ROLE OF URBAN DESIGN IN REAL
DEVELOPMENT CONTEXT
Overview
 Urban design is an institutionalized control of
spatial manifestations of human activities in a
market economy
 A town must work properly and be
economically sound….but it should also be
pleasant to the observer (fusion of technical
to aesthetics)…function-economy-aesthetics
 City building programs are statements of the
principal tools of urban design
Sustainable Development
 Is urban space an essential dimension of sustainable
development?
……….Sustainability is local...: it needs a place to
happen.
……….Although problems aggregate and become
manifest on a global scale (e.g., ozone depletion, global
climate change), offenses to the environment are
produced locally.
PROPERLY DESIGNED & PROJECTED SPACE
IS A RESOURCE
 It is a register of development
 It facilitates access, proximity, mobility, security, flexibility,
appropriation, identity, etc…..through articulation of
morphological conditions
 It acts as a generator/localizer of economy
 It works as an integrating device [between conflicting interests,
specialized sectors, etc.]
 becomes a generator of an urban culture & citizenship, aiming
at diversity, inclusion, tolerance, responsibility, involvement,
etc.
 Space is almost a non-renewable resource…not recognizing it
as a resource results in a waste of opportunity
 Inappropriate planning/design is a burden to development.
URBAN SPACE &
POVERTY REDUCTION
 Space is able to generate economic
opportunities:
…….[at all scale levels, including the localizing of global economies, the
provision of informal economies, etc.]
urban agriculture: livelihood
provision, green lung & edge
to urban expansion
URBAN SPACE &
POVERTY REDUCTION (cont’d)
synergies of activities:
mobility & informal economic activites
URBAN SPACE &
POVERTY REDUCTION (cont’d)
 Design increases quality of life:
… [by providing qualitative space as collective wealth]
 Design provides multiple life
improvements:
……..[security, access to facilities, infrastructure, etc.]
 Design proposes means for the spatial
redistribution of wealth:
…. [cross-subsidy, land sharing, density management, etc.]
Land sharing: co-presence of classes, equal accessibility to infrastrcuture
& services.......Aranya Community Housing, Indore, India
[B. V. Doshi, 1982, masterplan]
URBAN SPACE & SUSTAINABILITY
● Rational use of land
1. natural resources
2. historical resources [patrimony]
3. material resources [material, knowledge, skills & technology]
4. social & cultural resources [including interests and
involvement of civil organizations, community, individuals]
● Development of sustainable design technologies
[energy balances, ecological footprints, material life-cycles, etc. ]
● Integrates aspects of social, economical, ecological
● Expands Brundtland definition
preservation of existing resources + structure growth &
investment
Missing synergetic relations between two........
Confrontation between national park and modern city
(Nakuru, Kenya)
Problem turned into opportunity to stucture
entire city
...........accentuating natural assets, protecting fragile
ecologies & green links (Nakuru kenya)
Urban Park: mediating between two potentially
conflicting urban land uses (Nakuru, Kenya)
Thus,
sustainability not only aims to protect the
rights of the next generation, but also
requires investment for the next
generation [creating future patrimony]
An urban design definition of sustainability may suggest::
A dense, compact city with a dynamic balance
between community and privacy.
