FUNDAMENTALS OF URBAN DESIGN URBAN DESIGN ELEMENTS
AND COMMUNITY ARCHITECTURE
Physical Elements
Urban Design ➔ Buildings - Most pronounced
➔ The art of relating structures to one elements of the city
another and to their natural setting to - Forms the street walls of the
serve contemporary living city
➔ A set of plans for cities which aims - Creates a sense of place
to increase public benefits. ➔ Public Spaces - Living room of the
➔ The process of determining the form city
and character of the city. THE - Makes high quality of life in
LANGUAGE OF THE CITY the city
➔ Streets - Defined by its physical
3 Main Urban Design Goals dimensions and character
➔ Structural & functional urban - Connections between spaces
development and places
➔ Sustainable development - Defines a city
➔ Meet people’s needs and aspirations ➔ Transport - Enables movement
- Connects part of the city and
Who is it good for? shapes it
➔ Landscape - Soft contrast to the
- Local communities - fitness of hard urban environment
purpose and quality of life
- Government - Investment, growth Core Elements
and development
- Land developer - profit oriented ➔ Local Character - Distinctive
- Professionals - Good design, identity
character and sense of place. The - Clear sense of personal
physical aspect identity, be more actively
involved in management
Architects role in urban design
Architects as enablers ➔ Connectivity - The physical
conditions facilitating Access within
➔ Help local people achieve their the City.
goals - Enhance people’s Health,
➔ Distinguish aesthetic and Safety & Security,
problem-solving view of design
➔ Reintegrate the local ecology ➔ Density - concentration of
➔ Apply sound and sustainable population and activity in an urban
design principles to large scale area (balanced land use)
projects. ➔ Mixed Used - Variety of living and
➔ Study and learn from the mistakes working activities in close proximity
of previous failed community design.
- Offers convenience, choices, URBAN DESIGN PRINCIPLES
and opportunities
- Allows private and public ➔ Maintain a compact and diverse
transport infrastructure to be critical mass of activities
used more efficiently ➔ Create civic elements
➔ Adaptability - Capacity of urban ➔ Integrate traffic movement and
buildings & neighborhoods to adapt pedestrian safety
to changing needs. ➔ Respect traditional urban
➔ High Quality Public realm development pattern
- The physical environment ➔ New and renovated buildings should
that form the setting for complement adjacent structures
community and public life ➔ Architecture should stimulate
- attract people and encourage interest at street level
community participation, ➔ Reinforcement through color
➔ Signs should complement building
➔ Integrated Decision making - color
Integration between and within ➔ Conserve historic buildings
organizations ➔ Planning and designing of transport
➔ User participation - Public and parking
consultation process
- Improve the fit between Community Design is a systemic, highly
Design and User needs, scalable and robust methodology for the
facilitated
co-evolution of communities.
IMAGE OF THE CITY RESPONSIVE ENVIRONMENT
By Kevin A Lync - Yale Student Under
Frank Wright. M.I.T grad The idea that the built structure
should provide its users with an essentially
➔ Path - Major/minor routes of democratic setting, enriching their
circulation opportunities by maximizing the degree of
➔ Edge - Termination of a district choice available to them.
- Boundaries that break urban
development ➔ Permeability
➔ District - Sections of the city - Alternative ways through an
identifiable character environment
- Visually homogeneous - Where people can and can't
➔ Landmark - Prominent visual go
features of the city - Choice of access must be
➔ Node - Place of intense activity offered
- Distinguished from landmark - Public and private access
by its active functions must complement each other
- Must be visible
➔ Legibility
How to achieve ? - The quality which makes a
place graspable
➔ Analyze the streets and - How people can understand
blocks of the surrounding the place’s layout
area, to establish the - Divided into Physical Form
relative importance of all and Activity Patterns
access points to the site.
➔ Locate new routes through How to improve?
the site.
➔ Locate magnets so that ➔ Assess the existing legibility
pedestrian flow will foster of the area and its
those uses which need it. surroundings.
➔ Locate remaining uses to ➔ Check this assessment
minimize negative against the views of a wider
interactions between them. public.
➔ Calculate cost, project value ➔ Adjust the area’s street /
and feasibility. block layout to make the best
use of the legibility potential
➔ Variety of existing elements.
- Range of uses available to ➔ If a project has a strong path
the public: mix activities that theme, develop an
are compatible in order work appropriate vocabulary of
- Must provide a rich building heights and street
perceptual mix widths.
➔ Reinforce legibility of
How to encourage? elements according to their
relative importance.
➔ Analyze the block structure
as a starting point for
developing Variety. ➔ Robustness
➔ Determine the widest - The degree to which people
appropriate range of uses. can use a given space.
➔ Locate magnets so that - Many different purposes
pedestrian flow will foster - Building height, depth, floor
those uses which need it. area and accessibility affect
➔ Locate remaining uses to the robustness of a space.
minimize negative
interactions between them. How to achieve ?
➔ Calculate cost, project value
and feasibility. ➔ .Make ground floor area next to
public outdoor spac are occupied
by ative areas
◆ Active area - indoor areas ➔ Find the necessary
which can contribute to vocabulary of contextual and
outdoor activity use cues needed to achieve
➔ Posiion hard zones where thy will these objectives.
not restrict the use of the ➔ Consider implications of
remaining pace these cues in achieving
◆ Hard zone - space that Legibility.
are least likely yo change ➔ Consider the implication of
their functions during its these cues in achieving
entire lifetime Variety and Robustness.
➔ Adjust room sizes and details to
maximize small-scale robustness
➔ Provide private open spaces for ➔ Richness
housing - Range and variety of
➔ Design edges between buildings Choices of Sensory
and public spaces to support a Experience.
wide range of likely uses as - Proper application of
possible contrasts
- Usage of materials with
inherent surface variety.
➔ Visual appropriateness
- The detailed appearance of How to achieve ?
the place that makes people ➔ Assess and establish places
aware of the choices that have potential for non-
available. visual richness, and design
- Strongly affects the for kinetic, olfactory,
interpretations people put on auditory and tactile
places. experience.
- More important in public ➔ Analyze the various surfaces,
spaces, particularly relevant and assess the most
to the outside of buildings. appropriate strategies for
- How people interpret and achieving visual contrasts.
give meaning to visual cues ➔ Analyze likely viewing
are distances and times for each
surface and the relative
How to achieve ? numbers of people
concerned.
➔ Establish detailed objectives ➔ Develop extra richness for
for each publicly-visible those surfaces which are
surface, specifying which of likely to be viewed for long
the responsive qualities are periods.
to be communicated to each ➔ Check feasibility (materials
relevant user group. &labor).
➔ Presonalization
- The extent to which people can put
their own stamp on the place where
they live & work.
- achieve an environment that reflects
their own tastes and values.
- Improves the Variety and Legibility
of a place.
- Designers should support
personalization while ensuring that
the results will not erode any public
role the place or building may have.
How to encourage?
➔ Develop internal surfaces to
accommodate or encourage a variety
of uses, displays and accents.
➔ Develop a detailed internal and
external design of thresholds and
windows.
➔ External surfaces should allow
personalization but when publicly
visible, they should also be designed
so that Visual Appropriateness and
Richness won’t be destroyed.
