Agenda item

A presentation by Sarah Gaventa, Director – Illuminated River

Sarah Gaventa, Director of the Illuminated River Foundation, gave a presentation on the Illuminated River project.

Ms Gaventa explained that the project involved a concept design for lighting for the 17 (15 existing and 2 potential) main road, rail and pedestrian bridges between Albert and Tower Bridge along the River Thames. She reported that six teams were shortlisted following an international design competition run by The Illuminated River Foundation and the Mayor of London.

The Committee were informed of the details of the winning design from a team including American light artist Leo Villareal and renowned British architects and urban planners, Liftschutz Davidson Sandilands.

The Committee were informed that the project would be tackled in phases in order to reduce costs and disruption. It was hoped that London Bridge would be the first City bridge to showcase the design.

The Committee were informed that it was estimated that funds of £20m would be needed to realise the project and that, to date, pledges totalling £10 million had been made (£5 million had been pledged by Peter Baldwin and Lisbet Rausing through the Arcadia Fund and a further £5 million was being donated by the Rothschild Foundation). The Illuminated River Foundation would now be looking to raise the remaining £10m and were currently exploring a number of fundraising opportunities.

Ms Gaventa reported that the project would be environmentally as well as culturally driven with a focus on energy performance and sustainability.

A Member questioned whether the Port of London Health Authority had been involved in or consulted on the project to date. Ms Gaventa reported that she had been working with Officers from the Port of London Authority who were very supportive of the project and see it as a positive move for the River. She confirmed that she would connect with the City Corporation’s Port of London Health Authority following this meeting.

The Chamberlain confirmed that the £500,000 for the delivery of the first phase of the installation on London Bridge had been contributed by the City Corporation from its Bridge House Estate bridge maintenance budgets. Ms Gaventa confirmed that it would also be useful to explore synergies with the work of the City Bridge Trust going forward given that the project would fundamentally improve the performance of the bridges aesthetically.

A Member commented that, in phasing in the project to individual bridges, it would also be useful to consider the surrounding areas and stairwells adjacent to each site. He added that it would also be important to consider any impact the lighting might have on residential properties and consult the relevant stakeholders on this where necessary.

Ms Gaventa confirmed that there would be formal consultation where necessary and that the Foundation were already engaging with relevant stakeholders. She confirmed that the project would be subject to planning permission from relevant authorities. She reassured the Committee that the night glare of the lights on those bridges situated in or near residential areas could be reduced and also confirmed that the lighting times would respond to specific areas – for example, a bridge in an area with a significant night-time economy may display the lighting scheme later than one in a residential area.

With regard to surrounding areas, Ms Gaventa highlighted that discussions were already underway with Westminster City Council regarding the adjacent areas to Waterloo Bridge

In response to further questions, Ms Gaventa confirmed that the project would utilise LED technology which had a life span of approximately 15-20 years. The Foundation would also look to budget for the replacement and monitoring of the sytems.

With regard to budget, the Committee were informed that the £10m already pledged excluded the City’s contribution of £500,000. The funds already secured would allow for the delivery of the first phase of the project and it was hoped that the project would gain further financial support once others had seen the positive impact of this.

In response to a final question regarding the GLA’s contributions to the project, the Committee were informed that they had provided some initial, start-up, funding to help launch the international design competition and continued to be highly supportive of the project.

The Chairman, on behalf of the Committee, thanked Ms Gaventa for an extremely interesting and informative presentation.