from: http://www.metronews.ca/features/vancouver/vancouvering/2016/08/26/vancouver-residents-active-in-the-design-of-public-space.html
Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Public space in Vancouver
"Passersby stop to watch an impromptu jazz concert under the Cambie Street Bridge, neighbours chat while perusing books at an outdoor micro-library, children play with oversized chess pieces on a Mount Pleasant boulevard. Vancouverites are taking an increasingly active role in place making, a community-based approach to the design and use of public spaces. Place making involves the use of urban public spaces to improve city-dwellers' happiness and well-being, fostering a sense of community."
from: http://www.metronews.ca/features/vancouver/vancouvering/2016/08/26/vancouver-residents-active-in-the-design-of-public-space.html
from: http://www.metronews.ca/features/vancouver/vancouvering/2016/08/26/vancouver-residents-active-in-the-design-of-public-space.html
Copenhagen by bike!
Curbs, hops, elevated pathways, and posted low-speed limits - how Copenhagen accommodates so many bicycles.
"Nearly 38% of all transportation trips in Copenhagen are done by bike. With plenty of safe, bicycle infrastructure (including hundreds of miles of physically separated cycletracks) it's no wonder that you see all kinds of people on bikes everywhere. 55% of all riders are female, and you see kids as young as 3 or 4 riding with packs of adults."
"Nearly 38% of all transportation trips in Copenhagen are done by bike. With plenty of safe, bicycle infrastructure (including hundreds of miles of physically separated cycletracks) it's no wonder that you see all kinds of people on bikes everywhere. 55% of all riders are female, and you see kids as young as 3 or 4 riding with packs of adults."
Tuesday, August 30, 2016
Vienna's secret
"The Austrian capital has ranked first on the list for seven years in a row. Mercer has consistently praised Vienna for being a safe city with good public services, transport and recreation facilities. In another survey, Monocle magazine also gives Vienna high marks. While Vienna dropped to third place on that list this year, the magazine hosted its annualQuality of Life conference here in April. The Economist’s latest “Liveability Ranking” — released this week — put Vienna second."
"What’s Vienna’s secret? According to government and business leaders, it’s a mix of good long-term planning, an emphasis on citizen participation and a relentless focus on social equity. “Vienna keeps in touch with its traditions, but at the same time embraces advancement,” says Judith Sandberger of the Vienna Business Agency. “Vienna doesn’t stand for the ‘fast buck’.”
Monday, August 29, 2016
The history of cities
"About 10,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers, aided by rudimentary agriculture, moved to semi-permanent villages and never looked back. With further developments came food surpluses, leading to commerce, specialization and, many years later with the Industrial Revolution, the modern city."
"Vance Kite plots our urban past and how we can expect future cities to adapt to our growing populations."
"Projects such as New York City’s High Line are shining examples of forgotten parts of a city being redeveloped into spaces that draw people and commerce from far and wide. As artisans and entrepreneurs bring life back into urban areas, many experts are beginning to talk about the environmental benefit of city life."
"A cursory consideration of city life might lead one to believe that it is much less sustainable than an existence lived out on a farm in the country. Upon further examination, however, one might realize that city dwellers inhabit smaller spaces, drive far less, and procure goods from nearby shops."
Thursday, August 25, 2016
Lighting the way
"Light pollution hides views of the cosmos and causes a host of environmental problems. But architectural and landscape lighting can be designed so that it is sensitive to the night sky and ecosystems yet still responds to clients’ requirements."
"What is light pollution? Mark Major, principal of London-based lighting design firm Speirs + Major, explains simply that since illumination is a byproduct of energy, if you are using more than is required, or you are putting it where it isn’t desired or necessary, “by definition, that is pollution.”
"The outdoor lighting strategies recommended by IDA include luminaires that are shielded to direct light downward rather than up into the sky, are only as bright as necessary, and shut off or dim after hours. Strasser sums up the basics of outdoor lighting as “light where you need it, when you need it, and no more. Everything else is just waste.”
from: http://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/11814-designing-for-the-dark
"What is light pollution? Mark Major, principal of London-based lighting design firm Speirs + Major, explains simply that since illumination is a byproduct of energy, if you are using more than is required, or you are putting it where it isn’t desired or necessary, “by definition, that is pollution.”
"The outdoor lighting strategies recommended by IDA include luminaires that are shielded to direct light downward rather than up into the sky, are only as bright as necessary, and shut off or dim after hours. Strasser sums up the basics of outdoor lighting as “light where you need it, when you need it, and no more. Everything else is just waste.”
from: http://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/11814-designing-for-the-dark
Art in the city!
