ARPLANN2

Fundamentals of Urban
Design & Community
Architecture
Topic 1: Introduction to Urban Design
and Community Planning
 Overview
This topic discusses the definition of Urban Planning, Urban Design and
Community Planning. It will also tackle the difference between urban
planning and urban design, the purpose and steps in planning. In this topic
the student will learn the value of planning in urban design and community
planning.
Lecture and Discussions:
Urban Design
 Refers to the process of designing and shaping the physical features of
cities, towns, and villages and planning for the provision of municipal
services to residents and visitors.
 Deals with the larger scale of group of buildings, infrastructure, streets and
public spaces, entire neighborhoods and districts, and entire cities with the
goal of making urban environments that are equitable, beautiful,
performativity and sustainable.
 Refers to an interdisciplinary field that utilizes the procedures and the
elements of architecture and other related professions, including landscape
design, urban planning, civil engineering and municipal engineering.
 Is about making connections between people and places, movement and
urban form, nature and built fabric.
Urban Planning vs. Urban Design
 Urban Planning is the act of planning the structures of a city, including
its policies, infrastructure, neighborhoods, building codes, and
regulations. Urban planning, by definition, is the “planning of city
strategies, structures and policies.” the focus is more technical and
political, and is on the strategy, structure and policy level.

 Urban Design is the creation of city features based on plans. It includes

everything from public space to infrastructure, as well as transportation,
landscapes and community accommodations. Urban design, by definition is the
“design of city features.” it is focused on the design and user experience and
operates at the features and system level.

Note:
 Urban planning and urban design share the same goals. They both
work towards creating sustainable and flexible spaces that improve the
quality of life for people living, working and traveling to the area.
Community Planning
 Involves the formulation of long range vision, goals, policies and strategies
for achieving social, economic and environmental sustainability within a
community in order to guide future community development.
 “Planning carried out with the active participation of the end users. Similarly
community architecture, community design and so on” (Community
Planning Handbook; 2000)
 Development in the community does not happen by chance. It is the result
of deliberate and concerned efforts by citizens who see the need for
planned changes. Unless the community residents are united in this
endeavor, little or no progress can see.
Planning
 Refers to a process of determining what is to be done, when and where is
should be done, who should do it, and how should be done. In other words,
it is determining the objectives and how to accomplish them.
 Planning is futuristic or proactive, never retroactive
 Planning is basically, a looking-ahead process.
 Planning is continuous.
 Planning, in effect is cyclical

Rationale of Planning
 Planning provides direction.
 Planning ensures economy of time, effort and money
 Planning reduces risks.
Steps in Planning
1. Formulation / Statement of Vision, Mission, Philosophy, Goals and
Objectives
➢ A VISION is the picture of what we want to realize…..
➢ The primordial task which we “carry upon our shoulder” is what we call
our MISSION. This serves as the focus of all our activities in the
organization.
➢ PHILOSOPHY serves to unify the members and in most instances,
rationalizes the actions and decisions they make for the organization.
➢ GOALS are broad statements of aims for organization. They are long-
range purposes and may not be attained within a year or so.
➢ OBJECTIVES, are specific, immediate aims the attainment of which will
redound to the fulfillment of the organizational goals.
2. Analyze the Environment
➢ Internal Environment – existing conditions within the community /
organization.
➢ External Environment – conditions outside of the community /
organization.
➢ Four Important Planning Considerations should be identified:
1. Strengths
2. Weaknesses
3. Opportunities
4. Threats

3. Identify Needs / Problems

➢ Environmental analysis inevitable results in the identification of needs / problems /
constraints.
➢ Identified needs should be prioritized on the bases of the degree of seriousness of
the problem (or extent of need) availability of financial resources and magnitude
of benefits to be derived from the activity / project.
4. Formulate Alternative Course of Action
➢ A need to brainstorm on the suggested alternatives for certainly, each
proponent would want to have his suggestion / solution be adopted.
➢ Discussion on suggested solutions should focus on how workable and
practical are such alternatives.
5. Undertake a Contingency Planning
➢ A substitute plan just in case the original plan fails.
➢ It answers the question: if this activity or strategy fails, what shall we do?
6. Plan Implementation
➢ The planners should refer to their schedule of activities and should, as
much as possible, implement the strategies formulated earlier.
7. Monitoring and Evaluation of the Plan Implemented
➢ Progress or project status report should be submitted to the overall
coordinator of the development project.
8. Re-Plan, if necessary
➢ It is important that planners go over the formulated goals / objectives as
well as the identified needs / problems as they attempt to revise their
plan.
Action Planning
 Action-Oriented
 Short-Range
 Meant to address the immediate problem of the locality
 It highlights very specific activities and strategies, hence it is expected that
outputs desired will be accomplished.

