If you're in north-west London, keep an eye out for this strange contraption. Billed as 'the world's first mobile town square', the pedal-powered community centre will be touring the streets of Cricklewood from 31 August until the end of September, to highlight the lack of basic public amenities in the area.
The organiser — civic design agency Spacemakers, the fillip behind Brixton Village — reckons Cricklewood has "an intriguing history but little civic amenities left to show for its heritage — not only is there no town hall or library, there’s not even a single public bench." (Not quite true...we quickly found this trio, and these ones...but there aren't any on the high street.)
So what's packed into this mobile box of civic delights? "The square will take the form of a civic folly on the back of a rickshaw bicycle, housing everything necessary to create a bona fide town square, including benches, stools, a clocktower, games and signage." It'll be appearing soon at scraps of waste ground around Cricklewood, including a patch of grass next to B&Q and on top of a car park.
Here's the event schedule so far:
- Saturday 31 August - Friday 6 September: B&Q grass space, Cricklewood Lane, including Cricklewoof Dog Show on 31 August and a Signage Workshop on 1 September
- Saturday 7 September - Friday 13 September: Keyes Road mini-square, where Keyes Road meets Cricklewood Broadway, including Galtymore Memorial Dance on 8 September
- Saturday 14 September - Friday 20 September: Railway Terrace Steps, between Gratton Terrace and Cricklewood Broadway, including DIY Library on 15 September
- Saturday 21 September - Friday 27 September: Pavement outside Beacon Bingo, Cricklewood Broadway, including a Chess Tournament on 22 September and People Tend To Sit Where There Are Spaces To Sit: Public Space Conversations plus Film Show
- Saturday 28 September only: Raft Furniture Rooftop Car Park, Cricklewood Broadway, including Cricklewood Walk-In Cinema
In addition, you can follow the roadshow on @cricktownsq or Facebook.
