Aarhus School of Architecture

Master thesis project / January-June 2013

Urmo Mets
Supervisor Tom Nielsen

U
R
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N

P
U
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L
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C

S
P
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E

A GUIDE
TO ANALYSE AND ENHANCE URBAN OPEN SPACES IN ESTONIA

INTRODUCTION

KAAS

Master studies and the thesis project

supported by: The Cultural Endowment of Estonia
The Archimedes Foundation and the Ministry of Education and Research of Estonia

INTRODUCTION

00
Introduction

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my tutor Tom Nielsen for his guidance and trust
during the process , when I chose a challenging

topic and made

modifications on the way. I am thankful to all the people with whom I

have discussed the thesis project in Estonia : Toomas Paaver , Teele Pehk,
Marten Kaevats, Anna-Liisa Unt, Tnis Arjus , Hendrik Mnd, Kaja Pae,
Kaur Talpsep, Lauri Eltermaa . Thank you for your help : Priit Rohtmets ,
Tnu Runnel and Tiit Sild .
I would like to thank The Cultural Endowment of Estonia , Archimedes
Foundation and the Ministry of Education and Research in Estonia who
made it possible to focus on my studies . Janek Veeber, for your
support.
And finally , I am especially grateful to my family . Kristel - for supporting
my studies by moving to Denmark for almost two years together with
our kids: only a 4-month-old Teodor and 3-year-old Sonja . Sonja and
Teodor, thank you for your joy and energy .

INTRODUCTION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

INTRODUCTION

Abstract

The thesis project "Urban Public Space , a Guide to Analyse

and Enhance Urban Open Spaces in Estonia " is intended
as the first draft of a guide to be later revised and
published in Estonia .
The topic has recently become broadly discussed

in

Estonia and a guide would be useful for many addressees .

In absense of local reference material some municipality
architects and community members are pointing out the

The guide consists of three main parts . The first part

"Manual for Streets " (The Department of Transport , UK

provides an insight to the main aspects , possibilities and

2007),

(The

restrictions embedded in the phenomenon of UPS. Due to

Department of Transportation , NY 2009) and the EU project

the complexity of the subject and relatively late discussion

"Shared Space" documents. What comes closest in Estonia

of UPS in Estonia , the vocabulary and understanding of

"Street

Design

Manual

of

New

York"

is the "Guide for Participatory Planning " (Kadri Tillermann ,

UPS is currently deficient . The project seeks to put forward

Regina Viljasaar , Tallinn 2012). The guide introduces a

an educational

method of participation for urban planning and does not

comprehensive overview of the main issues .

role

and

fill

the

gap

by providing

focus on the specific issues of urban public space .

The second part of the work suggests a universal model of
The thesis project aims to deliver the first draft of a

UPS and an analyse tool . The tool is a table of pointing

comprehensive guide for urban public spaces . It is at first

questions that are considered essential and should be

directed to local municipalities and district communities as

asked when the guide is used to analyse a certain site . The

an informative material and an analyse tool . The main task

structural model of UPS provides additional understanding

of the guide regarding local municipalities

is to convey

about the subject by systematic visual organisation , and

nowadays expectations in urban public space and provide

helps to organise questions asked for each sub-category of

an analyse method to help prepare better master plan

the system . The proposed structure intends to follow

assignments when the discussed area constitutes greater

simple logic, there are as many categories

public interest. The main task of the guide regarding

necessary and as few as possible .

as found

district communities is to provide know-how about public

spaces to be more successful

when envisioning

their

neighbourhood future and participating in a master plan

The table of questions heads to unveil the characteristics

of a place and point to spatial situations that should be
avoided. Questions about actors , users, functions and

process.

qualities of UPS are asked . The guide aims to cover all

---

important aspects and yet avoid making an encircling

Public life in public spaces includes multiple disciplines and

ask questions that may be missing but are relevant in

is therefore complex . Yet the guide lies on the assumption

specific cases. The guide has a pointing nature and does

that in todays European democratic context the framework

not suggest concrete solutions .

system and being too suggestive . The reader is urged to

of

urban

public

space

(UPS)

has

many

universal

characteristics. Jan Gehl, one of the spokesman of public

It has been considered that some aspects of UPS are not

space, divides activities in public space into necessary and

"designable" by a municipality

optional activities . A walk on the street to get from home to

included

work is a necessary activity . A spontaneous walk in a park

necessary background. Directing political activity or solving

on a sunny day is an optional activity . According to Gehl

broader social problems is not the ambition of the guide .

only in the informing

or a community and are

part of the work as a

optional activities depend to a great deal on the qualitative

characteristics of the space .1 The measure is a human

The third part of the project holds three case studies in

being, his sensations and social behaviour , his basic urban

order to test the second part of the work - the model and

behaviour. In urban context his basic expectations are

the questions . To be more comprehensive , sites of a

certain spatial and aesthetic qualities and access to the

different nature were selected . Feedback of the case

surrounding functions . The argument of the project is that

studies was used to supplement second part of the work .

these characteristics and basic needs can be described in

Case studies also demonstrate what kind of data can be

every urban setting .

found and how it could be used .

1 Jan Gehl (2011) "Life Between Buildings ." Island Press, London (p9)
INTRODUCTION

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION

Contents

00

5
7
9
11
13
15

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ABSTRACT
CONTENTS
BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT
METHODOLOGY
THE GUIDE, FOR WHOM IS IT AND HOW TO USE IT

01

18
18
18
19
20

SPATIAL ASPECT:
IMPORTANCE
FREEDOM TO MOVE
HUMAN BEHAVIOUR
EQUAL SPATIAL RIGHTS FOR
PEDESTRIANS AND VEHICLES

22
22
22
23
23

SOCIAL ASPECT:
IMPORTANCE
THE INCLUSIVE ROLE
SAFETY ISSUES
PROMOTING HEALTHY LIVING

24
24
24
25
25

ECONOMIC ASPECT:
IMPORTANCE
ECONOMIC BENEFITS
SMALL BUSINESSES VS HYPERMARKETS
EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC FORCES. THE MEDIEVAL TALLINN,
SOLD OUT!

26
26
26
26
27

LEGAL ASPECT:
INTRODUCTION
OWNERSHIP: PUBLIC AND PRIVATE
SEMI-PUBLIC AND SEMI-PRIVATE
PUBLIC-PRIVATE-PARTNERSHIP

28
28
28
28
29

POLITICAL ASPECT:
INTRODUCTION
THE POWER OF PUBLIC SPACE
DEMOCRATISATION OF URBAN SPACES
URBAN PUBLIC SPACE AND POLITICAL RESPONSIBILITY

30
30
30
30
30

TIME ASPECT:
INTRODUCTION
SEASONS AND CLIMATE
PUBLIC LIFE AND THE RHYTHMS OF USE
URBAN PUBLIC SPACE AND TEMPORARY USE

32

PARTICIPATORY PLANNING

36
38

A MODEL OF URBAN PUBLIC SPACE

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

48
64
84

A SUBURB IN VIIMSI
THE TARTU NEW CENTER
VANA-KALAMAJA STREET

Introduction

Informing part.
Embedded aspects of urban public space

02
03

Analyse

Testing Part 2 - Case studies

00

103
111

PROJECT PROCESS
REFERENCES

Endnotes

INTRODUCTION

CONTENTS

10

INTRODUCTION

Background
of the project

Around 2005, I noticed a certain tendency in "magazine

architecture"

worldwide.

Public

stairs

and

ramps

incorporated into architectural form, sloping up and down ,

these spectacular architectural crescendos were breaking
out from the inside of the buildings . Since the proposals of
architectural competitions started to follow this trend in
Estonia,

have

questioned

myself ,

what

is

this

phenomenon? Soon I realised this trend being part of a

broader popularisation of urban public space , in this case
incorporated into architectural language .

that popped up more and more frequently in the Estonian

periodicals

dealing with urbanity .

These

discussions were initiated mostly by architects , planners,

urbanists and landscape architects . In recent years these
discussions have entered into the wider public debate ,
greatly in hand with the development of citizen society . My
conclusion is that the debate in Estonia hence has both
global and local reasons .

its

independence .

The

following

decades

changed urban life rapidly . The process of privatization

and steady economic growth significantly influenced the
cityscape. New layers of buildings

and infrastructure

transformed the spatial qualities of its cities . A jump into

capitalism and liberal politics quickly set private interest
ahead of public . Everyday life became very car-centered,
many development sites in the cities strategic positions
moved into private hands where quick -profit was expected .
Professionals working with urbanity have been worried
about the disproportional attention to the development of
public domain. The development of urban space has been
too investor -centered, planning processes include public
voice only in a very formal way . The local municipality is
still criticised

for insufficient

interest, the public space .

infrastructure

and not a 21st century

social

space .

Hundreds of kilometres of city streets are reconstructed

excessive width, the scarce space left for pedestrians is
separated by wasteful steel barriers with no regard to the
specifics of the area. Cluttered street signs , double- and
triple paired traffic lights on the crossings are signs of an
over-regulation. Development plans for the light traffic
roads, street furniture design , public park refreshments are
often prepared separately , without a vision and without
public debate. Besides municipalities , the main subscribers
of road projects , also the general public is not aware of the
alternative possibilities and therefore does not speak out.

The local backdrop goes back to 1991, when Estonia

regained

of 2013 the street is still regarded as a technological

according to outdated regulations . Vehicle tracks have

My recognition was supported by simultaneous discussions

professional

Street is a central unit in urban public space . In the Estonia

protection of the public

With the emergence of the citizen society , organised

networks of people are thriving for a change . The will to
speak

for

the

developments

of

the

ones

in

the

neighbourhood is on the rise . Some district communities

like Supilinna Selts in Tartu, Uus-Maailm and Telliskivi in
Tallinn have already been established

and are making

progress in envisioning their neighbourhood 's future .

As communities are usually run by a few people who have
knowledge in city planning and jurisdiction , and are able to
convey local interests , there is still a lot to do in informing
community members, local authorities and investors about
the possibilities of urban public space and the benefits of
participatory planning.
As the new expectations rise , there is a lack of clarity about
the phenomenon of

public space . What exactly is public

space, where does it start and where does it end , how does
it influence everyones life, is it self -organising or can we
"design" public life?

The current thesis project aims to

provide a basis for the subject and an analyse tool to seek

answers.

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

11

12

INTRODUCTION

Methodology

Urban public space (UPS) is a subject of many research

projects in multiple disciplines . As there is a lot of material
available,

I asked

myself

about

the

main

aspects

embedded in the subject to frame my research . I ended up

with six main aspects : spatial, social, economic, political,

A structured model of UPS proposed in the project uses the

legal and time aspect . Throughout the studies , I first

same principle , in addition to the questions it provides an

avoided looking into the schemes proposing a framework

understanding

of UPS. Based on my readings I designed my own version

organisation. Such categorisation was also helpful when

of a framework for UPS and then looked up the existing

working out the list of questions , specific questions are

materials to find approval or alternatives . The materials I

derived from sub-categories.

about the subject by systematic visual

found helped me to rethink and alter my main diagrams the structured

model of UPS. Based on the created

The other method is based on the Complexity Theory

categories I wrote a list of questions about the factors that

and its use in urban planning . In his work "Complexity

determine the character of public space . These questions

Theory and Urban Planning ", Dr. Michael A. McAdams

and categories were tested during the case studies in the

criticises the linear aspect and the static nature of long

three very different sites (see Project Process ).

range planning , static zoning and traditional top-down

planning that are in direct opposition to the dynamic nature

The second part of the thesis project - a structured model

of urbanisation .2 The theory suggests methods for urban

of UPS was designed with two methods in mind . In an

planning. One of them is an agent or actor based planning ,

academic respect these two can be called methods with

it includes individuals , organisations and phenomenons

reservations, but need

that influence real-time urban developments . In a way it

to be pointed

out as direct

influences.

describes a type of dynamic participatory planning :

Just as writing is a tool to shape and arrange thoughts ,

"Urban planning can easily be framed within the context of

drawing

spatial

complexity

thoughts. When facing complexity of a work , a systematic

politicians,

too is a tool to shape and arrange

visual approach can be helpful .

strategic management template for developing a new or

documenting the existing business models .

It is a visual

chart with elements describing a firm's value proposition ,

infrastructure, customers and finances . It assists firms in
aligning their activities by illustrating potential trade-offs.
a tool to analyse

urban

There

are

planners ,

agents ,

developers,

be

they

citizens,

government officials etc. Agents could also force either

natural or man-made such as technology , weather, but

Alexander Osterwalders "Business Model Canvas " is a

Basically

metaphors.

business , it uses visual

organisation of carefully chosen priority categories to

provide understanding of a firm and its aims .

technology

is not divorced from humans , as they are

human creations.

Likewise, they

may be framed

as

environments depending on the jurisdictional constraints ."

3

The analyse part of the thesis project questioned what are

the determinant variables that could be addressed and
managed by a municipality or a community when making
urban plans. The project included the metaphor of actors ,
a field abstract enough to be given different meanings
relevant in a specific case . It became clear to me that when
planning a change in a public context , interests of involved
actors are of a high priority when these plans are facing
realisation. The importance

1 Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_Model_Canvas), accessed 18.05.2013

2 Michael A.McAdams (no data) "Complexity Theory and Urban Planning ."Fatih University , Istanbul (p10)
3 Ibid. (p9)
INTRODUCTION

of these actors and their

mutual collaboration needs to be emphasised .

METHODOLOGY

13

14

INTRODUCTION

The guide, for whom it is

and how to use it

The guide is at first directed to municipalities and district

communities

in Estonia to be used as an informative

material and an analysing tool of an area.

The main task of the guide regarding district communities
is to provide them with know -how about public spaces , so
that they can be more successful when envisioning the
future of their neighbourhood and participating in a master
plan process. The guide offers a method to map the
existing values and deficiencies of their neighbourhood , it
helps to envision and enhance their everyday environment .
Referring

to

reoccurring

spatial

inconveniences

and

It

is

a task

of

a municipality

to

envision

future

available spatial potentials , it encourages creative micro-

developments by making strategies and other planning

scale intervention . The guide calls to discuss about the

documents.

area's connectivity to important public indoor functions .

municipalities

Information about the desired neighbourhood functions

professional architect among the personnel , the task of

can

In

the

situation

make

spatial

where

many

decisions

Estonian

without

to be

preparing master plans is delegated to planners chosen by

considered in a master plans process and when handing

investors, and public debates are inclusive only formally , it

out business

is important to stress public interests by independent

be addressed

to the

licences .

local

municipality

With such information

strong

communities could also start to attract investors or agree

parties and cultivate participatory planning .

to make collective investments together .

The architecture and planning department of a municipality
Directed also to municipalities , the guide aims to bring up

can use the guide and its analyse method to map areas

the importance of urban public spaces and provide an

and deliver more rigorous assignments for other parties

update of todays expectations for urban open space .

composing master plans. The information provided can

also help to assess submitted master plans and influential
building projects. For example , the new Tartu centre
presented in the third part of the thesis project is well
known for it`s "broken" public space. Realisations of recent
master plans have proved the planners inability to improve
the quality of open public space and the municipalities
insufficient assessment of the proposed solutions .
A contemporary street standard needs to be addressed to
the transportation department of a municipality . Currently
prevailing car-centrist culture needs to be balanced by
improving conditions for pedestrians , cyclists and public
transportation. Until the old standards are used , it is
important to stress finer mutual collaboration between
different departments of a municipality .

INTRODUCTION

THE GUIDE , FOR WHOM IS IT AND HOW TO USE IT

15

16

PART 1

Part 01
Informing part. Embedded aspects of urban public space.

Urban public space is a space in

between buildings physically accessible
for everyone .
"At their best , public spaces act like a self organising public service ; just as hospitals
and schools provide a shared resource to
improve peoples quality of life, public spaces
form a shared spatial resource from which
experiences and value are created in ways
that are not possible in our private lives
alone."
Melissa Mean, Charlie Tims (2005) "People Make Spaces : Growing
the Public Life of Cities ." Demos, London (p9)

PART 1

17

Tightened
public space

Manuel Jesus Florencio

A modernist dream - a lot of

space filled with air

Matt H. Wade

SPATIAL
ASPECT

A great public space is easy to access and move through.

www.brokensidewalk.com

The extent and character of activities taking place in urban public space (UPS) are greatly influenced by physical
planning. Spatial decisions are directly related to user-friendliness and use patterns of an area. Better or worse conditions
for outdoor events result in more or less lively urban environment.1
User-friendliness is not only physical and aesthetic conditions. In any given urban situation: walking on a street, looking
for a place to sit down and rest, or standing on the corner of a building and talking to a friend, we share common human
behaviour as social beings. For successful planning decisions we have to consider our psychology. The field of operation
is socio-spatial.
Senses shape our urban experience: how we see and hear, in what spatial conditions we feel comfortable and safe.
Senses also shape behaviour - what distances we are willing to walk in everyday situations, have the spatial decisions
considered climatic conditions - sun, rain and snow. These issues can be described as basic needs - freedom to move,
human scale environment and equal spatial rights concerning traffic.
The reason why it is so difficult to plan great UPS is the multiple origin of these decisions. Urban reality is a sum of
many decisions made by street engineers, city designers, a number of local municipality departments, property owners,
architects and landscape designers, etc. To create successful urban places we need to develop better wide-based
planning practice and cultivate decisive participation on the level of real users. As streets are central in UPS discussion,
many of these issues should be addressed in a street design guide. In Estonia street planning is officially still regulated
narrowly in technical terms - it is regarded as a technical planning not as a welcoming-card of the city, a space of social
urban experience.

www.onemansblog.com

IMPORTANCE

FREEDOM TO MOVE
The rights to use public space and have a sense of control within it are basic and overarching requirements. A great urban
public space is easy to access and move through for the young and elderly, people with walking disabilities, for people
with baby prams and cyclists. Vehicle and pedestrian traffic has to be planned in a democratic way with an insight to the
weaker side - the pedestrian. Convenient use of cityscape also means good access to, and thoroughly planned public
transport system. UPS should be accessible both visually and physically, from a distance and up close.

Dull and long facades lacking details make the walk feel unattractive,
whereas narrow facades with many windows and doors narrate our pass
making the scenery lively.

WALKING

Gary Colet

"Walking is first and foremost a type of transportation, a way to get around, but it also provides an informal and
uncomplicated possibility for being present in the public environment. ...The act of walking is often a necessary act but
can also merely be an excuse for being present - 'I will just walk by." 2
It is well known that whenever people walk, they prefer direct routes and short-cuts. Only very great obstacles, like
dangerous traffic, extensive barriers, and so on, are able to interrupt this pattern. This behaviour is supported by
numerous surveys that have resulted in theories like Space Syntax Analysis. According to numerous surveys, the
acceptable walking distance for most people in ordinary daily situations has been found to be around 400 to 500 meters.
For children, old people and disabled people, it is often considerably less. Acceptable walking distances are an interplay
between the length of the street and the quality of the route, both with regard to protection and stimulation. The
acceptable walking distance is an important factor in planning the distribution of both indoor functions and open space
activities.3
"One of the most important demands on a well-functioning pedestrian system is to organize pedestrian movement to
follow the shortest distance between the natural destinations within an area. When the problems of the main traffic layout
are solved, however, it becomes important to place and design the individual links in the network so that the entire system
becomes highly attractive." 4
Studies on human behaviour in urban spaces also point out the importance of spatial sequences that happen during a
route. Dull and long facades lacking details make the walk feel unattractive, whereas narrow facades with many windows
and doors narrate our pass making the scenery lively.
Sequences and contrasts between small and large refine our spatial experience. The experience of town hall square in
many medieval cities is so powerful due to the fact that the streets leading there are usually very narrow.

When analysing an existing urban space, we should not only focus on the building masses but also on the small-scale
spatial elements that fill our streets, squares and parks. Street lights and signs, trash bins, fences and other barriers,
benches, bushes, trees etc. These are all necessary elements but we should always question the way they are organised.
All these utilities we encounter moving through cityscape can also be potential obstructions that cause annoying detours.
In a city centre we have all experienced cluttered street inventory that makes our walk rather like a hurdle race. Almost
every city has inconsiderate situations like narrow side-walks split by street lighting posts.

18

SPATIAL ASPECT

www.rudi.net

OBSTRUCTIONS

Cluttered street inventory

1
2
3
4

Jan Gehl (2011) "Life Between Buildings ." Island Press, London (p31)
Ibid. (p133)
Ibid. (p137)
Ibid. (p141)
PART 1

SPATIAL
ASPECT
Urban landscape like any other landscape is not flat; bumps and hills, streets that go up and down can equally enrich and
degrade our urban experience. Level differences are both interesting possibilities and physiological obstacles. When level
difference occurs, we have to consider all possible users from children to people with walking disabilities, or people using
bikes. When stairs are used it should be considered that a link in the network of places will not be cut off for some users.
Excluding baby prams, cyclists and elderly because of missing or uncomfortable connection can result in keeping a
significant user segment away from a larger territory. The moral is not that ramps are better than stairs or every stair
should be coupled with a ramp, but in the big picture of a concrete area the connective network should be inclusive.
A typical street has pedestrian side-walks that are raised higher for safety reasons. Raised side-walks are not often
lowered at street crossings because of out-of-date street planning, making it complicated and annoying to pass with a baby
pram, on a bicycle or wheelchair. It can again result in a situation where specific users start to avoid these poor streets.
When enhancing street design, an elementary first step to do is lowering the side-walks where other paths depart or
streets cross. In areas of low traffic rate an increasingly popular shared street concept can be considered.
Another level difference issue is related to our ability to create social contacts. Such ability has clear spatial limitation.
This issue is relevant mostly in the phase of city planning but also when deciding to add or rearrange functions of a street.
According to Jan Gehl studies, the vertical meaningful contact field is between ground level and five stories (3-meter
storey). A level difference up to two stories (6-meters) provides a good social contact with the surrounding events, over
three stories this ability decreases. Above fifth floor the connection with ground level and the street are definitely out of
touch. In principle activities should not be assembled above one another on different levels. According to Jan Gehl studies,
functions located 50 to 100 meters from one another along a street interrelate more readily than functions placed just 3
meters over or under one another.5

apops.mas.org

LEVEL DIFFERENCES

Visually and physically detached functions mostly fail.

HUMAN BEHAVIOUR
Standing demonstrates very clearly some important behavioural patterns characteristic to a large number of stationary
activities in public spaces. It is important, naturally, to be able to stand in public spaces, but the key word is staying. When
a stop lasts longer, people start to demand a certain quality from a place to stand.
A Dutch sociologist Derk De Jonge has pinned the term "edge effect". Edge effect happens when people are positioning
themselves in a concrete space, a thumb-rule is that they prefer places around the epicentre of a space. The edges of
trees, buildings or other clearings are preferred zones for staying, while open plains are not used until the edge zones are
occupied. The reasons for this are to keep psychologically safe distance from others and to have the best opportunity for
surveying the epicentre of the space and other users. The edge effect is best seen in city squares, where people tend to
occupy the edges of the buildings and other spacial units that shape the square. In a book "A Pattern Language",
Christopher Alexander summarizes the experiences regarding the edge effect and edge zones in public spaces: "If the
edge fails, then the space never becomes lively."7

www.123rf.com

STAYING 6

Stroller trouble on stairs.

The edge effect - the edges are preferred zones for staying, while the open
plains are not used until the edge zones are occupied.

www.furnipure.com

Sitting is of a particular importance for public space because it allows stays of any duration. The existence of good
opportunities for sitting enables multiple activities: eating, reading, playing, sunbathing, watching people, talking etc.
According to Jan Gehl a simple mean to improve quality of outdoor spaces is to create more and better opportunities for
sitting.
Sitting activities in general take place only when climatic, spatial, and other essential conditions are favourable. Sitting
locations are chosen far more carefully than are locations for standing. Places for sitting along facades and spacial
boundaries are preferred to sitting areas in the middle of a space. Sitting places in niches, at the end of benches, or at
other well-defined spots where ones back is protected are preferred to less precisely defined places.
Choosing a right place for seating must be thoroughly planned, both spatial and functional qualities of the location have
to be considered. Observations have proved that people prefer seats with an individual local quality such as a good-view
or a good micro-climate. Psychological comfort is important and therefore a niche, a corner, or a place that protects ones
back are popular. The placement of seats allows to programme the social scene, seats can be separated for privacy or be
combined to encourage dialogue.

www.wikipedia.org

SITTING 8

SEEING
Seeing, hearing and talking seem to be arbitrary when discussing the framework of public space, still these sensory
abilities determine our active field of space. These communicative senses work within a range of distance. It is therefore
often appropriate to dimension large public spaces so that the borders of the space correspond to the limits of the social
field of vision. Jan Gehl`s book "Life Between Buildings" provides a comprehensive overview of human senses and spatial
context:
"One can see others and perceive that they are people at distance from 0,5-1 kilometre, depending on factors such as
background and lighting. At approximately 100 meters, figures that can be seen at greater distances become human
individuals. It is hardly a coincidence that the length and width of of most Southern European medieval city squares are
near to or below this figure. At a distance of between 70 and 100 meters, it begins to be possible to determine with
reasonable certainty a persons sex, approximate age, and what the person is doing. At a distance of approximately 30
meters, facial features, hairstyle, and age can be seen and people met only infrequently can be recognised. When the
distance is reduced to 20 to 25 meters, most people can perceive relatively clearly the feeling and moods of others.
Jan Gehl (2011) "Life Between Buildings ." Island Press, London (pp98,167)
Ibid. (p147)
Christopher Alexander (1977) "A Pattern Language " (p600)
Jan Gehl (2011) "Life Between Buildings ." Island Press, London (pp155-162)

www.jpgmag.com

5
6
7
8

Urban seats that offer a good micro-climate and encourage social

contacts.

