Tim Garratt's Blog

A couple of years ago I gave some advice to Castle College in Nottingham about a potential new teaching Centre.

The idea was to add to an existing teaching set of courses. The College had (and still have) popular courses in building – bricklaying, plastering, plumbing etc.

As the College were becoming involved in new builds at Highfields Science Park and the main Centre in Chilwell we started to think about how the College could learn from these real life projects. The College always make sure that any building contracts have an ability for their own students to see progress formally during the build.

We also started to see in increase in the use of new technology for carbon reduction. We were being encouraged to look at Photo-Voltaic cells, Ground Source Heat Pumps, high levels of insulation, double and triple glazing, rainwater harvesting, biomass boilers and the like. But what was evident was that although these new technologies were being specified by Architects, the operatives fitting them were often struggling. Or you had to employ specialist sub-contactors (some of whom travelled miles thus negating some of the green credentials?).

We went to see two Smartlife centres -one in Malmo, the other in Hamburg. These centres were way ahead of the UK – and were brilliant showcases for some of the technology.

I was delighted to see that a Centre in the UK has been opened. It has been built by Wolseley – the worlds largest heating and plumbing supplier. It is known as the Sustainable Building Centre. It is a showcase for around 170 products – with information on a total of 7,000 – all under one roof.

Like the Genesis Project in Taunton, the centre uses the technology in it’s own construction. But there is a subtle difference. I visited Taunton and we saw quite specialised construction – including rammed earth and straw bales. This hasn’t found its way in to the Wolseley centre – it isn’t scalable enough to be distributed.

So, although the centre is pushing new technology – it is with a very close eye on commerciality. And for this reason, I think it an excellent project. Sometimes, I think we fall too easily for the green technology on the basis that it sounds sexy. The reality is that some of it is not really commercially viable – payback times can sometimes go beyond the life of the building!

In a recent report to Government the easiest and cheapest way of achieving a substantial CO2 reduction was highlighted as turning down room thermostats by 1 deg C. This is estimated to reduce, in the UK, emissions by 5.5 million tonnes of CO2 annually!

Sadly, the LSC funding for College schemes like the Sustainable Building Project pretty much dried up before we were able to get a centre built in Nottingham. Maybe one day someone will realise we need this sort of centre – for future builders!

As I continue to write my presentation for MIPIM I decided to spend an hour at Nottingham Castle yesterday morning.

I needed some stock shots – and with the bright blue sky, this was an ideal day! My son, Jak came with me.

Although I am convinced that Nottingham should capitalise on Robin Hood by building a new visitor attraction, there have been doubters. They come from all walks of life. Some write to the Evening Post and bemoan any sort of ambition the City has. Some work for the Council and think that the current Castle is just fine as it is (an Art Gallery). Some people tell me they have heard it all before and nothing will ever happen (the defeatists!). Some believe that only the private sector can get the thing to fly.

My personal view is that Nottingham needs to think big. We do ‘own’ Robin Hood – he doesn’t belong at the side of a runway in Doncaster.

And yesterday, in the sunshine I watched a coach load of tourists arrive. I think they were German! There were Japanese tourists too – trying to get their picture by the statute of Robin Hood. All were talking excitedly in their own mother tongue.

I couldn’t help but wonder though whether they would leave Nottingham feeling ever so slightly let down? The Castle isn’t a real Castle – it’s a Ducal Palace. There’s no real story of Robin Hood being told. There was no Robin Hood and his band of merry men wandering around. This is where we are missing a trick – people want to come and be part of the story.

My son said afterwards that there was ‘nothing there’. Perhaps that’s a bit harsh – but I know what he means. The offer is limited!

With the film coming out in just over two months time – the visitors will not lessen! Now’s the time for the City to get Robin back and make something of him – the benefits for the whole City could be enormous!

I blogged earlier in the week about Nottingham and its shops. One of the shops I mentioned was One True Saxon – who have a slogan which suggests, “If you have to ask – you can’t afford it!”.

Actually, it wasn’t as expensive as Paul Smith. But it was very cool! I bought a few things – and the guys in the shop were really friendly – the free tee shirt and discount was well received! It is really great to see a very small shop, tucked away in the Lace Market doing so well. Visitors come from all aver the UK. It is truly a destination shop.

The have supplies in a number of other shops (including John Lewis) but they explained that they are looking to open some more shops.

I’m not sure I want them to.

