Greek Island

Cyclades, 2009

Client: Confidential
Type of project: Landscape Appraisal

Simon Rackham Landscape Architects carried out a Preliminary Landscape Appraisal of this spectacular site for a company wishing to scope development options.

The goal of the study was to quickly identify significant landscape issues relating to the site at feasibility stage.

The benefits included:

  • identifying potential opportunities and problems at an early stage, and with minimum cost,
  • providing a firm foundation of baseline information for all future discussions and decisions,
  • assisting in producing alternative development options for market testing and economic evaluation,
  • informing the project brief to be given to the masterplanning team.

Twenty base-line landscape characteristics were mapped (legal/ ownership, slope, access, important visual elements, views, vegetation, hydrology, soils and geology, cultural features, wind, sun etc.) and then overlain to create maps to answer three questions:

  • where can we develop? (Carrying Capacity)
  • where would we want to build? (Best Places)
  • where is it easiest to build? (Buildability)

These three maps were then weighted and overlain to create a series of options for development at increasing intensities, which could be market tested to determine the optimum development value.

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