The Eden Project has released new details and images of its forthcoming Dundee project as it prepares to submit a planning application later this month (November).
The announcements were made at the final event of the current programme of community “co-creation” at V&A Dundee this evening (Tuesday).
Darren Hoare, the Eden Project’s Head of Programme Delivery, spoke at the event alongside Dundee City Council Leader John Alexander.
This series of open conversations has been running at venues around Dundee throughout the summer and autumn, with the aim of formally incorporating the community’s ideas and aspirations into plans for Eden Project Dundee.
During the series, feedback from the community has mainly focussed on the areas of transport and access, the Eden Project Dundee visitor experience, community, health and happiness and economic impact.
On transport and access, it was announced that the Eden Project recognises that the journey is an important part of the experience so accessible green corridors will be created throughout the city which reflect and preview the Eden Project Dundee experience.
As a result of feedback on the Eden Project Dundee experience, the Eden Project has pledged that spaces on the site will serve multiple functions that benefit both the local community and the natural environment.
Eden has also committed to ongoing projects in the city, with the work of regeneration and transformation beyond the Eden Project Dundee site continuing after it has opened to the public.
Community involvement was another key theme of the events, with the Eden Project committing to an ongoing programme of community engagement and co-creation, which will incorporate the project’s new Guilds.
The economic benefits of Eden Project Dundee were also a recurring theme, with the Eden Project promising affordable pricing, to provide employment opportunities for local people and businesses and to support training opportunities and apprenticeships tailored to the Dundee community.
The Eden Project has also committed to local sourcing in the construction phase and beyond, mirroring the approach at the original Eden Project in Cornwall.
New concept images of Eden Project Dundee were released as part of the announcement. These show the “green gateway” at the entrance to the project, a first view of the landscape that will run through the site and the pedestrian bridge which will cross East Dock Street and the railway line, connecting Eden Project Dundee with the waterfront.
The images were complemented by a new physical model of the project which was unveiled at the V&A Dundee event.
Darren Hoare said: “We’d like to thank the people of Dundee for their time, effort, ideas and passion during the co-creation process of the last few months and we hope everyone is as excited about the next phase of the project as we are.
“The planning application we will submit later this month is the result of a huge collaborative effort between the Eden team, our partners and the community and we are really proud of what we have achieved together.”
Dundee City Council leader John Alexander said: “Eden Project Dundee is a world-class project which will deliver hundreds of jobs, huge visitor numbers and tens of millions of pounds into the local economy.
“It’s so much more than that too. As the plans revealed today show, there are tremendous opportunities for education, inspiration and connecting our diverse communities.
“Although it will attract visitors from far and wide, Eden is very much for the people of Dundee. So it’s been great to see citizens and communities having their say over the past few months.
“Everyone who has taken part in the dialogue has helped to shape what will be a truly incredible facility.”
Eden Project Dundee will be a landmark development for the city, transforming the former gasworks on East Dock Street into a beacon for regeneration and green tourism. It will encourage visitors to think, feel and act differently by revealing how we can learn from and be inspired by nature.
The project will combine exhibits, performance, learning, play, immersive experiences, world-class horticulture, live music, art, and food, beverage and retail spaces, all integrated as essential parts of the overall experience.
Work to create an Eden Project on this site would include the conversion of the existing gasholder, demolition of other buildings on the site and the construction of a pedestrian bridge.
The project is inspired by Dundee’s Nine Incorporated Trades and will introduce a new set of contemporary Guilds. These Guilds will be underpinned by the perspectives and skills needed for a regenerative future.
Guild Embassies – both physical and virtual - will be rooted in communities and enable activities that will be brought together and showcased at the main attraction.
A new film about Eden Project Dundee was premiered at the beginning of the co-creation process and is now available to watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/nNDkvxYt268.
The film is presented by Laura Young, an award-winning climate activist, environmental scientist, and ethical influencer also known as Less Waste Laura. In the film, Laura finds out more about the history of the gasworks site, meets Eden Project Dundee partners and discovers how the original Eden Project in Cornwall will influence the new Dundee project.
The Eden Project is working in partnership with Dundee City Council, The Northwood Charitable Trust and the University of Dundee
The submission of the planning application will draw to an end the latest phase of development for Eden Project Dundee, which was made possible by a £7.6m commitment from the project partners.
For more information, see www.edenproject.com/dundee.