I used to buy Muji pens – from Oxford Street in London when no one else had them. I also used to buy Abercrombie & Fitch from South Street Seaport in New York – when no one else had them.

There is something ‘cool’ about having stuff that other people don’t have – I guess it’s what makes us different. But then again, perhaps everyone should be able to get hold of some of the excellent gear that One True Saxon sell! And as Carl Froch buys his gear there and he’s mates with them – perhaps I will let them do what they want!

The shop is in a rally interesting part of Nottingham – with some great pubs and cafes. But there is also the Galleries of Justice and The Nottingham Contemporary within a few yards. If you are interested in Architecture, there are some great buildings too. It was some time since we had wandered around this part of the Lace Market – but we will be back…

When I have saved up!

Whilst I was doing some research at the weekend I was reminded that Nottingham had been named in a Dorling Kinderley article as the 3rd most important places to visit in 2010.

We were pipped into Bronze medal position by Reykjavik and Istanbul. But we still came in the top three – and that’s some accolade. When you consider all of the Cities in the world! Apparently there are 2,469,501 cities in the World.

The reasons given were threefold – The new Robin Hood film, The Nottingham Contemporary and our Shopping!

I have blogged before about the first two, but have tended to overlook the third. I rather take our shopping for granted – but we have some great brands. Of course Paul Smith is probably the biggest name – and it all started here! But then we have latterley attracted Vivienne Westwood. We also have the very cool One True Saxon – if Carl Froch shops there it must be ok! And that’s just fashion!

Although Broad marsh Shopping Centre is now showing signs of its age – and needs the upgrade we have been looking forward to for the last few years, Victoria Centre still draws the crowds (estimated at 23m each year!). And the connecting Bridlesmith Gate has one of the highest footfall figures in Europe. The City’s average weekly footfall is between 800,000 – 1,200,000.

Waitrose have opened a convenience store at the £70m Trinity Square development.

In 2009, the City slipped slightly to 7th place in the Experian Retail Survey. The order is:

1 London (2008, 1)
2 Glasgow (2)
3 Birmingham (3)
4 Manchester (4)
5 Liverpool (5)
6 Cardiff (10)
7 Nottingham (6)
8 Leeds (7)
9 Edinburgh (8)
10 Bluewater (9)

As we will always find it difficult to compete with some of the larger conurbation’s, we need to hold onto and promote the specialist shops and make sure the overall offer remains good.

Dorling Kindersley obviously thought it added to the attraction of visiting!

The Government have a target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – 80% by 2050. The Carbon Reduction Commitment is the stick and carrot.

The new regulations are expected to start in April 2010 and apply to around 4,000 UK businesses who use 6,000 mega watts of electricity – or crudely who spend £500,000 or more on electricity each year. Also, anyone with a half hourly meter fitted since 2008 will be caught.

Organisations caught may have to measure their carbon footprint – and publish it. There may be a league table. They will also have to produce reports showing how they intend reducing their footprint.

But the big stick comes in two parts – firstly if you don’t play by the rules the Environment Agency will have the power to issue fines. And then you may have to buy carbon credits to cover emissions. The charge is currently estimated at around £12 per tonne of CO2. The scheme will be known as cap and trade – savings you make will be rewarded with some cash-back. Mid table folks will get their cash back – those at the bottom will be funding prizes for those at the top!

Ed Milliband, Minister for Energy & Climate Change, issued a statement last month suggesting that, despite the downturn in the economy the targets are to remain, suggesting,

“Government will not rely on the reduction in emissions brought about by the economic downturn to meet its climate targets. To reinforce this, any over-achievement in the first carbon budget due to the recession will not be carried forward to allow for higher emissions in the future. The recession will not deflect the Government’s efforts to cut emissions and move to a low carbon economy. We will not let up on the fight against climate change, instead we must redouble our efforts at home and internationally so the UK emerges from the global downturn building on the opportunities and benefits a low carbon future will bring.”

Despite this high-profile soundbite, I am not sure that the all of the large users have fully grasped the requirements. There is even more confusion over the CRC than there was with Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) which have been in place for over a year now and still aren’t fully understood!

But perhaps there is an inevitability here? It surely won’t be long before the threshold is lowered to include SME’s? And they definitely aren’t ready!

UPDATE – CARBON FOOTPRINT STORY

On Radio 4 at lunchtime today (In Costing The Earth – Greening Fido) it was suggested that the carbon footprint of a large dog in the UK is greater than a 4×4. I had blogged about pets before. I am sure I heard the man on the Radio suggest we should eat our dogs? No thanks. And then he said if you have a dog then you should go vegetarian if the dog eats meat. This truly is the tail wagging the dog!

