REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The review of related literature provides an overview of the existing knowledge, allowing the researcher
to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research papers. Thus, it helps the researcher (1)
articulate clear goals, (2) show evidence of adequate preparation, (3) select appropriate methods, (4) communicate
relevant results, and (5) engage in reflective critique (Maggio et al., 2016).

This chapter presents the various studies on the components of a good urban design and the
implementation of urban design in some of the cities in the Philippines. It enables both the researcher and the
readers to gain knowledge regarding this matter and to understand its relevance to the concept paper topic.

A. Urban design and urban planning

The urban design approach should take into consideration the background and relationship of the users
concerning the social aspects of where it is to be established and implemented. According to Abd Elrahman &
Asaad (2021), urban design is seen as an embedded activity with an interdisciplinary and political activity.
Analyzing the gap between the theory and practice of urban design can be concluded that urban design is
developed to bridge the gap between architecture and planning. Abd Elrahman & Asaad (2021), claims that the
urban design practice remains uncertain within its ambiguities regarding its relationship with planning,
consequently hindering its success in practice. Thus, the gap it intended to bridge between architecture and
planning succeeded to relate to Architecture but failed to directly relate to the urban planning theory or practice.
Even so, there is evidence of success in having a good urban design in other countries. It implies that through the
introduction of new events of success, the core theory of the urban design process can adapt and be modified to
conform to the ideal and up-to-date level of development.

Jaqueline Tyrwhitt is a British town planner, editor, and educator who contributed to developing a certain
array of ideas in diverse geographic locations, cultures, institutional settings, and personal relationships. Tyrwhitt
shared her insights and knowledge as she travels to other countries and one of them is the humanistic and
ecological approaches to urban and regional planning. Walter Gropius, a German-American architect believes that
planning education should be related to physical design, and landscape architecture became indiscernible with
physical planning. Also, Joseph Sert stated his decision that the school must teach physical planning only and get
external help to learn about the remaining related subjects as a way of maximizing the limited finances of the
school during that time. Tyrwhitt disagreed with their architectural biases. According to Shoshkes (2013), Tyrwhitt
states that without a structurally creative imagination even the best collection, analysis and synthesis of place, folk
and work could not result in a worthwhile habitat for man. Tyrwhitt’s perspective on historical sites serves as
“evidence of continuity” of ancient culture in modern society (Shoshkes, 2013). Tyrwhitt also has two lines of
reasoning and those are concerning people’s needs and current trends affecting development.

B. Urban design thinking

A series of conceptual windows that provides a fresh perspective on urban design is beneficial for the
researcher and the readers. Dovey (2016), discusses various theoretical principles with real-life examples of urban
design in his book. It enables the readers to understand how a city works and how design practices transform and
affects them. It also enlightens the readers on how good theories can serve as a good foundation for effectively
designing a town or a city as well as understanding urban life. The theories for urban design could be a reflection
and assessment when it comes to urban design critique and practice. It also encourages the readers and designers
to develop critical thinking regarding urban design which allows them to be mindful of whether their design is
beneficial to the multidisciplinary zone of practice that has a broad scale and focuses on the connections and
relationship between buildings and spaces. Lastly, what matters the most in creating a public space is how it
functions as a whole. The co-functioning of the structures and spaces and their accessibility to the variety of
occupants should be prioritized in urban design thinking.

2.1 Urbanity

The term ‘urban’ came from the Latin word called urbanus which means courteous. The term ‘city’ came
from the Latin word called ciuis which means citizen and shares a common origin with the terms ‘civil’ and ‘civilized’
which means that to be civil is to be courteous. The Greek word for ‘city’ is polis which means that the city is
regulated through politics and policy. The term ‘public’ came from a Latin word called publicius which means
‘belonging to the people’. The following terms that are defined refer to the urban public space and urban design
shapes the urban public space. Diversity of identity, class, ethnicity, age, ability, or politics should not be a matter
of barrier since public space is shared in common. According to Dovey (2016), public space is the primary site
where a sense of the ‘common’ becomes embodied in everyday life before it becomes ‘community’.