As social beings people like to observe others,

street sight lines play a role.

PART 1

SPATIAL ASPECT

19

SPATIAL
ASPECT

...Possibilities for seeing are also a question of overview and field of vision without
obstructions. These questions include the adequate light on the areas or objects to be seen.
Where public spaces have to function in periods of darkness, lighting is crucial. Lighting of
the socially relevant subjects is particularly important: lighting of people and faces.
Better lighting does not necessarily mean brighter light. It means an adequately bright
level of lighting directed or reflected toward the vertical surfaces - faces, walls, street signs,
mailboxes, and so forth - in contrast to the lighting of traffic streets. Better light also means
warm and friendly light. Today led-technologies offer us the possibility to freely play with the
colour of light, it offers an opportunity for variation but should be considered thoroughly - it
can easily result in visual noise." 9

To be able to plan sociable urban environment, basic knowledge about the functional range of hearing is necessary. Jan
Gehl points to the following principles.
"Within distances of up to 7 meters, the ear is quite effective. It is possible to hold conversations with relatively little
difficulty up to this distance. At distances up to approximately 35 meters, it is still possible to hear others speaking and
establish a question-answer situation, but it is not possible to engage in actual conversations. Beyond 35 meters, the
ability to hear others is greatly reduced. It is possible to hear people who shout loudly but difficult to hear what is being
shouted." 10
Depending on the concrete street layout and its usage, the noise levels on a pedestrian-only street are usually steadily
around 50 decibels, ranging from 40 to 60 decibels. Around 50-60 decibels it is possible to hold conversations, even lower
levels - around 45-50 allow to hear soft sounds. On a mixed vehicle-pedestrian city street the average is around 65
decibels, the noise level is dynamic and ranges from 50 to 80 decibels. In this situation it is nearly impossible to have
ordinary conversations even in a personal distance.11

Anton Steenbock

HEARING

Saying hello to the street caretaker used to be a norm. Unfortunately many

are willing to trade the social aspect for efficiency and noise.

ANSWER
"I dont know from what village you come from
but here in Tallinn streets are for driving.
There are playgrounds for children to play!"

One of the fundamental functions of public space is that it allows us to move around - on foot, by bicycle, by car,
motorbike or public transport. The pedestrian and vehicle traffic has been for a long time inclined towards the dominance
of vehicle transport. Well-designed streets and public spaces encourage walking and cycling, and have the power to make
our environment a safer one by reducing car speeds and use. A thoroughly planned public transport system is crucial.12
From the second half of 20th century life on streets has degraded due to increased vehicle traffic turnover. Sincethecar
became a common commodity for everyone, a great majority of street s were customised for cars, roads became wider,
recreational lands were turned into parking spaces, and all that was done largely at the expense of pedestrians. Narrow
side-walks, noise, polluted air, physical barriers and detours at the service of safety regulations have been norms for
pedestrians. For a long time it was considered inevitable but from the 1960`s and onwards there has been a growing
interest to "reclaim" the streets, claim equal spatial rights for cars and pedestrians.
The following will introduce street concepts practised occasionally around the world but due to inertia still considered
new. These examples demonstrate the benefits of shared streets for cars and pedestrians. Schemes of similar logic are
used in the Netherlands (Woonerf), the United States (Complete Street), the United Kingdom (Home Zone), Australia and
New Zealand (Shared Zone). In Europe the term "Shared Space" is most common.

www.canvas101.co.uk

A post in a web-forum for families, 2010

Often pedestrian and traffic roads are lit by 12+ meter heigh light posts.
Human scale lights do make a difference for pedestrians.

www.zingicom43.net

QUESTION
"Were planning to move from a small village
to Tallinn. Please tell me where are the safe
areas for children to play in Tallinn? As a
criteria of safety first of all I mean that
children can play on streets where there is
no busy traffic. Thank you."

www.keetsa.com

EQUAL SPATIAL RIGHTS FOR PEDESTRIANS AND VEHICLES

SHARED SPACE 13

www.zingicom43.net

Street-life in London in 1906 and around 1970. The social role of the street is
replaced with narrow pedestrian paths.

www.ecolocalizer.com

"Shared Space is a EU-wide urban design approach which seeks to minimise demarcations between vehicle traffic and
pedestrians, often by removing features such as curbs, road surface markings, traffic signs, and regulations.
The goal of Shared pace is to improve the road safety and vitality of minor roads and junctions within the street
hierarchy, particularly ones with high levels of pedestrian traffic by encouraging negotiation of shared areas between
different road users. Shared Space minimises demarcations between vehicles and pedestrians. Thereby, according to
some authorities including the UK Government, reduces the dominance of motor vehicles and enable all users to share
the space.
First proposed in 1991, the term is now strongly associated to the work of Hans Monderman who suggested that an
individuals behaviour in traffic is more positively affected by the built environment of the public space than by conventional
traffic control devices and regulations. By creating a greater sense of uncertainty and making it unclear who had right of
way, drivers reduce their speed, and everyone reduces their level of risk compensation. The perception of risk may be a
means or even a prerequisite for increasing objective safety. When a situation feels unsafe, people are more alert and
there are fewer accidents.
Monderman quotes "When you don't exactly know who has right of way, you tend to seek eye contact with other road
users. You automatically reduce your speed, you have contact with other people and you take greater care. We're losing
our capacity for socially responsible behaviour... The greater the number of prescriptions, the more people's sense of
personal responsibility dwindles.
The introduction of such schemes has had positive effect on road safety, traffic volume, economic vitality, and
community cohesion where a user's behaviour becomes influenced and controlled by natural human interactions rather
than by artificial regulation. This design method is however bitterly opposed by many organisations representing the blind,
partially sighted and deaf who prefer a clear separation of pedestrian and vehicular traffic. Supporters of Shared Space
propose the use of street furniture, vegetation and a different road cover material to meet their needs." 13
9
Jan Gehl (2011) "Life Between Buildings ." Island Press, London (pp63-65,163-167)
10 Ibid. (p64)
11 Ibid. (p166-167)
12 CABE Space (2004) "The Value of Public Space ." CABE Space, London (p14)
13 Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space), accessed 17.05.2013
20

SPATIAL ASPECT

PART 1

Shared space approach has been applied also to busier

roads. Exhibition Road in Kensington , London.

www.londononline.co.uk

www.londononline.co.uk

SPATIAL
ASPECT

Exhibition Road
before the transformation .

A SHARED SPACE TOWN IN GERMANY 14

HOME ZONE 15

www.bohmte.de

In 2007 a German town Bohmte decided to transform the streets according to the shared space idea. Officials wanted to
test the theory that the 13,000 drivers who use the town every day would take extra care and show each other greater
consideration if they were not told what to do. They secured a 2,1 million Euro grant from the European Union
to set up the scheme.
The town banned traffic lights and warning signs, including those instructing drivers to give way or stop. Only two rules
remained drivers cannot go above 30 km/h, the German speed limit for city driving, and everyone has to yield to the
right, regardless of whether it is a car, a bike or a mother with a pushchair.
Since shared space was started the town of Bohmte is saving near 6000 Euros a month replacing and repairing signs
damaged through normal wear and tear or by vandals.
Comparing the total number of traffic accidents 3 years before and after the scheme, there is a 46% decrease. The
proportion of accidents including personal damage have decreased to 8,7%.
Shared Space in the town of Bohmte.

www.methleys.org.uk

"A Home Zone is a living street (or group of streets) as implemented in the United Kingdom, which are designed primarily
to meet the needs of pedestrians, cyclists, children and residents and where the speeds and dominance of the cars is
reduced. Home Zone street is not strongly divided into exclusive pedestrian and traffic areas, encouraging children's play
and free movement through the spaces. Home Zones have a very good safety record, but are not primarily designed as
road safety schemes.
Home Zones are encouraged by the UK Government as part of new residential areas. Residents are consulted by the
local Traffic Authority on the precise uses that can take place on the street (specified through a 'Use Order') and the
appropriate speed of traffic on the street (specified through a 'Speed Order') before the Home Zone can be legally
designated and signed.
Concerns have been expressed over the inability of blind and partially sighted people to use Home Zone streets.
Providing a clear route for pedestrians that is kept free of traffic, by using street furniture for example, is one way of
meeting the needs of the visually impaired. Well-designed Home Zones often include features such as benches, tables
and play equipment to encourage social interaction. Street trees and areas of planting, ideally maintained by residents,
will often feature. On-street parking also forms part of the layout in most schemes. Traffic speeds are kept low - with a
typical target speed being around 20 km/h (10-15 mph) - through the overall design of the street and features such as
sharp changes of direction for traffic and narrowings where only one motor vehicle can pass at a time. Traditional traffic
calming features such as road humps can also be used, but should be integrated into the design rather than being added
as an engineered afterthought.
Examples of UK practice include Staiths South Bank in Gateshead, which at over 600 homes was the largest new-build
Home Zone development in the UK at the time it received planning consent. Most contemporary UK schemes have
involved public realm works to existing streets in older Victorian housing areas, often to meet regeneration or traffic
calming objectives."

WOONERF 16

14
15
16

Wolfgang Bode (2009) "Verkehrsuntersuchung in der Gemeinde Bohmte unter besonderer

Bercksichtigung der Wirkungen des Shared Space Bereiches ." Auftraggeber: Gemeinde Bohmte. Osnabrck
CABE Space (2004) "The Value of Public Space ." CABE Space, London (p14)
Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space), accessed 17.05.2013

PART 1

Home Zone residential street in England.

John Newcomb

"A Woonerf (literally translates as 'living yard') is a living street where pedestrians and cyclists have legal priority over
motorists as implemented in the Netherlands and in Flanders. Techniques include shared space, traffic calming, and low
speed limits. Under Article 44 of the Dutch traffic code, motorised traffic in a Woonerf or 'recreation area' is restricted to
walking pace.
Woonerf streets started to appear in the Netherlands already in the 1970s. "In 1999 the Netherlands had over 6000
Woonerfs. In 2006 it was reported that people of Hesselterbrink were disillusioned about how the Woonerf principle had
become another traffic engineering measure that 'entailed precious little more than signs and uniform standards'. They
have now encompassed the shared space principles as a way of rethinking the Woonerf. They are reported to 'now know
that car drivers should become residents. Eye contact and human interaction are more effective means to achieve and
maintain attractive and safe areas than signs and rules.
Today around 2 million Dutch people are living in Woonerfs. The benefits of the Woonerf are promoted by
'Woonerfgoed', a network of professionals and residents."

The Dutch Woonerf.

SPATIAL ASPECT

21

SOCIAL
ASPECT

William H. Whyte

Iwan Baan

www.buro24.ru

What attracts people most,

it would appear , is other people . 1

IMPORTANCE

Iwan Baan

Social aspect cannot be overestimated when discussing public spaces, sociability is a prerequisite for such phenomenon
to take place at all.
In the 21st century the role of cities, towns and villages is changing. Urban city centers are no longer the only places for
the exhange of goods, services and information. Decentralised urban developments and Internet allow people to enjoy
qualities that were once present only in the centers. Today urban and rural places are expected to fulfil deeper human
needs, social interaction and the expression of civic beliefs.
Sociability is based on peoples need to affirm and interact with others. Such affiliation involves people participating in a
supportive social system to receive psychological comfort. Once people satisfy their basic needs, such as survival and
security, they feel the need to belong and become member of a group or set of groups, which will provide affection,
support and identity for them.2
Shared Space, a European co-operation project that aims to develop public space policy at the European level,
describes social implications for public space in the following sections.
"Public spaces form the heart of society. They are areas where you stay, where you meet others, where you observe,
where you undertake something with or without others, where you relax, where you become familiar and part of the living
environment.
Staying in a public space enables us to remain up to date with the world and the environment in which we live or stay.
Public spaces also enable you to look at what people are saying about themselves - in the way in which they present
themselves or in the way they design and modify their own spaces, their house or their garden. The layout of the public
space tells us what society looks like, who forms part of it, how people deal with each other and what they consider
important. It is a window on and a mirror of society." 3
According to William H. Whyte, a long-term researcher on human behaviour in urban settings, "The social life in public
spaces contributes to the quality of life of individuals and society in a such fundamental way that we have a moral
responsibility to create physical places that facilitate civic engagement and community interaction." 4

In European context we understand inclusion in a democratic way - a call for everyone regardless of ethnic origin, age or
gender, social or economic position.
For everyday users who form the local community, public spaces function as a social hub. Whether chatting over the
garden fence, meeting in the local market, park or playground, these situations create an opportunity for small, personal
interactions that reveal the local tendencies. These tendencies sooner or later become established as a local identity.
The same happens on a larger scale. In a city, icounty, or a state, public spaces can bring people from different ages
and cultures together and help to create a sense of local identity. Public spaces are a medium where cultural codes are
practised and established. In these spaces we see a variety of behaviours and we render the norms of tolerance in the
society.
To follow the true democratic idea of inclusion, public spaces also have an adopting role. These spaces should
encourage people with different backgrounds to blend in to the society and help them to find self-expression in the open
public spaces. Different cultural groups might have different patterns in the ways they use parks and other public land.
Depending on their ethnic or cultural background, they might have a radically different way of observing nature and using
a park.
The ideas of adoption also apply to the "problematic" segment of people who happen to be hanging around in public
spaces because they have nowhere else in particular to go. It is quite possible to engage with such people to help them
meet their underlying needs or resolve their difficulties, thus diverting them from crime and antisocial behaviour. Besides
the elementary homeless shelters for dining and accommodation, several successful projects across Europe have been
delivered. In Britain the magazine "Big Issue" is sold by homeless people as an alternative to begging, a project in
Rotterdam, Netherlands, recruited young people who were hanging arond and intimidating shoppers in a central street
and offered them a meeting place, support and activities in an adjacent building.
The function of city's public spaces is to permit, and indeed to encourage the greatest possible number of meetings,
encounters, challenges between various persons and groups, as it were a stage upon which drama of social life can be
enacted, with the actors taking their turn, too, as spectators. William Whyte claims that the increases in private travel and
electronic communication, rather than turning us in on ourselves, have actually stimulated a greater need for face-to-face
contact. "We are, after all, a social and sociable species and we need affirmative interaction with other humans for our
health and well-being." 5
22

SOCIAL

ASPECT

Iwan Baan

THE INCLUSIVE ROLE

Superkilen (2012) Nrrebro, Copenhagen

Authors - Superflex, BIG, Topotek1
The project is part of an urban improvement plan coordinated by the City of
Copenhagen in a partnership with private association Realdania. The park is
intended to celebrate diversity. Filled with objects from around the globe, it is
designed as a kind of world exposition for the local inhabitants, covering over
50 nationalities, who have been able to contribute their own ideas and
artefacts to the project.6

1 William H. Whyte (1980) "The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces ." (p19)
2 Jon Lang (1994) "Urban Design: The American Experience ." John Wiley
& Sons, New York (p252)
3 Shared Space, A European co-operation project (2005) "Shared
Space: Room for Everyone : A New Vision for Public Spaces ." (p9)
4 William H. Whyte (www.pps.org/reference/wwhyte/), accessed 22.05.2013
5 William H. Whyte (1988) "City: Rediscovering the Center." Doubleday,
New York (p335)
6 Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superkilen), accessed 17.05.2013

PART 1

UPS AND SAFETY ISSUES

SOCIAL
ASPECT

www.lexleader.net

The feeling of safety is a factor that can influence the use of urban public spaces to a great deal. Well-designed and managed places seem safer and people tend to use them more, whereas we have all experienced desolate urban places
that are so run down that people feel scared to use them. The disintegration of living public spaces and the gradual
transformation of the street areas into an area that is of no real interest to anyone is an important factor contributing to
vandalism and crime on the streets.
All-inclusive public space is and should be an ideal, in reality it is difficult to realise and we are continuously making
decisions on behalf of some user groups. It is an ever-actual question of majority and minority. Homeless, drinking
youngster groups and people exercising extreme urban sports like parkour are often disfavoured by some people. For
some countries and cities the way to deal with it comprises schemes of various control measures. According to Henfry
Shaftoe, the outcome of this is a series of exclusionary initiatives ranging from legal controls, such as alcohol bans and
dispersal orders, to increased video- and police surveillance. "At worst it can become an intrusive, humiliating and
repressive means for controlling excluded populations." 1 This policy is criticised as it does not deal with the actual cause
of problem but with the aftermath.
"In reality, there are very few career criminals; people who commit offences often do so out of boredom, frustration,
desperation or as a by-product of a personal problem such as addiction, psychopathology or homelessness. ...Many
'offenders' are bored young people who would engage in more legitimate pursuits if they were given the chance. Instead
of excluding undesirables and creating, in the process, an environment that is undesirable to everyone, our streets and
town centres could be made more attractive, in the hope that crime and antisocial behaviour will be 'crowded out' by the
range of legitimate activities and the behavioural norms of the majority of law-abiding citizens. At the same time, it is
important to engage with the minority who are displaying unwelcome or desperate behaviour - they may need help,
diversion or intensive support." 2
"The argument in favour of inclusive public spaces goes considerably beyond a narrow focus on security to include
health, well-being and even the very nature of civilization. Richard Sennett (1986) has argued that "people grow only by
the processes of encountering the unknown" and the best places to encounter difference and the unfamiliar are public
spaces, where all segments of society can cross paths, mingle and be observed. Without this observation and
engagement with 'difference', Sennett claims in his book The Uses of Disorder (1973), we are in danger of becoming
increasingly prejudiced and narrow-minded, as we only choose the company of like-minded individuals in our cocooned
daily routines." 3
Henry Shaftoe argues that not all "shadowed" spaces are illegal and intolerable. As human beings, we are often looking
for privacy also within the public sphere, it is normal that sometimes people do not want to be seen or heard by others.
Efforts to sanitize and control every inch of public space risk with eliminating all screened areas. Harmless deviant
activities are valuable as the articulations of resistance to the status quo. The vitality of an urban space requires some
degree of human unpredictability.4
In a democratic society the sustainable way to handle the grey areas is citizens self-regulation. A civilized society is
tolerant towards homeless people, alcoholics, people receiving "care" in the community, and "tribes" of young people. As
long as their presence is not causing a real threat to the safety of others, their citizenship and therefore a right to occupy
public spaces should be respected equally with everyone else. "The safest places are well-populated with both users and
casual passers-by who provide more "eyes on the street" to informally police public spaces (Jacobs 1961, Gehl 2003).
When a society stops policing itself, it has failed. If everyone in a society cant enjoy all the public spaces within a town
then it cant police itself. In order to achieve that, we need a public realm which is inclusive." 5

Amanda Mustard

Disfavoured behaviour.

www.publicintelligence.net

`Different` use of urban space, parkour - the art of movement.

Repressive public control.

UPS, PROMOTING HEALTHY LIVING

Attractive urban design encourages people

to spend more time on foot and bikes.

Andriy Prokopenko

Henry Shaftoe (2008) "Convivial Urban Spaces ." Earthscan, London (p20)
Ibid. (pp19-21)
Ibid. (p19)
Ibid. (p21)
Ibid. (pp19,27)
Adam Taylor (Business Insider International ) (2011) (http://www.businessinsider.com/fattest-countries-in-europe-obesity2011-9?op=1), accessed 20.04.2013
IASO (2006) "Obesity in the EU27" (www.iaso.org/site_media/uploads/Adult_EU_27_January_2012.pdf), accessed 22.05.2013
CABE Space (2004)"The Value of Public Space ." CABE Space, London (p6)

Maria Da Schio

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

www.turenscape.com

Across Europe, obesity is a growing concern. In 2011 Business Insider International writes: "In recent weeks, Europe has
begun to panic about a growing obesity problem. Hungary, a country that loves its cakes, has implemented a tax on fatty
food. Even Italy, long an example of the benefits of a Mediterranean diet, has seen a worrying trend amongst its rapidly
fattening youth. Perhaps they're still small fry compared to the US, but they're catching up." 6
There is growing concern about the health of the nation and particularly that of our children and young people.
According to 2006 Eurostat statistics obesity rate in Europe is 15,5% of the population, among children 30%. In Estonia
there are 33,8% people overweight and 15% obese. This increase in obesity is linked to ever more motionless lifestyles
and a reduction in outdoor activity. Evidence shows that adult patterns of exercise are set early on in life.7
A lack of exercise in childhood can lead to problems in adulthood, diabetes and heart diseases are typical in cases of
excessive inactivity. Not only a concern of physical health, inactivity influences people`s mental well-being by increasing
stess risk. Each year economy loses working hours and days due to stress-related employee absence. These problems
clearly need to be addessed and dealt with. Public open spaces can contribute to better health by encouraging us to walk
more, to play sport, or simply spend more leisure time outdoors. Access to good-quality, well-maintained public spaces
can help to improve physical and mental health.8

PART 1

SOCIAL

ASPECT

23

IMPORTANCE

www.commercewa.gov.au

ECONOMIC
ASPECT

Generally speaking, economic aspects influence the realm

of UPS mainly in two ways. Firstly, overall national and
regional economic capacity determines the financial
possibilities for UPS management and development, the
living standards of a society are projected to the urban
fabric. The financial ability is linked to the qualities present in
between buildings: the condition of streets and buildings, the
extent and quality of the physical elements concerned.
Secondly, the effect that business-driven functions have
on public transit in a given area. Whether the services are
used as a necessity or for leisure, these functions act as
attractors that animate urban open spaces. Far from being
the only and the most important factor, (business) functions
play a role in generating activity in between buildings. For
example, a dominant business area has vital public spaces
but in an extreme case it might also have additional effects,
it becomes too mono-functional and exclusive, dispelling
more intimate social activity and excluding some user
groups. In case of a quiet residential district, basic public
functions are essential for the residents' well-being. A
grocery, a cafe or a hair-dresser inearby has an influential
effect on the use of public spaces, open spaces are used
more frequently and periodically. When the basic functions
are far away, the urban set favours commuter life-style and
makes it more challenging to have lively public spaces.

CABE Space (2004)"The Value of Public Space ." CABE Space, London (pp4-5)
Ibid. (pp4-5)
City of Toronto (1999) "Economic Benefits of Pedestrianisation for Toronto"
Jan Gehl, Lars Gemze (1996) "Public Space-Public Life."Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts , Copenhagen (p51)
CABE Space (2004)"The Value of Public Space ." CABE Space, London (pp4-5)
Anna Semlyen (www.cuttingyourcaruse.co.uk/carbust37a.htm), accessed 20.05.2013
Ibid.
Project for Public Spaces (www.pps.org/reference/measuring-the-impact-of-public-markets-and-farmers-markets-on-local-economies/), accessed 22.05.2013

In 2006 the New Economics Foundation conducted a report in London

Queens indoor/outdoor market. According to the report every 10 pounds
($19) spent at the market generates an additional 25 pounds ($48) in
economic activity. This compares with only an additional 14 pounds ($26.50)
generated by a traditional supermarket. It also revealed that the local market
creates twice as many jobs per square foot of retail space as nearby
supermarkets do.8

Gumundur Albertsson

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

Properties with good access to desirable

public spaces are more valuable.

Jan Kennedy

According to CABE, thegovernments advisor on architecture, urban design and public space in England, a high-quality
public environment can have a significant impact on the economic life of urban centres, whether big or small, and is
therefore an essential part of any successful regeneration strategy. As towns increasingly compete with each other to
attract investment and to increase tax revenue, the existence of good parks, squares, gardens and other public spaces
becomes a vital business and marketing tool: companies are attracted to locations that offer well-designed, well-managed
public places and these in turn attract customers, employees and services.1
In a booklet "The Value of Public Space" CABE states: "Redevelopment of high-quality public spaces aids the
regeneration of an area, with commercial property prices increasing in those locations. Well-planned, well-managed public
space has a positive impact on the price of nearby domestic properties. According to a study in Berlin in 2000, proximity
to playgrounds in residential areas was found to increase land values by up to 16 per cent. In the same study, a high
number of street trees resulted in an increase of 17 per cent in land values. In the towns of Emmen, Appledoorn and
Leiden in the Netherlands, it has been shown that a gardens bordering water or proximity to water can boost the land
price approximately 10%." 2
The City of Toronto's report "Economic Benefits of Pedestrianisation Toronto" found out that pedestrian-orientated retail
streets can provide significant environmental improvements and increase local retail sales. Pedestrian traffic, otherwise
known as "footfall", tends to increase dramatically after a pedestrian friendly area is created.3
When Strget street in Copenhagen in Denmark was converted to pedestrian-only street in 1962, the following years
proved pedestrian traffic increase 20-40%. The local business owners who in the beginning were sceptical about the
conversion , had remarkably increased turnovers and some of them even started to claim the idea being theirs from the
first place.4 According to CABE, local trade of the town of Coventry in England also benefited after transforming the
centre. The centre became much more attractive and footfall rose when pedestrianisation was improved, a new civic
square was built, clearer signage and enhanced placement of street furniture was introduced.5
Successful regeneration projects world-wide explain such economic success with pleasant shopping experience, safety,
improved air quality and low noise levels. According to Anna Semlyen far more pedestrianisation schemes have had a
positive effect on retail turnover (49%) than a negative (2%).6 Based on Peter Newman she concludes: "Around the world,
cities where people mostly walk, cycle or use public transit, have greater wealth (gross regional product per capita) than
cities with heavy car use. Newman attributes the negative impact of heavy car use on city wealth to: (1) greater road
expenditure, (2) greater percentage of wealth spent on commuting, (3) reduced transit cost recovery, (4) increased
transportation deaths, and (5) increased pollution from vehicle emissions." 7

www.architectsjournal.co.uk

UPS and economic benefits

The famous Strget street in Copenhagen. Since the pedestrianisation of the

street footfall and business turnovers increased.

