Oxford University has this week unveiled initial
design plans as part of the Masterplan for the Radcliffe Infirmary development
due to commence mid-2007.The project team is to maintain
and renovate the original Radcliffe Infirmary building, completed in 1770, but
replace the more recent surrounding development with new buildings.A spokesperson for Rafael Vinoly
Architects, who have been employed by the University for the project, said, “The
inspiration for the new development came from the surrounding environment. For
instance, the nearby observatory and the Oxford University Press building were
very important in our planning process.“We wanted to open the visual
avenues so that the original buildings could be appreciated as they deserved to
be. We also wanted to remove the later additions that were suffocating the
Radcliffe Infirmary and have it in its original garden position.”The new development is potentially
to house the Mathematics and Statistics departments and the Humanities faculties.The Radcliffe Infirmary site lies
between the Woodstock Road
and Walton Street
and is also bordered by Somerville and Green Colleges.The University has estimated that
it will need a surplus 100,000 sq m for functional estate over the next 20
years due to growth in educational and research activity. This need is to be
catered for principally by the Radcliffe Infirmary Site, which was purchased
from the NHS in March 2003.The University’s interest in the
Radcliffe Infirmary site for development dates back to the 1960s, when the
Holford Report on land requirements of the University identified the Radcliffe
Infirmary as the only sizeable developable land in the city centre, and stated
that the acquisition of it was of “primary importance”. A spokesperson for the project
team spoke of his satisfaction with the Masterplan’s progress: “I don’t think
anyone envisaged arriving at a universally agreed concept as rapidly as we have
done. 180 people have visited on the first day of the exhibition and the
feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.”One student, who did not wish to
be named, said he had visited the exhibition on the day it was was opened. “I
think the plans look very impressive, but I am concerned that the location of
the new site is too far removed from the centre of the city. The majority of
the colleges are a good ten or 15 minutes walk from the Infirmary development.
It would be a shame if the new learning centre meant that the city lost its
vibrant atmosphere to North Oxford.”ARCHIVE: 2nd week MT 2005
University exhibits initial designs for Infirmary Masterplan