Action Planning
 Action-Oriented
 Short-Range
 Meant to address the immediate problem of the locality
 It highlights very specific activities and strategies, hence it is expected that
outputs desired will be accomplished.
Parts of Action Plan
1. Objectives
➢ Immediate aims which the organization seeks to attain.
➢ These purposes should be aligned with the goals set in the
comprehensive plan.
2. Project / Activities
➢ Likewise be supportive on the comprehensive plan for the barangay.
3. Target Outputs
➢ Very specific aims expressed in quantitative terms.
4. Strategies
➢ It is important that strategies be spelled out so that success in plan
implementation can be realized.
5. Funding Requirements and Sources
➢ Establish sources of funds and funding requirements.
6. Persons Involved / Responsible
➢ People involved in the performance of tasks/activities should be
informed beforehand to ensure that these task are carried out later.
➢ With this part of the action plan, it is easy to pinpoint
responsible/accountable people.
7. Timetable
➢ A plan should be time-bounded in order to avoid waste of time. Time is
an irreplaceable resources: therefore, it should be effectively managed
➢ A Gantt Chart may be used
8. Remarks
➢ Statements or explanations which cannot be indicated elsewhere in the
plan will be reflected.
Definition of Terms:
 Community Architecture - refers to an umbrella term which also
embraces community planning, community design, community
development and other forms of technical aid. (Knevitt and Wates)
 Community Planning – refers to the formulation of long range vision,
goals, policies and strategies for achieving social, economic and
environmental sustainability within a community in order to guide
future community development. (Https: //www.peachland.ca.>)
 Comprehensive Plan – it refers to the foundation for establishing
goals, purposes, zoning and activities allowed on each land parcel
to provide compatibility and continuity to the entire region as well
as each individual neighborhood. (Wikipedia)
Summary of Urban objectives in
literature based on;
ARPLANN2
Topic #2: Contextualization of Urban Design
and Community Architecture
Overview:
This topic discusses on how to analyze the design of cities and
communities in response to its natural environment and urban setting.
It will also tackle the urban context, building and site context, definition
of urban planning, community architecture, urban design and the basic
principle of community architecture. In this topic the student will
understand the value of contextualization of urban and community
architecture.
Lecture and Discussion:
▪ Contextualism / Contextual Architecture
➢Refers to a principle of design in which a structure is designed in
response to its specific urban and natural environment.
▪ Urban Context
➢Refers to the broader setting of an identified area.
➢It includes;
1. Topography
2. Movement pattern
3. Infrastructure
4. Built form and uses
5. Governance structures
6. Cultural, social and economic environment
7. Community vision
8. Future character, form and function
 Building Form

Movement Pattern

Infrastructures
▪ Building and Site Context:
➢It include;
1. Topography of the site
2. Site history and previous uses
3. Local culture
4. Architectural style
5. Local materials and construction techniques
6. Weather and microclimate
7. Political conditions
8. National and local policy
9. State of economy
▪ Urban Planning
➢Planning a future community or a guidance and sharing of the
expansion of present community in an organized layout, taking
into account such considerations as convenience for its
inhabitants;
1. Social requirements
2. Environmental conditions
3. Recreational facilities
4. Aesthetic design
5. Economic feasibility
6. Study of present requirements and conditions as well as
projections for future
7. Includes proposal for implementation
▪ Urban Design
➢The aspect of architecture and city planning that deals with the
design of urban structures and spaces

▪ Urbanization
➢Refers to the growth of town and cities

▪ Urban Renewal
➢ The removal of city slums and their replacement with improved
residential or commercial facilities.
Factors to consider in Urban or Community Planning:
1. Proper zoning and landuse.