2.2 Access, Mix, and Density

The interaction and relationship between access, mix, and density are often referred to in the more object-
oriented language of urban planning concerning built form, land use, and transport. It is considered a conceptual
triangle of connectivity, co-functioning, and concentration. The diversity of individuals in different places who co-
function leads to the formation of connections are essential between the diversity of individuals and places. It can
also be viewed as a triangle of forms, functions, and flows. The densities of built form are largely congruent with
population densities and transport flows (Dovey, 2016). Access, mix, and density are necessary but not adequate
preconditions for urban life.

2.3 Discourse

According to Dovey (2016), The image of the city embodies forms of representation. It develops our
understanding regarding it. The city has various forms of symbolic representation that denote the way we view it.
There are instances wherein the city may not be perceived in ways intended by the designers. There is also a
possibility that the perception of the people towards it may change over time. It applies to words and meanings
since it modifies through time as well. Media can also influence the construction of meaning through the mass
production of ideas, replacing the role of architects and urbanism. The concept of discourse includes the aspect of
urban form, fashion, and behavior that serves as communication systems. The discourse theory explores the
language, concerning how words and meanings affect each other.

C. Good urban design

A good urban design can be a factor in economic growth and regeneration since it is the basis for
measuring welfare or utility which incorporates economic, social, and environmental considerations. The
emergence of different social and economic trends may lead to a poorly designed urban environment. Such as
individualism over collectivism, and privatization of the spaces, life, and culture that results in the recession of the
public realm. Environment and culture undergo a reciprocal process. The choices and actions made by individuals
through time will contribute to shaping the identity and culture of an area as well as its impact on the environment.
It can be achieved by addressing the occupants’ demands, reducing management, maintenance, energy, and
security costs, establishing mixed-use elements in developments to provide more opportunities for the occupants,
efficiency and accessibility, and ideally perceived as a public good. These are only a few of the qualities and
components of a good urban design. The following parts will delve deeper into some components of good design.

3.1 Sustainability
 Integrating the environment in urban planning and management can not only be beneficial for a certain
town or city but rather globally. It affects the upsurge levels of resource efficiency, globally or locally which is helpful
in diminishing the overall environmental impact; concerning the whole process of production and consumption of
goods and services. Acknowledging how the city operates characterizes the co-benefits when it comes to social
and economic benefits that can be produced by determining and addressing global environmental problems. The
report written by Dalal-Clayton et al. (2013), listed several aspects and ways of environmental rehabilitation along
with its benefits. Being knowledgeable regarding the effective planning of a city or town to provide efficiency to the
lives of its occupants while minimizing their ecological footprints is essential. Through this, it allows for the
improvement of health benefits and quality of life for the occupants. Dalal-Clayton et al. (2013), provided a list of
questions that the government and other professions in urban planning can use to come up with a better solution
and implementation. Urban design is a continuous process of developing and redeveloping places as it is affected
by the occurring changes locally or globally.

3.2 Key dimensions of urban design.

The first key dimension of urban design is the temporal dimension. It implies that the environment is
constantly changing and it is important there should still be a degree of continuity and stability. It is crucial to
understand the effects of the day and night cycle of activities during each season whenever you intend to facilitate
or encourage the use of urban environments. The perceptual dimension discusses the individual's environmental
perception as well as how these images are created and developed along with the meaning behind them. It refers
to the social construction of the place with regards to the sense of place and the opposite. Such sensations refer
to the simple life experiences obtained from environmental stimuli. The Morphological Dimension deals with the
arrangement of urban form and space, along with the spatial patterns of infrastructure that uphold it. The visual
dimension refers to the visual character of the urban environment determined by the combination of spatial and
visual qualities, artifacts, and overall relationships. The social dimension discusses the relationship between space
and society through urban design. The functional dimension refers to designing healthier environments by
designing and establishing mixed-use developments with related issues at an adequate density. The design
governance dimension discusses the mechanism of state-sanctioned involvement in the process of designing the
built environment having the public’s interest as the basis of the process and outcomes. Lastly, The place
production dimension describes the role and relationship in the course of generating a new development along
with the involvement of the real estate as they utilize the ‘pipeline’ model of the development process.

