COMPETITION CONDITIONS

Competition Promoters

The Promoters of the Redcar Seafront Open Design Competition are Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council and the Environment Agency.

Eligibility, intention to build & procurement

A Notice relating to the competition has been placed in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU). The competition is open internationally to all practising architects, landscape architects, town planners and urban designers. Students of the aforementioned design disciplines may only enter the competition as part of a team that includes an appropriately and fully qualified practising design professional. Inter-discipline collaboration is actively encouraged, as is the inclusion of the work of public artists.

No member or employees of the Promoters; or member of, or employee, or business associate of a member of the Jury Panel shall be eligible to compete, or permitted in any way to assist or advise a competitor in preparing a submission for the competition.

Subject to the Environment Agency and Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council securing all of the necessary approvals to progress the scheme to the detailed design phase, It is the intention that the winner will be commissioned to undertake the detailed design of the public realm works included within their entry. The winner will be required to carry out this design in conjunction with the Environment Agency’s lead designers for the engineering works and develop a detailed and costed design framework for the seafront zone. Part of this work will involve detailing design concepts and finishes for the new seawall that would be incorporated into a planning application for the scheme.

Development of the ‘backdrop’ zone proposals would be the subject of a separate and additional funding package being developed by Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council.

Where necessary, the Promoters reserve the right to supplement the expertise of the winning designer/team to ensure deliverability of the project.

In the event that no scheme meets the requirements set out in this Competition Brief, the Promoters reserve the right not to proceed beyond the competition stage.

Jury Panel
The Jury Panel is expected to comprise:

*  Denotes Jury Panel member with appropriate technical qualification.
** James Porter will attend the Jury Panel meetings to document the process and to answer procedural matters.

Timetable

 The timetable for the competition (subject to change) is as follows:

Site visit

No official site visits will be held since the seafront strip is readily accessible to all members of the general public.  Those competitors unable to visit Redcar personally should refer to the supporting information which includes site plans, photographs etc.  

Questions

Questions relating to the Competition Brief should be submitted in writing to the RIBA Competitions Office to arrive no later than 14.00hrs on Tuesday  22 July 2008.  Responses to questions raised will be available to download from the dedicated Redcar Seafront Competition web site: (www.ribaredcarseafront.co.uk) from Friday 1 August 2008.

Stage One Submission Requirement

• Competitors should submit their design in landscape format, on up to two lightweight A1 foam boards. Submissions should include sufficient information to outline the design, approach and thinking.  Drawings should be at sufficient scale to allow Jury Panel members to appreciate the components of the planning and design approach.  Diagrams should be included where these help to explain the approach.
• The unique entry reference number provided to each competitor upon registration should be clearly displayed in the top RHS of each A1 design board.  Please also see ‘Anonymity’ section below.
• A statement (one single-sided sheet of A4, 12pt arial typeface) outlining the financial viability of the design proposals.  This should address how the public realm aspects of the new sea wall could be delivered within a total potential budget requirement of GBP £5m.
• A digital copy (PDF format) of the A1 design boards should be submitted on an accompanying CD-ROM.  The CD-ROM should also contain three images which the designer feels best represents their scheme, for potential use in the printed and/or electronic media.  A high (300dpi) and low resolution (72dpi) version of each image should be submitted in JPEG format. 

Assessment Criteria

When reviewing the anonymous design submissions, the Jury Panel will be looking for:

• Proposals that inspire, surprise and enthuse to transform Redcar into an inspirational place to visit, play, work and invest;
• A design approach that can serve as a catalyst for the renaissance of Redcar;
• Viable proposals that strike a clear balance between creativity and pragmatism;
• Proposals that will be sustainable and durable within the harsh marine environment;
• Clear communication of ideas to explain the ethos behind the scheme.

Stage 2

At Stage 2, anonymity will be lifted and the short-listed designers will be invited to present their design proposals to the Jury Panel at a final interview.  It is anticipated that these interviews will be held in Redcar in early October 2008.  In addition to the assessment criteria listed above, the Panel will also consider each designer’s:

• Response to feedback from the Jury Panel following the Stage 1 assessment;
• Empathy, realism and overall understanding of the commissioning clients’ expectations and abilities;

Ability to carry out the commission in conjunction with the Environment Agency’s lead designers for the engineering works.

Submission method

Stage One submissions should be contained in a single package and are to be sent, carriage paid to:

         Redcar Seafront Competition

         RIBA Competitions Office

         6 Melbourne Street

         Leeds

         LS2 7PS

         UK

• Overseas Competitors should note that for Customs purposes no commercial value should be assigned to the design submission.  If a commercial value is given this may result in your submission being delayed and/or returned to you unopened, as the RIBA will not be liable for any Customs charges otherwise incurred.
• Your submission should arrive no later than 2.00pm on Wednesday 27 August 2008.  Late submissions will not be accepted and it will not be possible to submit entries via e-mail.  UK Competitors should note that First Class post does not necessarily guarantee next-day delivery and should plan their submission schedule accordingly.
• Competitors requiring proof of delivery should enclose in their submission package a stamped, sealed envelope bearing the name and address of a person other than the competition entrant nominated as a Third Party to receive the proof of delivery.  The entry reference number should be clearly displayed on the envelope.  This will be posted upon receipt of the submission.  Please refer to Anonymity section below.
  Competitors are advised to retain copies of all design material submitted.  Whilst the Promoters and the RIBA Competitions Office will exercise all reasonable care, they will not be liable for loss or damage to drawings that may occur either in transit, during exhibition, storage or packing. 

Anonymity

Stage 1 design submissions should be submitted without name, motif or distinguishing marks of any kind.  The unique entry reference number supplied on registration must be clearly displayed in the top right hand corner of each landscape, A1 design board.  The number should also be displayed on the supporting financial viability statement and CD-ROM.  Competition entries submitted without a clearly displayed official entry reference number shall be excluded from the competition.

All competitors will need to satisfy the Competition Promoters that the proposals submitted are original pieces of work and that he/she is the bona fide author of the design he/she has submitted.

Anonymity will be lifted at Stage Two of the competition.  Up to 5 competitors will be invited to articulate their design concepts and explore the financial viability of their proposals at a final interview.  Each short-listed competitor/team will need to satisfy the Competition Promoters that they are (or their team includes) an appropriately and fully qualified, practising design professional.

Disqualification

Any design shall be excluded from the competition:

• If received after the latest time stated under the Submission Method;
• If, in the opinion of the assessors, it does not fulfil the requirements of the Brief;
• If a competitor shall disclose his or her identity, or improperly attempt to influence the decision;

If any of the requirements of the Competition Brief and Conditions are disregarded.

Copyright

The ownership of Copyright will be in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.  The Promoters reserve the right to exhibit or publish all entries without cost.  The Promoters may choose to retain all entries.

Announcement of Award

The competition results will be published after notification has been given to all participating competitors.  The Promoters and the RIBA reserve the right to publicise the competition, any design submission and the result in any way or medium they consider fit.

Enquiries

All enquiries regarding the Redcar Seafront Design Competition should be made to the RIBA Competitions Office:

RIBA Competitions Office

6  Melbourne Street,

Leeds

LS2 7PS
UK

Tel           +44(0)113-234-1335

Fax          +44(0)113-246-0744

Email        riba.competitions@inst.riba.org

Web         www.architecture.com/competitions

The Competition Promoters should not be solicited for information as this may lead to disqualification from the competition.