2. Organized pedestrian and vehicular flow and circulation

2. Organized pedestrian and vehicular flow and circulation

3. Planned community must have its identity and character.

4. Nodes and transits
5. Preservation of natural landforms.
Goals of Urban or Community Planning:
1. Protect and observe the unique character of the community
2. Maintain the identity of the plan area as scenic and tranquil.
3. Rural residential community compatible with the community
physical constraints and natural resources.
4. Preserve or establish a landscape. (native or native appearing
species)
5. Preserve, enhance and protect the scenic resources visible from
scenic routes in the plan area
6. Encourage the development of commercial and industrial
project.
Community Architecture
➢A powerful force in the way people over the world are
creating their home, own homes, neighborhoods and
cities

Basic Principle of Community Architecture:

➢The built environment works better if the people who use
it are directly and actively involved in its creation and
management.
Socio-Cultural Basis of Design of Communities
• Socio-Cultural Variables:
➢Different cultural background view architectural features
differently.
1. Attitude towards privacy - some cultural groups demand
complete privacy, others appreciate privacy and still others rely
merely on subtle cues that signal a desire privacy.
2. Family structure – several generations live together within a
single dwelling (grandparents with married child and
grandchildren), others’ lives in separate but joined dwelling.
3. Role of women - women are isolated from others,
• non-separated attitudes,
• Working wife (husband shares the household task
4. Recreational pattern – some families are oriented towards more formal
and sedimentary recreational pursuit.
• others are more physical oriented. (outdoor activities)
• others are travel oriented and treat facilities merely as a contemporary
base of operation.
5. Shopping hobbits – day-to-day replenishment.
• Frequently but store for a long run.
6. Job pattern – to some, the job is a means to an end. (ease of
getting back home is extremely important)
• Others are job oriented (separate home and job remain clear and
distinct)
• Others prefers to work at home and desire a single living and working
setting.
7. Technological experience – care must be exercised not to assume that
all cultures either want or will appreciate many of the amenities offered
by more technologically advanced societies, especially if these destroy
certain living patterns held sacred for ethnic or religious reasons.
Socio-cultural forces includes;
1. Religious belief
2. Family and class structures
3. Social organization
4. Way of gaining livelihood
5. Social relationship between individual
• Note:
➢It is important that people with different cultural background view
architectural features differently.
Neighborhood
➢A scale of community that is not most familiar.
➢Traditional single-family neighborhood
➢Urban mixed-use district or small rural village.
Community Architecture approach to neighborhood planning:
1. Understanding the economic and social context of the specific
project.
2. Develop a traditional neighborhood forms with current
technologies, development pattern, ecological context, real
estate market demands and community needs.
3. Create a neighborhood that is economically sustainable.
4. Design streetscape and open spaces, transit stops stations and
the definition of public policies that directly shape the built
environment.
Issues:
1. Changing demographics and household structures that
increase the need to provide access to services and
recreation with reduce reliance on the automobile. (senior
and youth)
2. Define an appropriate mix of land use to create access to
support economic sustainability.
3. Improve safety and opportunities for social interaction
through the creation of human scaled public spaces on
streets, plazas and parks.
4. Improve integration of the built environment within a
neighborhood.
5. Work with existing neighborhood.
Community Architecture approach to the building scale
design:
1. Considering regional architectural traditions and climate
conditions. (not recreating historic style)
2. Working with the public, property owner or builder to
define a clear understanding of user’s wants and needs.
3. Defining a site plan, building massing and landscape and
architectural details.
4. Employing principles and design details that further
pedestrian-oriented design and provide equitable access to
the public realm.
5. Integrating ecological system within the built environment.
Overview:
This topic discusses the historical overview and influences of urban and
regional planning from ancient time up to the present time. In this
topics the student will understand how urban, cities and communities
are formed.
Lecture and Discussion:
❑ History with the Ancient
❖ Mesopotamia (10,000 BC – 7th Century)
➢“Fertile crescent” means land between rivers
➢Along Tigris and Euphrates river system
➢Urban development stated along the bodies of water
“Planners see things that others don't”

Agricultural land
Residential Area
Tall Buildings

Religious Bldgs.