D. Approaches to urban design in the Philippines

When the early shelters of the Filipinos emerged, there is a variety of dwellings in their community.
Creating a sense of community became a way of establishing their identity, culture, tradition, livelihood, religion,
and politics. Thus, how they arranged the structures within their area is a reflection of their attempt to practice
urban design. It continued through several colonization periods in the Philippines namely Spaniards, Americans,
and Japanese.

4.1 American Imperialism: City Beautiful Movement

Daniel Burnham was an American architect and urban planner who introduced City Beautiful Movement
in the Philippines. It is first implemented in Baguio and Manila. According to Navarro (2014), The proposal also
recommended mixed-use space and explained the functions of tree-lined streets, parks, waterways, and
waterfront. The idea is for every resident to be a short walking distance from a park, places of work, and leisure
areas. Though Burnham’s plan for the development and management of urban Manila was interfered with due to
war. When it is implemented, it consists of various fundamental architectural and spatial elements. The introduced
plan has a civic core, wide radial avenue, landscape promenades, and visually arresting panoramas. According
to Morley (2018), urban design in the Philippines, like that in the United States was highly systematized. Placing
the Philippine society along with the United States with regard to urban design became a locale central to the
internationalization of the City Beautiful paradigm and urban planning model. The established layouts of buildings
and spaces depict extensive use of symmetry. The public spaces are standardized in terms of layout and
appearance. For instance, the sites are usually rectangular in form, commonly consisting of greeneries such as
lawns, and the perimeters are marked by a line/s of trees. Ian Morley’s work enlightens the readers by expounding
the meaning of modern American city planning in the Philippines as well as its distribution throughout the
archipelago concerning colonial governmental ideals, social advancement, and the shaping of national identity. It
became beneficial in enriching the urban civilization in the Philippines. Consequently, the City Beautiful urban
design in the Philippines influenced city planning schemes at about the same time in Australia and the United
States (Morley, 2018).

4.2 Socio-ecological urban design approach in Metro Manila

Numerous typhoons occur in the Philippines each year and the impact of these natural disasters exposes
the informal urban dwellers who reside along the boundaries of the city, waterways, and shorelines to high risk
whenever it occurs. The areas with a high density such as Metro Manila that have been damaged by natural
disasters lead to urban resilience, raising the attention of economists, engineers, ecologists, and designers.
According to Gray & Ocampo (2017), Literature that bridges design and resilience has mostly responded to a
critique of design as being overly “in the service of narrowly defined human interests but having neglected its
relationship with our fellow creatures.”. This is essential when criticizing urban design using an ecologically-based
perspective. Jeopardizing socio-spatial factors determine the resilience of complex and evolving societies.
Developing concepts of resilience derived from ecological and social science perspectives and positioning urban
design as the designated discipline for integrating and rationalizing concepts of urban design resilience can be a
way to bridge the gap in urban resilience (Gray & Ocampo, 2017). It is the responsibility of urban designers to give
form and order to the future and regardless of the complex nature of urban design, there are urban designers who
tried to connect the natural and social systems in developing an urban form. It encourages the other urban design
scholars to conceive more resilient cities for the occupants. Also, it measures the urban designer's accountability
potential in providing solutions to problems they aim to address. According to Gray & Ocampo (2017), their
research intentionally blurs the boundaries between ecological, social, and spatial phenomena and aim to
demonstrate the latent potential in taking a socio-ecological urban design approach to resilience that imagines
more efficient, equitable, and integrated urban environments.