"Keys to the Streets brings delight and surprise to Vancouver’s public spaces by providing vibrantly painted pianos for everyone to play. The pianos offer a space for improvisational gatherings, spontaneous connections, and celebrations of music."
"The pianos provided help to address the issue of social isolation in Vancouver by providing spaces that allow and encourage connections between many demographics, all levels of musical skill, and those that simply listen."
from: http://keystothestreets.com/#about
"These public pianos are part of the Keys to the Streets project that has placed free, playable pianos to public places in Vancouver. The pianos are available from July 1 to August 23, 2014. This project is inspired by similar pop-up piano initiatives which have appeared in cities such as Montreal, Toronto, and New York."
from: http://www.insidevancouver.ca/2014/07/03/public-pianos-vancouver-key-to-the-streets/
"The pianos provided help to address the issue of social isolation in Vancouver by providing spaces that allow and encourage connections between many demographics, all levels of musical skill, and those that simply listen."
from: http://keystothestreets.com/#about
"These public pianos are part of the Keys to the Streets project that has placed free, playable pianos to public places in Vancouver. The pianos are available from July 1 to August 23, 2014. This project is inspired by similar pop-up piano initiatives which have appeared in cities such as Montreal, Toronto, and New York."
from: http://www.insidevancouver.ca/2014/07/03/public-pianos-vancouver-key-to-the-streets/
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
Friday, August 19, 2016
Example of a complete neighbourhood
"Vancouver Urbanism: Walkability, Bikability, the Public Square, District Energy, and Urban Agriculture"
"Dense mixed residential and commercial mean there’s always people about. Pubs, coffee shops, and restaurants abound. Architecture and public amenities draw people together."
"Dense mixed residential and commercial mean there’s always people about. Pubs, coffee shops, and restaurants abound. Architecture and public amenities draw people together."
Thursday, August 18, 2016
Urban ecology!
"Urban ecology is the discipline of the future, bringing geography, ecology, landscape architecture and urban planning together to create cities where people and biodiversity can thrive together. “Global urbanisation and global climate change are the two biggest threats to humanity in the future,” says Associate Professor McDonnell, who established the Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology in 1998. A rapidly growing body of knowledge shows people benefit enormously from nature in cities, from the shade and natural air-conditioning of trees, to the psychological boost that natural views give workers, to the role of gardens in managing stormwater."
from: http://3tags.org/article/how-urban-ecology-can-provide-a-greener-alternative-to-the-concrete-jungles-of-the-future
And one way that can happen is urban agriculture:
from: http://3tags.org/article/how-urban-ecology-can-provide-a-greener-alternative-to-the-concrete-jungles-of-the-future
And one way that can happen is urban agriculture:
"The burgeoning urban and near-urban agriculture trend in North America and around the world exemplifies how many small-scale, entrepreneurial businesses are inherently inefficient in how much labour they use. But this is something we should encourage and recognize as important for both economies and societies. When we talk about efficiency, we are usually talking about producing the most product or service for the least input or cost, including labour cost. But this definition of efficiency is counterproductive for job creation and for the environment."
Tuesday, August 16, 2016
The future of urban design
"This project isn’t a masterpiece, it’s a canvas," he said. "But it’s a masterful canvas."
"If we view the city as a canvas, then landscape architects are increasingly called in to be the decorators hired to meet the demands of a very tough client. Parks and green space, beyond their environmental benefits, are seen as ways to tie together disparate neighborhoods, fuel further development, mitigate discrimination, and serve as a symbol to the creative class that a city is modern, progressive and livable. In concert with urban planners and others, landscape architects are increasingly making important contributions to the how our cities look and function."
New public open space for Toronto
"With an area just larger than 16 regulation football fields, the proposed park would dwarf all other green spaces in the core. It’s an open space that chief planner Jennifer Keesmaat said could be “our Central Park” — a “grand civic gesture” in a part of Toronto experiencing unprecedented residential growth and one that is also the most deficient in parkland."
