黑洞社区

Never say never

Isn鈥檛 it funny how little things change in the fast-moving world of architect Will Alsop? Little more than a month ago, Alsop and RMJM colleague Marcus Noble were busy setting up conference calls with the media to squash reports that he was about to jump ship. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have any plans to leave at all,鈥� Alsop said then. 鈥淚 am aware of these rumours - it is like rumours on rumours.鈥� This week, RMJM announced he was leaving, after talks that chief executive Peter Morrison said had been going on for 鈥渟ome time鈥�. The episode gives one a feeling of deja vu given the 鈥渘ew career in painting鈥� Alsop announced two years ago when explaining his departure from Archial - before swiftly joining RMJM with no paintbrush in sight.

A bit of background

Any readers who have the pleasure of following government housing minister Grant Shapps on Twitter will know he tends to speak in soundbites. So it was last week, when he held forth on the government鈥檚 new policy to make it easier to evict difficult neighbours or as he termed it 鈥淣eighbours From Hell鈥�. One can feel the ire expressed in those furious capitals. Did this reflect a bad personal experience, I asked? Sadly the minister is yet to respond to my tweet.

High street help

Speaking of confusion, I鈥檓 told WH Smith is soon to launch a 鈥淨S鈥� service in its fleet of high-street stores. Is the ubiquitous newsagent going to start offering punters a paperback novel and the cost specifications for a curtain wall? Sadly for surveyors they will have to continue waiting to see their profession recognised on the high street. 鈥淨S鈥� stands for 鈥欌�漄uality Solicitors鈥�, as the newsagent begins to offer in-store legal advice. So that鈥檒l be a divorce with your stationery, then.

Flash those 鈥� helmets

The latest firm to go down the tried-and tested-route of using female models to sell to blokes is C.K Magma. The manufacturer of 鈥渄esigner鈥� construction gear is sending out a couple of 鈥渓ovely ladies鈥� to help flog its range of bags and protective site gear. A press release from C.K says: 鈥淭he UK wide tour kicks off on 6 September in the North-west, followed by the Midlands on the 7th, the South-east on the 8th, the North-east on 13 September and other regional visits soon to be added before the girls head to Europe鈥�. Sounds to me like they could make a construction gear calendar out of the trip 鈥�

All the rage

The national media finally woke up to the significance of the government鈥檚 proposed changes to the planning system, with blanket coverage of the new national framework in the Sunday papers, including a front page and three inside pages in the Sunday Telegraph. I understand some anti-development campaigners have been irked by a snippet on the website of planning consultant Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners. 鈥淎ll Systems Go: Positive planning and the new presumption in favour of sustainable development鈥� calls on developers to contact them to 鈥渆xplore new opportunities arising out of the reform鈥� - feeding fear that the changes will lead to a development free-for-all. Might be an opportunity to put something a little more politic up instead?