24

ECONOMIC

ASPECT

PART 1

ECONOMIC
ASPECT

Public life on an ordinary day in Kalamaja 1972. The building to the left is a
small grocery shop. The same place in 2010. After a long struggle the shop
to the left shut down.

Tiit Blaat

Public life in open urban spaces needs users, functions and qualities. Among all possible functions, access to basic goods
and services is crucial.
22 years ago, when Estonia gained independence again and took off towards the possibilities of capitalism long dreamt
of, the streets of Estonian city centres were quite lively dispersed with a variety of little businesses: groceries, shops for
dairy products, clothing retails, bakeries, cafes, restaurants, hairdressers etc. Over the 22-year transformation, one of the
tendencies has been the clusterisation of basic business functions. Suburban sprawl and increased car-use have eased
the development of super- and hypermarkets which have grown in size and number. The dominance that these centres
have due to the market forces crowded in numerous occasions off small businesses from the city centres and local
districts. With less footfall in those areas, small businesses have been slowly disappearing. For example in Kalamaja, in a
small intact district of Tallinn, the emergence of rather peripheral supermarkets and car-centered life-style have pushed
out once well-distributed small grocery stores. The same has happened in the historical centres of Tallinn and Tartu, the
grocery stores and retails are almost completely gone making the centres less valuable and usable for nearby residents.
From the UPS point of view, these changes are controversial. Today there are far more activities happening in between
buildings, higher living standards have to some extent transferred to the spatial and aesthetic qualities present in urban
environment. At the same time the indoor economic functions have accumulated to fewer attractive places, leaving some
areas with poor public life on the streets.
The negative impacts of suburbanisation, car-centered life and clusterisation of some basic business functions are wellknown. It is also well known that these problems were acknowledged already half a century ago in America and later
across Europe. It is understandable that in the beginning of 1990`s a young nation like Estonia had other priorities than
public life, but with reason the Estonians can claim that there was a failure in inadequate socio-spatial and economic
analysis. Those issues should have been predicted and addressed.
Today the business function clusterisation can be dealt with stricter planning rules. For example, Sweden practices
limitations for both hypermarket location and floor area in relation to regional user pattern. To help small down-town
businesses flourish again they need to adjust to new market needs, appropriate economic and spatial conditions.

Tiit Blaat

SMALL BUSINESSES VS HYPERMARKETS

A typical hypermarket in Tallinn.

Ekaterina Zhiteneva

For a long time the medieval part of Tallinn has been the centre of the city and the main orientation point. Listed in the
UNESCO world heritage list, the old-Tallinn is a trademark of Estonia. Adorable architecture, human scale streets and
buildings, pedestrian-priviledged traffic and a green belt around the town make it a perfect setting for a lively public space.
Every inhabitant of Tallinn is proud to present the old town to visitors but at the same time has mixed-feelings about it.
With the beginning of the development of vigorous tourism, the locals have started to see the old town not as a perfect
place to go out and enjoy various activities but rather as an exclusive museum sold out for tourists. The famous quote
"show me your city and I'll tell you who you are" is not relevant any more, the Old Town has long lost its meaning as a
mirror of local public life and is managed as straight- forward business model. Even though active tourist season lasts for
half a year, the inertia of the (under)development tendencies has impoverished everyday public life. Souvenir shops,
jewellery, entertainment, high-end bars and restaurants form the majority of functions the town has to offer. Even though
there are some cultural institutions and parks, the Old Town does not invite a greater variety of local users.
A 1984 conference "The Old Town as a living environment" was engaged in controversial debate about what could the
town offer for children, how to manage the dictation of entertainment business, how to lessen the segment of uncultured
townspeople and visitors and how to encourage sport activities. Seems like these issues are as relevant as 30 years ago.
A number of problems have sustained the "exclusive" image of the Old Town.9
Firstly, there has been an overall lack of political and local will to make a change. Secondly, the absence of truly public
places to sit down and enjoy the medieval settings. The Old Town operates exactly like a shopping-mall, there are just a
few public seats available to attract only paying customers. The main plaza of the Old Town - the Town Hall Square has
not a single public bench to sit down and enjoy the scenery.
In 2009 an urbanist Kadri Klementi organised two experiments on the Town Hall Square, 9-10 simple coloured chairs
were put out for people to place and use them as they wish. The chairs were popular and the experiment clearly
addressed the lack of seats available.10
Thirdly, as the 1984.-year-conference stated, the functions and activities available cover a rather poor spectrum. This is
linked to the fact that the number of local residents is very low, out of 3868 registered residents only a fragment is actively
living there.11
Proposals to deal with these problems include support for local community, shared-space streets without raised narrow
side-walk areas, city subsidies to support the new desired functions, more seats and active places for local families,
licences for souvenir shops that currently sell items without local origin and therefore harm the true local identity. These
measures will not endanger the beneficial tourism in any way and help to balance commercial and public interests.

www.nsking.eu

EXCLUSIVE ECONOMIC FORCES. MEDIEVAL TALLINN - SOLD OUT!

The most prominent place of old Tallinn - the town hall square is a place
without a single unpaid seat. To sit and rest one has to be a customer in one
of many cafes.

Kadri Klementi

9 Kadri Klementi , Martin Allik, Teele Pehk (2011) (www.epl.ee/news/kultuur/vana-linn-tahab-koju.d?id=51297955), accessed 23.05.2013
10 Kadri Klementi (2010) "The Street. The Present and Future of Tallinn Street -scape."Estonian Academy of Arts, Tallinn (p31)
11 Tallinn Municipality (2013) "Tallinn in numbers 2012" (p155)

An experiment by city activist Kadri Klementi in 2009.

Chairs, free to use and place.

PART 1

ECONOMIC

ASPECT

25

Toomas Huik (Postimees)

LEGAL
ASPECT

www.flickr.com (neoroma)

www.buildmyfence.com

A restricted dwelling area in Tiskre

Up - Closed private / Down - Open semi-private front-yard

Private property, no trespassing

INTRODUCTION

www.hbdchick.wordpress.com

In the public space discussion in general, the legal aspect is a concern that often includes conflicting interests. Questions
arise around the land ownership, the proportion of public property in a municipal unit, the private interests of the land
owner vs public interests, the conflicting grey shades between the public and the private, both written and unwritten rights
and restrictions in the use of public spaces. Most of these concerns are broader discussions in the field of philosophy,
politics, planning discourse, social sciences and law. This chapter focuses on illustrating types of ownership, the grey
shades between the public and the private, and examplifies the benefits of public-private partnership.

OWNERSHIP: PUBLIC AND PRIVATE

Raido Kuurmaa

There are 3 general types of ownership: collective, private and common. Urban public spaces are mostly dependent on
collective, public form of ownership. By popular definition public property is a property dedicated to the use of the public, a
subset of state property.
The street-scape is a typical embodiment of public property. For example in Tallinn, there are 13km2 of streets, that
makes 8% of the whole city area. These figures allow us to imagine the impact of such spatial category in our everyday
lives. In Tallinn public land forms 23% of the city area, it is not much compared with Amsterdam and Helsinki where the
majority of land is in municipal hands.1 Nevertheless it does not necessarily mean that a direct link can be drawn between
the city owned land and the potentials of urban public space. The land itself does not provide us with pleasant places, it
is rather a task of design and usage management, co-operation and the other created by the users themselves. But when
there is a lack of public owned land the local municipality has to acknowledge a challenging work in leading the local
planning processes to find a balance between the private and public interests. A premise of this balance is thorough
planning law, transparent and inclusive planning process.
From the perspective of public space, a knowledge about the factors that generate the quality of urban environment are
more important than the laws regulating the private property. When there is a demand for quality-UPS, many situations of
potential conflict might be solved in a self-regulatory way. Let's imagine for instance a city street girded by front yards of
private houses. The way that these front yards are arranged, facades of the buildings coloured, vegetation and fences
organized, also influences the way we perceive the street-scape as a whole. The private edge overlaps with the public.
The local municipality, local communities and other urban environment institutions should put forward an educational role.
These situations should be questioned in a regeneration process.

SEMI-PUBLIC / SEMI-PRIVATE
The transition from private to public does not happen suddenly, for these transitions, the terms of semi-public and semiprivate are used. A cafe, a cinema and a shopping mall are examples of semi-public spaces. They are defined as public
spaces with some clear limitations for entrance. When the main function is the economic one, everyone is welcome as
long as he/she pays for it. In a shopping mall everybody can enter and look around without obligation to buy, but activities
unrelated to the purpose of the shop are not unlimitedly permitted. For a semi-public space stricter rules may be applied
than are outside, e.g. regarding dress code, trading, begging, advertising, photography, propaganda, riding roller-skates,
skateboards, etc.2
As cafes, restaurants, cinemas etc. are part of public life, these functions act as a necessary component in the structure
of public spaces. It is important how these functions are distributed in and how they communicate with outdoor spaces.
Yet, some of these semi-public functions are a potential threat for the vitality of outdoor public spaces. Offering a great
variety of attractive services as a decoy, they convey different user groups from the streets with a democratic ambition to
the interior that cleverly serves business interests. Creating an illusion of a freedom to choose, these environments
impoverish the multitude of social and cultural exchange present on the streets.
Semi-private spaces are private spaces that spatially and visually communicate with public spaces. Semi-private spaces
can be all kinds of private land between the private building and the street or paths surrounding the territory. Usually these
spaces are used for an access, i.e gardens and strips of vegetation. For example, a front yard of a house facing the street
is perceived as an extension of the street-scape. When the inhabitants of the house are using their front yard, they create
possibilities for social contacts with neighbours and people passing by. For this reason semi-private spaces contribute to
1 Kadri Klementi (2010) "The Street. The Present and Future of Tallinn Street -scape."Estonian Academy of Arts, Tallinn (p4)
2 Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_space), accessed 17.05.2013
26

LEGAL

ASPECT

Soola 8, Tartu. The street space between the two buildings was used to
extend the mall. The connective link remained as a commercial corridor. With
commercial constraints the link is no longer a democratic space.

PRIVATE

SEMI-PRIVATE

SEMI-PUBLIC

PUBLIC

PART 1

the urban public spaces, they function as 'soft-edges' (Jan Gehl). Here the visual and spatial relation to the surrounding
public spaces is most important. Often front yards are blocked by a fence or spacious vegetation, as a result safe and
nice private territory sacrifices public look, communications are cut off. Even in areas with seemingly low potential for such
social exchange, it is worth to keep in mind that places change in time. Functions, users and use patterns change and in
planning situations soft-edge possibilities should be considered, they have the ability to self-generate activity.

LEGAL
ASPECT

UPS AND PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP

For an urban planner it is well known that in most cases there is a gap between what is useful for the area and for the city,
and what are the realistic possibilities regarding the constraints of the plot borders and property owners. In such cases
public-private-partnership (PPP) can be a tool to overcome difficulties of legal restrictions.
The municipally owned land is not the only way to create lively urban environment. From the mid-1990-s and onward,
public-private-partnership (PPP) has become a more often used form of co-operation around the world. A typical PPP
involves a contract between a public sector authority and a private party. The reasons for using PPP are many. A need to
share the financial burden of large projects or a situation of private land and public interest or vice versa; temporary usage
of both private and public spaces without current function. The following three examples give an idea of temporary usage
in different situations.

BADESCHIFF, BATHS IN RIVER SPREE, BERLIN 3

URBAN ALLOTMENTS 5

DETECTORS, AN URBAN INSTALLATION 6

NAME
Badeschiff, baths in river Spree, Berlin
LOCATION
Arena-Site, Eichenstrasse 4, Treptow
OWNER
State of Berlin
TIMEFRAME
Temporary lease 2005-2010
INITIATED BY
event promoters, Kulturarena
LOCAL AUTHORITY
granted planning permission
LEGAL FRAME
lease agreement
VISITED BY
Berliners and tourists
FINANCE
Capital Culture Foundation
and TIP (city listings magazine) together
covered 25% of total costs, rest financed by
Kulturarena from bar, catering and door receipts.

NAME
Tootsipeenar
LOCATION
Rmu street, Tartu
INITIATED BY
Avo Rosenvald
DEVELOPMENT TIMEFRAME
2011-2016
LAND OWNER
Municipality of Tartu
LOCAL AUTHORITY
Granted free use of land
LEGAL FRAME
Land lease agreement with
non-profit organisation
TARGET GROUP
Local people interested
in allotment gardening
FINANCE
Private funding for allotments, plough
by Tatoli enterprise

NAME
Detectors, installations by Raul Kalvo
LOCATION
Lasname, Tallinn
INITIATED BY
MT Kaos /Kaos Architects
DEVELOPMENT TIMEFRAME
(Aug-Oct.) 2011
LAND OWNER
Municipality of Tallinn
LOCAL AUTHORITY
Granted planning permission
TARGET GROUP
Local people, people passing by
FINANCE
Tallinn 2011 European Capital of
Culture programme + festival sponsors.

"In 2002, various international architects and artists were

invited to deal with bridges in the context of connecting
elements in cities. Instead of creating a bridge over the
Spree, the Badeschiff team proposed a bridge to the
Spree. Following a tradition of public bathing in the river at
the turn of the century, the project encouraged a closer
connection between the city and its river by floating a pool
on it.
A 30 year old barge was modified in a nearby dockyard.
It was reduced to its shell and filled with pre-heated and
chlorinated water to form a 32m long pool complemented
with a wooden bridge and a sun terrace. All technical
installations are concealed in the edge profile and yet
allow an unobstructed view across the river when
swimming.
During the winter, a three-part membrane structure
divides the Badeschiff (bathing ship) and its jetty into three
separate areas: a lounge, sauna and the pool ship itself.
These areas are connected via additional boxes containing
technical and service functions. A two-layered membrane
is spanned over elliptical wooden trusses maintaining a
combination of translucent and transparent surfaces. The
space between the membranes is filled with air to optimise
insulation and guarantee a comfortable interior
temperature of 25C even when it is extremely cold
outside." 4

An individual interested in allotment gardening asked the

city municipality if there are available lands for temporary
allotments. The city offered a plot reserved for future
residential developments. A lease for five years was given
to non-profit organisation "Juurikas". Every citizen had a
chance to apply for a piece of land and make a one year
contract.
The first season brought together 45 participants, a strip
of 100m2 of land was given to each. Cultivation included
potatoes, turnips, beans, pumpkins, zucchini, carrots, icelettuce, rucola, calendula, parsley, mint, basil, broccoli,
dill, coriander, black radish and more.

The two massive sculptures appeared on the banks of

"Lasname Channel" (i.e. the Laagna Road cutting) as
part of the Tallinn 2011 - European Capital of Culture
programme. An open competition was held to choose the
installations.
Detectors drew attention to the 'ordinary' of a city,
attention to something that lacks tourist appeal and is
simply part of everyday environment for locals. Like many
other residents of Lasname, the author, who used to live
there, claimed his personal experience of Lasname very
boring, the environment did not call up for more than
taking bus routes between the city centre and home. With
detectors Raul Kalvo attempted to bring out the special
qualities of the place - the limestone bank. The installation
invited both locals and visitors to experience Lasname
from a slightly different angle.

3 Jovis Verlag GmbH (2007) "Urban Pioneers . Temporary use and development in Berlin " Jovis, Berlin (p58)
4 Convertible City (www.convertiblecity.de/projekte_projekt29_en.html), accessed 22.05.2013
5 Tootsi Peenar (www.tootsipeenar.wordpress.com/uudised-blogi/page/2/), accessed 22.05.2013

PART 1

Aivo Tasso

www.lift11.ee

Preparing the soil at Rmu street.

The detectors

Eesti Ekspress

www.picturereport.net

Badeschiff baths

www.lift11.ee

www.picturereport.net

6 LIFT 11 (www.lift11.ee/installatsioon/uurijad), accessed 22.05.2013

LEGAL

ASPECT

27

INTRODUCTION

POLITICAL
ASPECT

Urban public space is where political ideas are expressed in public, it is a place for the emergence of freedom, expression
and identity. It is where local lifestyles and activities happen and take many shapes, it is a scenery for public life to
happen. Public life again, is one of our most democratic rights, it contributes to the progress of free society and public
resolve.

THE POWER OF PUBLIC SPACE

"Public spaces is the living room of the young, the old, the rich and the poor, it is an advertisement of a city's image. In
todays democratic society we manifest it as belonging to "everyone". Yet throughout history, besides their practical
function, these spaces have been arenas for the ruling powers to demonstrate and exercise their power. Whoever
controls public space sets the "program" for representing society." 1

The predecessors of public space are believed to be the Agora of ancient Greek and the Roman Forum. Both the settings
of open spaces surrounded by civic buildings, they are still surprisingly valid archetypes of todays urban public spaces
with regard to creating contacts, functional arrangements and spatial qualities. Though ancient Greek democracy is often
discussed as exemplary in many ways, the major difference with contemporary urban public space is the understanding of
inclusion. In ancient Greek the majority of population were not really considered citizens. Immigrants, slaves, women and
children had limited rights and privileges. For example women had a restricted right to walk around in public and were
very segregated from men. Whereas today In the European context we regard urban public space in a democratic way - it
is a call for everyone regardless of his ethnic origin, age or gender, social or economic position. Every age has its societal
ideal and these norms are in constant adjustment, this process can be called - the democratisation of public spaces. Tom
Nielsen discusses democratic urban spaces in the following excerpt:
"From Antiquity to the Baroque, urban spaces, beyond their practical function, primarily were arenas for the powers that
be to demonstrate and exercise their power. With Modernism and the big industrial cities arose the idea of the democratic
urban space. The idea is generally attributed to the landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and 19th-century
America. Olmsted was interested in how planning and landscape architecture could be used to support the democratic
experiment that was the young United States. He developed the idea of the modern city park New Yorks Central Park in
is his best known project which he saw as a democratic space. A democratic space had three important functions: it
should create a point of identification that the citys inhabitants could be proud of and unite around; it should edify peoples
character and morals by putting city dwellers in touch with nature (or, more accurately, natural materials cultivated by
humans); and, most important, it should create a space in the dense and class-stratified industrial cities with free and
equal access for everyone, where everyone could meet, or at least pass by one another, regardless of social class or
race. The city park functioned as a kind of pressure release valve in cities with big differences between rich and poor." 3
After the modernist re-development that followed the World War II, the criticism of urban environments was found on a
new level. The experience of separation of functions across the city and dramatically increased traffic turnovers helped to
recognise the degradation of life on the streets. The critique was addressed towards urban planning and vehicle traffic
causing the obstruction on streets. This can be seen as the starting point for upcoming interest towards the revival of
streets and public life on streets, for demanding equal democratic rights both pedestrians. About the same time ideas
about democratic (participatory) planning started to gain more popularity.
"In Barcelona, an urban-space project from the late 1970s was central in reformulating the city after industrialization
and, not least, the fall of the Franco dictatorship. Founded on the idea of the democratic space, the project became a
reference for the development of urban spaces in many other places in the world. The project played a central role in

abcnews.go.com

DEMOCRATISATION OF URBAN SPACES

The headquarters of Estonian Communist Party, built in 1968. The architects

initial idea was to design the first glass-facade in Tallinn. The Communist
Party declined the idea and "proposed" a clear background for the Lenin
statue.

Occupy Wall Street protest, New York 2011.

Dmitri Korobtsov

Along with the governing forces, the power of urban spaces is continually exercised by the public in form of political
activity. Political activity is manifested in several ways, for example statements, happenings, street art, debates and
demonstrations. On the streets individuals and groups can make active statements by simply having a speech or
performing a certain conceptual act or passively, by wearing polemising message of political, economical, societal,
cultural or any other issue. Street art can take many forms by using posters, stickers, sculptural or installational mediums.
These messages lay around us in everyday situations constituting a collective forum of information.
The most influential form of political activity is still considered demonstrations. Today " the third power" - the media is in
unprecedented status, the emergence of Internet media such as blogs, Facebook, Twitter etc. has made the spreading of
information easy and quick. Symbolic meetings and protests can be organized literally in no time. It is heatedly discussed
weather these new possibilities lessen the need for physical stage of discussion but the recent examples around the world
seem to disprove these opinions. Recent street demonstrations against ACTA restrictions (intellectual property laws for
Internet media) in Estonia and around the world, the Occupy Wall Street movement argue, that the new media just makes
it easier to organize people to stand for common concerns. Quite naturally, the physical presence still seems to be the
most transparent, direct and convincing method of political and any type of communication.

www.artishok.blogspot.com

The shaping of urban environment can be politically instrumentalized. Planning decisions have an economic and
demographic impact, architecture itself can serve as a regulatory force to control human behaviour. These decisions can
implement symbolic meanings. To a large extent city tourism is fed on the public art and architecture of the past societies.
Notorious historic monuments, decorations and sculptures are often politically ideological. Streets named after rulers,
squares used for symbolic national celebrations, these acts represent and affirm the historic and ideological meanings.
Even city layouts can be used strategically. It has been argued that the remodelling of Paris in the second half of 19th
century was not intended to deal only with the poor conditioned slum in the city center. In hes book "Militant Modernism",
Owen Hatherley calls Baron Geoges-Eugene Hausmann`s new city plans for Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte as 'militaristically
planned'. The true goal was argued to be securing the city against the Civil War, making the erection of barricades in
Paris impossible for all time. The streets were widened to make the erection of barricades impossible, and new streets
were to furnish the shortest route between the barracks and the workers districts. The Haussmann project also involved
the planning of straight avenues as a method of crowd control, so that artillery could fire down them at barricaded
masses.2

ACTA protest, Tallinn 2012.

www.bbc.com

Winston Churchill waving

to the crowd . Speaking to the
people from heights is a gesture of power
that is rare in today `s democratic society

www.wikipedia.org

Sharon Zukin

1 Sharon Zukin (1998) (http://www.publicspace.org/es/texto-biblioteca/eng/

2 Dan Lockton (2011) (www.architectures.danlockton.co.uk/2011/09/12/architecture-urbanism-design-and-behaviour-a-brief-review/), accessed 21.05.2013
3 Tom Nielsen (2013) )"Informal co-existence and amenities for all. Democratic urban spaces in the Nordic countries ." Arhus University , Arhus (p171)

In urban planning Barcelona soon became known as the Barcelona model

of urban transformation.
28

POLITICAL

ASPECT

PART 1

www.bp.blogspot com

POLITICAL
ASPECT

www.delfi.ee

A skate park and an urban dog walking area - "narrowly defined units" of
public space.

www.flickr.com (mardytardy)

building new faith in the political system and in democracy as a fair and attractive societal form. As the 1980s wore on, a
string of market places, squares, and city parks of very high quality were established or renovated all over the city
following an extensive process of public inclusion. This inclusion of the users was a new thing in terms of understanding
the democratic space, and it was quite central to the process of democratization that was the objective. Parks and plazas
were seen as an important medium for having people meet again and freely discuss their lives and maybe even political
and societal developments, too. The dictatorship had strictly controlled the use of urban spaces, with the result that
people stopped using them for anything other than rudimentary activities. The initiative helped create a whole new identity
for the city, serving both as a frame of identification for the citizens and as a signal point for tourists and visitors. The
urban spaces became a central part of the city and its life." 4
In the 21st century the democratisation of urban public space (UPS) is increasingly influenced by the features of
globalisation - integration of national economies with the global systems of production, consumption, and distribution; and
space-time contraction that is the effect of technological advances in transport, communication, and computer
technology.5 The internet is revolutionary in the exchange of ideas, cultural and political activities taking place in the UPS
are quickly spreading across countries. Architecture and design are influenced more by global trends than local customs.
In the next section Nielsen elaborates on the global features.
"Urban spaces today play a significant role in helping people to understand and live positively with the variety of cultural
and political positions that characterize todays globalized society. It can help to constructively and positively express the
experience of multiplicity (Gilles Deleuze, Ash Amin) and of thrown-togetherness (Doreen Massey) in cities with people
who are total strangers and very different from oneself, which is characteristic for urbanities today. While the Industrial
and Modernist city were characterized by the separation of functions, people, and urban life, todays globalization society
is characterized by the segmentation of everything and everyone into cultural and social subgroups. While Industrialism
was defined by a logic of control and the idea that the city should be ordered and optimized on a general level,
globalization is defined by market logic in which we try to adapt products and urban spaces to increasingly narrowly
defined units." 6
Nielsen speaks of "narrowly defined units" as public spaces being designed for increasingly specific segment of the
society.7 A change is apparent when urban public life at the times of Soviet Estonia is juxtaposed to public life in
independent Estonia. When the idealistic image of a proper Soviet fellow citizen or "comrade" had to be just like everyone
else, then urban space was designed to support and sustain uniformity. Today more and more specific urban designs can
be observed, e.g. skate parks for mainly teenagers and dog walking gardens for pet owners.
To conclude, urban public spaces in Estonia are increasingly reflecting democratic ideas. Active district communities
expecting to be accepted as equal partners in neighbourhood planning and specifically targeted urban activities are
heading for public resolve. Though from the ironical point of view, the concept of the free world without borders is slowly
heading towards global uniformity, the will to decide locally within narrowly defined units promises to create and protect
local identities.

