London Trip - Eden Dock, HTA Landscape Architects

 Situated in Canary Wharf, Eden Dock is a 1.55 hectare site which floats on the water with interconnected pontoons and aquatic islands, designed to elevate mental and physical wellbeing through the power of nature. 

The dock is surrounded by contemporary high-rise buildings. The following image shows an example of biophillic architecture on the Revolut headquarters building borders the site. 

Before development Eden Dock was formerly known as Middle Dock was largely dominated by concrete blocks and black steel balustrade, the following image represents the harsh, rarely used site (accessed at ARUPS).

Located in an area of Canary Wharf with high footfall from both the station and surrounding residential and commercial buildings, Eden Dock is in a prime spot to be utilised throughout the year, for lunch breaks during the week and open-water swimming and yoga by the water's edge at the weekend. The surrounding high-rise buildings create a microclimate, during the cooler months winds are channelled through the buildings, whilst during the warmer months the façades reflect sunlight and winds are blocked, limiting air flow, resulting in two extreme climates. Upon recent visit to Eden Dock, there were high winds and the temperature was bitter, despite this there were several people enjoying the site. 

The materiality of the site was interesting, using a warm palette of what appeared to be composite timber bleachers, perhaps teak, each with non-slip grit stripes, each secured with hex screws. Overall the wood work was sound, however the timber was butt jointed without gap, this is bad practise because in the winter months and low temperatures rainfall will enter the between the two timber planks and will expand and freeze increasing the chance of splitting. Good practise would have been to leave 6mm between each timber plank, the following image shows butt jointed timer on site. 

Timber is used throughout the Eden Dock, bleacher seating, amphitheatre steps, walkways, raised planters and balustrades. The following images show the steps on either side of the dock with bronze stair nosing and balustrades, whilst black powder coated steel supports these elements and offers a point of safety on the dock edge. 

Expansion joints are used at certain intervals on the timber decking to accommodate water level fluctuation on the deck below, this is explored in the following picture. 

Decorative blue slate is used in all of the raised planters and amphitheatre seating. In terms of planting the palette is comprised largely of Euphorbia, Vinca minor, Alnus glutinosa, Zantedeschia aethiopica, Betula utilis subsp. jacquemontii, and various grasses which had been cut back. The planting palette will include more species than this in the upcoming months. The following shows several of these species. 

Sphagnum moss and dried flower have been added into wire structures to create life-like figures, supposedly symbolising the interplay of nature and urban living, embodying the projects ethos of biodiversity and ecological balance. 

Though this is a interesting idea, the execution of the figures is poor, just over 5 months since completion the figures appear to be worn and with limited evergreen planting surrounding them the, hence pontoons are of little interest. Moss perhaps wasn't the best material choice considering all moss requires at least some moisture to survive. By the time the warmer months role round these figures are likely to be just the wire structures underneath, unless constant maintenance is received. 

The project was in partnership with the Eden Project, aiming to improve biodiversity in city environments, however considering the project only launched in early October 2024 the planting is poor, offering limited winter interest and badly maintained aquatic planting. 

Overall, in my view the planting undermines the project, and is disappointing considering the partnership of the Eden Project, a company which celebrates the natural world and plants, you would think it would be better. 

To conclude, Eden Dock is a project with the potential to serve as a year-round gathering place for people to enjoy and socialise, and its is likely to achieve this. Open from sunrise to sunset, lighting ensures the space is safe and easy to appreciate, whilst the hard materials add warmth to an area of Canary Wharf which is dominated by modern high-rise buildings and extreme microclimates. The multi-use space offers opportunity for activities such as open water swimming, yoga and mindfulness offers an escape from the busy lifestyles which many people working and living in this area may experience. 

In terms of connecting the urban and rural environments, Eden Dock hits the brief well, however the poor, unadventurous planting offers minimal biodiversity and year-round interest and in my personal view is the downfall of this project in terms of its longevity and design. The concept of the moss figures is powerful but the execution of this is not seamless therefore is lost.