Professional Documents
Culture Documents
AoU Journal Issue Two
AoU Journal Issue Two
contents
Urbanism sans frontires Kevin Murray Learning from Europe Sarah Chaplin Learning from Lisbon: the process of renewal Kerri Farnsworth Bradford: a pro-active producer city? Barra Mac Ruair Social housing in Latin America Claudia Murray The great towns Nick Wright & John Lord Digital urbanism Tim Stonor Urban regeneration as a shared learning process Henk Bouwman Reconnecting places & people Saffron Woodcraft Malm: reflections on a city in transition Christer Larsson Activity programmes Getting involved Academicians & Directors 03 04 08 10 12 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30
The AoU Journal provides a vehicle for Academicians to discuss current issues in urbanism, share insights, challenge assumptions and stimulate debate. Each of the topics in this publication will continue to be explored online through our LinkedIn.com group
The Academy of Urbanism 70 Cowcross Street London ECM 6EJ www.academyofurbanism.org.uk info@academyofurbanism.org.uk +44 (0) 0 75 8777
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using innovative instruments in places like Antwerp, Lisbon and Malm, albeit at a slower pace than South America. As a longstanding Hansa city-state, Hamburg exemplifies a much greater sense of its civic self as a commercial trading entity than most places in Europe. The Producer City concept, emerging from places like Bradford, in which heritage and modernity, production and consumption, global and local, all co-exist in a non-binary fashion, is worthy of further examination within the commercial place-economy approach. Our partnered initiative, Places of Connection, offers some ideas on how we might explore the challenges and opportunities as a network of learning places, and we hope to do more with this as we have more regional and international events.
If you are interested in exploring these and similar transnational themes with a mix of dedicated Bradfordians and fellow Academicians, or simply learning more about the work of the Academy, please come along to our Annual Congress in Bradford in mid-May. It will be a great learning event, and promises to be a memorable one too. Kevin Murray AoU Chairman, The Academy of Urbanism Director, Kevin Murray Associates
Above: viewing the transformative outputs of slow urbanism in downtown Antwerp
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Confluence, a large scale project that has re-used old industrial land to double the size of central Lyon
John Thompson
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Above: HafenCity has reused Hamburgs old port warehouses to create a complex, mixed-use city quarter
John Thompson
Opposite: Antwerp, Belgiums second largest city and one of Europes largest ports
City of Antwerp
Right: Franois Bregnac (Lyon); Andreas Kellner (Hamburg); Kristiaan Borret AoU (Antwerp)
John Thompson
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the local situation for people with an innovative, portable even exportable approach to mixed-use development that would turn the tables of fortune for the city quite fundamentally. On the face of it, things have worked extremely well, but behind the scenes it has also demanded the emergence of a whole gamut of trust and collaboration between the various actors, not least to overcome differences of opinion. Whilst Kellner admitted this has produced a certain amount of consultation fatigue, the net result is a city that is now more than capable of taking democratic and politically robust decisions about place-making. Lyon faced similar political and physical challenges, as Franois Bregnac, the interim director of the citys Urbanism Agency, described. Built on the confluence of the Sane and the Rhne, the core of the city occupies an enviable location, but this was regrettably marred in the 1960s when the autoroute ploughed through the middle of the city, cutting it off from much of its river frontage as well as carving up neighbourhoods. Simultaneously, and failing to take their cue from Tony Garniers integrated modernist estates that still remain popular today, a string of high-rise mega-structures set amid green plains rose up in the banlieues surrounding Lyon; in theory a bold planning idea but in reality a living nightmare. Repairing this kind of urban damage required more than just a technical solution, and certainly more than a bunch of public realm improvements. Lyon took its cues early on from Barcelona in this respect, devising an almost spiritual approach to its urban transformation, starting with its Plan Lumire. The introduction of an annual festival of sound and light was a key part of achieving what Bregnac calls the re-bewitched city. Evacuating 2,000 car parking spaces, bringing dance to the streets, opening up 5km of river pathways, and planting green lanes all over the city were other important moves on the part of the Urbanism Agency. Instead of large parcels of land assigned as urban parks, which was seen as a 19th century approach, nature was brought intentionally right through the city, in an attempt to reconnect the city centre with its suburbs, making the passage from one to the other easier and more fluid. Bregnac made the process of urban change sound deceptively easy: its simply a case of joining up the strategy to the plan to a sequence of projects. But he
also was quick to point out this is not in any way a linear process you have to identify projects to implement at the same time as formulating the strategy, and it generally takes 25 years before it all happens. There was a hint of frustration in Bregnacs refreshingly honest account of his experience at the helm, as he wondered aloud if they could have been more open to innovation where their heritage was concerned and a little less enamoured of Italian urban precedent. But Bregnac was also thrilled with the effects of bottomup thinking in the city, which has helped establish it as something of an urban living pioneer, citing proudly that Boris Johnson stole the idea of the urban bike scheme from Lyon; this French regional capital is much further down the line towards becoming a car-free zone than London. There is still much more to be done to reconnect the suburbs to the city centre, but attitudes have shifted and it now seems possible to dream a new dream of a Garden City Lyon that goes way beyond Garniers modernist vision, showing us how to fashion a leisurely and liveable Garden City for the people. Sarah Chaplin AoU Director, Evolver LLP
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However the reality is somewhat different. In 2005 the city moved to a new elected Mayoral system, where candidates do not have to be aligned to a political party. This allows the citys 545,000 inhabitants to elect those with the right professional skills to run a city, and with a long-term strategic approach; while circumstances and delivery policies may evolve, the long-term direction of travel remains fixed. In addition, it seems that Lisbon is managing to deliver essential financial austerity measures, whilst at the same time opening up the decision-making process to respond to local priorities and finding ways of engaging with its citizens. This aims to build trust and mutuality in the democratic process through devolution of powers at the sub-urban scale, with approaches such as participatory budgeting, which Lisbon was the first European capital to introduce. For me this was an inspirational demonstration of true localism in action and of a potentially compelling tool to lever in community support in difficult economic times, when the popular perception is of continuous cuts to budgets and services, falling real incomes and purchasing power, and severe labour market challenges. In sharp contrast to the UK, the oft-used phrase were all in this together felt genuine, with a mutual acceptance that whilst improvements may be slower and small-scale, there is still commitment to longer-term progress. To further underpin the commitment to participatory democracy, the city has engaged with its significant pool of academic expertise to support research into citizenship and the definition of community belonging, as well as commercialisation of its latent intellectual capital. It struck me that this could be very easily replicated elsewhere at a relatively low cost to help inform and shape microeconomic policy especially as sense of community is often quoted as being a key critical success factor (CSF) in urban place-making, yet in the UK has rapidly diminished over the past 30-40 years. Despite the broader national austerity agenda, it was heartening to see that Lisbon is still investing in its physical fabric (including an impressive public transport system, which will stand the city in good stead when there is an upturn in economic fortunes). This has partly been achieved by better aligning the asset investment programmes of formerly-independent city agencies, such as the Port Authority, with the wider city agenda. Interestingly, there is also a continued commitment to development and improvement of public spaces. This is driven by a strong