Transportation

Commercial Area
 ➢Summer was one of the early civilization
➢15 city-states created
➢Religion was power

❖Ancient Egypt (3,000-300 BC)

➢Religion still powerful (Egyptians worshipped kings as gods)
➢Once buried, lives forever
➢Pyramids constructed in capital cities
➢Cities of dead people (necropolis)
 Pyramid (Tomb)

Temples

Pharaoh Head on
Mortuary Temple
❖ Ancient Egypt (3,000-300 BC)
➢The period following Mycenaean civilization
➢Ended about 1200 BC., to the death of Alexander the Great in 323
BC.
➢A period of political, philosophical, artistic and scientific
achievements that formed a legacy with unparalleled influence on
western civilization.
❖ Hippodamus of Miletus (498-404 BC)
• “Inventor / Father of formal city planning”
• Made the Hippodamian Plan or the Grid City to maximize winds in
the summer and minimize them on winter
• Has a geometric, arranged style in design
• Work on Piraeus Port and Alexandria
❖ Plato (428-347 BC.)
➢Established the Polluter Pays Principle
➢“ if any one internationally pollutes the water of another, whether
the water of a spring, or collected in reservoirs, either by
poisonous substances or by digging, or by theft, let the injured
party bring the cause before the wardens of the city, and claim in
writing the value of the loss; if the accused be found guilty of
injuring the water by deleterious substances, let him not only pay
damages, but purify the stream or the cistern which contains the
water, in such manner as the laws.. Order the purification to be
made by the offender in each case”
❖ Aristotle (384-322 BC.)
➢Provide the foundation for the concept of Intergenerational
Equity.
➢For our children’s children
➢“Human well-being is realized only partly by satisfying whatever
people’s preferences happen to be a particular time; it is also
necessary for successive generations to leave behind sufficient
resources so that future generations are not constrained in their
preferences”
❖ Roman Empire (29 BC. - 393 AD.)
➢Excelled in military science and engineering
➢Design and inventions looked at improving transport and military
strategies.
➢Heavily dependent on water
➢Engineered sewerage, canals, hydraulic

➢ Socio-political events resulted to religious division, absence

of military discipline, murder and citizen unrest.
➢ Moral decay led to the fall of Rome.
❖ Medieval Period (5th-15th Century AD.)
➢Church and Monasticism
➢Rise of Islam
➢Byzantine Empire
➢State Power
❖ Renaissance (14th-17th Century AD)
➢Commerce as a driving factor
➢Called for accessibility and mobility
➢Like Medieval Period, had a radial growth pattern
➢Plans began to follow the topography of an area
❖ Daniel Hudson Burnham (1846-1912)
➢Father of American City Planning
➢Designed the World’s Columbian Exposition, the first
comprehensive planning document in the US, together with
Frederick Law Olmstead and John Wllborn Root.
➢“Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood and
probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim high
in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once
recorded will never die, but long after we are gone will be a living
thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistency. Remember that
our sons and grandsons are going to do things that would stagger
us. Let your watchword be order and your beacon beauty”

➢Greatest feat was the plan of Chicago (Paris on a Prairie); other

plans include Manila, Baguio, Cleveland and San Francisco.
Chicago Manila
❖ Sir Ebennezer Howarh (1850-1928)
❖ Le Corbusier (Charles Eduard Jeanneret 1887-
1965)

➢Created the Radiant City

➢Modernist, Futuristic and orderly
➢But socially disadvantageous and unrealistic for settlements
➢Criticized because he tried to solved congestion with more
congestion
➢Wrote the books Urbanism and The City of Tomorrow and its
Planning
❖ Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1957)

➢Champion and proponent of Urban Decentralization

➢Involved communities
➢Designed the 1,000-hectares Broad acre City
➢Includes social services in the form of school, trains and museum,
as well as employment in the forms of market, offices, nearby
farms and industrial areas
➢Plan included a helicopter, which was criticized
❖ Henry Wright (1878-1936) / Clarence Stein
(1882-1975)
➢Radburn
➢Henry Wright created the superblock
➢Clarence Stein initiated plans to produce greenbelt resettlements
all over US.
❖ Clarence Perry (1872-1944)
➢Conceptualized the Neighborhood Unit
➢Similar to a superblock
➢Bounded by major streets
➢Has a church, school and shops
➢200 square meter to 2 square kilometer
❖ Sir Leslie Patrick Abercrombie (1932-1952)
➢Created the post-war plans of London, and combatted sprawling
by resettlements
➢Made the London Country Plan (1944) and the Greater London
Plan (1943)
❖ Lewis Mumford (1895-1990)

➢A historian-sociologist who studied cities and architecture

➢Organic City Concept
➢Rationalized how planning has various disciplines

❖Benton Mckaye (1879-1975)

