Some of the spots on the Lancaster Canal were picked by entrants to come up with ideas for use

A car park roof garden, microbrewery in the Old Cock Yard and houses in the Miley Tunnel are just some of the ideas for Preston’s abandoned and empty spaces.

The list of 22 finalists for the Forgotten Spaces competition has been announced.

It ams to bring some of the places in the city which aren’t used back into public, or any kind, of use.

A total of 57 entries were received and fetures the work of students alongside seasoned architects.

A judging panel will now sift through the ideas and make their recommendations.

Stephen Hodder, jury chair for Forgotten Spaces Preston, said: “The judges were greatly impressed by the amount of thought that had gone into each proposal. It was not an easy task to draw up a shortlist but we believe the 22 selected will stimulate debate and get people thinking about how spaces that are overlooked can become central to the local community.”

Councillor Peter Rankin, leader of Preston City Council said “It is fantastic to see the interest in the competition reflected in the number of entrants. The shortlisted applications are of a wide variety and look really interesting, I look forward to seeing how the forgotten spaces of Preston could be transformed in the exhibition hosted later this year.”

The entries will be displayed during an exhibition in November at an unknown location in the city.

The full shortlist reads:
Ascension
Kate Nicholson
A 28m-tall structure arch on Lancaster Canal with an interactive weather exhibition

Braker’s Yard
Rob Paton
A multi-purpose facility, housed in boat-like structures on the Guild Wheel cycle path

canaLIDO
Aynsley Gray, Jamie McAllister
A proposal to bring a dying area of the canal back to life through a community lido

Canalside Community Garden and Floating Market
Nina Esmund
A community growing space and market garden on Lancaster Canal

Car + Park
Skinn – Jekaterina Porohina, Ivan Rabodzeenko, Goran Vodicka
Low-cost interventions to turn an under-used car park rooftop into an exciting public space

craYarc
Calderpeel Architects – Kathryn Timmins, Shona Scales, James Mellor, Michael Park, Patrick Taft, Ewen Miller, Andrew Lightfoot
A scheme to save the native white clawed crayfish on Avenham Viaduct

Finding Courtyard
Francis Roberts Architects – Dominic Roberts, David Cox, Sally Stone, Ida Mikolajska, Michal Karol, Tomasz Kisilewicz
Transforming the forgotten courtyard of St Joseph’s Orphanage into a new public space

Forgotten_Synergy
Wood Associates – David Cox, Sally Stone, Dominic Roberts, Michał Karol, Ida Mikołajska, Tomasz Kisilewicz
Bringing life to the edges of Avenham car park through a café, gym and public gardens

Green Garage
Joanna Wozniak, Barbara Clark
Revitalising Avenham car park by creating a green public space on the roof

G-SEXY
Superhistory – Daniel Kerr
Celebrating the English Electric Lightning fighter aircraft as a sculptural form in Old Cock Yard

Hop To It
Designplay – Peter Lay
A microbrewery and greenhouse snuggled into Old Cock Yard

Miley Living
John Bridge
The creation of living units for homeless people in and around the Miley Tunnel

PARK & PARK
Urban Unit – Mark Foster, Itziar Vinagre, Christian Nielsen, Rodrigo O’Malley
Interventions on the facade of Avenham car park which change to create a public attraction

Promenade
Daniels Thiede Architects – Ralf Thiede, Caroline Barker, Jack Doyle, Mike Daniels
A looping board walk reminiscent of a seaside pier wrapped around Avenham car park

Shelf Life
OSC Design – Oliver Beasley, Chris Blake & OSC Design
Transforming Avenham car park into a multi-storey farming estate

The Hive
Keith Raymond Tasker, Joe Cook
A series of modular Archigram-like housing pods for students in the Miley Tunnel

The Water Grocers: a Floating Market and Community
Andrew Lees with FFLO (Claire Fernley and James Fox)
A combination of homes, farmers’ market and a transient urban space in the form of a floating market square

Tulketh Allotments
Panter Hudspith – Jack Lines and Michael Smith
The creation of allotments and a café/market at the forgotten end of Lancaster Canal

Unearthed
Emma McQuillan
A scheme that transforms the Miley Tunnel into an urban park

Woven in Cotton
Luke Petty & Gillian Harrison
A celebration of Preston’s creative heritage through a 16-day programme on the Weinds & Yards

Wend on up the Weind
Philip Etchells
Celebrating the historical significance of an ignored alleyway with timber roof structures

YES ‘CAN’al DO
Vinay Patel
A vantage gallery / café on Lancaster Canal at the southern terminus point

What do you think of the ideas? What is your favourite? Let us know in the comments below

Image credit to Bernie Blackburn