THING OF THE WEEK

Underground appreciation… Mirror, mirror on the wall – what is the fairest station of them all? CBRE’s Neil Kirkham has put the question to his LinkedIn connections, asking what their favourite underground station is. His pick? The long out-of-use City Hall subway stop in New York City. Merrion Strategy’s Dougal Paver has volunteered Placa Catalunya in Barcelona, while Place’s own Neil Tague has made the case for Nuremberg and its excellent tiling. Proving you don’t need to look abroad, Turner & Townsend’s David Morris has put forward Liverpool James Street – specifically its entrance.

 

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A post shared by NORTHWEST SMALL PRACTICE FORUM (@nspf.uk)

Good things come in small packages… Bigger is not always better – that’s the message behind the Northwest Small Practice Forum. This group of 25 practices has banded together to set benchmarks for best practice, help small practices grow, and unlock collaborative opportunities – as well as to showcase the great work being done by boutique firms. Together, they are collectively working on more than £575m worth of projects. Want in on the action? NSPF is hosting the SCALE Festival. Launching on 18 September, the festival includes talks, workshops, an exhibition, and a killer party at SEESAW on Manchester’s Princess Street.

 

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Hot, hot, hot… If you can’t beat the heat, you might as well double down on it. That appears to be the thinking in Manchester as the arrival of Dave’s Hot Chicken has led to 37% increase in visitors at the Printworks. The Nashville-style hot chicken joint has taken more than 8,000 sq ft (complete with a DJ booth) at the venue. No word yet on how many of those diners signed the waver to try Dave’s Reaper-level dish… or if they proved too chicken to try.

Evolution at the Big Puddle Jump. Credit: via 32 West

Cooling down… More our speed, the team at Blackpool-based construction company Evolution took a leap into the Irish Sea. Not just a method to beat the heat, this was for a good cause. The group was taking part in the Big Puddle Jump, an initiative led by the Empowerment Charity as part of its campaign to raise awareness around suicide. Empowerment’s Solace programme provides support for those struggling with mental health as well as bereavement support for those impacted by suicide.

“The construction industry knows only too well, and all too often, the effect suicide has right across the community,” said JJ Fitzgerald, managing director of Evolution. “We want to show our support and create an environment and a society where people feel safe to talk and seek help.”

Want to get involved in Empowerment? Visit empowermentcharity.org.uk.

A little bit of Spain on the Mersey? Credit: JDA Architects

Dream big… Prima Group’s vision for Rose Brae has captivated the attention of our readers, with our story on the Wirral waterfront proposal being easily one of our most commented on for the week. And, what is more, the comments have been largely positive, with one reader even comparing the renders to Bilbao. Could the Wirral become the North West’s answer to the Basque Country? We shall see.