➢Originator of the 3,500 km. Appalachian Trail in the eastern
United State (Georgia to Maine)
➢A forester and conservationist, and co-founded the Wilderness
Society
➢Championed regional conservationism.
❖ Don Artutro Soria Y Mata (1844-1920)
➢Introduce the Linear City Concept
➢Many parallel and specialized function.
❖ Edward Bassett (1863-1948)
➢Father of American Zoning, urban planner and lawyer
➢Use zoning as a means of implementing land use in New York
➢Coined the term Freeway and Parkway
❖Tony Garner (1869-1948)
➢Introduce the Linear Industrial City
➢Used the concept of zoning and labeled space into leisure,
industry, work and transport
➢Plan caters to 35,00 residents
➢Follows the principles of function, greeneries, open space and
exposure to the sunlight
➢City is linked by a circular patterns
❖ Thomas Adams (1871-1940)
➢Founded the British Town Planning Institute
➢Worked primarily on low-density residences or garden suburbs
➢Pushed for planning legislation by mandate, local plans, zoning,
building regulations, and recognized the responsibility of a
licensed or professional planner

❖Constantinos Apostolos Doxiadis (1914-1975)

➢Studied the science of human settlements, called Ekistics

➢Looks into the culture, economics and society in varying scales
❖ Francis Stuart Chapin (1888-1974)
➢A sociologist and educator, stresses the importance of quantifying
social activities in an evolving city through statistics.
➢First to write the textbooks on urban and regional planning; Land
Use Planning and Urban Growth Dynamics

❖Ira Lowry
➢Published A Model of Metropolis, a computer for spatial
organization of anthropogenic activities in metropolitan area
➢Generates an assessment that can be the basis for urban policy
decisions
➢Expand the gravity modeling, or trip distribution in transport
planning, or distance decay in physics
❖ Wiliam Levitt (1907-1994)
➢Father of American Suburbs / The King of Suburbia / Inventor of
the Suburbs
➢Mass produced houses that were affordable

❑New Urbanism

❖Janet Jacobs (1916-2006)

➢An urban activist who was strong and vocal against renewal;
she fought for new urbanism
Lecture and discussion:
• Community Architecture
➢is built upon the principle that is involving the people and or end
user in the planning, design, and building process. It is a scheme
mainly for housing that involves a study of the prevailing social
conditions and consultations with people in the community.

• Orientation in community architecture

➢refers to the position of the site or natural orientation such as
road network, solar movement, wind directions, neighborhood
and natural views to proceed for its positional direction.
• Community identity
➢buildings and public gathering places require important sites to
reinforce community identity and the culture of democracy. They
deserve distinctive form, because their role is different from that
of other buildings and places that constitute the fabric of the city.
Community architecture movement enabling people to work
directly with architects in the design and building of their homes
and neighborhood.
Orienting Exercises for Development Planning and Action in
Community Architecture:

1. Access to resources
➢A series of participatory exercise that allows development practitioners to
collect information and raise awareness among beneficiaries about the ways
in which access to resources varies according to gender and other important
social variables.
2. Analysis of tasks
➢A gender analysis tool that raises community awareness about the
distribution of domestic, market, and community activities according to
gender and familiarize planners with the degree of role flexibility that is
associated with different tasks. Such information awareness is necessary to
prepare and execute development interventions that will benefit both men
and women.
3. Logical framework
➢A matrix that illustrate a summary of a project, emphasizing the results that
are expected when a project is successfully completed. This result or outputs
are presented in terms of objectively verifiable indicators. The logical
framework approach the project planning has been adopted for use in
participatory methods.
4. Assessments of needs
➢A tool that draws out information about people’s varied needs, raises
participant’s awareness of related issues, and provides framework for
prioritizing needs. This sort of tool is an integral part of gender analysis to
develop an understanding of particular needs of both men and women in to
do comparative analysis.
5. Participants observation
➢A fieldwork technique used by anthropologist and sociologist to collect
qualitative and quantitative data that leads to an in-depth understanding of
people’s practices, motivations and attitudes. Participant’s observation entails
investigating the project background, studying the general characteristics of
a beneficiary population, and living for an extended period among the
beneficiaries, during which interviews, observation, and analysis are
recorded and discussed.
6. Seasonal diagram
➢Show the major changes that affect a household, community, or region within
a year, such as those associated with climates, crops, labor availability and
demand, livestock, prices and so on. Such diagrams highlight the times of
constraints and opportunity, which can be critical information for planning
and implementation.
7. Socio-Cultural profiles
➢Detailed descriptions of social and cultural dimensions that in combination
with technical, economic, and environmental dimensions serve as a basis for
design and preparation of policy and project work.
➢Profiles include data about the time of community demographic
characteristics, economy and livelihood, land tenure and natural resources
control, social organization, factors affecting access, power and resources,
conflict resolution mechanism, and values and perceptions.
➢Together with the participatory plan, the socio-cultural, profile helps ensure
that proposed projects and policies and culturally and socially appropriate
and potentially sustainable.
8. Village meeting
➢Meeting with many users in participatory development, including information
sharing and group presentation, consensus building, prioritization and
sequencing of interventions and collaborative monitoring and evaluation.