A new Act of Parliament has slipped onto the Stature Book in recent weeks.

The Business Rate Supplements Act 2009 gives county councils, unitary authorities and the GLA a discretionary power to levy a supplement on the national business rate.

Levying authorities will be able to retain the revenue raised from the supplement and use it to invest in additional projects aimed at promoting the economic development of their local area.

This particular tax affects Nottingham as it effectively gives the Council the right to impose the Workplace Parking Levy – which is not exactly popular. The Nottingham and Derby Chamber of Commerce have been running a campaign against it for 10 years! The
tax will apply to businesses in the Nottingham are who have more than 10 parking spaces. It is estimated that only 15% of businesses will pay. It is expected to be in place by April 2012 and cost around £1 per day initially.

Already there are moves afoot to avoid the charge. Boots – with their massive base in Beeston have vowed to move their spaces outside the City boundary. The company’s headquarters straddle both city and county boundaries. There are around 4,500 parking spaces on-site, 3,000 of which are in the city boundary, and 1,500 beyond it. At £250 per space per year the burden is £750,000 pa. By 2015 the charge could be £1.5m. Even for a large company this is ‘bottom line’ bad news!

I accept that we need to resolve transport issues for the future – we do have to try to reduce our reliance on the motor car. My firm have just completed a travel survey for the City Council. The results were not surprising. All of our staff rely 100% on the motor car to get to work. Part of the issue we face is that we spend a lot of time out of the office (surveyors tend not to be chained to a desk). But more importantly, public transport links to NG2 are not exactly convenient – with most people needing to take 2 buses. The tram would help as the next phase runs to NG2 – provided you live somewhere on the line already (none of our staff do).

On the other hand – now is not the time to place more tax burden on business. It’s not exactly easy running a business in the current financial climate. Tax is an easy solution – but not necessarily the right one. Public transport still has some way to go as I discovered on my second tram trip last week. In order for people to embrace it you have to make it easy, convenient, affordable, clean and comfortable. The tram may offer some of these features – but it certainly doesn’t offer them all!

So even with the taxation of business to fund the tram will it change our travel behaviour? Only time will tell….

With just over three weeks to go before the Le Marche International des Professionnels de l’ Immobilier (MIPIM) final preparations are underway. Investor numbers are reported to be up.

Nottingham City Council will be at the show – promoting the City on the world stage. In fact the leader of the Councillor is going very green this year – he’s cycling there! You can sponsor him and Nigel Turpin here. It’s for a great cause – he is raising money for Maggie’s locally.

It looks like there will also be some publicity around Robin Hood – both in terms of the film (due for release on May 14th in the UK) but also some information about the work of the Sheriff’s Commission. I have been on the advsory board of the Commission for the last seven months or so. Some of the key timefames and ideas can be found here. There are some great further Ideas emerging – which I might be presenting in Cannes. I will share them on the blog.

I saw the Sheriff in the week – it is clear that he remains really enthusiastic about how Nottingham capitalise on the Robin Hood brand. We still have some way to go in bringing about a world class attraction to the City – but I remain convinced that it can be done. The World Cup in 2018 might be a driver – it’s not actually that far away when you consider what we need to do. In a nutshell we need an Investor. Public Finances in the next few years are going to be restricted.

One of the things that will happen is Robin Hood month in May (to coincide with the film). Armour making, Jousting and Archery are planned for the Castle. But we are fortunate in that Universal Studios have been kind enough to loan us props from the film – it is hoped that these will be on show! The Broadway Cinema is having a season of films around Robin Hood. Then there is the excellent Castle Rock brewery which is brewing a special Robin Hood Ale…

At last, Nottingham is beginning to realise the value of Robin Hood as a brand for the city. For too many years we have been reticent about his importance.

I am really enthusiastic about what we can do with Robin Hood. He doesn’t run an airport near Doncaster – he belongs to Nottingham. Or as John Paul Davis said “Robin Hood and Nottingham go together like peaches and cream”. I rest my case.

There was some interesting research completed this week buy the property industry Bible – The Estates Gazette. The annual salary survey has been completed…

Against the back-drop of a falling market and a pretty difficult and challenging agency market this was always going to be an interesting report!