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Left: Learning from Lisbon team Below: historic Lisbon, in contrast to the developments of Expo 98, situated in the east of Libson
All Kevin Murray
belief that horizontal public investment levers in vertical private investment, but also a fundamental humanistic principle that in harsh economic times, it is essential that all citizens can access high-quality free spaces to facilitate continued socialisation and a sense of pride and ownership. A further policy of prioritising renovation of existing buildings over wholesale clearance and redevelopment not only makes economic sense, but further contributes to the sense of community stability and belonging. Lisbons steadfast commitment to infrastructural asset investment provided much food for thought, especially when contrasted with the recent political approach in the UK an approach being placed under scrutiny via the current ongoing debate about the HS2 high-speed rail development. The city is also learning how to better-lever private investment by being smarter with its own land and property assets, and has developed innovative new ways of stimulating private investment; for example, a new transferable building permit system linking conservation and new development, which effectively makes them tradable
commodities within a local market. I have to confess it took a while for me to get to grips with the mechanics of such a system, but once it sank in I was struck by its simple ingenuity so much so that upon my return to the UK I quickly scheduled discussions with two similarly forward-thinking city authorities to share the knowledge and to initiate exploration of a similar approach. It is hard to sum up the lessons from such a distinctive and progressive city in a few short paragraphs. But my impression was overwhelmingly positive: particularly of Lisbons shared passion and commitment to improve the city fundamentally for its own citizens. This was inspiring and heartening, especially so given the current economic difficulties. The city is clear and realistic about its aspirations, encapsulated in the City Plan. And whilst it may take longer to get there, the city leadership remains firm in its convictions. Many other cities would do well to learn from such confidence in the medium-term vision. Kerri Farnsworth AoU Principal, Kerri Farnsworth Associates
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Bradford
business growth scheme. The latter provides rate rebates for businesses creating new jobs or bringing disused commercial space back into use. Weve also been at the forefront of new interventions in placemaking. The Council stepped in to provide a commercial loan to a developer when the banks could not, allowing Provident Financial to open their new headquarters at the heart of the city. Leading on the Leeds City Region revolving investment fund will create up to 500m for investment in projects that are commercially viable and support economic growth, but are unable to secure sufficient finance due to conditions in the financial markets. Bradford has been adept at making the most of the resources gained, such as levering local jobs out of construction investment in City Park, and creating meanwhile uses like Bradford Urban Garden.
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Looking ahead, the development of a new City Plan will help define and position Bradfords future direction and set out a distinctively local approach to stimulating economic development and regeneration in the city. So far, we have needed insight and leadership, energy and persistence, and robust collaboration. If you would like to explore the producer city idea further, using Bradford as a model, or contribute some creative thinking towards our City Plan themes, then please come along to the Academys Congress in May. You will be made most welcome in this dynamic big small city. Barra Mac Ruair AoU Strategic Director, Bradford Metropolitan District Council
Congress VII The Producer City: an urbanism for the 21st century? Bradford 15-17 May 2013 Using the city of Bradford as our laboratory, this years Congress will explore the notion of how an established post-industrial city rethinks its roles, economy, and also recasts its physical place, to help it compete both locally and in the global economy. Participants and delegates from a wide range of backgrounds will explore the topic and, through workshops, help contribute to Bradfords continued thinking about how it shapes up to address future challenges in its City Plan. For more information visit academyofurbanism.org.uk
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A dream come true reads the sign to Quinta Monroys new housing. Delivered as a shell, beneficiaries are expected to complete or even expand their new homes
Elemental
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Five years on the shells have been adapted and expanded to suit individual needs
Elemental
infrastructure as well as the construction of each house, and yet at the time land alone in the periphery of Iquique was worth around US $20 per sq. m. This presented Elemental with something of a financial challenge as well as a typological challenge in relation to social housing. Their strategy for Quinta Monroy was effectively based on sweat equity: a reinforced concrete shell (walls, floors, roof and staircase) is provided, with all the necessary plumbing but minimal fittings. The families themselves then customise their units, adding appliances and furniture at their own expense. The system relies on the families to find the means to finish their houses. Their homes are therefore the materialisation of their earnings in the informal job market. The design team involved the inhabitants directly, seeking their views and preferences. In Chile, this was an unprecedented approach to social housing: low income families are typically given little input and just have to accept and be grateful for what they are given. The urban design layout also included four open public piazzas. These spaces were left for the community to customise, such that every family could contribute to the character of the open space, even if this was only by virtue of how they decorated their own faades. Cantinho do Cu In Brazil some of the poorest urban favelas are found in So Paulo. The favela has been gradually and informally populated since the 1980s, but it was only in this century that the Municipality of So Paulo decided to take action and allocate funds for redeveloping one of the most deprived areas in the city. One favela, Cantinho do Cu, lies on the left bank of the Billings dam, which is vital for the city of So Paulo, providing one third of its fresh water. It is also a nature reserve protected by the Brazilian government. Concerns over its potential contamination due to waste disposal in the dam by local inhabitants was a key imperative for the government to take action.