➢Village meeting are important venues for launching activities, evaluating

progress, and gaining feedback on analysis.

• Orientation
➢Orientation describes an “understanding of how can a building’s position on a
site can influence specific factors concerning its design”

➢For example, how light affects our appreciation of buildings and the activities
we experience within them. Natural light in interior spaces in moving
dimension and connection with time & the outside.
• Position
➢Sites have specific and unique location qualities and this creates dynamic and
ever changing circumstances for anything positions on it.
➢For example, the shadow of a building project will change from one day to the
next and light quality in ay room will continually move and change.
➢The position of a building relative to natural light determines many aspect of
its planning. In house, the position of a garden terrace or the location of, say a
dining room, rely on architect’s understanding of how light enters a room or
how shadow cast across a garden.
➢On large scale building, orientation can significantly affect heat loss in winter
and heat gain in summer, this will affect the energy efficiency of building and
comfort its users.
➢The positioning of building is part of the mechanics of understanding the site,
and it provides a changing varying impression of the site, and from summer
solstice.
• Visual Orientation and Architectural Details
➢A pedestrian oriented environment gives a strong visual cues that help to
develop a strong sense of community identity.
➢Visual orientation is an essential design elements that serves to provide both
visual and physical definition for a pedestrian’s, cyclist or motorist’s travel
through a community.
➢Aesthetically pleasing views, and vistas must be made possible at ground
level to facilitate frequent, visual connection from the street into the public
spaces and fro within interior spaces.
➢Attention to visual orientation and architectural detail gives the
neighborhood a distinctive character and makes the place memorable
▪ Rules in Visual Orientation
1. Street Definition
➢A balance of consistency and diversity of building color should be encourage
along the street of the entire block.
➢Building should be located to line up to the street and side yard.
➢Buildings which are not continuous, with lot frontage (i.e. court yard and “L”
shaped buildings) should use edge elements such as low wall, fences or
plantings to extend the building plane.
2. Street Vistas
➢Street that frame vistas will establish a series of pedestrian “landmarks” to
help make the community spatially memorable.
➢Straight streets help to establish clear view and should be used to frame
landmarks in the community.
➢Straight streets also makes destinations more accessible and visible.
➢Curvilinear streets, diagonal views of building faces and sides should be given
a special consideration.
3. Placement of Landmark Building
➢Landmark buildings, such as town halls, and other historic buildings, should
be developed as focal points and employed as devices for orientation, place-
making and creation of community identity.
➢Landmark buildings and structures should occupy strategic sites, and be a
suitable scale to ensure visibility.
4. Building Type Mix
➢Where a common design approach to certain building elements is desired,
the uniform appearance of street should be balanced by a variety of design
expressions in other elements.
➢A balance between variety and uniformity is required
5. Building Transition
➢Block where different building form abut, special care must be taken to
ensure that appropriate transitions in scale and form occurs.
6. Visual Guidance System
➢Signage used for traffic control and pedestrian orientation must be located so
that there is a clear unobstructed view.
➢Signs fulfilling a similar function should be grouped together and be located a
minimum of 46 centimeters (18 inches) from the curb face to the center of
the sign support.
➢All signs fulfilling similar functions should be coherent and uniform in color.
➢Combining a multiple of signs on a single signpost and other support features
can reduce sidewalk clutter.
7. Location of Street Furniture
➢Street furniture should be organized by maintaining an adequate sidewalk
width for pedestrian traffic.
➢Furnishing should be located within a consistent and identifiable width from
the street curb.
➢There should be a focus on street furniture locations that most used by the
pedestrians.
8. Lighting Standards
➢Lighting, like other visual cues, can also use to help pedestrian walkways,
activities and public open spaces.
➢Pedestrian and residential lighting must be considered as fulfilling a separate
function than lighting for traffic and streets.
➢Lighting must be enhanced where pedestrians and traffic meet, such as bus
stops, walkways and laneways and in public spaces.
9. Landscaping Details
➢Landscaping helps to define spaces and give an area identity and character.
➢Trees can be creatively used and placed to complement, modify and extend
the buildings around them. For example a canopy of trees can create a sense
of enclosure overhead while a colonnade of trees can unify a street and
pedestrian walkways.
➢Trees also help reduce temperatures from asphalt areas and help to improve
the micro-climate.
➢The use of planters can be used to break the monotony of large hard surface
areas(i.e. parking lots)
➢Planters should be placed where visual relief is required and where
pedestrians are likely to rest.
➢When incorporated with seating, planters provide greenery without the loss
of valuable sidewalk space.
➢Factors that must be considered for all landscaping include their overhead
wire interference, pollution, soil tolerability and level of maintenance
required to upkeep year round appearance.
10. Location of Service Elements
➢All service elements should be located to the rear of buildings, along a rear
laneway, away from the various views and vistas of the neighborhood.
Topic #5:
Creating and
Identifying
Sense of Time
and Sense of
Place
Lecture and Discussion
• Sense of Place
➢The term sense of place has been used in many different ways. To
some, it is a characteristic that some geographic places have and
some do not, while to others it is a feeling or perception held by
people.
➢Often used in relation to those characteristics that make a place
special or unique, as well as those that foster a sense of authentic
human attachment and belonging.
➢In urban and rural studies in relation to place-making and place
attachment of communities to their environment or homeland.
➢Geographer, have pointed to sense of place that are not inherently
“positive” such as fear.
Elements
1. Relationship
2. Sense of belonging
3. Change in motivation
4. Personal satisfaction
5. Accomplishment
6. Natural environment
Place Attachment Model
Place Identity
Geographic Place
➢Geographic concept of space.
➢Place comes into existence when human give meaning to part of
the large, undifferentiated space.
➢Any time a location is identified or given a name, it is separated
from undefined space that surrounds it.
➢Some places, however have given stronger meaning, name or
definitions by society than other. (strong sense of place)
➢Cultural geographer, anthropologist, sociologist and urban
planners studies why certain places hold special meaning to
particular people or animals.
➢“strong sense of place” have strong identity and character (local
inhabitants and visitors)
 ➢ A social phenomenon that exists independently of any one
individual perception or experiences, derived from;

