Architect

Adams and Sutherland

Type of Area

Large river with artificial banks

Land/water interaction

Embankment

Built Environment Types

Moderately built
Moderate green

Scale of Impact

Block
District/neighbourhood

Intervention Scale (Spatial)

Moderate site

Project Types

Riverfront development
Public space regeneration
Low cost/temporary

Urban/ Rural

Urban fringe

Visibility and Openness

Partly enclosed
Party contained view

A riverside view

Armada Green is a place which is absent of buildings that looks out over a bend in the River Thames, Beckton, London, UK. This wide-open space instils a contemplative mood to the river edge. It is a place where one can appreciate the atmosphere of the river, the size, the peace and quiet and the natural river life. 

The project provides one of the few places with access to the river in the Beckton area after many years of restricted access and neglect. The place was intended as a temporary intervention that connects people to the area and forms the basis for next stage of design and development. It is flanked on one side by housing and shopping developments around a marina and a green space on the other. 

An elevated area has been created by raising the ground level to the height of the flood wall, allowing visitors a good overview of the river which was otherwise blocked. The exposed concrete surface is formed from aggregate dredged from the river, forming a direct link to the tidal riverbed and the new adjoining space. 

Timber sleepers salvaged from the railway at the nearby natural gas plant have been inlaid into the concrete floor to resemble floating logs and lead the eye to the water. Wooden benches have been added to allow contemplation of the river. The wooden sleepers have also been utilised to enclose an electricity sub-station and give the place a distinctive prominent spatial marker, that brings a human scale to this expansive place. 

The installations and geometries of the site allows service vehicles to enter but also add a unifying feature to the setting. A group of architectural students added a ladder that allows access to the lower level platform. 

This space is enjoyed by different groups, ranging from East End bikers who occasionally meet on a sunny afternoon to watch the boats, the birds or fish at high tide, to workers taking a solitary lunch break. Unfortunately, it also acts as a nocturnal hangout for teenagers who add graffiti to the place.