UPS AND POLITICAL RESPONSIBILITY

Urban public space (UPS) as an integral part of broader urban environment is in constant flux of change, influenced by a
multitude of decisions in spatial, economic and social categories. These local, global and technological variables that
shape our urban reality are a matter of political choice.
It is clearly difficult, if not impossible, to politically address an interdisciplinary set of demands to the whole spectre of
urban development policy but it should be a political challenge to develop our planning reality towards a more sustainable
future, to move from the modernist planning heritage, which is claimed static and hierarchy powered, to a more flexible
and dynamic planning with regard to the complexity of the world that is in constant flux. Looking at the big picture it means
to have thorough spatial policy and state institutions able to follow the principles of state-wide importance. The spatial
decisions that influence the future of Estonia are made in 7 different state institution departments and in 15 county
planning departments that lack mutual collaboration. The Union of Estonian Architects suggest introducing a
communicative institution - the state architect. Whether the state architect is a solution or not, more rigorous collaboration
of state institutions has to be politically addressed.
According to numerous research and analyse documents a premise of successful UPS is the participation of people
directly influenced by the planning decisions. On a micro level the political challenge is to foster the development of citizen
society, to call local municipalities for a more inclusive participation when public interests are involved. In a current
situation local municipalities too often mistake public initiative in planning discussions as oppositional action. Future
customs are in the hands of the electorate and of the political will of the local government.

People reclaiming the street for pedestrians.

4 Tom Nielsen (2013) )"Informal co-existence and amenities for all.

Democratic urban spaces in the Nordic countries ." Arhus University ,
Arhus (pp171-173)
5 The Economic Times (2009) Globalisation and the urban space .
6 Tom Nielsen (2013) )"Informal co-existence and amenities for all.
Democratic urban spaces in the Nordic countries ." Arhus University ,
Arhus (p178)
7 Ibid. (p178)

PART 1

BIG

BIG

The new Tallinn Town

Hall by BIG is an
example of a
democratic ambition in
architecture. The public
ground floor and a
huge indoor mirror,
projecting the daily
work to the outside,
symbolise transparent
governing.

POLITICAL

ASPECT

29

INTRODUCTION
Many types of public spaces are accessible only in a certain time-frame. Playgrounds
and parks may have a limited time-window when the gates are open. Same goes for the
indoor functions, in the night-time the street-life can disappear totally or transform its
nature radically. Festivals and happenings act as acupuncture activating certain places at
certain time. In Estonia the Nordic climate means a dramatic change from winter to
summer, the time spent outdoor varies greatly. For urban public space managing time
aspect is both a restraint and a possibility.
Steve Passlow

TIME
ASPECT

"It is our sense of time, our sense of ritual, which in the long run creates our sense of place, and of community. In our
urban environment, which is con-stantly undergoing irreversible changes, a cyclical sense of time, the regular recurrence
of events and celebrations, is what gives us reassurance and a sense of unity and continuity." 1
A light installation in winter.

John Brinckerhoff Jackson

Temporary snow-city in Tartu Estonia.

Colin Grover

When the Strget street was converted to a pedestrian street in Copenhagen in 1962, there was a lot of scepticism. It
was argued that pedestrian streets in Denmark would never work. Newspapers made statements like "We are Danes, not
Italians", and "Using public space is contrary to Nordic mentality".2 Though the debates were aggressive, the new carfree environment from the very first day proved extremely popular among the people of Copenhagen. Today Denmark is
known for its spectacular bike culture and progressive urban design. For Estonia Copenhagen is a role-model and a proof
that developing urban public space in Nordic climate is worth a try.
In Estonian climate the main challenge is to encourage outdoor activities in cold and dark period from late October to
early April, and especially during snowy period.
One of the main snow-period issues is how to manage snow . On the roads snow is piled up on the roadsides, both
side-walks and traffic lanes get narrower. In vehicle traffic this experience proves that narrower lanes are not a problem in
means of sustaining traffic turnover. The situation on side-walks is more problematic, with piles of snow the side-walks are
often too narrow to allow a free pass. Due to poor visibility such piles also increase the accident risk on the streets. When
snow stays on the side-walks for a long time it transforms into a thick layer of ice hard to remove and very tricky to walk
on. In spring it takes time to melt on the shadowy sides of the roads and extends the inconvenient period. These everyday
issues ask for a better snow management strategy, in a more active citizen society public-private co-operation programs
can be discussed.
In winter period a typical Estonian desires to travel abroad to spend there a sunny and warm vacation. In order to avoid
stress and lack of physical activity, new urban possibilities should be explored and dared to test out. Positive pilots are
already part of our winter life: light festivals, ice-skating and cross-country skying in urban situations, also ice- and snowsculptures and playgrounds. A step forward would be creating mix-use winter shelters, place them strategically in urban
tissue and allow a variety of activities to pop-up. There is still a lot to improve. The main challenge is how to encourage
people to spend more time outdoors. In winter period it is not so much up to physical urban conditions but rather a
question of altering everyday outdoor behaviour patterns.

www.delfi.ee

SEASONS AND CLIMATE

PUBLIC LIFE AND THE RHYTHMS OF USE

A winter shelter with a chimney and kitchen.

www.snowcastle.net/fi/

There are distinct rhythms and patterns related to the use of public spaces, depending on the time of a day, day of a week
and a season. On weekdays It is typical that older people spend their shopping time often at the beginning of a day, there
are more teenagers out at the end of a school day, at night young adults dominate the town centre. On weekends again
the number of people going out is usually higher than on weekdays. Streets are busy in the beginning and at the end of
the a day. For example in the city of Tartu, in Estonia, about 20% of the registered residents are either students or
working for the University, the city has a totally different flux in summertime when the majority of students are gone.
Clearly the specific usage trend depends on a particular place and particular time. The complexity present in urban
environment is to be seen as a poly-rhythmic field of usage. When planning changes in UPS, the ability to understand
these fluctuations allows us to make modifications.

Temporary use of urban spaces is a renowned method for generating attention and activity in concrete places and in
larger areas. An elementary example is a festival held in a quiet and easy-going district, it gathers local and distant
people, creating a vibe that differs greatly from the areas' everyday rhythm. The event creates attention and helps the
citizens to sustain awareness about the district and its character, the people who participated. Occurring activities
contribute to the overall vitality and attractiveness of the place. When the place is in use, it has a greater value, there is
more care, it is easier to maintain and renew it when necessary.
Besides temporary events that take place only in a certain time-frame, another influential tool for interventions is
temporary public art. Super-graphics, posters and installations draw attention and make a place more attractive while
allowing a group of people to find self-expression. As many forms of street-art are practised unauthorised and without too
careful location-planning, the overall artistic quality is often poor, hence the broader public opinion often discredits it. At
the same time such discontentment only illustrates how influential urban art is. Urban public space management offers a
major difference from self-emerging art, a possibility to find an specific output for public art. In carefully chosen official
locations super-graphics can aesthetically improve the urban experience and site-specific installations comment on urban
or social content.
The idea of temporality gets more interesting when the use of currently unused property is discussed (also see Legal
Aspect). In a much similar way than described above it is possible to use temporary activity as a tool to catalyse new
activity in currently neglected places, abandoned buildings or areas that have a slow development process. The principle
is sustainability - instead of wasting space without an output, make use of its potential. Temporary usage can be an
advantageous tool for communities, subcultural groups, municipalities and real-estate developers.
1 John Brinckerhoff Jackson (1995) (http://newcities.ku.edu/media/pdf/SenseOfPlaceSenseOfTime-JBJackson.pdf), accessed 22.04.2013
2 Jan Gehl, Lars Gemze (1996) "Public Space-Public Life" Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts , Copenhagen (p11)

www.snowcastle.net/fi/

UPS AND TEMPORARY USE

Snow Castle in Kemi, Finland is rebuilt every winter with a different

architecture. In 1996 the first snow castle drew 300,000 visitors. The castle
hosts a hotel and a restaurant, an adventure land for children, a theatre and
ice art exhibitions.3

3 Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/SnowCastle_of_Kemi), accessed 17.05.2013

30

TIME

ASPECT

PART 1

"1. Citizens become temporary users in order to follow different aims. Temporary users are motivated by the aim to claim
vacant spaces as breeding grounds for the development of ideas, as niches or as a parallel universe in relation to the
regulated urban environment. 2. Specific vacant sites attract specific temporary uses. While choosing certain sites or
buildings, temporary users follow precise spatial criteria such as retreat, exposure or niche. 3. Temporary uses can
flourish with a minimum of investment. Temporary uses can recycle and appropriate existing structures and spaces with
minimal interventions "urbanism light". 4. Temporary uses are mostly organised in networks and use clusters. The
temporary use clusters are characterised by distinguished use profiles. A cluster is sustained by complex internal
networks, which generate synergy effects. Initial temporary programs often attract similar uses to the same or a nearby
site. 5. Temporary uses are initiated through agents. In many cases, temporary uses only become possible through the
determined action of key agents, who bridge the gap between the different milieus of the users, the site owner and
municipal authorities and therefore create a protective umbrella which allows for the flourishing of temporary use. The
agents are mostly unpaid individuals without institutional associations, following an idealistic agenda, or sometimes highly
motivated "submarines" within the municipal bureaucracies. 6. Temporary uses are a laboratory for new cultures and
economies. Temporary uses can create a unique environment of experiment, where ideas can mature in time, leading to
the foundation of may start-up companies." 6

www.time.com

TIME
ASPECT

www.lunarlightning.wordpress.com

Temporary (pop-up) greenery.

Temporary urban design - tree knitting.

www.nordicgbc.org

All over Europe there are numerous examples of abandoned or unused buildings taken over by initiative group who has
an idea and who is willing to invest time and work to refurbish the place with a minimum budget. The backdrop of the
initiative is usually some form of start-up. The premise in such case is usually a partnership with the property owner
and/or local authority. Ideally a win-win situation, the owner gets a free maintenance service and the initiative group gets
the space for free. In addition to that, the neighbourhood benefits from the new emerging activities created by the initiative
group.
"Even though temporary uses start often as niches, they are still connected to the economic sphere - for instance in that
they have better chances to evolve in urban areas with lower economic pressure. However, the non-monetary character
of temporary uses rather suggests, that these uses put forward alternative economies. These are especially economies
based on barter, on social capital, and on recycling of existing value. Such forms of value production can often be
translated into monetary value. Many of the temporary uses mix these economies and try to establish a self-containing
enterprise, which sooner or later should be able to move out of the temporary niche. Examples for this would be arts and
design galleries that start off in recycled abandoned buildings, but develop a professional standing, which allows them to
stay in the market even when the residual space gets developed." 4
Another possibility for temporary usage are sites with long-span development plans. If a site becomes vacant, it is
expected to be re-planned, build over and used as soon as possible. These processes, though, can take years to plan
and realise, in case of large-scale development the time-span can be 5-10 years or even longer. Especially in new
development areas without an existing public life or a poor one, it becomes useful to support the genesis of public activity
by creating temporary uses. It depends on the site context and the targeted user group upon which the temporary function
is to be decided. For a real-estate developer it should be of a clear interest to get the place on the map, for people to
acknowledge its presence and have some kind of attractor to sustain the public curiosity. An example could be a
temporary cafe, a park or a playground, why not a public centre for creative workshops. In short, public-private
partnership is a way to overcome legal difficulties.
In 2003 a research project "Urban Catalyst" made an in-depth study of existing clusters of temporary use in Berlin,
Helsinki, Amsterdam, Vienna and Naples.5 The project proved that temporary uses can become extremely successful,
inclusive and innovative part of contemporary urban culture. The detailed case-studies of spontaneous and unplanned
uses revealed patterns and mechanisms. Temporary uses do not emerge accidentally but are guided by different factors
and rules. Temporary users are urban players that act deliberately and follow certain visions. The research team came to
the following conclusions:

Sometimes a temporary use becomes established. Kaabelitehdas, Helsinki.

The building is recycled for a cluster of cultural entrepreneurs.

C) TEMPORARY USERS:

make there own real estate available for temporary use

stand security for temporary users toward owners
provide benefits for owners who support
temporary users (e.g. planning gain)
integrate the different sectors of administration
to an one-stop-office dealing with all aspects of
temporary use (permissions, initiation, etc.)
founding of a round table with all relevant stake holders,
a new alliance for urban development in European cities

forming of collisions, which ensure the liability for

potential partners
communication of developed know-how to others

realistic evaluation of there real estate

and its marketability
taking in to account non-monetary values in
relationship to temporary use
courage for new solutions and innovative ways of
marketing and development
taking responsibility for the development of
neighbourhoods beyond the own property, foundation of a
pool for free available spaces generating of new uses to
create new demands for real estate

D) LEGISLATOR:
new planning laws should accelerate development
permits, enable temporary use and allow for reduce
standards for temporary use
developing a low of property, which reduces the
rights and duties connected to property: Real
estate, which is vacant for more than a year,
should be available for the general public. In the
same time the liability of the owner should be
reduced to ease temporary use.

A temporary theatre "Jellyfish" in London. The spontaneous building is called

junkitecture.

4 Studio Urban Catalysts (2003) "Strategies for temporary uses potential for development of urban residual areas in European
metropolises" Berlin (p7)
5 Ibid. (pp5-6)

Paul Aguraiuja

B) OWNERS:

Copenhagen Harbour Baths. An example of development catalyst. The

harbour area is undergoing a transformation from an industrial and transportation junction into the cultural and social centre of the city.8

www.openbuildings.com

A) MUNICIPALITIES:

Felipe Pilotto

The project also suggests tips for implementation.7

6 Ibid. (p23)
7 Ibid. (p23)
8 Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copenhagen_Harbour_Baths),
accessed 17.05.2013

The Straw Theatre was built for 6 months to celebrate The European Capital
of Culture - Tallinn 2011. The location is a forgotten park right by the medieval town. The project stresses the importance of the place that once used to
be part of the old town fortifications and is an unused urban hotspot.

PART 1

TIME

ASPECT

31

PARTICIPATORY
PLANNING

PARTICIPATORY PLANNING
For a small low-density country like Estonia, lack of space is not a concern. Even the building boom of 2000-2008 did not
succeed in filling all the spatial gaps in the major city centres. Due to spatial reserve and the historic background there are
and will be numerous planning cases that influence urban public space to a great deal.
Almost every urban planning process is a clash of different interests and a challenge to find a balanced result. The main
parties involved in the process are the public sector, the private sector, the general public and the planner. Though the
public sector has lawful responsibility to protect public interest, the current planning practice involves public voice only
formally and has resulted in growing public discontentment.
Today the first successful steps in establishing a civil society have signalled new expectations for a more transparent and
inclusive planning management - participatory planning. Principles for participatory planning have recently been published
in a booklet "A Guide for Participatory Planning." 1 The authors Kadri Tillermann (O Vesterra) and Regina Viljasaar (MT
Linnalabor) have compiled a comprehensive guide about the planning process, the roles of different parties, the legal
background and the methods of participation. Hereby this document is recommended as exemplary, the following
provides excerpts from the guide.

THE PARTIES OF A PLANNING PROCESS

"The public sector includes local municipalities, county governments and different state institutions (ministries, Estonian
Rescue Service, National Heritage Board etc.) These institutions share a common objective to organise a functional
society and stand for the public interests. At the same time the interests within the public sector might conflict. According
to the EU directives, constitution law and laws regulating local government, the local municipality has the full rights in
planning decision made in the local territory. Therefore the local municipality is also responsible for the lawful execution
and the relevance of the planning decisions.
The private sector, land owners and investors, influence local life directly. Usually the private sector is a driver of planning
processes and heads to re-evaluate the land. Realisation of the plans usually influence public space and its socioeconomic nature. According to the constitution law everyone has the right to use their property when public interests are
not harmed.
The general public is the most complicated party as it includes practically everyone.
A master plan process should regard neighbours of the planned area, local residents, value-based citizen communities,
district communities, disorganised value-based groups and other interest groups. Different groups and different individuals
might have different interests and values but together they formulate the public interest that should balance private
interests and be considered in a planning process.
The planner is an independent consultant commissioned by the private sector to design master plans and by the public
sector when general-, county- or state plans are compiled. The planners' task is to analyse the existing situations based
on professional knowledge, to centralise and balance the opinions of the parties involved and to propose a qualitative
spatial solution based on the former. As an ideal the planner synthesises information and negotiates in a comprehensive
manner to provide the local municipality sufficient information to make broad-based decisions." 2

PRINCIPLES OF PARTICIPATION
"In current planning practice inclusion often means the delivery of information by the local municipality. In simpler cases
such minimal informing might be justified, but when complex and often controversial planning dilemmas arise, informative
inclusion is not sufficient and participatory planning should precede decision making. participatory planning lies at first on
the premise that every segment of the society has the right and option to speak for the developments that influence them.
And secondly, every segment of a society is capable to do so. That embraces all the participants making decisions that
shape the plan and everyone being able to argument and/or contribute to the realisation of the decision. The final decision
and validation is still in the hands of the local municipality, but everyone has a chance to contribute. Participatory planning
does not work out when parties do not have equal possibilities in the process and when some parties are not willing to be
responsible for their decisions.
The following principles are important in the attitude and action of all parties, the local municipality, the representatives of
public and the investors, regardless of whether simple informing or participatory planning is used. Principles like trust,
respect, equality of treatment, shared responsibility, openness and transparency, diversity and comprehension are all
common sense definitions that can be summarised as two columns of civil society - every opinion counts and all parties
act in good deeds and for the best result. The essence of planning is negotiation and finding the best among many
options. When principles described here are followed, it is more likely to happen that the decided solutions are best in
given time and space. The result of open process goes further, there is more trust between the parties, local identity gets
stronger, and the realised planning outcome is more personal; the local residents and communities get a better
understanding of the municipality and the investor, and their actions are made more legible because of the amount of
information considered. For the local municipality it becomes easier to stand for transparent public interest and everyday
bureaucratic procedures become less demanding when community groups and individuals are experienced and strong
partners." 3
1. Kadri Tillermann , Regina Viljasaar
2. Ibid. (pp6-7)
3. Ibid. (p8)

32

PARTICIPATORY PLANNING

(2012) "A Guide for Participatory Planning ." National Foundation of Civil Society , Tallinn

PART 1

1 / 40

PARTICIPATORY
PLANNING

KAASAVA
PLANEERIMISE
JUHEND
Koostajad: Tellija:
Kadri Tillemann
O Vesterra

Regina Viljasaar
MT Linnalabor

PART 1

SA Kodanikuhiskonna Sihtkapital

Tallinn 2012

PARTICIPATORY PLANNING

33

34

PART 2

Part 02
A model of urban public space and a table of questions.

PART 2

35

DEMAND

ATTRACT

USERS

QUALITIES

PUBLIC LIFE HAPPENS ONLY

THROUGH USERS AND THEIR
D Y N A M I C I N T E R A C T I O N . VITALITY
OF A PLACE AND INCLUSION OF
DIFFERENT USER GROUPS
DETERMINE THE
POTENTIALS OF URBAN
PUBLIC SPACE

OUTDOOR SPACES ARE USED

MORE FREQUENTLY WHEN THE
ENVIRONMENT OFFERS A SENSE
OF QUALITY: IT HAS A CHARACTER,
IT IS COMFORTABLE, INCLUSIVE,
SAFE AND PLEASING

WHAT MAKES A SUCCESFUL

URBAN PUBLIC
SPACE?

AN

DE
T

T
AC
AT

AC

TR

TR

DE

AN

AT

FUNCTIONS
THERE ARE NECESSARY AND OPTIONAL
ACTIVITIES IN URBAN PUBLIC SPACE.
USABILITY OF THESE SPACES IS
INFLUENCED BY THE VARIETY
AND MULTIPLICITY OF IN- A N D
OUTDOOR FUNCTIONS.

URBAN PUBLIC SPACE

A SPACE IN BETWEEN BUILDINGS PHYSICALLY ACCESSIBLE FOR EVERYONE

LOCAL
SPACIAL

PEOPLE

SOCIAL

LOCAL
MUNICIPALITY

POLITICIANS
ECONOMIC

DISTANT USERS

LEGAL

GLOBAL TRENDS
POLITICAL

LOCAL TRENDS

TIME
ECONOMIC
STATE

MAIN ASPECTS
OF URBAN PUBLIC SPACE

PART 2

EXAMPLE OF POSSIBLE 'ACTORS'

INFLUENCING THE STATE OF UPS

A MODEL OF URBAN PUBLIC SPACE

36

A model of UPS

FUNCTIONS
THERE ARE NECESSARY AND OPTIONAL
ACTIVITIES IN URBAN PUBLIC SPACE.
USABILITY OF THESE SPACES IS
INFLUENCED BY THE VARIETY
AND MULTIPLICITY OF IN- A N D
OUTDOOR FUNCTIONS.

INDOOR
SPACES

OUTDOOR
SPACES

IN TERMS OF HOW IT
INFLUENCES UPS

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

NO
CURRENT
ROLE

INTROVERT
FUNCTIONS

CONNECTING
ROLE

UNUSED SPACE

PROACTIVE
ROLE

NO
CURRENT
ROLE

PASSIVE
ROLE

SCHOOL

DWELLING

VEHICLE NETWORK

PLAZA

PRIVATE SPACES

EMPTY LOTS

KINDERGARTEN

OFFICE

PEDESTRIAN NETWORK

PUBLIC SEATING

GREENERY

RESIDUAL SPACE

HOSPITAL

INDUSTRIAL

BICYCLE NETWORK

PARK

BODY OF WATER

LIBRARY

WAREHOUSE

PUBLIC TRANSP. NETW.

MARKETPLACE

OTHER PLACE OF

CITY HALL

...ETC

OPEN AIR BUSINESS

NATURE

COACH STATION

SPORT ACTIVITY

RAILWAY STATION

PLAYGROUND

MUSEUM

PUBLIC BEACH

CAFE

ALLOTMENT

RESTAURANT

OPEN-AIR CINEMA

SHOP

... ETC

CLUB
BATH
CINEMA
THEATER
CONCERT HALL
...ETC

QUALITIES

USERS

OUTDOOR SPACES ARE USED

MORE FREQUENTLY WHEN THE
ENVIRONMENT OFFERS A SENSE
OF QUALITY: IT HAS A CHARACTER,
IT IS COMFORTABLE, INCLUSIVE,
SAFE AND PLEASING

PUBLIC LIFE HAPPENS ONLY

THROUGH USERS AND THEIR
D Y N A M I C I N T E R A C T I O N . VITALITY
OF A PLACE AND INCLUSION OF
DIFFERENT USER GROUPS
DETERMINE THE
POTENTIALS OF URBAN
PUBLIC SPACE

QUALITY OF
OUTDOOR
SPACES

INDOOR
SPACES
IN TERMS OF HOW IT
INFLUENCES UPS

ACCESSIBILITY

LINKS TO
OUTDOOR

IDENTITY

ATTRACTIVITY

CONVENIENCE

CLEANLINESS

SAFETY

CLIMATIC

PEDESTRIANS

WINDOWS

LOCAL

STREET DESIGN

GROUND LEVELS

CLEANLINESS

PEDESTRIAN

WIND

STROLLERS

DOORS

CHARACTER

INVENTORY DESIGN

GROUND MATERIALS

TRASH BINS

CYCLIST

RAIN

WHEELCHAIRS

PORTALS

ACTIVITY PLACE DESIGN

OBSTUCTIVE BARRIERS

VISUAL NOISE

DESIGN

SNOW

CYCLISTS

TERRACES

HISTORY

PUBLIC ART

ACCESS TO ACTIVITY

AUDIBLE

SAFETY

SUN

SIGNS

NATURE

VISUAL EXPERIENCES

PLACES

NOISE

STREET

FENCES

CULTURE

VEGETATION

AIR QUALITY

LIGHTING

ETC...
CONDITION OF BUILT
ENVIRONMENT

37

A MODEL OF URBAN PUBLIC SPACE

PART 2

Functions - Indoor spaces

There are necessary and optional activities in urban public space. Usability of these
spaces is influenced by the variety and multiplicity of in- and outdoor functions.

