approach but there is no innovative or original thinking here. It is
interesting to see that the third paragraph mentions both an International
Conference Centre and that Cardiff Central station does not meet the
aspirations of an international city. It is interesting that the latter was built by
the Great Western Railway who were advertising Cardiff – The City of Conferences back in 1932
Perhaps it is an idea whose time has come? It might even be of some use
to the Universities whose role appears to have been fully recognised by this
green paper. I have made a point in my preceding blog about the remark in the foreword
that ‘they need to be central to our ambitions in a way that they have not been
in the past’. On reflection I may have read that incorrectly the first time
and, in re-interpretation now take this to be a sincere mea culpa on the part of the author of the foreword. What is being
admitted is that the City has previously excluded the Universities from its
strategic thinking and that henceforth they will be central to it. My sincere
apologies for misinterpreting the statement on first reading. The recognition
of the Universities as equal partners in the strategic development of the city
is to be welcomed. Their involvement may bring to the process
what it currently appears to lack – innovation and originality.
For example, a strategy based largely on accommodating private sector
property development has neither quality. It is entirely predicated on a
recovery of the property market. Furthermore, what appears to be required in
the words of the green paper are ‘funds for speculative development and new
business development’. As regards property development what we should be aspiring to is serious long term investment not short term 'hit and run'
speculative property development. That needs to be coupled with aspiration for
much higher quality of both the development and the public realm. Such
aspirations are presently notable by their absence, particularly in relation to
proposed new public spaces. The present hiatus in commercial property
development should afford the opportunity for a serious re-think about future
development, both its physical form and the funding and development
partnerships. I am wary – if not weary – of proposals for ‘high density
Scandinavian style living’ and would like to see some detail. Is the paper
proposing architect designed cooperative low cost housing development or simply
lots of apartments built close together and filled with stuff from IKEA?
As to funding
for business development it is here that the Universities may work with the
city to innovate. As Jane Jacobs said back in 1961 “new ideas need old
buildings”. God forbid that the temptation to repeat the recent disaster of
‘Techniums’ or other shiny edifices may be too much for both academics and
local politicians to resist. Before new Grade 1 offices are built we could, for
example, think about taking out the significant overhang of vacant offices by
acquisition or head lease and making it available at low cost, easy in/ easy
out terms for business start ups. The City Council would of course need to take
a long hard look at its business rates policy in respect of business start ups
for, in the current market, rates are higher than rentals in many cases. The
intentions for the Coal Exchange and Mountstuart
Square are perhaps among the most encouraging
aspects of the green paper. I make a plea in passing that ‘Mountstuart Square’ has been a perfectly
adequate address for a hundred years or so and there is no need for it to be re-branded
as a ‘Creativity Quarter’.
This does however prompt a caution
alluded to in foregoing comments on culture. Cardiff has little history or tradition of
creative enterprise. Mountstuart
Square perhaps epitomizes its former fortune as a
place of the agent, middle man and bureaucrat. It saw a brief revival as a
place where the ‘creative industries’ flourished but these have since
dispersed. Or disappeared together with the financial subsidies of the Cardiff
Bay Development Corporation. Much is made of the ‘creative industries’ in the
green paper and indeed the Welsh Government has itself backed that particular
strand of enterprise. To date the greatest evidence of creativity has been that
of the ju-ju men of ‘regeneration’ in milking it for consultancy fees. What can
be conceded is that the green paper is not confusing such enterprise with
‘culture’. Knocking out soap operas and cheap reality TV shows in Porth Teigr
is an industrial process involving creativity. It is rarely innovative. That
quality may come from working with the Universities in other media and the
infrastructure for that needs to be in place. However, for ‘creative
industries’ to flourish, and for culture to develop there has to be creativity.
This is where attention then turns to the Universities, FE colleges and schools
and the education system itself. Cardiff Council could test that by providing a
few hundred thousand feet of low cost accommodation for business start ups and
say “fill her up…….”
In conclusion I would suggest we revisit the concept of Cultural Capital as outlined by Pierre Bourdieu i.e. forms of knowledge, skills, education, and advantages that a person has, which give them a higher status in society. The principle may be applied in equal measure to a city which can earn and retain higher status.