A community of richness in architectural form, public
space, and individual and collective opportunities
A city with a strong sense of itself as a place, a clear
and defined form, and a common destiny (identity)
A human-scaled environment, not one that is overscaled and sized to primarily accommodate vehicles,
industries, and faceless institutions
A city with appropriate spaces for modern processes
(metabolic and economic)
Basic Design Principles in Development
 Strengthening
existing spatial
structure
• Dynamic, coherent,
and integrating
framework
• Addressing threats &
creating new
opportunities
Basic Development Concepts
• Qualifying urban space
• ‘Localizing’ urban development
• Broadening of ‘sustainability’ definition
• Visions / actions / projects
• Co-productive processes
• Governance triangle (Public, civil society, & private sector)
• Innovation based on practice
Development Strategies
• Make apparent urban visions
• Unite and canalize different contested urban forces
• Consider structural impact and leverage effect
• Build capacity to link, mediate, and organize multiple
actions and actors
• Emphasize feasibility, visibility, and innovation
Thematic Areas
1. Urban Design and Safety
• design / policy & disaster prevention
• emergency measures with long-term vision
• condition of destruction creates new opportunities
• threat management
2. Urban Design and Poverty Alleviation
• generation of economic opportunities
• qualitative space as collective wealth
• multiple day life improvements [security, access…]
• rational / economic use of scarce resources
• means for the spatial redistribution of wealth
Thematic Areas (Cont’d)
3. Urban Design and Sustainability
• facilitate appropriate use of available resources
• integrate multiple time frames
• develop technologies of sustainable design
• integrate social, economical, ecological sustainability
Spatial Issues & Challenges
1. New Urban Frontiers
• the ‘rurban’ fringe (residence/agriculture mix)
• the unarticulated appendage (undifferentiated sprawl)
• the ‘garden-city’ simulacrum (the gated satellite)
• Domain ‘jua kali’ (Areas facing informal sector
infestation)
• The indomitable slum (shanties & squatter settlements)
The ‘rurban’ fringe
(Town/agriculture mix)
The unarticulated appendage
(undifferentiated sprawl)
Unarticulated appendage:
Bujumbura [Burundi]; village expansion [Ethiopia]
The ‘garden-city’ simulacrum (the gated satellite)
The Domain ‘jua kali’
Areas facing informal sector infestation
Toi Market, Kibera, Nairobi
The indomitable slum
shanties & squatter settlements
Mukuru Village, Embakasi, Nairobi
Spatial Issues & Challenges (cont’d)
2. Transformation/Requalification of Existing
Fabrics:
• Destruction of historic neighbourhoods
• Inner-city densification & gentrification
• Peripheral suburbanization
• Urban renewal (slum up-grading,
regularization, etc.)
• Informalization of inner-city areas
Destruction of historic neighbourhoods
Historic patrimonium
Traditional street [Zanzibar]; Gebel Barkal pyramids [Sudan]; Lamu [Kenya]
Informalization of city centre
street markets: Kilifi and Eastleigh[Kenya];
Slum upgrading / Exclusive suburbs
Renewal [Nairobi, Kenya]
Suburb Kigali [Rwanda]
Inner City densification and Urban
Renewal
Spatial Issues & Challenges (cont’d)
3. Emerging Ecologies
• Urban agriculture
• The urban nature reserve
• Areas prone to natural disasters (drought,
flood, earthquake, etc)
Urban Agriculture
Kampala [Uganda];
Brick factory [Burundi]
Kampala [Uganda]; Brick factory [Burundi]
Nature Reserve
Highands [Rwanda]; Ngorongo Crater [Tanzania]
Areas Prone to Natural Disasters
Flood [Sudan]; Hafun Tsunami damage [Somalia]
Spatial Issues & Challenges (cont’d)
4. Infrastructure Development:
• Dilapidated road network & traffic congestion
• Disused infrastructure & underutilized lands
(railway sidings, port, speculative realty, etc)
• Inadequate infrastructural services
• Poor waste disposal & pollution
Dilapidated Road Network
Kinshasa [RD Congo]
Mwanza [Tanzania];
Nairobi [Kenya];
Capacity of existing infrastructures
Mombasa, Kenya
Kinshasa, Congo
Poor waste disposal
Uncollected garbage (Nairobi,Kenya; Floating waste, Somali coast
Changing Development Context
1. CHANGING DEMOGRAPHICS
• Increased urbanization & urban growth rates
• Impact of HIV/AIDS (depopulation, health care facilities access, etc)
2. GLOBALIZATION & ECONOMIC LIBERALIZATION
• Structural adjustment programs & Unintended consequences (economic decline &
poverty)
• Implosion of formal economic sector & explosion of informal sectors
• Public/Private, Global/Local Partnerships & International Investments
3. POLITICAL DEMOCRATIZATION & ADMINISTRATIVE DECENTRALIZATION
• Devolution & re-designation of governance systems
• Growing influence of community & non-governmental organizations
• Grater participation of civil society in governance processes
4. CIVIL WAR & INTENSIFICATION OF INTERNAL CONFLICT
• Politically instigated spatial displacement; proliferation of refuge camps; make-shift
settlements
• Collapse of urban systems
• Degradation of urban environments
Varying Roles at Different Levels
1. National & Regional Scale
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Regional design: determination of significant and
integral physical sections and delineating these
according to their characteristic topography, climate,
and culture
Recreational Area Design: areas of natural terrain
should be withtin one hour travel time from the
central city
Developing regions: to encourage flow of
investment capital, maintain development interest,
and create livable places
Wilderness areas and old preserves: safeguard
the value of those that have acquired a character
that we can look back with pride and admiration
2.