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

Buildings or sections of buildings that generate activity in nearby public spaces.

SCHOOL
KINDERGARTEN
HOSPITAL
LIBRARY
CITY HALL
COACH STATION

www.weburbanist.com

RAILWAY STATION

QUESTIONS

MUSEUM

Erina Zhiteneva

www.lively-cities.eu

CAFE

1. What are the most extraversive functions generating activity in the area?

RESTAURANT

2. Is there a demand for new businesses / services? Where and what would you propose?

SHOP

3. Do you think the area could benefit when extending or cutting the open hours of cafe`s, bars etc?

CLUB

4. Is the area well connected to extraversive services? What would you change? Try to be objective.

BATH
CINEMA
THEATER
CONCERT HALL
...ETC

INTROVERT
FUNCTIONS

Buildings or sections of buildings that do not generate significant public activity and rather supply users for public spaces.

DWELLING
OFFICE
INDUSTRIAL
WAREHOUSE
...ETC
Julius Jansson

www.asjadest.blogspot.com

QUESTIONS
1. Which functions in the area are introvert?
2. Could additional introvert functions support area development by providing more users?

NO
CURRENT
ROLE

Indoor spaces that have stayed unused for some resasons. Spaces unused over longer
time periods are often deteriorated and might have negative effects on the surrounding public spaces.

UNUSED
INDOOR SPACE

www.apartmenttherapy.com

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eemeez/7858933828/

QUESTIONS
1. Do you know any unused/abandoned buildings or rooms?
2. What functions could suit these spaces? Do they have potential for temporary use?
3. Who might be the "actors" interested in reviving those vacant spaces?

38

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

PART 2

Functions - Outdoor spaces

There are necessary and optional activities in urban public space. Usability of these
spaces is influenced by the variety and multiplicity of in- and outdoor functions.

CONNECTING
ROLE

The primary function of streets and paths is the connectivity. Well distributed and connected pedestrian and cycle paths are a matter of
quality, providing well-being in public spaces. Lack of basic connections discourages use in these spaces. Poor connections often result in
unoffical paths that ruin lawns and create higher traffic accident risk on steets when pedestrians make shortcuts. Well distributed public
transport stops and sufficient timetables contribute to the use of public spaces, sustainable thinking, healthy living, and help to solve car
congestion problems.

VECHICLE NETWORK
PEDESTRIAN NETWORK
BICYCLE NETWORK
PUBLIC TRANSP. NETW.

www.flickr.com (vancelester)

Mikael Colville -Andersen

www.flickr.com (Amsterdamized)

Chip Litherland

QUESTIONS
1. Which streets are considered main for pedestrians/cyclists/vehicle traffic?
2. Which streets do you mostly use as a pedestrian/cyclist/car driver?
3. Are the public transport stops placed well in the area? Try to think objectively. Would you change stop locations?
4. Have you experienced uncomfortable connections in the area? What would you change?
5. Do you think there could be new useful connecive paths? Where?

PROACTIVE
ROLE

Proactive role category covers all urban outdoor activities. Outdoor activities are those that invite people to stay outdoor for a longer time
and favor spontaneous optional activities. Open air activities in Estonia are on the rise, recent years have introduced urban gardening,
urban chess and ping-pong, special snow tube parks. Trekking, cross country skying, ice-skating, open-air cinema and small local
marketplaces are increasingly popular.

PLAZA
PUBLIC SEATING
PARK
MARKETPLACE
OPEN AIR BUSINESS
SPORT ACTIVITY
PLAYGROUND
PUBLIC BEACH

www.designscout.dk

Anu Wintschalek

www.woohome.com

www.flickr.com (rob7812)

ALLOTMENT
OPEN-AIR CINEMA
CAFE TERRACES
... ETC

www.flickr.com (ocnidius)

www.globalpost.com

Maria Da Schio

Sean Lowcay

QUESTIONS
1. What are the main outdoor activities in the area and where are they located?
2. What are the main outdoor activities for you?
3. Would you relocate any existing outdoor activities?
4. Do you sometimes preactice spontaneous walks or bike-rides in the area? Where?
5. What kind of new outdoor activities would you like to see? Where? Think visionary!
6. Do you know any outdoor business or service in the area (cafe terrace, marketplace, seasonal outdoor library etc.)?
Could there be more alternatives, permanent or temporary? How to favor such developments?
7. Are there enough possibilities for outdoor sports?
8. Are there open-air events held in the area? Where? Could there be more event places?
9. If there could be more parks and green areas, where would you place them?
10. Are there main public meeting places?
11. Do you know existing public seats/places that you never use, why? Where and why would you place extra seats?
12. Name pleasing outdoor places to sit down and chat with friends?

PART 2

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

39

Functions - Outdoor spaces

There are necessary and optional activities in urban public space. Usability of these spaces
is influenced by the variety and multiplicity of in- and outdoor functions.

PASSIVE
ROLE

Passive role category covers all outdoor spaces perceived as public but are without a clear function. Passive role also includes introvert
private spaces edging public territory. An example of this is a city street girded by fences of private houses. The public territory is cut off
shaply and left poorer. In case of public-private mutual interest, these situations have potential to enhance the public sphere.

PRIVATE SPACES
PASSIVE NATURE
PARKING LOTS
PARKING
MANAGEMENT

www.pathtothepossible.wordpress.com

www.buildmyfence.com

QUESTIONS
1. Do you know private spaces that could contribute to public space? (Closed yards, shared street management etc.)
2. Are there places of nature or elements of nature that could contribute to public space?
3. Are there parking issues in the area? Where? What quick and long-run solutions would you propose?
4. Are there parking management issues? Where? How and who to address these issues?

NO
CURRENT
ROLE

There are always some empty lots in the city fabric. Depending on the lands development perspective these spaces could temporarily
be used in public interest. As empty land needs security and management these situations can offer mutual benefits for the owner and
the public party when free rent is exchanged for management service. Residual spaces are currently ineffectively used spaces.
Oversized roads, parking lots not used in specific times, useless plain lawns are just a few examples.

EMPTY LOTS
RESIDUAL SPACE

www.globalsiteplans.com

www.patmiddleborn.com

www.transportblog.co.nz

QUESTIONS
1. Are there empty lots in the area?
2. What are the future developments of these spaces? Collect information about master plan developments and consider all future proposals.
3. What developments are favored by locals/ other actors?
4. What functions would you propose for undeveloped empty lots?
5. Do you know any underused residual spaces that could contribute to public space?
6. Propose temporary uses for empty lots or residual spaces.

40

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

PART 2

Qualities - Indoor spaces

Public spaces are used more frequently when extraversive public
indoor functions are inclusive for all user groups.

ACCESSIBILITY

This category focuses on access quality of public indoor functions. People are naturally convenient and prefer public functions on ground
level to functions high up or underground. Same goes for ground level acess quality, if it is complicated for some reason they prefer other
options when alternatives are available. To maximise urban public space activity it is important to provide inclusive conditions also for
minority user groups. This category has clearer effect in smaller areas where complicated access to the the few available district shops might
drive off a segment of people and leave proximity streets clearly less lively.

PEDESTRIANS
STROLLERS
WHEELCHAIRS
CYCLISTS

Alvin Pastrana

Den Nation

www.metroparkstacoma.org

www.flickr.com/cyclingforpositivity

QUESTIONS
1. Have you noticed shops, cafe`s or other extraversive indoor functions that are poorly accessible for strollers, elderly, disabled people?
2. Are there problematic places where lack of cycle parking is holding back bike users?

LINKS TO
OUTDOOR

Links to outdoor spaces is about the communicative ability of indoor functions. For a pedestrian , vast spaces with no interesting visual
details, blank and uncommunicative facades and long boring fences make the pass dull. Frequent users start to prefer better routes when
alternatives are available. For new visitors it is important to naturally "read" what activities the streets and buildings have to offer. Lack of
doors and windows, reflective glass-facades and hidden entrances are especially important for businesses.

WINDOWS
DOORS
PORTALS
TERRACES
SIGNS
FENCES

www.brokensidewalk.com

www.pixelimagebank.photoshelter.com

Martin Grner Larsen

www.weekendnotes.co.uk

www.northlandfencemn.wordpress.com

www.eyestylist.com

QUESTIONS
1. Are extraversive functions like shops, cafes etc. easily noticed on the sreet? Do they communicate on streetlevel (windows, doors, signs)?
Consider other spatial difficulties like blocking fences.
2. Do you know any problematic mute building facades that are not communicating on streetlevel or have
huge blank facades with a negative effect on public space?
3. Are there problematic window commercials or business signs? Name attractive and disturbing examples?

PART 2

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

41

Qualities - Outdoor spaces

Outdoor spaces are used more frequently when the environment offers a sense of quality:
it has a character, it is comfortable, inclusive, safe and pleasing.

This category collects information about the characteristics and identity of the area.

IDENTITY

LOCAL CHARACTER
HISTORY
NATURE
CULTURE

www.vetmed.vt.edu

ETC...

QUESTIONS
1. Does the area have an established identity? If yes then describe it.
2. What identifies the area for you?
3. What elements / phenomenas characterise the area and make it special?
4. If there is no clear identity what goal would you propose?

ATTRACTIVITY

Outdoor activities depend to a great deal on the qualitative characteristics of the space. Attractivity is both about the variety of available
extraversive in- and outdoor functions and the overall image of the area. Attractivity of a specific area should be considered togeher with
the character and identity of the area. For a quiet community district attractivity may not be about the multiplicity of functions but rather
about the basic spatial qualities.

STREET DESIGN
INVENTORY DESIGN
PUBLIC ART
VEGETATION
ACTIVITY PLACE DESIGN
CONDITION OF BUILT
ENVIORNMENT
Matt Cheetham

Lucie Crausier

Iwan Baan

www.flickr.com/Necoglyph

www.archdaily.com

Katrin Lipp

www.sxsweco.com

Jae Min Lim

QUESTIONS
1. Do you think that street layouts in the area are convenient for pedestrians / cyclists? Name good and bad examples.
2. What would you do to make streets more attractive for pedestrians?
3. Could shared-space street concept be considered in some places? (Cars and pedestrians share the street on same level. No intensive traffic regulation).
4. Are you pleased with the area`s street inventory (trash bins, seats, signs etc.) Name good and poor design?
5. Are srteetlights for pedestrians and bikers in human scale? Could street or activity place lighting be more attractive in fall/ winter season?
6. Can you name squares, playgrounds and other activity places with great and poor design? What makes the design poor?
7. Could public art play a bigger role in making the area more attractive? What art formats and could be used and where?
8. Evaluate the quality of parks and green areas. Name ways to make them more pleasing.
9. Is there enough greenery / vegetation that improves aesthetic quality? Where would you make a change?
10. Name a street or place where buildigns are well maintained and form a pleasant environment to walk by. Name a street or place where
buildigns make your pass unpleasant. What could be done to make the overall look better?

42

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

PART 2

Qualities - Outdoor spaces

Outdoor spaces are used more frequently when the environment offers a sense of quality:
it has a character, it is comfortable, inclusive, safe and pleasing.

CONVENIENCE

A great urban public space is easy to access and move through for young and elderly, people with walking disabilities,
for cyclists and people with baby prams. The vehicle and pedestrian traffic has to be planned in a democratic way with the
weaker side - the pedestrian in focus.

GROUND LEVELS
STREET COVERS
OBSTRUCTIVE BARRIERS
ACCESS TO
ACTIVITY PLACES

www.flickr.com/Amsterdamized

www.123rf.com

www.thoughtsjoinletters.blogspot.com

www.llpelling.com

www.vavaveteran.co.uk

QUESTIONS
1. Are streets generally convenient for strollers, disabled people, pedestrians, cyclists (road width, barriers, different levels etc)?
2. Raised pedestrian and bike road edges at crossings are inconvenient and may cause problems for some users. Map problematic places?
3. Have you experienced annoying pedestrian detours? Where?
4. Are there annoying ground surfaces?
5. Do you know places that are unconvenient to pass through freely because of obstructive barriers like street inventory,
sidewalk safety barriers, commercial signs, parking etc?
6. Are there problematic fences? (Obstruction, aesthetics, scale).
7. Can you name other problematic visual obstructions? (Overgrown trees etc.)
8. The design of activity places like public squares or playgrounds can sometimes be inconvenient for children, elderly, disabled people.
Do you know places where this is a problem ?

CLEANLINESS

Generalised as cleaniness, the category stands for all aesthetically disturbing aspects. Poor trash management,
visual and audial noise can ruin potentially great places.

CLEANLINESS
TRASH BINS
VISUAL NOISE
AUDIBLE NOISE
AIR QUALITY
www.urbed.coop

Dave Bullock

QUESTIONS
1. How do you evaluate the overall cleaniness of the area? Do you know places that need more care?
2. Are there enough trash bins on the streets? Where would you place an extra one?
3. Are there aesthetic problems? Visible trash containers, unsuitable commercial stands etc.
4. Are there noise issues in public spaces? Where?
5. How do you evaluate the overall quality of air in the area? Do you know places where air pollution is critical and needs intervention?

PART 2

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

43

Qualities - Outdoor spaces

Outdoor spaces are used more frequently when the environment offers a sense of quality:
it has a character, it is comfortable, inclusive, safe and pleasing.

SAFETY

Safety is a quality that influences usability of urban public spaces. Insufficient street lighting, shadowy places, fear of criminality, traffic safety
are all important aspects that should be considered. Pedestrian casualties in traffic accidents often happen due to inconvenient spatial
conditions prescribed by traffic regulations, expanding the pallete of practiced solutions by focusing more on particularity of places could
increase safety.

PEDESTRIAN
CYCLIST
DESIGN SAFETY
STREET LIGHTING
SHADOWY PLACES

www.focussion.com

www.featureshoot.com

www.bmwblog.com

QUESTIONS
1. Are there places of increased traffic accident risk? What would you change?
2. Are there places of higher criminality risk?
3. Do you know public space designs that lack safety measurements? Level differences and railings, kids safety on playgrounds, waterbodys etc.
4. Sufficient street lighting provides safe walks in dark period. How do you evaluate the overall quality of street lighting in the area? Do you know
frequently used places were lighting is an issue?
5. Are there any other safety issues in the area? (Shadowy places or any other)
6. Is neighbourhood watch practiced in the area? Where could it be beneficial?

CLIMATIC

Climatic category questions spatial design solutions on micro scale. How could the elements within public space be enhanced to
protect us from the climatic difficulties and how to use the positive potentials of different climatic factors. In Estonian climate the main
challenge is to encourage outdoor activities in cold and dark period from from October to April.

WIND
RAIN
SNOW
SUN

www.archdaily.com

Colin Grover

www.genx-cjw.blogspot.com

QUESTIONS
1. How could the analysed area encourage outdoor activities in fall/winter season? Is it only about people`s habits or are there
certain requirements to make it happen?
2. Do you know outdoor places that could benefit by having (better) rain/wind shelter? (Bus stops, playgrounds, event places etc.)
3. Are there places where spatial conditions are causing snow or rainwater problems?
4. Can something be done better in winter snow management? (Management agreements, snow sculptures etc.)
5. Are there public activity places that fail because of unsuitable sun orientation?

44

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

PART 2

Users
Public life happens only through users and their dynamic interaction. Vitality of a place and inclusion
of different user groups determine the potentials of urban public space.

QUESTIONS
1. Define main user segments of the area (in example local residents, shoppers, daily workers, families, youngsters, tourists).
2. Are the main users local or from a distance ?
3. Is there a pattern for distant users being from concrete neighbouring areas? Where?
4. Is there an average age pattern among local and distant users?
5. Who or what are the main "actors" influencing the state of area ?
In example local residents, community, municipality, real-estate market, specific institutions etc.
6. Is there an active community speaking for the state of the area? If not then why?
7. Is there a user segment activity pattern? (Certain times of day/week/season)
8. What are the main modes of transport used in the area (pedestrians, bicycles, public transport, cars)?

General questions
General questions about the specific analysed area.

1. What are the keywords that characterise the area?

2. What is the best and the worst thing that comes to your mind about the area?
3. Does the area have an active center?
4. Is the area important for bordering areas?
5. Does the area have physical or cultural phenomenas that need some sort of protection? (spatial, environmental, historic, cultural, or any other issues).
6. What are the local trends that influence the area?
Changes in user group patterns, real-estate or market trends, new influential owners, migration trends, any other.
7. Are global trends influencing the area? Reconstruction trends for energy saving measures, high fuel prices encouraging public transport use or any other.
8. In the broadest sense how could (tehcnological) innovations influence the area? In example innovative parking systems, shared-car consepts,
new digital possibilities in street design, new types of open space activities, the use of social media etc.
9. Usability of urban public spaces is not only about necessary functions and attractive environmental conditions, but also a matter of lifestyle and habits.
What could be done to encourage users in this specific area to spend more time outdoors?
10. What could be the 'other' that makes urban public space 'alive' in this specific area?
Endnote - The collection of questions provided does not apply to be finite and can be cut and / or supplemented when relevant for the particular area

PART 2

A TABLE OF QUESTIONS

45

46

C A S E S T U D Y -1

Part 03
Testing part 2 - case studies.

C A S E S T U D Y -1

47

48

AVAPILT

C A S E S T U D Y -1

TEST CASE 1

A SUBURB
IN VIIMSI

photo Sven Zacek

C A S E S T U D Y -1

AVAPILT

4499

TO VIIMSI
CENTER

AI

AN

DI

SU

K
R-

AA

RE

KE

K
K-

AA

RE

IK

A
-K

AR

VI

TO VIIMSI
CENTER

IE

VE

LL

TI IG I

PRNAME WATER
RESERV

VEH

5500

AERO

EMA

C A S E S T U D Y -1

VI
IM
SI

RN

AM

BA
NK

SI
IM
VI
NK
BA
240 P R I V A T E H O U S E S A N D A P A R T M E N T S
700 I N H A B I T A N T S
4 ,3 % O F V I I M S I (17000 IN TOTAL)
all maps - w w w .m a a a m e t .e e

100m
51

AERO

500m
C A S E S T U D Y -1 51

Site plan

VIIMSI
PARISH
CENTRE

VIIM
SI BA
N
(ALT
0 -3 0 K
m)

GULF OF
HAABNEEME

VI
(A I M S
LT I
0- BA
15 N
m K
)

THE SITE

MIIDURANNA
HARBOUR
(T R A N S I T )

SOOSEPA BOG

TALLINN CENTER 9k m

The lower and upper Viimsi

52

C A S E S T U D Y -1

Mysterious caves

ANALYSE

1km

Kalli Piht

www.envir.ee

500m

On the plateau a snowpark is opened in 2013

The site and the proximity

Viimsi is a small bu
populous parish located North-East of
Tallinn centre . Historically a an area
known for fisherman
villages, the current
centre was formed
in 1 9 5 0 s, w h e n
Viimsi was an
established area of
collective farming
and fishing industry.
The Viimsi landscape is strongly
determined by the
Viimsi plateau that
divides the centre
into lower and upper
part. The upper part,
where the site is
located, used to be
a farmland till the
new developments
appeared in the late
1 9 9 0 s and most of
all during the last
decade when the
building boom
raised the population from around
6000 to almost 1 7
000 inhabitants.

Though the pond has been used for swimming it is currently permitted.

The site in the

Prname village is
a typical suburb built
at the times of rapid
change in the society. At the time
owning a personal
house was a dream
for many and the
general public did
not have high
demands for the
surrounding
infrastructure.

A typical street layout.

The site is surrounded by many

picturesque places
of nature: the Viimsi
bank and the sea;
old farm lands c a p e s , a bog and
woods.

There are no bars nearby

The bank plateau is covered with fully grown trees

Kalli Piht

Peep Kirbits

Viimsi snowpark

The main road of the site - Viievelle tee

A lighthouse at the bank plateau

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -1

53

Indoor functions and the context

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

INTROVERT
FUNCTIONS

CONNECTING
ROLE

NOTES:
* In terms of public space and walkable distances, the site
is disconnected from all primary functions.

GROCERY
25min

MALL

15min

CONSTRUCTION SHOP

8min

RESTAURANT/CAFE
10min

BAR

5min

HOTEL

4min

SPA
SA

GAS STATION

LE

S
SA
LE

BANK / ATM
OTHER SHOP OR SERVICE
SPORTS HALL

CHURCH
MUSEUM

CLOSEST SCHOOL
2,4 KM

MANOR

6min

SA

22min

SA

LE

LIBRARY

CLOSEST
GROCERY

15min

CULTURE HALL

LE

SA

LE

MUNICIPAL SCHOOL
CLOSEST
MUNICIPAL
KINDERGARTEN

MUSIC SCHOOL
MUNICIPAL KINDERGARTEN

MUNICIPALITY
1,9 KM

PRIVATE KINDERG. / DAYCARE

SA
SA

LE

LE

HOSPITAL

5min
SA

PHARMACY

LE

22min

PANSION

8min

LOCAL MUNICIPALITY
500m

Public
transport

POST OFFICE

1km

VIIMSI
PARISH
CENTER
PAEKAARE
VIIEVELLE TEE

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

THE SITE
VEHEMA

NOTES:
There are three bus stops and two bus lines in the
service of the area. Timetable is sparse, V4 line is
operating only 3 times a weekday.
TALLINN CENTER 12km

54

C A S E S T U D Y -1

ANALYSE

Outdoor functions and the context

NOTES:
* The centre offers a variety of outdoor
activities, on the site the only activity takes
place on e light traffic roads.

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

PROACTIVE
ROLE

BAR
25min

RESTAURANT

15min

MANOR

8min
10min
5min

PARK

4min

PLAYGROUND
STADIUM
SPORT FIELD
BEACH

PANSION GARDEN

HIKING / TREKKING
SKYING
SNOW TUBE

SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES

ROW-HOUSES, 3-8 APARTMENTS
SOCIAL / BUSINESS LAND
PUBLIC GREENERY
500m

1km

Current land
function

AI

D
AN

UU

ST

K
R-

YIELD PROPERTY

AR

E.

S
KE

VI

IE

LL

AR

T.

IK

ST

-K

CONNECTING
ROLE

VE

KA

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

K-

A
A
R
E

TI IG I

NOTES:
* Only one social / business land function

VEH

EMA

ST.

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -1

55

Site indoor functions, outdoor

activity
FUNCTIONS:

NOTES:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:
* The site and the surroundings are suitable
EXTRAVERSIVE
for recreational activities like walking, jogging,
FUNCTIONS
biking, hiking etc. There are no extraversive
functions besides the private kindergarten.

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

INTROVERT
FUNCTIONS

PROACTIVE
ROLE

INDOOR FUNCTIONS
DWELLINGS
PRIVATE KINDERGARTEN / DAYCARE

OUTDOOR FUNCTIONS
ROLLER-SKATING
JOGGING
TREKKING / HIKING
BIKING
BUS STOPS

100m

Future
developments
FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

Future developments of nearby

territories according to the
general plan of Viimsi parish.

THE
CENTRE

NO CURRENT
ROLE

NOTES:
* Future plans to the North-West of the site
are favorable. New light traffic roads on the
bank plateau promise to become popular and
encourage outdoor activities.

MAINLY DWELLINGS
BUSINESS LAND
MAINLY INDUSTRIAL LAND
PUBLIC GREENERY
MAJOR LIGHT TRAFFIC ROADS

56

C A S E S T U D Y -1

ANALYSE

THE
SITE

Users

USERS

LOCAL
RESIDENTS
AIANDI AND PRNAME
LIGHT TRAFFIC USERS
FROM NEIGBOURING
AREAS

age 2 5 -4 5

NOTES:
* Quite predictably
activities in a suburb public
space are rare, most of the
people use these spaces
to arrive or leave. Public
space is used with some
frequency by cycling kids,
mothers with baby prams,
and recreational sports.

USERS

age 0 -1 2
age 6 0 -8 5

SELDOM LAGEDA STREET

VECHILE TRANSIT USERS

The site is situated in Viimsi Parish and is part of

Prname Village. Due to the fact that the site has
been developed from a pasture land in the last 10
years, the village has no sense of belonging. In
2013 there are 1300 inhabitants in the village,
among them about 700 who live on the site (4,1%
of all inhabitants in Viimsi Parish).
Site users are local residents only. To some extent
there are users from the neigbouring areas using
the benefits of good-conditioned pedestrian and
bike roads on street Aiandi and Prname. In rare
cases the main distribution street Lageda is used
by the vechile traffic users bordering in the south
of the site.

MODE OF TRANSPORT
IN VIIMSI

Majority of local users are young families with kids.

Most of the adults are middle-aged, some families
live together with grandparents.
There is currently no active community on the site.
Among the reasons is the short history of the site,
after 10 years the site is still not yet fully occupied.
Though there is a general trend among Estonians
at the age of 20-35 to become more involved and
organised in their neigbourhood, it has happened
only in the proximity of city centers and in
established districts with a character and history.

CAR

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

WALKING
BIKING

NOTE - The given data is based on personal

observations: field mapping and empirical
knowledge as a frequent user (the author has lived
and in the proximity of the site from 1984 to 2004).
Field mapping was carried out on two days: 24-25
April 2013.