Among the various urban upgrading programmes spreading across Latin America, the two main approaches are a) developing new dwellings or b) delivering improvements to the areas infrastructure. Both approaches depend on geographical conditions in each location, and decisions are taken according to environmental safety. Sometimes a mix of both approaches exists. The examples presented here illustrate the two possibilities: Quinta Monroy was an informal development whose settlers each received a new dwelling, while Cantinho do Cu has seen improvements to the area. Quinta Monroy is located at the very heart of the city of Iquique, Chile. Informal development began there in the 1960s and by the year 2000 there were over 100 families living in precarious conditions in an area of around 5,000 sq. m. Being in the city centre means the land is theoretically higher in value, and therefore efforts were made to relocate those living there. After several attempts to move families to the edge of the city failed, the authorities decided instead to help the community legalise their settlement and strengthen their roots in the area, appointing the architectural firm Elemental to provide the community with a new housing development. In 2003 Chiles budget for social housing was very low just US $7,500 per dwelling to cover land acquisition,
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Above: newly built blocks replacing the old favela in Paraispolis, So Paulo
miniplanpac
Below: self-ghettoisation is inevitable when social inequality and insecurity rule the street, Quinta Monroy
Elemental
In contrast, the intervention in Cantinho do Cu has had less impact on neighbouring areas, perhaps because the architects contribution was to manage what was already in place. Although some families were relocated, eviction due to flood risks could not be avoided; and whilst road access has been improved, there are still issues with connectivity as the main transport network of So Paulo does not reach an area that is used by over 10,000 people, but this problem will no doubt be addressed in future. The bigger issue at stake in Latin America is now to address the endemic social inequality and lack of social mobility in urban areas. Even in a small community like Quinta Monroy and despite all efforts from architects and social workers, home owners insist on building fences and gates around their new neighbourhood. The need to demarcate their territory seems too strong to resist, but it has of course produced ghettoes in which social mobility is almost impossible. No scheme will ever succeed if it is built as a ghetto from the outset, it will simply stand as a symbol of social failure. The ongoing sustainability of current government efforts to reduce informal developments is still uncertain, but what is clear is that current approaches require more conclusive research before governments and policymakers wade in and destroy existing communities and livelihoods. Dr Claudia Murray AoU Research Fellow, Henley Business School
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Opposite: tourism and higher education keep Galways high street busy round the year
Stephen Gallagher
the wrong time of year (i.e. too many visitors, not enough students or the other way around) and try our best to weigh up incomplete data and uncorroborated claims. Impressions are inevitably coloured by the weather, the hospitality, the quality of the hotels and the food. But that said, these are three agreeable and enjoyable places, served by committed and enterprising business leaders and public servants, and as far as we can gauge each has performed better than many of its peers. Equally, each enjoys advantages that give it the edge over less-favoured rivals: Shrewsburys natural and historic environment; Falmouths great harbour and Atlantic outlook; Galways iconic appeal to visitors from the US and the Irish diaspora. Whatever the challenges of picking a winner, they offer valuable learning for other places. The central lessons are around the ways in which all three places have capitalised on, nurtured and celebrated the features that make them special, as well as in their response to threats and challenges some universal, some unique to the place. In Galway, the Academy hasnt chosen an ideal town, or anything like it. Away from the historic core, most of the new Galway consists of anonymous residential and commercial development and chronic traffic congestion. However, Galway deserves recognition for both a hugely successful inward investment-led approach to its economy and even more impressive navigating its way through Irelands financial meltdown and bitter aftermath. Galway is now working hard to imbue the suburbs with the quality of the urban core and to promote sustainable transport. Whether it succeeds will determine whether it will be a contender for the Great Town Award when the opportunity comes round again in 2023. John Lord AoU Director yellow book Ltd Nick Wright AoU Director Nick Wright Planning
places in Europe until the financial crash overwhelmed Ireland in 2008. The resulting suburban sprawl has little to recommend it, and this still small city is absurdly overdependent on the car. Galway has continued to grow since 2008, albeit much more slowly. This resilience can be attributed to the citys success in attracting and consolidating knowledge-intensive technology investment, and forging strong links between those businesses and the two local universities. These largely foreign-owned companies are however deeply rooted in the region. Managing the impact of tourism is a real test: the historic town is tiny and it is sometimes overwhelmed by visitors. As visitors ourselves, we responded positively to the spirit of the place, its cosmopolitan character, and its optimism and resilience in the face of a threatening economic backdrop. There is an undeniable depth to Galways commitment to mobilising its resources and an unmistakable sense of people in the private and public sectors working together for a common cause. In the event, the Academy chose Galway as its Great Town for 2013. As assessors we were happy with this outcome, but in truth there was a case to be made for all our short-listed towns. Indeed, the whole process is a reminder of how challenging placemaking is in the prevailing economic climate, and also how it is not easy to make an assessment in a short space of time without it feeling like a snap judgement. We make a brief visit to a place, often at
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Digital urbanism
Digital technologies offer new forms of online human connectivity. Does this mean we no longer need traditional city layouts? Not at all. The lure of online The future form of towns and cities is a key issue for urban planners, designers and policymakers and one that divides opinion. There is a body of professional thought that believes we no longer need cities, at least in the relatively large, continuously connected form in which they have evolved over centuries. Instead, the view is that, connected online, people can now live in small-scale towns and villages, which are supposedly more humane. People can disconnect physically and reconnect online. This idea has huge appeal and is shared by many environmental campaigners because it is thought to reduce carbon footprints. It is a popular idea within the technology community and it has fans in many schools of architecture, planning and landscape design. But it is, I believe, fundamentally flawed. The spatial layout of a town or city is a piece of critical infrastructure, not to be experimented with unless the consequences of doing so are deeply understood. By creating physical connections between people, the spatial pattern of a village, town or city is the principal organiser of human movement and interaction as well as the flow of goods and services. These flows lead to the enacting of social and economic transactions, which are the building blocks of society, of culture and therefore of being human. The urban record shows that the most vibrant, most culturally rich and economically productive places are also the most connected: continuously interlinked by streets, paths, public spaces. The continuously connected city: a common urban heritage Up until 150 years ago there was, arguably, one kind of city: the grid city of trade social as well as economic trade. Urban settlements at all scales provided edge-tocentre connections to create relationships between global
