Depopulation of Fetlar

[shetlander]

An interesting report going up to this week's SIC Development Committee meeting about the future of Fetlar which recommends the set-up of a working group to look at how depopulation in the island can be addressed. The statistic on the extent that the population has dropped since the last census and the fact that in two years there will be no primary school age children or younger left on the isle make stark reading.

 

http://www.shetland.gov.uk/coins/opendocument.asp?documentid=13330

 

I'm in two minds about this. On one hand, any efforts to stimulate economic development and job creation can only be a good thing and I would support any progress being made on the provision of their long awaited pier and breakwater. However, if as I see it, the desire to be nearer bigger centres of population and both the lifestyle and professional/skilled job opportunities they offer are the main reasons why young folk choose to move out, is there much local economic development agencies can do to stop population drift from places like Fetlar?

[Malachy]

Forgive me for posting myself, but...

http://www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/2008/09/05/shetland-life-editorial-3/

 

I really think that some of the small isles have a desparate need to get control and ownership over their housing. If people are to move in there needs to be places for them to live.

[Mag]

I'm really interested in the Fair Isle system Malachy. Who has control over the selection of people who move to the Isle? You mentioned criteria for selection, such as the skills required on the Island. How are these criteria set? Presumably different residients might have different values when deciding on the needs of the community? How does the community input into the decision? And what happens if a young local couple looking for a house don't meet the criteria?

[Malachy]

There's a housing forum, comprising five elected islanders and one National Trust representative. They meet to discuss applications and make their recommendation to the NTS.

Sometimes it will be pretty obvious what is needed - ie, if we're short of someone on the boat, or a care worker etc. But at times when there's no specific job needing filled then it's a case of reading applications and making a judgement based on the skills they bring, etc. (And if they're applying for a croft, then their experience and ideas). If someone has lived on an island before, or lives in Shetland, that would be taken into account. People are also strongly encouraged to visit the island and meet with the forum to discuss life here.

The criteria are certainly not set in stone, and potentially there could be disagreements within the forum, but I think often the right choice will be fairly clear. A young local couple would be very unlikely not to be considered suitable, unless, say, they put on their application that they were planning to come and live off the dole or set up a safari park or something.

[Nigel Bridgman-Elliot]

Fetlar is looking an appealing place to consider moving to on several basis, with its ultra low crime rate, and apparently welcoming attitude to those wanting to build homes and develop businesses, and low land prices, I reckon it could well be the place we have been looking for to self build our own home and others.

 

In the rest of country the crime is high, land prices are way out of our affordable range, and local planners and various groups are not keen on new builds, even if you mention your keen on an earth sheltered approach!

 

Who would be the best people/person to get into contact with over a view to possibly moving to the island in the not too distant future ?

[Brink]

^^ not entirely sure, perhaps the Fetlar community council can help you :

 

Officer:

Martha Devine

Address:

New House

Mid Brake

Cullivoe

Yell

ZE2 9DD

 

Phone:

07721918764

E-Mail:

fetlarcc@yahoo.co.uk

[Njugle]

And spend some time here:

http://www.shetland.org/

 

And if you have kids all the better, the school in Fetlar need intake. Your kids would be assured almost one to one tuition!

[Nigel Bridgman-Elliot]

Thanks Brink and Njugle no kids in tow though, and a vasectomy means no unlikely suprises in the future!

 

I'm keen to build and develop a teleworking centre though, perhaps a dozen or two new homes, and I'd be keen to encourage some families with kids to move and work there myself.

 

 

Architecturally I'm keen on an earth sheltered approach (I'm a member of the British Earth Shelter Association), using waterproof concrete domes, if you can imagine something like this:

 

http://static.monolithic.com/domenews/2005/rmf.html

 

(Some inside shots of above for those interested: http://deputy-dog.com/2007/08/02/most-bizarre-radio-station-in-the-world )

 

Only underground with exposed concrete sections done in the style of fake rock, like this:

 

http://www.stonecraftsite.com/landscaping.html

 

So you end up with something a little simlar to the picture here:

 

http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/E/AE_earth-sheltered_house.html

 

If you imagine a dozen or so of those in a setting like this:

 

http://static.flickr.com/36/76530743_3cd8219d6a.jpg

 

That way it can end up sympathetically blending into the landscape, plus with a structure underground that leaves topside for nature so you can add some trees and enjoy the landscape, rather than clutter it with whatever is todays fashionable modern architectural carbunckle.