A TYPICAL PUBLIC SPACE

ACTIVITY PATTERN
(I L L U S T R A T I V E )

"A C T O R S " I N F L U E N C I N G
THE STATE OF AREA
WORKING-AGE
LEAVING HOME

ARRIVING

WEEKDAYS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00

WEEKENDS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00
SPORTS

KIDS
LEAVING HOME

ARRIVING

BIKING

WEEKDAYS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00

WEEKENDS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00
BIKING
BIKING

LOCAL
RESIDENTS

STROLLING

PEOPLE STAYING HOME

LOCAL POLITICIANS

GARDENING / A WALK WITH BABIES/ SPORTS

WEEKDAYS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00

WEEKENDS

6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00
GARDENING / A WALK WITH BABIES/ SPORTS

LOCAL MUNICIPALITY

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -1

57

Attractivity, convenience issues

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

ATTRACTIVITY

CONVENIENCE

2 ,3 ,8

10

11

9
7
6

8
100m
3

1 MISSING SHORTCUT

6 MISSING PEDESTRIAN LINK

Due to the Viimsi Bank landscape, access to parish

center takes a long detour. Currently it takes
approximately 22 minutes to walk to Viimsi center. When
a light traffic road would be made over the plateau, it
would shorten the trip to 12 minutes, offering a pleasant
trip through an evironment that shapes Viimsi. Descent
from the bank can be included in the currently planned
snowing track in the proximity of school and kindergarten.

Vike-Kaare road currently has a dead end. As this

direction leads to another private kidergarten on
Vehema road 6, it would enhance the pedestrian
access, especially because of the natural landscape
surrounfing the link, reminding the past of the site agriculture. The land is not agriculturally used any
more and though in private hands, a temporary lowbudget pedestrian path could be discussed.
4

2/3/8 AWFUL BUS STOP

7 WATER ACTIVITIES BANNED

Bus stops are cruicial to access the center and Tallinn.

Currently the stops are without a hard road coverage and
bus shelter, not speaking of trash bin and
aesthetics.These places are unpleasant and unsafely
close to the vechicle road, discouraging the use of public
transport.

The master plan of the site has reserved the pond

and its south-facing shore for public use. To drive off
the hastle around allowing water activities officially,
the municipality has put out a sign that bannes
swimming. The pond is potentially a place to go out
for swimming, small hobby boats, fishing, ice-skating
in the winter. To enjoy the environment in general.

3 RAISED SIDEWALK EDGE

Bus stops are cruicial to access the center and Tallinn.
Currently the stops are without a hard road coverage and
bus shelter, not speaking of trash bin and
aesthetics.These places are unpleasant and unsafely
close to the vechicle road, discouraging the use of public
transport.

4 ROAD COVER / ATTRACTIVITY

The Viievelle road acts as the main distribution road,
slightly decending to the South-East it offers nice views.
Currently the road coverage is rough asphalt, not
allowing alternative recreational uses like roller-skating
and roller-skying. Both sides of the road are empty and
unwelcoming. Attractivity of this main road plays a role in
encouraging the locals to spend more time outdoors.

5/9 ROAD COVER

Both road segments have been in unfinished state over a

period of time. The reason for that is not known. As there
is a child daycare on Suure-Kaare road, it is important for
the locals to have reasonable access to it by foot, bikes
and cars. The lack of municipality kindergartens in Viimsi
is an argument to put pressure on the municipality to fix
elementary issues.

58

C A S E S T U D Y -1

ANALYSE

10 MISSING ROAD LINK

It is a matter of covenience to have a street network
with a good connectivity. Pleasant conditions
determine how much we spend time outdoors and
weakens sociability between people living on the
same street. If a family at the north part of SuurKaare street wants to access the child daycare at the
other end of the street, today they probably use a car
to deal with the detour.

11 MISSING PEDESTRIAN LINK

The site master plan has reserved a narrow piece of
land between the private houses to allow pedestrian
and bike connection between Kesk-Kaare road and
Prname road. Prname road offers access to
hiking / trakking paths and therefore makes this
connection important for the local residents. For
some reason today this link is missing, plus the
master plan has not planned further connection to the
site main road Viievelle. With some houses unbuilt,
today there is a possibility to replan this section,
whether by the municipality buing a piece of land
back from private owners or by agreeing with the
owners to allow pedestrian passage.

Unused / Residual space / Potentials

NOTES:
* There is enough residual space for interventions

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

PASSIVE
ROLE

NO CURRENT
ROLE

2
4

5
8

100m
4

1 EMPTY BUILDING

6 POTENTIAL ACTIVITY PLACE

One of the last recollections of the Viimsi Manor

agricultural past, the old hay barn. The building is
abandoned and in bad shape.

The master plan of the site has reserved the pond

and its south-facing shore for public use. To drive off
the hastle around allowing water activities officially,
the municipality has put out a sign that bannes
swimming. The pond is potentially a place to go out
for swimming, small hobby boats, fishing, ice-skating
in the winter. To enjoy the environment in general.

2 RESIDUAL LAND
ON THE ROADSIDE OF AIANDI TEE
Space around the main light traffic road seems vast and
is certainly not in human scale. Currently the territory is
covered mostly by lawn and with some rare bushes.
7

3 RESIDUAL LAND ON THE ROADSIDES

4/5 PLEASANT PLACES

Both street crossings are pleasant plases because of the
spatial arrangement, vegetation, slight topographic
changes and views. On these crossings the fences of the
private gardens create a square-like feeling, both the
road and the lawn strips included form a 15x20m
crossing space. The sharp edges of the private lots
facing "squares" are hard to include in private gardening
and are not used. These private edges could potentially
work as extensions of the "squares".
12m

8,5m

When foundations for private houses are built there is

a significant quantity of earth that is left over and is
freighted off the site. These piles of earth can easily
be used to make public landscape more personal
and playful.

8 UNUSED FUNCTIONAL LOT

Again a lot of unused space around the main

distribution road making the spatial experience
dull and inpersonal. Currently the territory is
covered just by lawn. On both sides of the 6m
wide road there is 8,5m that could potentially be
taken into some form of use.

7 RESIDUAL EARTH PILES

For the whole living district the master plan reserved

only one lot for business and social function. In
private hands building a business and for example
kindergarten for such a small community is not
attractive for investors. The nearest crocery being
within 22 minute walk from the site, the use of public
space and the quality of local life would benefit a lot
from a small shop that would cover basic needs.
Perspectives for social function are supported by
favorable position and good views from the place.

9 EMPTY BUILDINGS
There are two 40-50 years old cow barns that have
not been used for about 5 years. According to Viimsi
general plan the land is marked for business function.
In a broader context of local developments it is highly
probable that the transformation will not realise before
5 years. Has potential for temporary use.
5+1m

8,5m

7m

SECTION OF THE MAIN ROAD

VIIEVELLE TEE
The "streetscape"
has residual space

THE STREET 23m

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -1

59

Conclusion

Quite predictably a typical suburb

layout is introverted and does not
favor sociability and the use of
public space. In case of local
initiative though, there are spatial
potentials to increase activity in
between buildings.

60

In terms of walkable distances and the the potential

use of open spaces the site is disconnected from the
Viimsi centre.

The spatial layout and the location of the suburb does not
favor sociability, when there are people interested in
creating it, it is possible to do so by getting organised.

Separate from the Viimsi centre, the quality of the public

space on the site relies greatly on the interest and activity
of local residents. To make a change there has to be an
organised initiative group.

In principle the site has enough residual space to develop

public activity.

Establishing a small community shop and and a simple

meeting place (e.g playground) would be a good first
move.

The site and the surroundings are a good setting for

recreational sports.

People spend more time in public spaces when they use

public transport. The timetable and poor quality bus stops
discourage the use of public transport.

C A S E S T U D Y -1

PROPOSAL

a schematic

Proposal

1 10 min. walk - a crucial shortcut

NEW ACCESS TO THE
CENTRE. THE DISTANCE IS
CUT FROM 2,4KM TO ONLY 900
METERS MAKING IT CA 10 MIN.
WALK FROM THE SITE.
RAMP AND STAIRS.

EXISTING 700M SECTION OF

AN OLD GRAVEL ROAD. THE
ROAD COVER NEEDS TO BE
CHANGED.

VIIMSI
PARISH
CENTER

THE SITE

1 Proposed identity
Future goal for all nearby villages - exeptional outdoor sport possibilities

THE VIIMSI BANK

A FUTURE GOAL - LIGHT

TRAFFIC ROADS FOR
RECREATIONAL SPORTS.

THE SOOSEPA BOG

PROPOSAL

C A S E S T U D Y -1

61

a schematic

Proposal

UNMOWED LAWN
VEGETATION

SIDEWALK EDGE
LOWERED

BUS STOP
ENHANCEMENT

NEW ASPHALT COVER

62

C A S E S T U D Y -1

10

NEW PEDESTRIAN PATH

NEW CROSSWALK

NEW ASPHALT COVER,

STREET EXTENSION

15

PROMOTED
NEIGHBOURHOOD TRACK
FOR SKYING, ROLLER
SKATING, BIKING ETC.

13

TEMPORARY
PEDESTRIAN PATH

NEW ACTIVITY PLACE

ON THE CROSSING

PROPOSAL

MAIN STREET
ENHANCEMENT:
NEW SMOOTH
ASPHALT, ACTIVITY
POCKETS ...

UNMOWED LAWN
VEGETATION

11

12

TEMPORARY USE
OF THE ABANDONED
BARN. EXPERIENCE
SPACE FOR KIDS

BUS STOP
ENHANCEMENT

THE POND AS AN ACTIVITY

PLACE. ENHANCEMENT - A PATH,
SEATS AND SMALL BOAT DOCK

14

SOCIAL / BUSINESS LAND

DEVELOPMENT PHASES:
1. PLAYGROUND
2. SHOP
3. KINDERGARTEN

a schematic

Proposal

1 Unmowed lawn / Vegetation

9 New activity place on the crossing

For a pedestrian many of the street layouts are perceived

"empty" and boring, there is too much residual space on the
roadsides to feel cosy, a narrower street or a street with more
versatile sequences can enrich the walking experience. In
summertime the lawn could just be left untouched, a grown
wild lawn with many different species can better define the
space and offer a difference. These spaces could also be
vegetated with desired plants.

There are a few places with a nice view and cosy spatial
layout, this is one of them. With good views to four directions,
the crossing is a potential meeting place. Adding a small and
simple wooden terrace with a public seat and a human scale
streetlight could make this place a nice social hub for children
to meet and play. The asphalt on the crossing could be
painted (temporarily) and used to play the hoppers game.

2 Bus stop enhancement

10 Temporary pedestrian path

The bus stops need a proper pavement and a shelter. A

standard shelter could be customised in a desired way.

Till there is no other funcion on the old farmland a temporary

pedestrian path could be founded. A simple gravel covered
path would provide the shortest distance from the centre of the
site to the nearby municipal kindergarten. The descending
landscape allows nice South views.

3 Sidewalk edge lowered

4 Unmowed lawn / Vegetation
5 Main street enhancement

11 Promoted track

The Viievelle road is 23 meters wide (space between garden

fences) and just feels bleak.
The rough asphalt cover should be changed in ideal, a
smooth cover allows to use already existing good quality light
traffic roads in circular routes (roller-skating) that run through
the site.
The road has nice views towards the South, the residual
space on roadsides could be enriched with a few social hubs e.g. small wooden terracces with a public seat or two and a
human scale street light. The main road could be a neighbourhood meeting place, a place to rest when taking a walk.

12 The pond as an activity place

6 New pedestrian path and crosswalk

The missing street link could be realised when the nearby
owners are willing to give a narrow strip of land for the public
use. When a crosswalk will be added to pass the Prname
street, it is possible to get to an existing hiking path and also
get a more sociable street network.

7 New asphalt cover, street extension

The road is currently without a proper cover, while the closest
child daycare is situated on this street it is essential to provide
an elementary street quality. The road needs to be extended
to North-West, to eliminate the current detours when the
residents of North-West area want to get to the child daycare.

8 New asphalt cover

Provide an elementary steet quality and allow circular sport
routes (roller-skating, trekking, biking).

The central Viievelle road and the boundary roads could be

promoted in the community to be used for different
recreational sports like roller-skating, trekking, biking etc. In
winter it is quite easy to create a cross-country skying route, it
only needs a first activist and an agreement with the
municipality, not to destroy the track during the snow
management.

Though the pond has been used for swimming in the past
there is currently a sign that prohibits it. Probalby the reason
of the sign is the municipalities wish to be carefree about the
use of the pond.
The North shore is a potential activity place, when the locals
are interested, it would not be difficult nor costly to create a
walkable path, a small terracce with seats and a small boat
dock.

13 Bus stop enhancement

14 Social / Business land
Though most of the private house plots have now been built,
the only plot of land for business and social function is still
vacant. When the locals are willing to collaborate, the plot
could be advanced in phases. First a community playground is
establishe (use the leftover soil brom the building sites to form
bumps for snow tube). Then a small shop for simple daily
products, that the locals wont have to drive to the Viimsi
centre for a botlle of milk or bread. Third, find push the
municipality to build a kindergarten (the existing ones already
have long waiting lines).

15 Temporary use of the abandoned barn

Find the owner of the old abandoned barn and discuss
temporary use. The old barn is a reminiscence of the past
times - the collective farming period. It would be interesting for
kids to get to know these times and see how an old barn
worked in the old days.

PROPOSAL

C A S E S T U D Y -1

63

64

AVAPILT

C A S E S T U D Y -2

TEST CASE 2

THE NEW
TARTU
CENTER

photo Arne Maasik

C A S E S T U D Y -2

AVAPILT

6655

PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE

18

17

19

16

13

15

14

VIKE TURU

12
VIDU BRIDGE

8
1

11

SADAMA

SOOLA

7
KALURI

2
5

10

RIIA

TURU

OLD TOWN
6666

AERO

C A S E S T U D Y -2

TO ANNELINN
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23

THE ANNE
CHANNEL

O F F I C E B U I L I D I N G "P L A S K U "
"T A S K U " M A L L
HOTEL DORPAT
COACH STATION
GAS STATION
MCDONALDS
NORDEA BANK
HOTEL TARTU
SPORTS CENTER
W A T E R C E N T E R "A U R A "
S C I E N C E C E N T E R "A H H A A "
R E S I D E N T I A L H I G H -R I S E "T I G U T O R N "
ESTONIAN MATRITIME ADMINISTRATION
OFFICES
O P E N -A I R M A R K E T
INDOOR MARKET
P R O J E C T -B A S E D T H E A T E R
BOAT HARBOUR WAREHOUSE
LEISURE BOAT HARBOUR
H O B B Y -B O A T H A R B O U R
ZEPPELIN MALL
OLD BOILERHOUSE
OLD RAILSHELTER

all maps - w w w .m a a a m e t .e e

RIVER EMAJGI

23
20

21
22

100m
C A S E S T U D Y -2

300m
AERO

67

www.ikodu.com

Site plan

The only residential house on the site - the Snailtower

Meelis Lokk

1
2

Aapo Haapanen

The city centre promenade

Outdoor marketplace

Rein Urbel

1k m

1 HISTORIC CITY CENTER

The site is situated in the center of Tartu
city, Estonia. With its 100 000 inhabitants,
the status of the second city in Estonia, the
image of a university city and an easy-going
m o o d , Tartu has many similarities with
Arhus in Denmark.

2 THE NEW CITY CENTER - THE SITE

A hypermarket

www.stuudiolegend.ee

The site is situated North-East from the old

cityand is clearly defined by Emajgi river in
the North and two major connecting streets:
Riia street running North-South and Turu
street running East-W e s t . The area used to
be an outskirt before the bombings in early
1 9 4 0 `s . F r o m 1 9 6 0 `s to 1 9 9 0 `s the
regeneration added only afew functions :
the main coach station, outdoor market and
a few buildings with minor importance . In
1 9 9 0 `s the development accelerated and
around 2000 the area started to be labeled
as the new center. Today the area is mainly
known for the first Tartu high-rise "plasku",
residential high-rise "snailtower",
commercial mall "Tasku", Tartu coach
station, popular science center "A h h a a " a n d
o p e n -air markerplace. Developments in the
area have lately been under criticism
because of planning the area piece by
piece with small master plans while lacking
vision. The developments have this far
resulted in poor quality open spaces.

www.balcone2012.ee

A popular museum - Ahhaa Science centre

The first Tartu high-rise and the main mall

68

C A S E S T U D Y -2

ANALYSE

Site functions / Users

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

INTROVERT
FUNCTIONS

PROJECT
BASED
THEATER

NOTES:
* Due to malls and hypermarkets with introvert ground
floor, the open spaces lack evening activity.
There could be many more
bars and cafes open till late hours.
* There is only one apartment building, the site needs
more local residents

USERS

BOAT
HARBOUR
WAREHOUSE

INDOOR
MARKETPLACE

LEISURE BOAT
HARBOUR

PEDESTRIAN
BRIDGE
"TURUSILD"

CANAL ANNE

ESTONIAN MARITIME
ADMINISTRATION
OFFICE

OPEN-AIR
MARKETPLACE
VECHICLE AND
PEDESTRIAN
BRIDGE
"VIDUSILD"

OFFICES

RESIDENTIAL HIGHRISE
"TIGUTORN"
OLD RAILSHELTER

HOTEL
DORPAT

RIVER
EMAJGI

HOBBY-BOAT
HARBOUR

OFFICE
BUILDING
"PLASKU"
MIX-USE
CENTER
"TASKU"

HOTEL
TARTU
COACH
STATION

NORDEA
BANK

MCDONALDS
RESTAURANT

SCIENCE
CENTER
"AHHAA"
SPORTS
CENTER

GAS-STATION
STATOIL

WATERCENTER
"AURA"

ELECTRICAL
TERMINAL

HYPERMARKET
ZEPPELIN

WEEKDAYS
OFFICE BUILIDING "PLASKU" OFFICES
OFFICE BUILIDING "PLASKU" RETAIL
MIX-USE CENTER "TASKU" RETAIL
"TASKU" RESTAURANTS
"TASKU" CONFERENCE
"TASKU" PHARMACY
"TASKU" SUPERMARKET
"TASKU" PIZZA
"TASKU" CINEMA
HOTEL DORPAT
HOTEL DORPAT RESTAURANT
HOTEL DORPAT CONFERENCE
HOTEL DORPAT CASINO
COACH STATION TRAVEL SERVICE
COACH STATION KIOSK
COACH STATION RESTAURANT
COACH STATION CARGO SERVICE
GAS STATION
MCDONALDS
NORDEA BANK
HOTEL TARTU
HOTEL TARTU CONFERENCE
HOTEL TARTU SPA
HOTEL TARTU CAFE
SPORTS CENTER
WATER CENTER "AURA" POOLS
WATER CENTER "AURA" CAFE
SCIENCE CENTER "AHHAA"
"AHHAA" RENT FOR EVENTS
"AHHAA" RESTAURANT
RESIDENTIAL HIGH-RISE "TIGUTORN"
"TIGUTORN" PET SHOP
"TIGUTORN" AQUALIFE SHOP
ESTONIAN MATRITIME ADMINISTRATION
OFFICES
OPEN-AIR MARKET
INDOOR MARKET
PROJECT-BASED THEATER
BOAT HARBOUR WAREHOUSE
LEISURE BOAT HARBOUR
HOBBY-BOAT HARBOUR
ZEPPELIN MALL

7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

7 8 9
7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ONLY SPECIFIC TIMES
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06

OLD
BOILERHOUSE

100m

WEEKENDS
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9

7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7

8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8
8

9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9

7 8 9
7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ON DEMAND
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
ONLY SPECIFIC TIMES
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 00 01 02 03 04 05 06

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -2

69

Extraversive indoor functions

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

MARKETPLACE
NOTES:
* Though a great variety of assembled functions the
open spaces lack active ground floors

MALL
SA

LE

OTHER SHOP OR SERVICE

RESTAURANT/CAFE
BAR
HOTEL
SPA
GAS STATION

S
SA

SA

LE

SA

LE

BANK / ATM
SPORTS HALL

LE

SA

LE

EVENT PLACE

POST SERVICE
COACH STATION

100m

Outdoor activity

WATER CENTER

OPEN-AIR MARKETPLACE
PUBLIC "SQUARE"
FISHING

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

PROACTIVE
ROLE

RESTAURANT TERRACE

NOTES:
* The icons represent possibilities for oudoor activity,
in reality many of the places are underused

HOBBY BOATS / LEISURE BOAT

SKYING
ROLLER SKATING
BIKING
BUS STOP

100m

Prevailing winds
Estonian Environmental Research Centre (2008)
70

C A S E S T U D Y -2

ANALYSE

Users

MAIN USERS

TOURISTS
ESTONIA+ABROAD

The site attracts a diverse

set of user groups from all
over Tartu and even
further.

COMMERCE

LEISURE
AND SPORTS

WORKPLACES

LOCAL RESIDENTS

USER MAGNETS

USERS

The Ahhaa Science Centre

(museum) is very popular
among young people, the
marketplace is frequently
used by mid-age and older people, the theatre
calls for people interested in culture, the malls
have something to offer for everyone. Hotels, the
coach station and the Ahhaa Centre also bring in
distant visitors and tourists.
NOTES:
* The main problem regarding the use of open
public spaces is the dominance of commercial
function, the typology of a mall is built around the
idea of an interior public spaces. The model of a
hypermarket user is an user with a car. The most
influential function - the Tasku mall is also situated
in the corner of the site - people arrive and leave
without having the pass through the area. The
area has a dramatically few ground floor functions
that communicate on street level.

TASKU MALL
COACH STATION
MARKETPLACE
AHHAA SCIENCE MUSEUM

*The dominance of the car, unattractive and

incomplete open spaces and unused river
potentials are keeping the footfall on the streets
low.

CAR

* Regarding future developments the site needs

more apartments and local residents.

PUBLIC
TRANSPORT
MODES OF TRANSPORT

NOTE - The given data is based on personal

observations: field mapping and empirical
knowledge as a frequent user (the author has lived
and worked in the proximity of the site from 2008).
Field mapping was carried out on three days: 2729 April 2013.

WALKING
BIKING

Identity

"A C T O R S " I N F L U E N C I N G
THE STATE OF THE AREA

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

IDENTITY

The epithet " Tartu new center" is very young, the whole
territory has taken contours within a rather short period.
Currently there is no clear established identity but there are
many contestants.
When the first office high-rise "Plasku" arose, the area was
conceived as a place of wealth and exclusivity. Soon the
Tasku mall and sport centers brought the territory to the
map of broader range of users. The recent addition Ahhaa popular Science Center, basically a museum,
attracts young people and families, both estonian and
foreign tourists. The open-air marketplace has stayed
popular through the years, especially among older
generation, but recent eco-trends have also started to
attract the younger generation.
The strongest natural character, the river Emajgi, has
always been important for Tartu. The river is cherished but
in an everyday scene, it is not mentally apparent, it`s
presence is not visible. In that sense Tartu is still suffering
from the wreckage of the World War II, there is not enough
building mass at the riverbanks to sustain activity and keep
it stabile.
Though the site constitutes an interesting combination of
mixed functions where users are not homogenous, it might
be generalised that the clearest image the site bares is a
consumerist one. This thesis is supported by a well visible
fact that people visit the site out of specific necessity and
not spontaneity.

REALESTATE
MARKET

LAND
OWNERS

THE CITY OF TARTU

COMPANY "GIGA"
COMPANY "ESTIKO"
OWNER OF VIKE-TURU 7
OWNER OF TURU 6

GLOBAL
ECONOMICS
LOCAL POLITICIANS

LOCAL RESIDENTS

LOCAL
MUNICIPALITY

EU DEVELOPMENT FUNDS

GENERAL PUBLIC

POTENTIAL ACTORS

THE STATE (COACH STATION)

THE MARKETPLACE
AHHAA SCIENCE CENTER
LOCAL RESIDENTS

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -2

71

Vehicle congestion
FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

ATTRACTIVITY

CONVENIENCE

NOTES:
* The number of parking lots and
incomplete pedestrian network
discourage the use of open
public spaces.
2

48%

of open space
vehicle defined

MARKET ENTRANCE ?
2

2
1
6

ENTRANCE?

100m
MAIN PEDESTRIAN PATH

Pedestrian network
FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

Vehicle network

NOTES:
* Pedestrian network is incomplete and
dysfunctional

NOTES:
* The vehicle network is fine with current
traffic turnover and has some reserve
to keep running without major inconveniences when the turnover increases

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

OFFICIAL PEDESTRIAN PATHS

ADDITIONAL UNOFFICIAL PATHS

SOOLA

SADAMA

10
9
12

IK

E-

TU

RU

KALURI

14

13

TURU

11

100m

72

C A S E S T U D Y -2

ANALYSE

100m

11

15

PARKING SPACE 150 CARS VS. 5 BIKES

4

12

16

13

17

PROMENADE?