and local movement: radial high streets that were in turn fed by orbital links that together created more or less regular grids and, in doing so, brought local inhabitants into co-present relations with visitors from out of town. The rub between these two communities was the trade that created urban economies and fuelled processes of social interaction and cultural creativity. Then, at the turn of the 20th century, driven by a desire to clean up the dirty and unsafe city, Garden Cities and Neighbourhood Unit planning emerged, providing a new kind of more divided and fragmented urban footprint yet, reinforced by public transport, still managing to connect to traditional urban centres in a low carbon way. The fatal blow for cities was dealt by Modernism and its massive, experimental zoo of urban forms, which produced highly disconnected and diluted urban networks, using landscapes and fast highways to partition the city. Witness Skelmersdale, Cumbernauld, Washington New Town or countless other planned communities: failures of the art of creating great places despite the best intentions of their planners, architects and city leaders. Along the way, vitality was lost. Cities underperformed. The common, slowly evolving historic thread was broken. Social networks in physical space were damaged to the point where some urban planning projects removed them almost entirely people no longer knew their neighbours and, stuck in suburban sprawl without a car, had nowhere to go to make new connections. Urbanism was transformed from a rich, mannered, cultured, protocoled if sometimes insanitary world of rich social relations to one where such links no longer existed. A digital future? It is within this problem context that the emergence of online social connectivity should be considered, offering transpatial networking that might fill the gaps left by failed urbanism. If people find it hard to meet in person, might they manage to transact more easily online? This is certainly
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Incurable Hippie
the vision of many technology providers, for whom plasma screens and high-speed broadband are replacements for streets and public spaces. The advent of resources such as Facebook and LinkedIn has offered a new form of social interactivity to compete with and even replace urban propinquity. Yet, the reality of online social networking suggests that the networks it creates are, on the one hand, duplications of pre-existing, physical social networks or, on the other, comprised of very weak connections with people that are not obviously of value. A large network of Facebook friends is no guarantee of a large network of good friends. A key weakness therefore in delivering the online image of the future city has been that the search-and-discover nature of online social networking has largely been poor. It is no easier to make new good friends online than it is to find them in the dark corners and elevated walkways of a failed public housing project. Yet efforts continue to improve online encounter. Massive, experimental exertions that beg the question: is the internet doing for social networking (i.e. improving it) the reverse of what cities have done for relations in physical space (i.e. to damage them). Starting with febrile experimentation and underperformance, is online evolving towards consistency, protocols, intelligibility and, most importantly, towards serendipity: the spark of humanity? Digital technology is a new urban utility of immense value to the social, economic and environmental performance of cities. Undoubtedly, digital technologies can take a greater share of the strain where physical connectivity is an issue. The digital economy is an attractor of investment particularly with start-ups and therefore an attractor of talented people who settle and ultimately make place. The UK appears keen to maintain this momentum by way of substantial investment in Future Cities through the Technology Strategy Board.
Digital urbanism However, in adopting new technologies, urban policymakers should be careful not to abandon the historically successful form of dense, compact and continuously connected cities. The two processes online and on-land should be made to work together, to create an effective digital urbanism. After all, online technologies cannot fully replace the powerful and beneficial effects of the highly connected street grid and, in particular, the essential magic of urban living: unplanned first contact between people that have not met before and may not have known that they would benefit from meeting. Serendipitous encounter is perhaps the single most important advantage of urbanism and also the one most likely to pervade. Certainly, cities have been damaged by divisive and polluting land use planning and highway engineering but these failings are recent mistakes in the long history of urbanism. They can, should and are being fixed. Unless digital visionaries and urban leaders alike appreciate the risks of small-scale, dispersed, disconnected settlement patterns, they may be lulled by the quaint imagery of a highly damaging rural idyll. This would be detrimental to the social, economic and environmental sustainability of our urban places and, ultimately, to the cultures that they nurture. Instead, the future city should continue to be densely connected by both physical and virtual means, built according to planning guidelines that focus on the creation of high quality interpersonal transactions. What does this look like? Most likely, it entails a return to the continuously connected city, providing streets, parks, cafes, workplaces and public realm to be occupied by people in pursuit of social and economic exchange. Tim Stonor AoU Director, The Academy of Urbanism Managing Director, Space Syntax
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Align the stakeholders & identify the change-makers Ensure the goals and aims of the collaboration are clear for all parties and acknowledge the importance of small groups of committed individuals by giving them a voice. For instance, Bordeaux celebrated 2012 as the Year of Collaboration! A competition was held that called for five city-wide dialogues on the future of urban development, rather than ready-designed architectural entries. Recognise communication as an initiator and driver of change Genuine, structured communication generates citizen commitment and engagement, and is essential to delivering collaborative development. Build confidence from results Allow for continuous change constantly evaluate outcomes and feedback to inform ongoing development. For example, Malm has understood that delivering long-term complex projects is a process of building trust between different interests and establishing common goals. In the Western Harbour development, the planning department worked with a wide range of partners to apply a value-based urban design model that generated a structure of agreed priorities that can vary over time, as needs and conditions change. This process created an open dialogue that brought on board all interests and encouraged a continuous process of feedback and improvement.