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Metropolitan Scale
Metropolitan structure: Plans for entire metropolises
addressing among others land use and transport
Metropolitan form and pattern: careful design of form and
pattern to address land use, transport, topography, proximity
to open and green spaces e.t.c
Metropolitan open space system: open space plan to
complement built up areas and also address open space
reserves
Metropolitan Transportation: to increase mobility, while
respecting urban tissue and equity in network distribution and
construction
Approach to the city: The first sight of should leave a lasting
impression…need for clarity amid increasing complexity
- Metropolitan views and vistas: strong
visual links to embrace the entire city or parts
of it; these need formal recognition and
protection so as to enhance city image
- Metropolitan skyline/ Townscape:
Townscape refers to the (3-dimensional) compositional character of
sequences of urban spaces and buildings.
- To specify sites of special vertical heights as
well as the special low sites such as those
along aviation lines
3. City-wide Scale:

System of open spaces: design open spaces based on an
intricate classification of size and type to reflect urban vitality

Pedestrian circulation: a design that interweaves pedestrian
movement to the entire city, connecting to major activity areas
and generators.

Municipal trees: Planting design that beautify and humanize
public environments, e.g streets

Electric lighting: designs for city illumination that will clarify
different areas according to distinct type of lighting
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Street Furniture: Design of street level objects that will
enhance pedestrian convenience: benches, advertising kiosks,
pavillions, bus and cab shelters e.t.c
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Street Hardware: design of objects pertaining to utility and
mechanical systems e.gutility posts, parking meters, traffic
signals, bill boards e.t.c
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Civic Design: careful outdoor design for sculpture,
murals, pavements,fountains e.t.c
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Landscape Design: artificial sculpturing of urban
landscape to enhance views, complement landform,
and correct visual errors.
4. Comprehensive Area/District Design
…designing parts of the city
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The Downton/CBD: designing of downtowns to ensure
ease of access, diversity, and attractiveness; development of
residence to keep them alive.
Renewal of old neighbourhoods: designs to restore
the soundness of old neighbourhoods and correct the effects
of blight while introducing stabilising elements.
Historic preservation: designs to restore and remodel
historic areas of the city to enhance their relevance and
command regarding the contemporary
Suburban centres: Designs for outlying centres that will
address issues of circulation for both pedestrians and motor
traffic, parking, landscaping, clustering of shops, location of
recreation areas e.t.c
New Suburbs and New Towns: Designing new
communities as guided by the need for open space reserves,
major utility services, zoning requirements e.t.c
5. Site Level
 preparation of site plans considering human
needs/function and the environment.
 determination of detailed layout of an area in
relation to natural environment and human
requirements:
 What should happen on a given area of land?
 Where it should happen?
 An evaluation of the vast range of environmental,
social, and economical factors with a bearing on
decision making.
6. Object level:
- design of individual objects as projects to
complement wider urban objectives
- Calls for specialised professionals with good
appreciation of urban design e.g architects
and engineers who design buildings and
bridges meant to transform urban character.
Examples: Bridges, buildings, sculpture,
monuments, fountains e.t.c