“It’s something special, because this signature central park, it’s not just for downtown residents, it will be a central destination for all of Toronto,” said Cressy of Rail Deck Park. “There is not 21 acres available in downtown Toronto. We need to be bold and innovate and think about how you utilize underutilized spaces.”
from: https://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2016/08/03/toronto-eyes-air-over-downtown-rail-corridor-for-bold-new-public-park.html
“It’s something special, because this signature central park, it’s not just for downtown residents, it will be a central destination for all of Toronto,” said Cressy of Rail Deck Park. “There is not 21 acres available in downtown Toronto. We need to be bold and innovate and think about how you utilize underutilized spaces.”
from: https://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2016/08/03/toronto-eyes-air-over-downtown-rail-corridor-for-bold-new-public-park.html
Monday, August 15, 2016
Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Why plan for walkability
"Mobility is intrinsic to the quality of life experienced in cities. But for the past century, the car has dominated how we plan and grow our urban areas. We must now seize the opportunity to place people back at the heart of our cities and drive a human focused approach to the design of the built environment. With a growing desire to create more liveable streets, walkability should be used as a catalyst for developing sustainable, healthy, prosperous and attractive cities."
Monday, August 8, 2016
Innovative density in residential
"The following ten projects—all completed over the past five years—model strategies for making micro housing more livable, minimizing the apparent density of new developments in low-rise areas, using modular construction to save costs, incorporating significant amounts of foliage and green space, and providing expansive communal areas."
"Bestor Architecture grouped the two- and three-story dwellings, each measuring less than 1,920 square feet (178 sq m), into a total of nine volumes to conceal their actual density. Most of the volumes also have pitched roofs, blending in with the surrounding single-family houses. The units are placed around a pedestrian-friendly street, which provides room to park cars and doubles as a plaza for residents; a few units have enclosed garages. Close to public transit lines, Blackbirds was completed in 2015."
"To shorten the construction schedule and thereby cut costs for a seven-story residential building in upper Manhattan, local architecture firm Gluck+ and local developers Jeffrey Brown and Kim Frank opted to take advantage of modular construction. Fifty-six modules were prefabricated and factory-finished off site in Brooklyn while construction workers poured the concrete foundation. On top of the first floor, which houses commercial space, the modules were stacked to form 28 residential units, ranging from studios to three-bedroom apartments. The process took ten months, shaving six months off the construction schedule for a traditionally built multifamily residence of the same size. Completed in 2014, the individual apartments were pushed back or pulled forward slightly to vary the street facade. A central courtyard brings in natural light, and many of the units have private terraces and outdoor space. Twenty percent of the units are designated as affordable."
"Bestor Architecture grouped the two- and three-story dwellings, each measuring less than 1,920 square feet (178 sq m), into a total of nine volumes to conceal their actual density. Most of the volumes also have pitched roofs, blending in with the surrounding single-family houses. The units are placed around a pedestrian-friendly street, which provides room to park cars and doubles as a plaza for residents; a few units have enclosed garages. Close to public transit lines, Blackbirds was completed in 2015."
"To shorten the construction schedule and thereby cut costs for a seven-story residential building in upper Manhattan, local architecture firm Gluck+ and local developers Jeffrey Brown and Kim Frank opted to take advantage of modular construction. Fifty-six modules were prefabricated and factory-finished off site in Brooklyn while construction workers poured the concrete foundation. On top of the first floor, which houses commercial space, the modules were stacked to form 28 residential units, ranging from studios to three-bedroom apartments. The process took ten months, shaving six months off the construction schedule for a traditionally built multifamily residence of the same size. Completed in 2014, the individual apartments were pushed back or pulled forward slightly to vary the street facade. A central courtyard brings in natural light, and many of the units have private terraces and outdoor space. Twenty percent of the units are designated as affordable."
Friday, August 5, 2016
One way or two?
"This is a home and a destination, not a place to pass through quickly on your way to somewhere else. The streets should be designed to reflect that."
from:
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
Does your city make the list?
"The bicycle makes sense in cities. With rising urbanization, our cities need modern mobility solutions, and moving around on two wheels proves time and again that it can offer results."
"Investment in bicycle infrastructure is a modern and intelligent move. Plenty of research shows the social, economic, environmental, and health benefits of urban cycling. Studies from Denmark tell us that for every kilometer cycled, society enjoys a net profit of 23 cents, whereas for every kilometer driven by car we suffer a net loss of 16 cents."
"Investment in bicycle infrastructure is a modern and intelligent move. Plenty of research shows the social, economic, environmental, and health benefits of urban cycling. Studies from Denmark tell us that for every kilometer cycled, society enjoys a net profit of 23 cents, whereas for every kilometer driven by car we suffer a net loss of 16 cents."
Pop quiz time!
"Can you identify the world cities from their running heatmaps? Smartphones and GPS watches now leave digital traces behind many urban runners, as they wind their way along the river or round the park. Can you identify the cities from the telltale tracks?"
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