Urban complexity
For me, one of the most insightful and eye-opening ideas came from HafenCity, where complexity is an active ingredient to success:
Celebrate complexity be expansive not reductive Cities thrive on diversity and ambiguity be prepared to take manageable risks allowing for choice, diversity and the unexpected. Hamburg has already completed a major part of the new HafenCity quarter by implementing its framework for actor-centered induced development focusing on integrating old and new. They have changed perceptions of urbanity, not with a fixed masterplan, but by supporting collaboration and co-production within a guiding framework. The approach recognises that if a city is to achieve the right diversity of uses that can elicit a lively sense of place, it must increase its complexity. Looking to the future The two-day symposium in Utrecht firmly established the value of bringing together cities with common and shared challenges. The Learning Cities Platform (www.learningcitiesplatform. eu) provides the foundation to expand the network to other cities across Europe, based on a programme of learning, research and exchange of knowledge. It is not a network of consultants, but rather a network of people with different roles and backgrounds, who work within urbanism and who love cities! During the coming year, the Academy aims to draw together those cities that participated in the Utrecht symposium and finalists from our European City award to establish a European Learning Cities Network. Henk Bouwman AoU Director, Urban-imPulse.eu Download a copy of Places of Connection from www.LearningCitiesPlatform.eu
Scale
Not the same as size, but the factor of scale, including how to connect people and places:
Turn places of separation into places of connection Successful places unlock latent value in centrally located, but spatially fragmented, areas through the creation of new connections. The new Bordeaux tramway not only provides a physical connection, but also demonstrates the rich value of the citys distinct quarters. Recognise the different scales of connection Resolve potential conflicts caused by the large and segregating infrastructure of global movement systems, including rail and water, by careful design of the interface with the local scale of pedestrian and cyclist amenities.
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Pessac: Le Corbusiers housing project in Bordeaux built in the 1920s. During the 1940s, residents took to individualising the properties according to their own needs. At the time of this image, the houses were in the process of being restored to their original condition
Willie Miller, WMUD
It might seem like a clich to begin a discussion about the boundaries of urbanism with a quote from Le Corbusier, but this well-known statement sums up concisely the tension that exists between the two dimensions of urbanism, defined on one hand as the characteristics of urban social life and city dwelling, and on the other, the physical processes of planning and development. The architecture critic Ada Louise Huxtable, writing in the 1980s about Le Corbusiers experimental community at Pessac, recognised in this quote that Le Corbusier was not confessing his project to be a failure because the occupants had chosen to adapt (in some cases quite significantly) the architecture and spatial plan. Rather, he was acknowledging the messiness of everyday life, the complexity of human interaction with the built environment, and the inevitable, incremental adaptation and appropriation of spaces and plans that are not imagined by the architect or planner.
References 1. Le Corbusiers housing project flexible enough to endure, Ada Louise Huxtable 2. History Repeats Itself, But How? City Character, Urban Tradition, and the Accomplishment of Place, Harvey Molotch, William Freudenburg, Krista E. Paulsen 3. Architecture, urbanism, design and behaviour: a brief review, Dan Lockton
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As a professional practice and field of policy, urbanism is dominated by the physical: architecture, planning, development, regeneration, housing, infrastructure. The social life of cities and in particular, the ordinary, the everyday, the mundane aspects of urban life are frequently overlooked in the rush to create and regenerate at scale or to a pre-defined set of principles Garden Cities, New Urbanism, Compact Cities, Modernism, Smart Cities, EcoTowns, Sustainable Urbanism each generating their own assumptions and limits about how people will live and work within their boundaries. Past experience shows that people need scope to shape and adapt the environment around them. From Pessac to PruittIgoe and many more, less visionary examples in between, the experience has been that reality takes hold and life diverges from the plan. At one extreme, open spaces are reimagined: benches become skateparks, bus shelters temporary housing, The Shard becomes a destination for romantic liaisons. At the other end, visionary plans stumble or fail but not always in the same way or for the same reasons: people struggle to manage the technology in their eco-homes so abandon the cause, gleaming Smart Cities fail to attract new residents and workers, some new towns struggle and others flourish. Intuitively we know what makes one place different from another. Yet this difference is hard to articulate and even harder to translate into the planning and design process. Arguably, the answer is not in a particular model of urbanism but in finding a way to reconcile the physical and social, grand vision and local reality, in order to plan, design, develop and manage places in a way that is attuned to local circumstances. Harvey Molotchs work on place difference provides a framework for thinking holistically about local context. He traces the development trajectory of Ventura and Santa Barbara, two neighbouring California counties with similar socio-demographics and similar opportunities. Both experienced oil development, freeway projects, and housing growth at the same time, yet the specific local circumstances politics, social networks, community organisations, local history, culture and global connections created very different, measurable outcomes in terms of employment, wealth and future infrastructure. Molotch stresses the importance of understanding connective tissue the multiple connections between