So Mr Average Surveyor:

Earns £48,721 pa
* Expects his salary to increase by 1.97% (better than last years cut of 4.8%)
* Is 36.5 years old
* Has been employed for just over 11 years
* Received a bonus of £5,884
* Earns fees of £150,000 for his firm
* Lives in London, has Blackberry, uses Facebook but not LinkedIn
* His firm have 1,400 employees
* He is optimistic about the future

There is always a danger of statistics, statistics and bloody lies? I think there might also be a tendency for people to oversell themselves a little.

But I cannot help but think that this result is completely London centric. It must have been completed by a number of surveyors working for the bigger national firms – especially if their average employee number is 1,400!

I think that there is some optimism returning; but (and I hope I am wrong) we could be in for a difficult year.

Banks are not lending freely – even if they say they are. We have an Election on the horizon. Public Sector spending is out of control and will need to be curtailed. Inflation is up – 3.5% in January. Interest rates are at an all time low – but the smart money is on it being at 5% by 2012.

Mr Average Surveyor seems rather unfamiliar in my home town of Nottingham! I wish he wasn’t…

I did some work in Carlton, on the outskirts of Nottingham last week. I was somewhat irritated when I go there to discover I had to pay to park in a local shoppers car park. 50p won’t break the bank – but that’s not the point. The car park was virtually empty – shoppers apparently have been pushed onto the nearby streets.

My frustration is even greater as I actually ’sold’ much of the land on behalf of the owners to Gedling Borough Council around 10 years ago to create the car park. My recollection is that we ’sold’ that land at a very reduced rate to enable to construction of the car park – to benefit the shops. Unfortunately I can’t track the file down… it might help in pointing out some of the reasons we were told they needed the land ‘cheap’

It is ironic that visiting the shops which ‘owned’ the land I now have to pay! I wonder if the Council have noticed the number of vacant shops? We are supposed to make peoples lives easier?

The car park was to help the shop-keepers. I struggle to see what sense there is in charging – unless it is for easy income? But then collecting 50p’s, counting and banking them can hardly be cost effective. This is where the world has gone quite mad.

Apparently Roland Spencer, leader of the Conservative council, said he believed charges would help shops, as they could cut the amount of time cars were parked, freeing more spaces and increasing custom. There were certainly free spaces. Great idea Mr Spencer. There was some coverage recently in the local press here. We should have known it was the internets fault.

I then came across a ‘manifesto for the high street‘ being promoted by Retail Week. They are promoting a ten point charter to try to help retailers.

The ten points are:

1. Provide Free Parking for shoppers
2. Put a freeze on additional taxes for shops
3. Take retail crime seriously
4. Manage infrastructure works better
5. Compel landlords to contribute to Business Improvement Districts
6. Reinvent the High Street as a multichannel destination
7. Create an identity
8. Work in partnership with Independent retailers
9. Clear up clutter
10. Keep an eye on things.

Like most great ideas / campaigns it’s the simple things that can help. I like some of the suggestions – especially point 1…

We should try to help shops – not hinder them.

I went on a tram on Sunday – for the second time since they were introduced in 2004.

The first time was to a gig. Difficult to believe, but I saw Glenn Tilbrook, of Squeeze fame. This was a part of the Goose Fringe in October 2005! He was brilliant (I have seen him a few times – with and without Chris Difford. Both guys are very talented singer-songwriters.

My second trip this week was as a result of being in the vicinity of Wilkinson Street – after having dropped my mum off at her sisters. We decided to try the tram as we were heading the Nottingham Contemporary – see my previous blog here.

What I didn’t quite appreciate was the fare – £2.70 each. I accept that this is a single fare for the whole of the line – so if you are commuting from Hucknall this is great value. But my alternative was to park in Fletcher Gate car park where 3 hours would have cost me £4.50. Our son had threatened to come with us (but backed down on hearing we were doing art – ‘mid life crisis stuff’) – this would have made the trip rather expensive.

My other issue is that the tram is not really near where I live – so having returned to the park and ride I had to drive home (about the same distance as from my house to town).

Public transport does have a really important place in the success of a city – but it needs to be affordable. My New York subway ticket is $2 (less when I buy a carnet) – cheaper than Nottingham. Perhaps as they carry so many more people, but cheap enough to make you use it. I am not sure that having three staff (accepting the driver is essential!) with two fare collectors is economically viable! Perhaps they need this as fare dodging is apparently a problem.

I’m not sure I will be in a hurry to get back on the tram; if I do, I will take some Lynx for the man who sat next to me. He must have forgotten his when he dressed in the morning…