 

Whilst I'm a fan of concrete for its usefulness, I really don't like how its often used to create ugly dirty looking buildings, when you can use it to create beauty, longevity (Look at the Roman Pantheon as an excellent example of a concrete dome lasting thousands of years.) and make use of its properties to create large column free spaces, with low future maintence issues.

 

Would such a style of architecture married with a desire to introduce productive businesses be welcomed ?

[Guest posiedon]

Would such a style of architecture married with a desire to introduce productive businesses be welcomed ?

Well I like it, looks like an excelent idea.

[PJ of Hildisvik]

I love the designs and the idea, christ it's like being in the Shire, where's Bilbo Baggins and all the other Hobbits, or are they already living on Bressay

[Carlos]

From what I have heard the Building Control people are quite hard to get by with any construction method that is out of the ordinary.

To not get held up with that stuff you'd be better to have all the insulation/breathability/"whatever else they ask for these days" figures available in advance.

 

There would be some issues with getting a lot of concrete into Fetlar at one time too, but those should be things that can be worked round.

[khitajrah]

^^ definitely looks interesting, but I wonder how folk would react to having the Shire built in Fetlar? Would dressing up like Hobbitses be required?

[PJ of Hildisvik]

Until the fairly recent timber Nordic designs up here, which i like a lot, we had to put up with depressing, grey harl rectangular concrete boxes, placed in such a way that everybody looks into everybody elses lounge.

These designs if tastefully landscaped and blended into there enviroment would be very appealling, my teenage daughter wants one now!

[PJ of Hildisvik]

Fetlar IMHO has the best soil in Shetland, so incorporating Allotment schemes into a project would be cool, not to many polytunnels though, they do become a blot on the landscape when in big numbers.

Or a one off proffesional strong glasshouse, with a geen heating system for early germination to extend the growing season by a couple of months, there is plenty of potential if you can get past all the hurdles the council would throw at it, you never know they might of earmarked a 600MWwind factory for Fetlar.

[EM]

Architecturally I'm keen on an earth sheltered approach ... using waterproof concrete domes, ... That way it can end up sympathetically blending into the landscape...

 

Yes!

 

Whilst I'm a fan of concrete for its usefulness, I really don't like how its often used to create ugly dirty looking buildings, when you can use it to create beauty,... and make use of its properties to create large column free spaces, with low future maintence issues.

Spot on.

 

 

Would such a style of architecture married with a desire to introduce productive businesses be welcomed ?

I certainly hope so. This is one of my specialities. I make the software for designing doubly-curved architectural structures. Mostly used for tensile membrane, but increasingly rigid shells.

 

Something you should also push when listing the appropriateness of such building configurations in a Shetland context is the wind. Shetland is extremely windy to say the least. No structure is better suited to dealing with this than earth sheltered. The downside of concrete domes from a liveability point of view has always been the matter of natural light, but as I'm sure you know this has been solved in numerous ways.

 

Concrete domes were quite popular for a time but fell out of favour from the mid 70s. This was due to a combination of economics, bad design and fashion. In particular the cost of formwork made irregular shapes too expensive. I also think there was too much emphasis on thin-shell domes (Isler, Candela) rather than thick-section techniques. The situation today is completely different and we are experiencing a resurgance in interest from the architectural community due to the better technology and public popularity of blob buildings.

 

Incidentally, with respect to the Shire burrows in LOTR, I was a tad disappointed by the interiors. I always considered Bilbo's home to be, above all, snug. With the film I found the rooms to be very austere and "white paint" Calvinist church style. A missed opportunity there I think.