people, organisations, ideas, opportunities, cities and neighbourhoods, that lash up in different ways to create processes and outcomes that are specific to times and places. If we know that similar places with similar opportunities develop in dramatically different ways, what does this mean in practice? As practitioners, we need an understanding of what places mean to people and how they can shape quality of life, wellbeing and opportunities. We also need to understand the multiple connections and interactions people have with the built environment without getting caught up in the trap that place automatically means a bounded community and consensus. Molotchs work on place difference is one way to think about circumventing the artificial boundaries between social, physical, environmental and economic factors that are becoming encoded and taken for granted in planning, policymaking and development. Dan Locktons fascinating blog Architectures proposes another approach. Lockton examines Stewart Brands concept of High Road and Low Road architecture. Low Road architecture is designed for adaptation, to allow users to make changes as their needs evolve, while High Road architecture is designed specifically to shape the behaviour of future users. Lockton proposes a Low Road read/write urbanism that creates space for adaptation as patterns of social behaviour emerge. His proposal is more subtle than the top-down versus bottomup discussion which debates often default to when the question of user involvement or local circumstances are raised. Both Lockton and Molotchs approaches seem to argue for a shift from fixed models to fluid, locally specific understandings that can combine plans, strategies and control with insights about everyday life that will hopefully lead to the creation of places that work better for people. Resources are scarce so there is little scope for making mistakes with the current generation of housing and infrastructure projects, and tough decisions have to be made. However, this kind of pressure also opens up spaces and opportunities for innovation and change. Can we use this opportunity to think about urbanism that goes beyond community involvement in planning and design to become genuinely informed by the everyday social experience? Saffron Woodcraft AoU Founding Director, Social Life
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Malm
As I see it, our key challenge is helping our population become more aware of how we use our resources. Malm has a major challenge in terms of its energy objectives: by 2020, the citys commercial buildings will be powered by renewable energy and by 2030, this will apply to the entire city. The work we have done with our four Climate Arenas has reached out and created considerable awareness among all target groups throughout the city. But in order to succeed, I see a paradigm or value shift away from a more physical appropriation towards a more human capital/ network solution that is to say, a form of committed participation throughout the entire population. Our success must also be seen against the background of strong political leadership, where in recent years the municipality has been the agent of inspiration and the initiator of many successful development projects. However we cannot rely on this scenario alone; the city or the municipality cannot do everything itself we also need other players involved. Citysamverkan, the Institute for Sustainable Urban Development and Malm University are all examples of those that need to come together. The participation and cooperation processes developed in the Climate Arena Vstra Hamnen where a great deal of the work can be attributed to cooperation with private operators has produced many positive knock-on effects in other areas of development. In order to obtain the maximum return for the city, greater regional cooperation is also an important factor. At present,
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Malm is developing forms of cooperation both in the east and in the west through collaborative projects with Lund and Copenhagen. This whole process of change may also be regarded as a conceptualisation of the citys main themes: regionalisation, infrastructure, workplace change, new lifestyles and the development of the concept of the public sphere. As we make progress and take our next steps, additional factors must be added to the concept in a lucid and coherent manner, namely: climate and management of water; how spatial organisation can strengthen social sustainability; culture and collective knowledge as a driving force; and, last but not least, the processes that generate participation and trust. Trust is important, but so too is health. That is why I am involved now in the Commission for a socially sustainable Malm, which is geared towards greater social cohesion and participation, and a reduction in disparities in health. The model we have adopted is that of the
Marmot Commission (Marmotkommissionen), capable of implementing projects at city level. In my role as a commissioner, I am looking at how the tools we have can contribute to a fairer distribution of health. The tools we have and how we use them are of fundamental importance in any change process. In this continuous development of the city, our tools are being constantly adapted. We now view the older tools as rather static with regards to urban planning and tend to work with a much more process-oriented approach that can incorporate the ideas of todays citizens. We also make use of methods that are determined by the values that we want to create in this particular journey, in the context of the city of Malm. When Malm writes the next chapter in its change management, it will be written by its citizens, and will draw on their relationships and knowledge about how the city is organised in spatial terms, and how we as a city are responding to climate change and sustainability.
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Activity programmes
The Academy of Urbanism is an autonomous, politically independent and self-funded organisation that extends urban discourse beyond built environment professionals. We bring together an active group of leaders, thinkers and practitioners involved in the social, cultural, economic, political and physical development of our villages, towns and cities. We aim to:
Left to right: Finalists of 2013 Urbanism Awards: Chapel Street (Penzance), Bournville (Birmingham), Galway, Falmouth, Hamburg, City Park (Bradford), Antwerp, Creative Quarter (Folkestone), Exhibition Road (London), Shrewsbury, Brixton (London), Lyon, Kings Place (London), Hope Street (Liverpool), Sowerby Bridge Wharf
Advance the understanding and practice of urbanism through evidence-based inquiry Provide an inclusive forum for dialogue across all disciplines Proactively shape places by sharing knowledge and partnering with communities Foster, validate and celebrate excellence in placemaking Nurture and include the next generation of urbanists
Place Partnering
Diagnostic Visits The Academy offers a Diagnostic Visit service to help neighbourhoods, city-quarters and towns gain a better understanding of the elements that help or hinder their success. It utilises the broad expertise of Academicians to help frame issues by identifying synergies and conflicts, reviewing local aspirations and suggesting direction. UniverCities UniverCities are strategic partnerships across towns and cities between civic authorities, private practice, academic institutions and citizens. They promote the virtues of shared understanding and follow the premise that by working together, our towns and cities can achieve more and compete at a higher-level.
