East Kilbride was Scotland’s first New town (1947-1996).
Its architects sought to serve humanity, using all the newest ideas and technology. Its design was an early example of green ideas, before such a thing had a name.
Here are some examples of these ideas. Terraced rows of houses should “recede into landscape”, according to planning principles. Terraces were often made semi-circular, which made entrances more private. Houses were often staggered, to ensure better views and increases green space.
Compare this with gridded urban planning seen in other towns and cities, where the focus is on packing as many people into the smallest amount of space possible.
Most flats in East Kilbride are 3-4 storeys at most, many have balconies, so it’s hardly a concrete jungle.
It’s true that concrete is used a lot for larger buildings, as it makes building quicker using pre-fabricated blocks, but mostly buildings in East Kilbride have straightforward Greco-Romano proportions. Steel frames are used a lot, but still a lot of brick walls too – which is old fashioned, but is better for insulation than steel and concrete. There are a few buildings you could call “Brutalist” eg Universal Connections.
There’s a wealth of pedestrian footpaths, under/overpasses, cul-de-sacs, all designed to keep traffic separate from people. That was pretty radical in those days – in fact, no one had any idea just how much people would rely on cars in the future, and how many cars a family would need.
It’s sad though, for every year that passes, understanding of Modernism and the Corporation’s ideological and egalitarian approach seems to diminish. Residents of Cumbernauld (another new town) even voted to have its town centre demolished.
See Sylvia Grace Borda’s book (available in East Kilbride’s central library) for further details.