INCONVENIENT
ENTRANCE TO THE SITE
6

10

14

18

LACK OF CYCLE PARKING

Public transport
NOTES:
* Bus stop locations are in principle well
distributed buthave quality problems. The
coach station is a representative public
function of a city, it is clearly too small and
very modest. The general public is nostalgic
about the old coach station.

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

Cycle network
FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

NOTES:
* Cycle network incomplete.
* Lack of parking possibilities discourages
bike use. The local workplaces should
promote bike use.

OFFICIAL CYCLE PATHS

MISSING LINKS
EXISTING BIKE PARKING

SADAMA

SOOLA

LACK OF PARKING

IK

E-

TU

2
RU

TURU

18
15
16
16
17
100m

100m

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -2

73

Free pedestrian movement problems

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

ATTRACTIVITY

CONVENIENCE

NOTES:
* The site swarms of problems

4
5

4
4

7
23

19

8
18

24

9
10

22

12

14

20

15

11

16
13

21

17

100m

Attractivity f laws
QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

ATTRACTIVITY

CLEANLINESS

NOTES:
* The site swarms of problems

PUBLIC SEATS

26
27

27
25

28
29
35
34

30
31 32

36
31

31

38

39

37
33

100m

74

C A S E S T U D Y -2

ANALYSE

1.
22.
People coming from the old city have to take Tasku Mall entrance connects pedestrian
long detours to get to the center of the site, flow between the marketplace and the coach
missing diagonal crosswalk makes the pass station. People have to cross a huge parking
unconvenient.
area where also coaches are manouvering.
2.
Official paths are rarely used beacause of
Bridge stairs are not accessible for strollers, detours.
cycles, wheelchairs. Detour option takes
23.
150m and is not visible.
The Dorpat Hotel coach parking obstructs
3.
the traffic and cuts off visual contacts with
An example of public space privatisation,
one of the main pedestrian roads.
lately the municipality gave green light to
24.
extend the commercial center and loose the According to the law the banks of
street. Doors at the both end leave a chance waterbodies have to be publicly accessible.
to pass through the commercial corridor.
At this point the passage is closed with a
4.
metal fence with the exeption of a 1,5m wide
The riverbank levels are connected by stairs, gap.
for the 220m section there are only two
25.
soviet time ramps, both of them do not meet The riverbank design has deteriorated and
nowaday requirements.
needs refreshment. Due to unattractivity the
5.
general public perceives the place as rather
According to laws the banks of waterbodies distant and "shadowy" area.
have to be accessible for public. At this point 26.
the passage is closed with a metal fence.
The Sadamateater (Port Theatre)
6.
architecture has made a public building
A sovet time "aesthetic park" with trees,
extremely introverted. The building turns it`s
grass, paths and no seats is outdated in
back towards the main pedestrian arrival,
current spatial situation. Dorpat hotel and it`s the main entrance of the building is not
parking area have changed the way
clearly visible. Windows are constantly
marketplace is approached. The hedges and blinded.
paths are not spatially and visibly logical.
27.
7.
The marketplace is organised around the
Car parking management obstructs the main courtyard, the "walls" are mostly "mute",
entrance to the marketplace.
without too many entrances and windows.
8.
The current state is unaesthetical. A popular
Official pedestrian movement has a broken marketplace needs to be upstanding, open
logic, long detours have to be taken when
to the river and nearby activities. The indoor
approached along the river and towrds the market building is separated.
coach station. Pedestrian movement
28.
patterns show that the crossing is used in all A sovet time "aesthetic park" with
directions. Crossing has raised edges.
trees,grass, paths and no seats is outdated
9.
in todays spatial situation. Dorpat hotel and
Tasku mall and coach station are the most its parking area have changed the way
vital functions in the area. These functions marketplace is approached. The hedges and
create pedestrian flow which is drawn to
paths are not spatially and visibly logical.
move between Turu street and to the
29.
marketplace using the west side of Soola
The main local bus-line stop is situated on a
street. The narrow pavement is literally a
25cm high narrow sidewalk strip. Between
bus stop. Overcrowded and obstructed by
the parking lot and a frquently used traffic
columns the path is annoying to use. Official road this bus stop location is extremely
pedestrian path is on the other side of the
unwelcoming.
road.
30.
10.
City`s main international coach station is
The North section of the main pedestrian
tightly attached to tasku mall. There is not
path suddenly makes a 6m step and is not enough space in- and outdoor. Arhitectural
visually perceived as a whole. When
image is not suitable for a representative
approaching the marketplace from the
function. The reason for current situation is
South, the entrance is not visible.
the municipalitys decision that gave
11.
resposnibility for organising the building to
Peculiar sidewalk edges - 3m wide sidewalk tasku mall owners.
has raised edges and 1m wide ramp
31.
resulting in potentially dangerous situations Exhibited trash containers ruin public space
when pedestrians and cycles are passing at in several places.
the same time. Edges should be fully
32.
lowered.
Well exponated electricity center and
12.
congestion of different signs ruin the overall
According to the master plan Kaluri street is expression.
a pedestrian promenade, in reality it ends
33.
with a vehicle road, detours have to be taken Even when the barrier is made of glass, it
to get to the sidewalk. The sidewalk is rather makes the narrow sidewalk feel spatially
narrow and passes between parking cars
harassing.
and Nordea bank. The promenade is
34.
spatially and visually incomplete.
For some reason snow management is
13.
prioritised for vehicle traffic streets.
Raised sidewalk edges.
35.
14.
High-rise "tigutorn" facade facing the river is
Unclear traffic regulation, pedestians rather inactive. 100 meters of mute wall makes it
cross the parking lot.
hard to create convivial public space.
15. / 16.
36.
The sport club is accessible only by stairs. On the pedestrian road the entrance to the
17.
"Ahhaa" Center and it`s restaurant are
Sidewalk ends with a large grass field. Many invisible and not provided with signs. Ground
people prefere to take a detour and cross
level windows facing the promenade are
the grass to be in a safe distance form Turu reflective and do not communicate whats
street traffic and noise.
indoor.
18.
36. 37.
Pedestrian use pattern proves the need for The sport center facades are not in human
diagonal passage through the area.
scale and do not communicate what`s
Pedestrian paths are arranged
indoor. Vast and empty green fields make a
uncomfortably making detours. A section of walk as unattractive as possible. One of the
the official path is right in front of "Ahhaa
reasons why pedestrian promenade with
Center" parking entrance, making it
many seats and table tennis is rarely used is
potentially dangerous.
the muteness of the surrounding artificial
19.
environment.
Inarticulate pedestrian movement. Some
38.
sidewalks just end up on the grass.
The pedestrian promenade is sided by
Practically people move across the messy "Aura" Water Center. The ventilation system
parking area. There is no crosswalk between on a low roof creates constant loud noise. A
the pedestrian bridge and Tigutorn high-rise. stay in the public promenade is very short
A traffic sign right in the middle of the narrow and only out of neccesity.
sidewalk.
20.
Aura center glass-facade facing the
The Zeppelin mall has two entrances, the
promenade is too far out to see what
main one and a supporting one. The path
happens indoor, the current situation is
from the main entrance to the pedestrian
though attractive in the dark period when
promenade crosses parking area and is not indoor lights are lit.
marked. For a pedestrian this link is
39.
perceived as a territory of the car.
Failed location for a public space. An
21.
example of planning public spaces by
People entering from the South move
master plans that cover only fragmented
towards the site center across the lawn. The territories. A place is chosen within the
path to the Zeppelin main entrance runs
limitations of the owners plot, between the
between cars and the building, and is really parking lot and the mute mall facade.
narrow.

10

12

15
16

DETOUR

ONE OF THE
MAIN PATHS?

WHEELCHAIRS?
17

19
29

19

20

NO
PASS

PATH TO THE
PROMENADE
22

23

25

26

TASKU

MARKETPLACE
VIEW
27

AN INTROVERT THEATER

28

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

36

37

37

38

38

39

39

WELCOMING?

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -2

75

Safety issues
QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

SAFETY

NOTES:
* The numerous unofficial pedestrian paths
increase accident risk. In many places the
streets are literally used as shared spaces.

OFFICIAL PATH
DE FACTO

2
6

3 ,4

7
4

5
100m

5
1.
Potentially a great place, there are
several issues. First the riverbank
design has deteriorated and needs
refreshment, due to unattractivity the
general public perceives the place as
rather distant and "s h a d o w y ". T h e
main users are elderly people on
mornings and afternoon, in the
evenings young and mid-age street
drinkers. Unclarity makes railings at
some spots unsafe.
2.
Pedestrian user patterns prove that
traffic is de facto used as shared
space by both vehicles and
pedestrians. Holding on to the official
regulation creates a higher accident
risk.
3.
4.
Only 1 m wide ramp creates potentially
dangerous situations when
pedestrians and cycles are passing at
the same time. Sidewalk edges should
be lowered.
5.
Higher accident risk when cars make
the right turn and drive to the parking
lot.
6.
Pedestrian crosswalk is placed in right
in front of garage entrance. W h e n
cars are leaving the concrete barrier
blocks their view. There are no safety
mirrors provided.

76

C A S E S T U D Y -2

ANALYSE

Future developments, unused and

residual spaces
NOTES:
* The upcoming developments need to consider the area as
a whole (recently the site has been developed by fragmented
master plan envelopes)

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

PASSIVE
ROLE

NO CURRENT
ROLE

1
Future developments according to the general plan of Tartu center (2013)

BUSINESS/RESIDENTIAL
NEW
MARKETPLACE

MIXED-USE

MIXED-USE
3 -5

3 -5
3 -4

MIXED-USE

MIXED-USE
4 -6

MALL AND
COACH
STATION
EXTENSION

MIXED-USE

3
4 -6

COACH
STATION
STOPS

3 -5

4 -6

4
6

MIXED-USE

5
HOTEL
EXTENSION

2
3

4 -6

MALL
EXTENSION

4 -6

100m

1.
The riverbank has potential for
a continuous public
promenade.
2.
These passive grass fields
currently do not contribute to
public space and could be reevaluated.

3.
A park -like green area with fully
grown trees is currently
inactive. Active public park or
other use may be considered.
4.
The grass lawn territory could
be used to enhance public
space.
5.
Another empty grass field
bordered by two mute facades .

6.
A vast unused asphalt field.
7.
An empty grass field, used by
pedestrians to make shortcuts.

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -2

77

Conclusion

The new center is a place to go out of

necessity and not spontaneity
The poor public space of the new center is a result of different planning decisions and
the slow development process - the area is still not established.
The main aspect of the current failiure is spatial - a combination of car congestion,
large and undefined open spaces and incomplete pedestrian street network, open
spaces are clearly difficult and inconvenient to navigate.
Planning and building according to master plans that cover only small territories has
resulted in incomplete and alogical solutions. In addition to the official pedestrian paths
there is the same amount of unofficial paths, often these shortcuts ignore traffic
regulations and create a higher accident risk.
Many recent developments have been dictated by investors while the public voice has
stayed modest. In a situation where the city land is still waiting to be cultivated and
there are very few local residents, there is not enough sense of ownership.

78

Car congestion - 48% of open space is vehicle defined,

there are too many open parking lots and the parking
management is poor.

Unclarity of the pedestrian street network

Lack of local residents and sense of ownership

Unused outdoor activity potentials

Lack of outdoor- and evening activitiy in public spaces

No clear identity (also a potential)

C A S E S T U D Y -2

PROPOSAL

a schematic

Proposal

1 Enhanced entrances
FENCE DEMOLISHED AND
THE RIVERBANK OPENED

TRAFFIC LIGHT THAT INCLUDES CYCLISTS

TRANSFORMATION OF THE OLD

BRIDGE (RAMPS ADDED)

NEW CROSSWALK
BRIGHT COLURED STREET COVER
TO MARK THE MAIN ENTRANCE

2 Quick public space quality fixes

BUS STOP REPOSITIONED
TEMPORARY PEDESTRIAN PATH COVER

SEATS IN FRONT
OF THE MARKETPLACE

ADD MISSING CROSSWALK. WIDER

PEDESTRIAN PATH (BRIGHT ROAD COVER)
VIKE-TURU FACADE MADE ATTRACTIVE

ENHANCE THEATER FACADES

ROOF-TERRACE FOR
PUBLIC USE + NEW CAFE

MARK ENTRANCES, REPLACE REFLECTIVE

GROUND FLOOR WINDOWS
VENTILATION NOISE REMOVED
PEDESTRIAN PAVEMENT HIGHLIGHTED
(BRIGHT ROAD COVER)

BEFORE COSTLY RE-DESIGN TEST

SHARED SPACE. STREET COVER
TEMPORARILY COLORED
BEFORE COLSTLY BRIDGE
TRANSFORMATION SAVE 70M
DETOUR BY TEMPORARY RAMP.
ADD VISIBLE SIGNS

General:

MAKE SPORT CENTRE FACADES

MORE ATTRACTIVE. LARGE BLANK
WALLS ARE SUITABLE FOR GRAPHIC
ART. ADD RAMP ACCESS

ROAD PAINTINGS
ON THE ASPHALT
PEDESTRIAN PATH PAVEMENT

TEMPORARY BALL-GAMES
FIELD BY THE SPORT
CENTRE (VACANT SPACE
28x41M)

Big trash containers

repositioned and camouflaged
Sidewalk edges lowered
Additional bike lane markings
and parking places
More public seats in
carefully chosen locations
Sidewalk obstructions removed
Dangerous traffic situations fixed

PROPOSAL

C A S E S T U D Y -2

79

a schematic

Proposal

3 Quick parking fixes

open parking lots compressed,
organised cross-use of parking houses
REMOVED PARKING

REMAINING PARKING

4 A continuous river promenade

1. CUTTING COPSE AND REDUNDANT TREES
1. TEMPORARY SMALL TERRACES AND
SEATS AS ACTIVITY GENERATORS

1. FENCE REMOVED
1. PROMOTE LEISURE BOAT ACTIVITY

2. TRANSFORM THE EXISTING PUBLIC AREA

3. FULL-SCALE PROMENADE DESIGN,

ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITION

80

C A S E S T U D Y -2

PROPOSAL

1. EXISTING HOBBY BOAT

SHELTERS MOVED CLOSER TO
THE SITE CENTRE. PROMOTE
ACTIVITY

a schematic

Proposal

5 New proactive open-spaces

ACTIVATING THE UNUSED
PARK. A PLACE TO REST
AND PLAY. USERS: OFFICE
WORKERS, YOUNG
FAMILIES, ELDERLY
PEOPLE.

NEW MARKETPLACE OPENED

TO THE RIVER. SOLUTION
PRINCIPLE - OPEN SQUARE
AND BORDERING SHELTERS.
CITY-WIDE MULTIFUNCTIONAL
EVENT SPACE

OLD BOILERHOUSE
TECHNOLOGICAL
SCULPTURES PARK. OIL
RESERVUARES ARRANGED
INTO OFFICE, CAFE AND
PERFORMANCE SPACE.

A REPRESENTATIVE SQUARE.
WITH THE 2013-14 COACH
STATION EXTENSION, CREATE
AN OUTDOOR WAITING AREA /
SHELTER / PUBLIC PLAZA.
ARHITECTURAL COMPETITION

EXISTING PLAZA - MORE

SCIENCE CENTER
OUTDOOR ATTRACTIONS

6 Proposed street network

TRANSFORMED INTO PUBLIC PLAZA. THEMESPORT ACTIVITY. SPORT ATTRACTIONS,

EXTREME SPORT FIELD. USERS: YOUNG AND
MID-AGE PEOPLE.

PEDESTRIANISED ROADS

TRADITIONAL TRAFFIC STREETS

(PEDESTRIANS SEGREGATED)

SHARED SPACE

VEHICLE ALLOWANCE LIMITED FOR

COACH STATION,
MARKETPLACE,
TASKU PARKING HOUSE,
NORDEA BANK,
TARTU AND DORPAT HOTEL

PROPOSAL

C A S E S T U D Y -2

81

a schematic

Proposal

7 Changes in general plan

more pedestrian streets, denser environment, smaller buildings

WHEN ADDITIONAL BUILDINGS

ARISE, VIKE-TURU STREET
VEHICLE USE WILL BE RELATIVELY
HIGH, THEREFORE ADDITIONAL
PEDESTRIAN-ONLY STREET IS
PROPOSED AND THE NORTH
SECTOR ENVISIONED AS PARKINGFREE ZONE. THE STREET SHOULD
NOT BE COMPLETELY STRAIGHT.

RECONFIGURED TO
BLOCK VEHICLE ROAD
AND DEFINE THE YARD.

THE BOILERHOUSE WILL STOP IN 2014.

THE BUILDING STRUCTURE (+YARD)
CAN BE REUSED, STRONG
TECHNOLOGICAL CHARACTER
OFFERS A MARKET PRIVILEDGE WHEN
DEVELOPED. PROPOSED MODEL CULTURE+CREATIVE BUSINESSES.

PROPOSED PEDESTRIAN ROAD

NEEDS SPATIAL DEFINITION - A
MARKETPLACE SHELTER TO THE
NORTH AND A LOW EXTENSION
VOLUME TO THE SOUTH.
THE COACH STATION OUTDOOR
AREA AND THE PARK NEED SPATIAL
DEFINITION
SOOLA STREET IS TOO WIDE, COACH STATION "SQUARE"
BENEFITS FROM A MORE DEFINED SPACE + TURU ST.
NOISE IS KEPT AWAY.

UNSUITABLE FOR OUTDOOR USES.

PROMENADE NEEDS MORE SPATIAL
DEFINITION. POSSIBLE EXTENSION.

NEW BUILDINGS

8 Long run parking principle

OPEN PARKING LOTS

PARKING INTEGRATED TO BUILDINGS

82

C A S E S T U D Y -2

PROPOSAL

a schematic

Proposal

9 Human scale implicaitons

"FRAGMENTED"
BUILDINGS INSTEAD
OF MONUMENTAL
MASS
RATHER NARROW
HUMAN SCALE
STREETS
CORRESPONDING TO
BUILDING HEIGHTS

1 0 Sun and shadow implications

TO KEEP PEDESTRIAN PATHS
APPEALING BUILDINGS NEED
TO HAVE "BREAKS" OR
"GRADIENT" HEIGHTS NOT TO
OVERSHADOW THE STREETS

PROPOSAL

C A S E S T U D Y -2

83

84
84

AVAPILT

C A S E S T U D Y -3

TEST CASE 3

VANAKALAMAJA
STREET

photo Arne Maasik

C A S E S T U D Y -3

AVAPILT

8855

SO

STU

SE

NIIN

UE

V A N A -K A L A M A J A

KOTZEB

H
P

JA

I
PU

ES

TE

OLD TOWN
8866

AERO

C A S E S T U D Y -3

THE GULF OF
TALLINN

KA

LAR

AN

NA

TI

IK

E-

PA

TA

-P

AT

AR

EI

EI

IE
JA

SO
C A S E S T U D Y -3

HU

100m

300m
AERO

87

Tallinn centre
The site is situated in the Kalamaja
district North-West to the centre of
Tallinn - the medieval town. A garde ning, farming and fishing area in the
medieval times, Kalamaja is known for
the small wooden houses and a rare
preserved milieu created in the late
1 9 th and early 2 0 th century. T h e p o p ulation of Kalamaja is roughly about
9000 people.

In addition to the prominent location the

district is admired for it`s easy-going
and green neighbourhood, t h e h u m a n
scale buildings and small gardens. T h e
spatial character of Kalamaja is perfect
for generating and supporting sociability, some of the most established
communities are located here.

500m

The site - Vana-Kalamaja street

(Kalamaja district) and bordering attractors

PEETRI
YACHT
HARBOUR

MARITIME
MUSEUM
PATAREI SEA-FORTRESS
PRISON MUSEUM
KALARAND
SHORE
LINNAHALL
ROOFSCAPE

1 ,1 K M
13 M I N .
WALK

THE MUSEUM OF
CONTEMPORARY
ART / CULTURE
CLUSTER
TORNIVLJAK
PARK

BALTI JAAM
MARKETPLACE
TRAINAND BUS STATION

88

C A S E S T U D Y -3

ANALYSE

THE OLD
TOWN
SHNELLI
PARK

500m

Today the district is popular among

young families and people working in
the creative sector.

1 THE KALAMAJA DISTRICT

2 THE MEDIEVAL TOWN OF TALLINN

www.kalamaja.info

www.flickr.com (kailiuu)

www.flickr.com (kalamaja7)

www.flickr.com (kailiuu)

www.patarei.org

www.flickr.com (kailiuu)

Marko Leppik

The maritime museum

www.patarei.org

www.retsiem.blogspot.com

www.flickr.com (conzaquenza)

Vana-Kalamaja street

The sea-fortress prison museum

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -3

89

Marko Leppik

Functions in the proximity

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

PROACTIVE
ROLE

NOTES:
* Functions are assembled around the South
end of Vana-Kalamaja street (the train station)
and to the East - by the cultural cluster.

SA
SA

LE

LE

SA

LE

SA

SA

LE

SA
SA

SA

LE

SA

SA

SA

LE

LE

LE

SA

LE

SA

90

C A S E S T U D Y -3

ANALYSE

LE

LE

LE

LE

Main vehicle trafic

INDOOR:
GROCERY
RESTAURANT/CAFE

NOTES:
* Main traffic runs on East-West axis. The nearfuture transit road will have a calming effect for
Kalamaja district.

BAR
OTHER SHOP OR SERVICE

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

PHARMACY
HOTEL
GUEST APARTMENT
GAS STATION
CHURCH
MUSEUM
LIBRARY
EVENT SPACE
THEATER
CONCERT PLACE
ART GALLERY
HOBBY SCHOOL
MUNICIPAL SCHOOL
MUNICIPAL KINDERGARTEN
DISTRICT HEALT SERVICE
LOCAL MUNICIPALITY
POST OFFICE
SOCIAL SERVICE
SPORT CLUB
TRAIN STATION

N E A R -F U T U R E T R A N S I T R O A D

OUTDOOR:
TRANSIT

BAR
RESTAURANT
PARK
VIEWS
HEALTHSPORT GROUND

TRANSIT

PLAYGROUND
TRANSIT

STADIUM
SPORT FIELD
SEASONAL FISH MARKET
BOAT HARBOR
MUSEUM YARD
BUS STATION

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -3

91

Indoor / Outdoor functions

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
I N D O O R S P A C E S:

EXTRAVERSIVE
FUNCTIONS

INTROVERT
FUNCTIONS

NOTES:
* There are too few extraversive indoor
functions and working places
* The area lacks outdoor activity places
* No public seats on Vana-Kalamaja street

Street vitality would

benefit from add itional office space,
cafes and shops

PATAREI SEA-FORTRESS PRISON MUSEUM

LOGISTICS TERMINAL
DISTRICT COMMUNITY CENTER

WELLNESS STUDIO

a single
outdoor
activity place

BAKERY, CAFE
PLAYGROUND

KINDERGARTEN
LIQUER STORE

no cafe
terraces
AUDIO-VIDEO STORE

CHILD DAYCARE
KINDERGARTEN

GALLERY 'MSU'

PROJECT THATER 'TEOTEATER'

CREATIVE BUSINESS CLUSTER

SAUNA 'KALMA'

CAFE-RESTAURANT 'SESOON'

SOCK AND STOCKING STORE

ADULT GYMNASIUM

CHILDREN MUSEUM

POST OFFICE / PHARMACY

LIQUER STORE
HAIRDRESSER

KALAMAJA LIBRARY
HOTEL
CAFE-RESTAURANT
SECOND HAND
CURRENCY EXCHANGE
TAILORING
PHARMACY
HAIRDRESSER
PARTY RENTAL
CAFE-RESTAURANT
'VANA VAKSAL'
BAKERY/SMALL STORE
LIQUER STORE

92

C A S E S T U D Y -3

ANALYSE

SMALL HOUSEHOLD STORE

SMALL TEXTILE STORE
JEWEL STORE
SMALL ASIA STORE
RESTAURANT 'GUSTO'
BEEKEEPING SHOP
HOTEL 'ECONOMY'
BAR 'VOLLI'

500m

200m

Users
USERS

SPECIAL MENTION:
CREATIVE SECTOR

WORKING IN
THE AREA

The users of Kalamaja are

of all ages. A visibly
distinguishable group (trend)
is the young families and the
unmarried young people
who have replaced a great
number of elderly people
during the last decade.

LOCAL
RESIDENTS

USERS

Many of the young and mid-age people are

working in the creative sector. There is one
creative cluster on Niine street and two more in the
proximity. Mostly these two aforemention groups
are organised in communities: the Kalamaja selts
and the Telliskivi selts.

PEOPLE OF ALL AGES

SPECIAL MENTION:
YOUNG FAMILIES

NOTES:
* Majority of local residents are working outside
Kalamaja, the district lacks local working places
and therefore the footall on the streets is often
very low.

PASSING BY
FROM DISTANT AREAS

* There are currently too few extraversive

businesses on the Vana-Kalamaja street to keep
the street vital throughout the day.

KOPLI RESIDENTS

* The creative cluster on Niine street and the

seaside museums should participate in the making
of the Vana-Kalamaja street.
MODE OF TRANSPORT
IN KALAMAJA

NOTE - The given data is based on personal

observations: field mapping and empirical
knowledge as a frequent user (the author has lived
and worked in the area since 2005). Field mapping
was carried out on two days: 18-19 April 2013.