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Right: a selection of images from the many Academy activities undertaken during 2012
Getting involved
Become an Academician The Academy is built on the knowledge and expertise of over 520 Academicians drawn from across all sectors and representing a wide range of backgrounds, embracing planning and design, community and cultural development, engineering and property, policy and politics, academia, media and the arts. Academicians are nominated by their peers and selected on the basis of their demonstrated commitment and achievement in placemaking at a variety of scales. If you would like to find out more about becoming an Academician, please get in touch with Alistair Cartwright, Membership Coordinator, on +44 (0) 20 7251 8777 or by emailing ac@academyofurbanism.org.uk. Please also visit academyofurbanism.org.uk for more information. Academy Team Alistair Cartwright Membership Coordinator Stephen Gallagher Communications Manager Linda Gledstone Director of Operations Helen Luc Accounts Bright Pryde Regional Networks Coordinator Sponsorship The Academy is able to achieve its goals because of the generosity of our sponsors, whom we thank for their support. Sponsors* Alan Baxter Associates Barton Willmore Crest Nicholson Grosvenor Lathams Muir Group Savills St George Plc Winckworth Sherwood Supporters-in-Kind* Architecture + Design Scotland Baker Tilly BDP Charles Russell Solicitors Ecobuild Gillespies Jas Atwal Associates John Thompson & Partners Kevin Murray Associates Paul Davis + Partners Prentis & Co. Space Syntax URBED If you or your organisation is interested in sponsoring or supporting one of the Academys learning programmes or activities, please get in touch with: Linda Gledstone, Director of Operations +44 (0) 0 75 8777 lg@academyofurbanism.org.uk
* At 1 January 2013
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Academicians 2013
Arthur Acheson Robert Adam Marcus Adams Lynda Addison OBE John Adlen Kyle Alexander OBE Peter Alexander-Fitzgerald Malcolm Allan Sandy Allcock Joanna Allen Ben Allgood Nigel Anderson Ian Angus Debbie Aplin Judith Armitt George Arvanitis Stephen Ashworth Philip Askew Jasvir Atwal Jeff Austin Janice Balch Jonathan Barker Yolande Barnes Alistair Barr Irena Bauman Alan Baxter CBE Trevor Beattie Ian Beaumont Matthew Bedward Simon Bee Andrew Beharrall Michael Bennett Neil Bennett Robert Bennett Janet Benton Duncan Berntsen John Best John Betty Richard Bickers David FL Bishop Alastair Blyth Martin Boddy Kristiaan Borrett Henk Bouwman Christopher Boyle Mark Bradbury Rosemary Bradley Chris Brett Guy Briggs Ross Brodie Annabel Brown Jonathan Brown Patricia Brown Mark Burgess Andrew Burrell Jonathan Burroughs Richard Burton John Bury Malcolm Bushell Peter Butenschn Prof Georgia Butina Watson Peter Butler Bruce Calton Fiona Campbell Charles Campion Steve Canadine Tony Carey James Carr Sam Cassels Lynne Ceeney Sue Chadwick Tim Challans Marion Chalmers Joanna Chambers Sarah Chaplin Dominic Edward Chapman James Chapman Peter S Chapman Richard Charge Giles Charlton Stephen Chatfield Alain Chiaradia Nick Childs Tom Clarke John Henry Cleary Clare Coats Dr Jim Coleman Robert Coles Jason Collard Garry Colligan Paul Collins Martin Colreavy Max Comfort Peter Connolly Charlotte Cook Karen Cooksley Prof Rachel Cooper OBE Joo Corteso Will Cousins Rob Cowan David Cowans Toby Crayden Chris Crook Board of Directors
Prof Kevin Murray (Chairman)
Linda Curr Ned Cussen Justine Daly Jane Dann Alex Davey Philip Davies Nick Davis Paul Davis Simon Davis Mark Davy Eric Dawson Peter De Bois Neil De Prez Sophia De Sousa Ian Deans Toby Denham Guy Denton Nick Dermott Hank Dittmar Andrew Dixon Lord John Doune Martin Downie Roger Dowty Paul Drew Peter Drummond Rosamund Dunn Paul Dunne Prof Mark Dyer John Dyke Duncan Ecob David Edwards Luke Engleback Gavin Erasmus Karen Escott Roger Estop Prof Graeme Evans Roger Evans Nick Ewbank Dr Nicholas Falk Ross Faragher Kerri Farnsworth Max Farrell Sir Terry Farrell Jacqueline Fearon Ian Fenn Jaimie Ferguson George Ferguson CBE Diana Fitzsimons David Flannery David Fletcher Prof Carlotta Fontana Richard Ford Sue Foster OBE Bernie Foulkes Jane Fowles Simon Foxell Alan Francis Jerome Frost Daisy Froud Jeremy Gardiner Carole Garfield Lindsay Garratt Tim Garratt Angus Gavin John Geeson Lia Ghilardi Andy Gibbins Prof Mike Gibson Bruce Gilbreth Ian Gilzean Christopher Glaister Stephen Gleave Keith Gowenlock Charles Graham Gerry Grams Gary Grant Michele Grant Mark Greaves Ali Grehan Simon Guest Pippa Gueterbock Richard Guise Patrick Gulliver Trutz Haase Susan Hallsworth Tim Hancock Derek Harding Liane Hartley Geoff Haslam Philip Hayden Helen Hayes Michael Hayes CBE Peter Heath Prof Michael Hebbert Michael Hegarty David Height Wayne Hemingway MBE Simon Henley James Hennessey David Hennings Mark Hensman Paul Hildreth Jason Hill Stephen Hill Tom Holbrook Eric Holding Peter Hollis Stephen Howlett Jun Huang
John Worthington
Janet Sutherland
Dick Gleeson
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* At February 2013
Tim Stonor
Steven Bee