4.3 Urbanization challenges

According to research, the Philippine urban development planning and implementation concentrated on
housing development rather than the development of other forms of physical infrastructure such as the
implementation of efficient transport networks that are beneficial for the public realm. There are various key
problems concerning economic and environmental infrastructures that make certain cities of the Philippines prone
to climate change risks as well as experiencing its effects. Also, the urban areas of the Philippines are considered
as the growth centers when it comes to job opportunities and income. However, the majority of the urban population
lies above the poverty line and has a possibility of being in that line too. It states that this is a result of poor urban
planning and design and uncoordinated government response.

E. Examples of good urban design in the Philippines

The United Land Institute case study on Bonifacio Global City (BGC) discusses why it is one of the most
valuable assets of Philippine development. The Fort Bonifacio Development Corporation or FBDC has four key
goals. The first one is to invest in a neighborhood that is a density-controlled environment, zoning plan, pedestrian
system plan, and vehicular access plan. Second is a city that works by having all power underground utilities,
drainage systems, wastewater treatment, continuous supply of power system, traffic and neighborhood monitoring
system, and estate services. The third one is a neighborhood designed for people with open space and active
street life prioritized by establishing mixed-use spaces and buildings, key public buildings and parks, Sports
facilities, and BGC Greenway that has 1.6 km long public space for walking, jogging, and serves as a safe
evacuation area. Lastly, creating a city with a soul is achieved through an array of cultural and arts-based activities.
ULI (2020) states that one of BGC’s current successes was because the original owner group adopted an ambitious
plan featuring a defined set of principles that called for the project to be mixed-use, human-oriented, dense with
usable open space, and feature high-quality design and construction guidelines. BGC is the country’s second
largest Central Business District since it is an area of various prime retail, hotel, and residential facilities. For
instance, Bonifacio High Street is a one-kilometer promenade that has low-density retail and entertainment for
leisure and recreation with green open space in the middle. It is accessible on foot from all parts of the BGC,
making it the main center of activity.

Cagayan de Oro City implemented a participatory urban design to integrate organic solid waste
management into urban agriculture in three communities. According to Tramhel (2012), the Asset-Based
Community Development or ABCD approach in a project is well-suited as a participatory urban design tool for the
development of resilient and sustainable cities as it is consistent with the basic principles of urban design. The
objectives are satisfied through a series of lectures, hands-on training, and field trips. The communities faced
challenges in waste management and arising health risks due to improper waste management. The planning tools
that are utilized by the municipalities are land use zoning along with the principles of designing with nature and
creating continuous productive urban landscapes (Tramhel, 2012). In addition, the guiding design principle for
these projects is environmental sustainability. Involving the occupants in the projects of urban design encourages
unity within the community. Thus, the occupants are able to gain knowledge and help conserve their environment.

Synthesis

As previously discussed, the urban design approach should take into consideration the background and
relationship of the users concerning the social aspects of where it is to be established and implemented. Acquiring
an array of ideas from diverse geographic locations, cultures, institutional settings, and personal relationships helps
the urban designers to learn more and design the area appropriately with respect to the stated factors of
consideration. Despite the long years of trying to understand urban design and its application to all countries, there
are gaps that still need to be filled and rectified. Such as redirecting the focus of the urban development planning
to implement developments that are beneficial for the public realm and the overall effect of the projects on the
environment. It is essential to continuously remind and encourage the designers that through the introduction of
new events of success, the core theory of the urban design process can evolve and adapt to achieve the ideal
sustainable environment. It helps the readers to always keep in mind that how the neighborhood or a city function
as a whole is what matters the most in creating a public space. The co-functioning of the structures and spaces
and their accessibility to the variety of occupants should be prioritized in urban design thinking.

Conceptual Framework

The conceptual framework of this study is utilizing the lenses of urban design thinking concept, key
dimensions of urban design, and sustainability in the case study: assessment of urban design in Manila City, Metro
Manila. The following concepts will be helpful in understanding and analyzing why the urban design of Manila City
ended up in this state. This part consists of the flow of how this research will aim to understand and address that
concern.
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