Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age that was inhabited by Celtic tribes this included jersey. The area which we now call St Helier was first used as a fishing village on the dunes between the marshy land behind and the high-water mark. The parish church was built on the water front  in the 12th century where boats were tied to the walls surrounding it, now due to the reclaimed land sits a lot further in land. Elizabeth Castle was built in the early 1600’s due to Mont Orgueil no longer being sufficient for the cannons being used to defend the island and town.

18th Century: The town consisted of mainly houses, shops and warehouses along the coast and surrounding the church and market (Royal square from 1751). £200 was given by George II  towards the construction of a new harbour, before this boats beached themselves on a low tide and good were transported over the beaches to hard land. In 1781 the royal square was home to The Battle of Jersey, a scene from this event is captured in the famous painting by John Singleton Copley‘s

19th Century: Roads built for military purposes made it possible for farmers to transport their goods from farms to the fast sailing ships and later steamships in St. Helier and then on to Paris and London, this was the start of Jersey’s success in agriculture. In 1820 there was an increase in english speaking people moving to live in Jersey due to the end of the conflict with France, better communication and transport. During the second half of the 19th century roads were widened to allow trucks filled with produces to access the harbour, many ancient buildings were demolished in the town centre for this. Very few building remain in St. Helier from before the 19th century giving the town a victorian character.

20th Century: A tunnel road was built under Fort Regent in the 1960s allowing traffic to avoid the steep hill from the east side of town around the harbour. at this time fort regent was also in the 1960s, income from the developed into a leisure facility which had a cable car to connect it to the town centre. King Street was made into a pedestrian friendly road in the 1970’s as more high street shops moved to the island. Fort Regent leisure centre was later closed in the 90’s.

 

A masterplan is a long-term planning document that shows a conceptual layout to guide future growth and development of an area. Master planning is about making the connection between buildings, social settings, and their surrounding environments. A master plan includes analysis, recommendations, and proposals for a site’s population, economy, housing, transportation, community facilities, and land use. It is based on public input, surveys, planning initiatives, existing development, physical characteristics, and social and economic conditions. The changes are normally long-term and can be altered based on changing conditions over time.

Already masterplans have been used the the development of St. Helier in the reservation of the Weighbridge into Liberty Wharf shopping centre and in the current finance centre which is under development. Previous to this a lot of land was reclaimed from the sea and made into the water front, this was a huge project which would of used the process of masterplanning to achieve the best result possible. Master

Link to official Masterplan for the development of the North of St Helier https://www.gov.je/Government/Pages/StatesReports.aspx?ReportID=583

Links to Masterplan for the Esplanade Quarter. https://www.gov.je/Government/Pages/StatesReports.aspx?reportid=137

Describe your own view, feelings and vision for how you see the Future of St. Helier?

I do not live in or near St Helier which means when I do go town it is for a specific reason such as shopping, leisure or as a connection point for transport. Currently I think st helier is a well developed part of the island which provides facilities for all the people who live work and visit there, I also think it is full of tradition and although it has been constantly evolving ever since the war there are still key features which have always been the same. After listening to the plans on the development of the water front including the finance centre I feel that the heart and sole of the island is slowly being taken away. The two new buildings on castle street look very modern and help to bring life to this area of town however I think the buildings look like any other city building and lack personality connecting them to the unique island. Jersey will never have a big city due to it’s size, so I don’t think the architecture should make it out to be something that it is not. On the other hand I also think that if jersey is going to be developed further and be built up in more areas there are ways space can be saved and the landscape can be made more interesting at the same time. There is currently a limit to the height of buildings in town which makes the skyline look very flat and boring, if permission could be granted to build up instead of out on some buildings it could ultimately save space town.

I also think St Helier needs to improve and change its rules on transport, due to the high concentration of people who commute around and through the town area, the traffic is becoming worse and worse. I think for such a small area there could be a much more efficient transport system which could work for everyone. In large cities such as London the traffic is limited when going through the city centre to reduce cramming and pollution in built up areas. This is done through a toll gate where vehicles pay to enter, a similar system could be used to prevent traffic in jersey as well as public transport such busses being made even more accessible from all parts of the island.

High rent for homes and shops is making it hard for independent businesses which give St Helier is Uniqueness to stay open, if these prices cary n going up we are going to see more and more chain companies and shops replacing them making town look like a clone of main land city.