Jonathan Hughes Richard Hulbert Michael Hurlow Prof Maxwell Hutchinson John Hyland Delton Jackson Philip Jackson Sarah Jackson Dr Nol James Dr Ying Jin Cathy Johnston Chris Jones Gwilym Jones Howard Jones Peter Jones Stephen Jordan Youssef Kadiri Dr Kayvan Karimi Andy Karski Dr Harald Kegler John Kelpie Jonathan Kendall Angus Kennedy David Kennedy John Kennedy James Kerr Mary Kerrigan Ros Kerslake Anne Kiernan Janice Kirkpatrick Angela Koch Prof Motoo Kusakabe Chris Lamb Charles Landry Derek Latham Diarmaid Lawlor Adrian Lee Marcus Lee Sir Richard Leese Alan Leibowitz John Letherland Harry Lewis Michael Lewis Kevin Leyden Chris Littlemore Michael Liverman David Lock Robin Lomas Fred London John Lord Vivien Lovell Mark Lucas David Lumb Barra Mac Ruair Robin Machell Mary MacIntyre Keiji Makino Geoffrey Makstutis Louise Mansfield Riccardo Marini Andreas Markides Peter Marsh Derek Martin Dr Kat Martindale Mike Martyn Phil Mason Andrew Matthews Dr Alice Maynard James McAdam Steve McAdam Richard McCarthy Prof Michael McGarry Kevin McGeough Aideen McGinley Martin McKay Craig McLaren Mary McLaughlin Paul McTernan Craig McWilliam Ian Mellor David Miles Stephan Miles-Brown Gerry Millar Robert Millar Stephanie Mills Shane Mitchell Kris Mitra Prof Bill Morrison Prof Ruth Morrow Paul Morsley John Muir Ronnie Muir Eugene Mullan John Mullin David Murphy Dr Claudia Murray Prof Gordon Murray Hugh Murray Peter Murray Vivek Nanda Stephen Neal Peter Nears Marko Neskovic Francis Newton Lora Nicolaou Ross Nimmo Taryn Nixon Malcolm Noble John Nordon Richard Nunes Calbhac OCarroll Dr Dell Odeleye Simon Ogden Killian OHiggins Chris Oldershaw Wally Olins CBE Tiago Oliveira Breffni OMalley Trevor Osborne Paul Ostergaard Chris Pagdin Dr Susan Parham Chris Parkin John Parmiter Liz Peace Richard Pearce Adam Peavoy Ross Peedle Prof Alan Penn Alison Peters Andrew Petrie Hugh Petter John Phillipps Jon Phipps James Pike Steve Platt Ben Plowden Demetri Porphyrios Dr Sergio Porta Prof David Porter Robert Powell Sunand Prasad John Prevc Dr Darren Price David Prichard Paul Prichard John Pringle Rhona Pringle Douglas Pritchard Stephen Proctor Matt Quayle Helen Quigley Shane Quinn Mark Raisbeck Peter Ralph Leonie Ramondt Clive Rand Mike Rawlinson Tony Reddy Richard Reid Cllr Sian Reid Amanda Reynolds Christopher Rhodes Lindsey Richards Antony Rifkin Prof Marion Roberts Prof Peter Roberts OBE Dickon Robinson Dr Rick Robinson Bryan Roe Lord Richard Rogers Angela Rolfe Alexandra Rook
Pedro Roos Anna Rose Graham Ross Jon Rowland Sarah Royle-Johnson David Rudlin Robert Rummey Gerard Ryan Dr Andrew Ryder Stephen Sadler Robert Sakula Judith Salomon Rhodri Samuel Clare San Martin Peter Sandover Hilary Satchwell Biljana Savic Bridget Sawyers Alberto Scarpa Dominic Scott Symon Sentain Toby Shannon Dr Tim Sharpe Cath Shaw Richard Shaw Barry Shaw MBE Keith Shearer Anthony Shoults Ron Sidell Paul Simkins Dr Richard Simmons Andrew Simpson Anette Simpson Tim Simpson Alan Simson Ann Skippers John Slater Jonathan Smales Malcolm Smith Paul Smith Prof Austin Smyth Jim Sneddon Carole Souter CBE Adrian Spawforth Andy Spracklen Tim Stansfeld Alan Stewart Alan Stones Rosslyn Stuart Peter Studdert Nicholas Sweet Stephen Talboys David Tannahill Ian Tant David Taylor David J Taylor Ed Taylor Nick Taylor Rebecca Taylor Sandy Taylor Ivan Tennant Alison Tero Alan Thompson Chris Thompson David Thompson Robert Thompson Dale Thomson Lesley Thomson John Thorp Andrew Tindsley Damian Tissier Canon Andrea Titterington Ian Tod Peter Tooher Robert Townshend Rob Tranmer Stephen Tucker Neil Tully Lisa Turley John Turner Jonathan Turner Stuart Turner Chris Twomey Julia Unwin CBE Giulia Vallone Urban van Aar Honor van Rijswijk Atam Verdi Jonathan Vining Andy von Bradsky Brita von Schoenaich Prof Lorna Walker Ian Wall Ann Wallis Russell Wallis Brendon Walsh David Walters Dr Gerry Wardell Paul Warner Elanor Warwick David Waterhouse Nick Wates Camilla Ween Oliver Weindling Dr Michael Wells Jan-Willem Wesselink Rosemary Westbrook Allison Westray-Chapman Duncan Whatmore Craig White Lindsey Whitelaw Peter Williams Patricia Willoughby Marcus Wilshere James Wilson Godfrey Winterson Saffron Woodcraft Geoff Woodling David Woods Nick Woolley Nick Wright Ian Wroot Tony Wyatt Louise Wyman Wei Yang Bob Young Gary Young John Zetter Honorary Academicians Jan Gehl Prof Wulf Daseking Christer Larsson Honorary Treasurer David Miles Artist in Residence David Rudlin Poet in Residence Ian McMillan
AoU Journal #2 |
The Academy of Urbanism 70 Cowcross Street London EC1M 6EJ United Kingdom For more information please contact Linda Gledstone Director of Operations +44 (0) 0 75 8777 lg@academyofurbanism.org.uk Visit us online academyofurbanism.org.uk Follow us on Twitter @TheAoU Join our LinkedIn, Facebook & Flickr group pages by searching The Academy of Urbanism
Editorial Team Sarah Chaplin Stephen Gallagher Kevin Murray Images contributed by Boldarini Architects, Bradford Metropolitan District Council, Bridget Sawyers, City of Antwerp, Daniel Ducci, Elemental, Fabio Knoll, Falmouth Town Council, Filip Dujardin, Henk Bouwman, Incurable Hippie, John Thompson, Kerri Farnsworth, Kevin Murray, Kings Place, Marcelo Rebello, Miniplanpac, Nick Wright, Paul Brock Photography, Sarah Blee, Sarah Jackson, Stephen Gallagher, Stijn, Willie Miller Front and back cover Antwerp The European City of the Year 2013
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