CAR
CARS ARE MAINLY USED
TO MOVE IN AND OUT
OF KALAMAJA.

PUBLIC
TRANSPORT

WALKING
BIKING

ACTORS INFLUENCING
THE STATE OF THE AREA

R E A L -E S T A T E
MARKET

GLOBAL
ECONOMICS

LOCAL
COMMUNITY

C O M M U N I T Y 'T E L L I S K I V I S E L T S'
C O M M U N I T Y 'K A L A M A J A S E L T S'

THE SEASIDE MUSEUMS

LOCAL
MUNICIPALITY

LOCAL POLITICIANS
PARKING
REGULATIONS

OTHER LOCAL RESIDENTS

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -3

93

Unused / Residual space

Future developments

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

PASSIVE
ROLE

NO CURRENT
ROLE

NOTES:
* Lot of potential for temporary uses and
desired developments
2

LOT OF OPEN
SPACE

100% APARTMENTS

LOT OF OPEN
SPACE

80% APARTMENTS
20% BUSINESS

90% APARTMENTS
10% BUSINESS

LOT OF OPEN
SPACE

100% APARTMENTS

90% APARTMENTS
10% BUSINESS

100% APARTMENTS
LOT OF OPEN
SPACE

100% OFFICE AND BUSINESS

UNUSED
GREEN
SPACE

UNUSED
RESIDUAL
SPACE

70% APARTMENTS
30% BUSINESS

UNUSED
GREEN AREA
LOT OF OPEN
SPACE

A GARAGE ON
A H I G H -V A L U E
LAND

CURRENTLY UNUSED
OR RESIDUAL SPACE
FUTURE MASTER PLANS
500m

94

C A S E S T U D Y -3

ANALYSE

200m

VALIDATED MASTER PLANS

10

Free pedestrian
movement
problems

10

FUNCTIONS:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

CONNECTING
ROLE

ATTRACTIVITY

CONVENIENCE

OFFICIAL PATH
DE FACTO

1
3
2

4
6

7
8

10
11
6
12

7
8

10

11

11

12

12

500m

200m

1.
Landscape level difference 2-4 meters. The only
straight access is provided by an old stair not suitable
for strollers and people with walking disability. Detour
140 meters.
2.
A lightpost obstructs the sidewalk.
3.
The 1-meter wide sidewalk is too narrow.
4.
The 1-meter wide sidewalk is too narrow, streetlight
obstructs the path.
5.
The Soo and Vana-Kalamaja junction has only one
crosswalk, in other directions traffic is unregulated.
Regarding the idea of a prominent street connecting
the medieval town and the sea, the crossing should
be safe and easily crossed in all directions.
6.
The end of Tstuse street is offset and contiues as
Niine street. Official pedestrian movement makes a
significant detour and therefore shortcuts are
frequent. Inconvenient and high risk crossing.
7.
The corner at Niine 12 and 20 has a 0,8-meter wide
sidewalk. Not usable with slush and high rainwater.
8.
Free movement obstruction: streetlight, electricity
terminal and traffic sign.
9.
Obstructive parking management. The famous
Kalma Sauna is often blocked by cars.
10.
Old trees and a traffic sign obstruct free movement.
Ruined asfalt.
11.
The tree and a streetlight obstruct free movement.
12.
Official crossings are limited, shortcuts are frequent.
Approaching the square from the South the
crosswalk is dangerous, cars park right by the
crossing and block visibility.

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -3

95

Attractivity f laws
QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

ATTRACTIVITY

CLEANLINESS

NOTES:
* No extraversive functions at the end of the
street (North)
* The street has no public seats
* The South "entrance" of the street is
unaesthetical and not welcoming

UNTENDED TREES
BLOCK VIEWS TO
THE SEA, MARITIMEAND PRISON
MUSEUM

NO INFORMATION
SIGNS ABOUT
MARITIME- AND
PRISON MUSEUM

TRASH CONTAINER
ON THE STREET
CAFE/ BAKERY
ACCESS NOT
VISIBLE

UNTENDED
TREES
BLOCK THE
STORE ACCESS

the street has no

public seats

UNTENDED
TREES
SHADE THE
STREET

WORN BLANK
WALL

RUINED
SIDEWALK

GREEN
SPACE
COMPLETEL
Y SHADED
BY TREES

PARKING
CONGESTION
BLOCKING THE
FAMOUS SAUNA

TREES
COMPLETELY
BLOCK THE
ELABORATELY
ORNAMENTED
FACADE

UNATTRACTIVE
BLANK WALL
TREES
HIDE THE
MUSEUM

UNATTRACTIVE
BLANK WALL

UGLY
CORRUGATED
IRON FENCE

DECAYED FENCE
UGLY CONCRETE
FENCE

UNATTRACTIVE
BLANK WALL
UNATTRACTIVE
BLANK WALL

Unwelcoming
entrance

500m

96

C A S E S T U D Y -3

ANALYSE

200m

Safety issues
QUALITIES:
O U T D O O R S P A C E S:

SAFETY

NOTES:
* The unofficial pedestrian paths increase accident
risk. The Kotzebue / Vana-Kalamaja crossing and
Tstuse / Vana-Kalamaja crossing are literally used
as shared spaces.

THE SOO AND VANAKALAMAJA CROSSING

HAS ONLY ONE
CROSSWALK.
UNOFFICIAL SHORTCUTS
INCREASE ACCIDENT
RISK.

THIS ANONYMOUS GREEN

SPACE IS 'SHADOWY' IN
MANY WAYS. IN DAYTIME
OVERGROWN TREES
HARDLY LET LIGHT
THROUGH, IN THE DARK
PERIOD THE SPACE
REMAINS DARK AS THERE
ARE NO LIGHTS PROVIDED.
THE SPACE IS USED BY
HOMELESS, DRUNKS AND
SOMETIMES JUNKIES.

TSTUSE STREET MAKES

AN OFFSET AND CONTIUES
TO NIINE. OFFICIAL
PEDESTRIAN MOVEMENT
MAKES A SIGNIFICANT
DETOUR AND THEREROFE
SHORTCUTS ARE
FREQUENT.
UNCONVENIENT AND HIGH
RISK CROSSING.

OFFICIAL CROSSINGS ARE

LIMITED, SHORTCUTS ARE
FREQUENT. COMING FROM
VANA-KALAMAJA DIRECTION
THE CROSSWALK IS
DANGEROUS AS PARKING
CARS BLOCK THE
VISIBILITY.

500m

200m

ANALYSE

C A S E S T U D Y -3

97

Conclusion

The Vana-Kalamaja street has potential to

become a prominent street of Kalamaja.
The idea of a pedestrian gateway between the sea and the old
town is feasible and supported by the site potentials - there are
many vacant plots of land yet to be built, these functions can be
directed to adapt the idea of an active pedestrian street. The
general traffic logic is backing North-South pedestrian street.

There are many residual or otherwise

inefficient spaces that could contribute to
the idea of a vital street.

To gain vital public-life the street needs

more extraversive indoor functions and
more local workplaces.
The few extraversive indoor functions situated on the street on
are not enough to sustain active use of the street throughout the
day. To become lively there should be more cafes and
restaurants, small shops and other functions that communicate
on ground level. Currently the North part of the street has no
extraversive functions at all.
The already valid master plans tend to give too little proportion
for businesses and office-space. Even when the street is
promoted as a gate to the sea, there will be not enough people
to sustain the activity throughout the week and the seasons. The
street, and the whole district would benefit from more local
workplaces.

98

The street needs more outdoor activities.

The current condition of the street is poor

(street cover, many minor pedestrian
inconveniences)

Most of all the South end of the street

needs attractivity repairs, the beginning of
the street is not invitive.

C A S E S T U D Y -3

Currently there is only one playground that counts as an activity

place that generates longer stays. Appart from that the street is
used mostly for necessity - to get from one place to the other.
There are no public seats and no cafe terraces. To increase
footfall there should be more activity places for the general
public and for specific users.

PROPOSAL

New street concept

For the local community the street could play a role of the
main street, a street of many in- and outdoor activities.
Playgrounds, green areas, cafes, streetart, a square for
community meetings and festivals. To animate the street
the number of extraversive indoor functions and local
offices should be raised and street design made more
attractive.
The development plan calls all major actors to participate
in the specific design idea: the community, other local
residents and workers, land owners and the municipality.

Vana-Kalamaja street has historically been an active street

connecting the medieval town and the sea. Today the attractive
seaside functions and the human scale district with a valuable
milieu favor a pedestrian friendly street. The new street
concept regards both local residents and distant visitors,
among them tourists who currently visit the area seldom.
An active pedestrian street could be presented as a gateway
to the sea, increased pedestrian footfall envisions new
possibilities for businesses located on the street.

a schematic

Proposal

1 Implement shared space concept

KA

LA

RA

NN

Vana-Kalamaja street converted to shared space street in full

lenght. For safety precautions the main traffic junctions at Soo,
Niine and Kotzebue crossing will be provided with vehicle
traffic bumpers to slow down at the crossing. The street cover
at these crossings should be different from the rest of the
street (e.g. alarming colour) to make everyone more alert and
consider others in traffic flow. The street is arranged on one
level for everyone, cars, bikes and pedestrians. Traffic signs
are removed and speed limit is set to 20 km/h. Loosing the
segregation of pedestrian and traffic zones saves space and
allows carefully chosen parking places on street.

Overgrown trees cut, views cleared

New stair and ramp for cyclists and
pedestrians. Signs of seaside
attractions.

2 Increasing the active hours of the street

TI
SU
UR
AT

-P

Public seats / a meeting place

New park with attractions

for different user groups
SO

JA

IK

EI

AR

IE

-P

TA

3 Presenting/ marketing the street

I

HU

New walking path to the sea

O

Overgrown trees cut, views cleared (6)

Road bumpers and different street
cover at the crossing (1)
SO

STU

Phase 1 - temporary use (e.g dogwalking area). Phase 2 - see nr. 2

SE

Public seats, cafe terracces

on the street. See nr. 4
NIIN

Phase 1 - Temporary garden by Niine 11

creative cluster. Phase 2 - see nr. 2

Seats in front of the sauna

New parking management
Road bumpers and different street
cover at the crossing (1)

KOTZEB

TZ

EB

Overgrown trees cut,

views cleared

UE

To sustain public activity the street needs more extraversive

indoor (+outdoor) functions: cafes, restaurants, small shops
etc. All approved master plans should be checked and the
percentage of allowed business function increased. With only
a few offices or other working places the daytime activity is
poor, the proportion of offices should be raised.

Public square - a meeting place

Multi-event space (festivals, markets etc.)
Container vegetation and seats
Community shared car parking
Phase 1 - temporary seats and specific user
group activity place (e.g health sports field)
Phase 2 - see nr. 2

New cafe (4). Transformed fences. Street art

on building sides and solid fences.

To attract more users to use Vana-Kalamaja street, the idea of

the access street should be presented by the seaside
museums and all other public businesses (press release for
relevant parties e.g tourism office).

4 Community run investor management

To create suitable and desired functions (businesses) the
community could start an investor programme: 1. find a place
and and idea (cafe) 2. discuss with the owner 3. find a suitable
operator to run it. E.g at the South of the street there is a low
value garage on a high-value land.

5 Development phases - temporary uses

It takes time till the empty lots on the street get built. Organise
temporary activities (community) in exchange for the land
maintenance. Depending on the location and time it is suitable
to create: 1. allotments 2. snow gardens 3. dog-walking areas
4. growing a wild garden etc.

6 Aesthetic improvements
Tend the overgrown trees on the corner of Kotzebue street
(the school), by the Soo st. shop and by the sea to clear
views. At the South end of the street transform the unaesthetic
fences. Provide more trash bins.

7 Improved attractivity
In addition to all other points: 1.organise (community) street
artists to paint the blank walls of the area. Some old buildings
have blank plastered side walls (fire precaution) that could be
painted by artists. 2. temporary use could implement
installations e.g blank side walls provided with public stairs to
observe the hidden places. 3. Bar-code tiles on building
facades to be read with smart-phones. Collect and present
stories of the place.

8 Public seats on the street

Find suitable locations for public seats e.g in front of the old
sauna, the Kotzebue square, Tstuse/ V-K corner etc.

A public square

Create a public square at the corner of Kotzebue st.

10

A new park for different users

New park by the Kalma sauna (different user groups).

P H J A -P U I E S T E E

Shared space street (1)

Temporary uses

11

Community run shared car program

To promote sustainable ideas, organise a shared car parking

at the Kotzebue public square.

PROPOSAL

C A S E S T U D Y -3

99

100

ENDNOTES

00
Endnotes

ENDNOTES

101

102

PROJECT PROCESS

ENDNOTES

Project process
The process
Methodology

of the project

is described

part (p13), the following

in the

is series of

sketces illustrating how the proposed model of urban

public space and a table of questions was conceived .

ENDNOTES

PROJECT PROCESS

103

The model of UPS in progress

FUNCTIONS
business
public services
recreation

cafes
restaurants
clubs
services
shops

active

passive

streets
green spots

parks
event-s p a c e s
quality
accessibility
attractivity
safety

quality
accessibility
attractivity
safety

sports
cultural
social
playgrounds?

ACCESSIBILITY

Q U A L I T Y O F O P E N -S P A C E S

pedestrians
cyclists
public transport
cars
to
to
to
to

busineesses
public services
active recreation
passive recreation

STREETSCAPE

ATTRACTIVITY
AMENITIES
-

lawn
trees
vegetation
clean air
cleanliness
trash bins

pedestrians
cyclists
public transport
cars

PARKS

E V E N T -S P A C E S

M e t h o d o f a n a l y s e:
1 . Mapping of the known future developments
2 . Mapping unused areas as potentials
3 . Assessment of the current values
- random users (street survey)
- locals (directed survey)
- municipality (directed survey)
- land owners (directed survey)
4 . Public forum for all interested participants
5 . Conclusion of the mappings, a ssessm en t a n d f o rum

104

PROJECT PROCESS

Jan Gehl classifies users as follows :

Everyday users . People who live and work in the area.
Visitors and customers . People who visit the area from beyond.
P a s s e r s b y . People passing through the area, going or coming from other places.
Recreational visitors. Those who visit the park because of its beauty or to use the space for recreation.
Visitors to events. People who come for special programs

ENDNOTES

The model of UPS in progress

DEMAND FOR
ATTRACTS

MEASURE AVG USERS PER

AREA? WHATS A GOOD
RATIO?

ATTRACTS MORE
PEOPLE

A GOOD PROPORTION
OF USERS AND THE
AREA CREATE SOCIAL
CONTACTS - PLEASING

WHAT MAKES
A GOOD
URBAN PS?

MEASURE QUALITY?
HOW

NUMBER OF USERS IN THE AREA

U S E R -F R I E N D L Y N E S S O F T H E A R E A
ACTIVITIES IN THE AREA

CREATES MORE ACTIVITIES

DEMAND FOR

DIVERSITY

ATTRACTS

LIVING
BUSINESS
P U B L I C S E R V C I C E S (S C H O O L , P O S T ,
P H O N E ...)
RECREATION

MEASURE
DIVERSITY?
HOW

WHAT MAKES URBAN PUBLIC SPACE A GOOD ONE ?

1. A PRECONDITION OF QUALITY URBAN PUBLIC SPACE IS
IT`S S U B J E C T - T H E P U B L I C - T H E P E O P L E
2. THE QUALITY OF THE SPACE AND ITS INGREDIENTS
3. THE DIVERSITY OF FUNCTIONS

ENDNOTES

PROJECT PROCESS

105

The model of UPS in progress

ACTIVITIES IN THE AREA

BUSINESS
cafes
restaurants
clubs
services like hair dresser
shops
etc.

RECREATION

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

distribution
accessibility

RELATION?

ACTIVE

PASSIVE

E V E N T -S P A C E S
sports
cultural
quality
social
accessibility
attractivity
PARKS
safety
SQUARES

PASSERBY SPACES
streets
buildings
undefined spots

GROUP
ORIENTED
AVTIVITIES

SKATERS
KIDS
PLAYGROUNDS
PING PONG
RUNNING
OTHER SPORT
GAMES

QUALITY

SCHOOLS
KINDERGARTENS
POST OFFICE
ETC.

QUALITY

diversity
distribution
accesibility

PUBLIC SERVCICES

QUALITY

QUALITY

LIVING ?

quality
accessibility
attractivity
safety

U S E R -F R I E N D L Y N E S S
OF OPEN SPACES

STREETSCAPE

E V E N T -S P A C E S

PASSERBYSPACES

ATTRACTIVITY

ACCESSIBILITY
AESTHETIC/ SOFT
AMENITIES
lown
trees
vegetation
clean air
cleaniness
trash bins
visual info

M E D I A / V I R T U A L P U B L I C S P A C E?

Gehl - I N B E T W E E N
BUILDINGS

necessary activities

106

PROJECT PROCESS

optional activities

social activities

ENDNOTES

The model of UPS in progress

4
DE

AT

DENSITY AND FREQUENCY

PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN THE
USE OF AN AREA,
DETERMINING THE VITALITY
OF UPS. VITALITY OF A PLACE
IS A PREMISE OF ALL ASPECTS
OF UPS.

A
TR

MA

ND

TS

QUALITIES

USERS
WHAT MAKES A GOOD

URBAN PUBLIC
SPACE
S

ATT

AND

RAC
TS

DEM

A PLACE IS USED
MORE FREQUENTLY
WHEN ITS
ENVIROMENT
OFFERS A SENSE OF
QUALITY:
IT HAS CHARACTER,
IT IS IN HUMAN
S C A L E , IT IS
INCLUSICE, SAFE
AND PLEASING

FUNCTIONS
DE

MA

ND

A COMMON
CHARACHTER FOR
ALL GREAT URBAN
PUBLIC SPACES IS A
R I C H , M I X E D -U S E
ENVIRONMENT THAT
KEEPS A PLACE
VIBRANT
THROUGHOUT DAYS
AND SEASONS

AT

TR

AC

TS

ACTIVITIES

LIVING?

BUSINESS

PUBLIC SERVCICES

RECREATION

public transport

CAFES
RESTAURANTS
CLUBS
D I F F . S E R V I C E S (H A I R
DRESSER)
SHOPS
CINEMA
ETC.

SCHOOLS
KINDERGARTENS
LIBRARY
CITY HALL
OTHER PUBLIC SERVICES
(P O S T E T C )

ACTIVE
sports
cultural
social

THEATER
MUSIC FEST

STREETSCAPE
SQUARES
GROUP ORIENTED
AVTIVITIES

U S E R -F R I E N D L Y N E S S / Q U A L I T Y
OF OPEN SPACES

STREETSCAPE

E V E N T -S P A C E S

P A S S E R B Y -S P A C E S

O P E N -S P A C E S

necessary act

CONNECTIONS (STREETS,
PATHS)
PUBLIC TRANSPORT

ENDNOTES

ATTRACTIVITY

PASSIVE
streets
parks
buildings
undefined spots

ACCESSIBILITY

AESTHETIC/ SOFT
AMENITIES

diversity
distribution

optional act

diversity
distribution
connections

PARKS
SQUARES
GROUP ORIENTED
AVTIVITIES
SKATERS
KIDS PLAYGROUNDS
PING PONG
RUNNING
OTHER SPORT GAMES

ACTIVE
sports
cultural
social

PASSIVE

STREETSCAPE
SQUARES
GROUP ORIENTED
AVTIVITIES

streets
parks
buildings
undefined spots

PROJECT PROCESS

107

The model of UPS in progress

5
considered references for the questions

Characteristics of great UPS. G u i d e l i n e s

American Planning Association
(http://w w w .planning.org/greatplaces/s p a c e s /
characteristics.h t m ), accessed 2 0 .0 2 .2 0 1 3
Description of the Public Space
It is important to identify the geographic, d e m o g r a p h i c , a n d
social characteristics of the public space. Tell us about its
location (i.e . urban, s u b u r b a n , rural, etc.), layout and
connectivity; e c o n o m i c , social, and ethnic diversity; a n d
functionality. We also want to know whether a plan or specific
planning efforts contributed to or sustained the character of the
public space, or if the space formed more organically and not
through a formal planning process.
Public Space Features and Elements
How does the public space ...
Capitalize on building design, scale, architecture, a n d
proportionality to create interesting visual experiences, vistas, or
other qualities?
Accommodate multiple uses?
Accommodate multiple users? It is accessible via walking,
biking, or public transit?
U s e , protect, and enhance the environment and natural
features?

Description of the Public Space

Where is the space located, and what is its setting? (D o w n t o w n ,
neighborhood, waterfront, city center, business or entertainment
districts, historic area, parks, etc.)
What role, if any, did plans and planning contribute to the
creation of the space? Is there special zoning or ordinances that
allowed for the creation of the space?
How large is the area?
When was the space created ?
Guidelines for Great Public Spaces
1 .0 F e a t u r e s a n d E l e m e n t s (not all may apply)
1.1 What landscape and hardscape features are present?
How do they contribute to the unique or special nature of the
space?
1.2 How does the space accommodate pedestrians or others
whose access to the space is by transit, bicycles, or other
m e a n s ? Is the space welcoming to those with physical
disabilities or others with special needs?
1.3 Does the space accommodate multiple activities?
1.4 What purpose does it serve for the surrounding
community?
1.5 How does the space utilize existing topography, vistas, or
g e o g r a p h y ? Does it provide interesting visual experiences,
vistas, or other qualities?
1.6 How are murals or other public art incorporated into the
space?

Public Space Activities and Sociability

2 .0 Activities and Sociability
How does the public space...
Reflect the community's local character and personality?
Foster social interaction and create a sense of community and
neighborliness?
Provide a sense of comfort or safety to people gathering and
using the space?
Encourage use and interaction among a diverse cross section of
the public?
Characteristics and Guidelines for Designation
A public space may be a gathering spot or part of a
neighborhood, d o w n t o w n , special district, waterfront, or other
area within the public realm that helps promote social interaction
and a sense of community. Examples include spaces such as
plazas, town squares , parks, marketplaces, p u b l i c c o m m o n s
and malls, public greens, piers, special areas within convention
centers or grounds, sites within public buildings, lobbies,
c o n c o u r s e s , or public spaces within private buildings. As with all
categories of Great Places, it is important to identify what sets a
space apart from others spaces to qualify it for a Great Spaces
designation. Public Spaces must be at least 10 years old.
Characteristics of a Great Public Space include :
Promotes human contact and social activities.
Is safe, w e l c o m i n g , and accommodating for all users.
Has design and architectural features that are visually
interesting.
Promotes community involvement.
Reflects the local culture or history.
Relates well to bordering uses.
Is well maintained.
Has a unique or special character.

108

PROJECT PROCESS

2.1 What activities make the space attractive to people and

encourage social interaction? (C o m m e r c e , entertainment or
p e r f o r m a n c e s , recreational or sporting, cultural, markets or
vending, exhibits, fairs, festivals, special events, etc.)
2.2 Does the space provide a sense of comfort and safety to
people gathering and using the space? Does the space provide
a friendly and welcoming atmosphere ?
2.3 How do people interact with one another? Does the space
encourage communication or interaction between strangers?
2.4 How does this place encourage use by a diverse cross
section of the public?
3 .0 Unique Qualities, Traits, and Characteristics
3.1 What makes this public space stand out? What makes it
extraordinary or memorable?
3.2 Is there variety, a sense of whimsy, or an atmosphere of
discovery or pleasant surprise?
3.3 Is there commitment to maintain the space and to keep it
a usable space over time? Does the public have a sense of
ownership about the space? How has it changed over time?
3.4 Is there a sense of importance about the space? W h a t
characteristics or qualities contribute to this?
3.5 What is the history of the space, and how is it
remembered or passed on from one generation to the next?
3.6 Does the space serve as a place of inspiration or
contemplation, or is it considered sacred?
3.7 What is it about the space that contributes to a sense of
community?
3.8 What makes this space special and worthy of designation
as a Great Space?

ENDNOTES

The model of UPS in progress

5
considered references

A diagram by PPS - Project for Public Space

(w w w .p p s .org)

n u m b e r o f w o m e n, children and elderly

local business ownership

social networks

diverse
stewardship

volunteerism

active

cooperative
evening use

land-use patterns

fun

neighborly

friendly
interactive

rent levels

special

pride

street life

property values

vital

Sociability

real

Uses &
Activities

retail sales

useful
indigenous

welcoming

celebratory

Place
continuity

safe

proximity
traffic data

clean

connected
readable

mode splits
transit usage

Access &
Linkage

sittable

walkable
convenient
accessible

pedestrian activity

green

Comfort &
Image

crime statistics

spiritual
charming

sanitation rating

attractive
building conditions

historic

parking usage patterns

environmental data

MEASUREMENTS / INTANGIBLES / KEY ATTRIBUTES

A neighbourhood vision document by the Uue Maailma

community (Tallinn, 2012)

ENDNOTES

PROJECT PROCESS

109

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ENDNOTES

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