Thomas Sharp - town planner

Although not a native of Exeter, Thomas Sharp has probably had a greater influence on Exeter in the 20th century, than any other person.

After the Exeter Blitz, had destroyed at least a third of the area of central Exeter, the City Council were confronted with the task of planning to re-build the city, after the war. In October 1943, the Council chose the Town Planner, Thomas Sharp to draw up an outline plan for the rebuilding of the city. Sharp was born in 1901 and had gained a reputation for his expertise in town planning - in 1940 be published a ninepenny book, Town Planning and was Senior Research Officer at the Ministry of Town and Country Planning. His plan for Exeter was prepared by December 1945 and an exhibition, including a model of Exeter was exhibited in the shell of the City Library. The exhibition ran for two weeks and had 28,035 visitors between 29 December and 19 January 1946. A book, Exeter Phoenix with numerous colour maps and plans was published in March 1946.

Some of his ideas for Exeter were controversial and many were dropped by the city planners. Traders wanted to rebuild as quickly as possible, and the Council were concerned about rateable value. A lack of money and materials also led to many compromises. The northern by-pass along the Longbrook Valley and down Exe Street to the river would have been expensive and destructive, although the present Western Way can't be said to have been a benign addition to Exeter. Neither Sharp, nor the City Council realised that their vision of bringing cars to the centre with strategically placed carparks, would strangle the city. Princesshay is the feature most associated with Sharp, but even that was a compromise, and ended up being meaner in actuality than his plan envisioned. Many ancient buildings that Sharp recommended could be saved were deliberately demolished at the instigation of the Town Clerk, C J Newman.

Other cities that had plans drawn up for them by Sharp include Salisbury, Durham, Chichester, and Taunton.