1. Natural environment
2. Mix of natural and cultural features in landscape
3. People who occupy the place
4. Heritage site and natural historic landmarks

• Placeless
➢ Lack of sense of place
Placeless Landscape
➢No special relationship to the places in which they are located
example;
➢Shopping mall
➢Gas station
➢Convenience store
➢Fast food chain
➢Department store
Creating and Identifying the Sense of Place
People create a “sense of Place” through experience and knowledge of a
particular area. A sense of place emerges through knowledge of the history,
geography, and geology of an area, its flora and fauna, the legends of a place,
and a growing sense of the land and its history after living there for a time.

1. Understanding how sense of place develops and change is relevant to

understanding how people interact with their environment in general
and considering how this interaction may become sustainable. (Study
how a sense of place develops, including the importance of
comparisons between places, learning from elders and observing
natural disasters and other events)

2. Consider the special bond which develops between children and their
childhood environment or “primal landscape”.
3. Learning about surrounding environment during childhood is
strongly influenced by the direct experience of playing, as well as
through the role of family, culture, and community.

3. Childhood landscape form part of people’s identity and

constitutes a key point of comparison for considering subsequent
places later in life. As people move around as adults, they tend to
consider new places in relation to this baseline landscape
experienced during childhood.

3. Sense of place is used as a model for community based

psychosocial support programs.
Creating and Identifying the Sense of Time
What is Sense of Time?
➢Time perception is a field of study within psychological, cognitive
linguistics and neuroscience that refers to the subjective
experience of time, which is measured by someone’s own
perception of the duration of indefinite and unfolding of events.
➢Time is the key to understand everything. We feel the passing
time, although all we are doing is where placing the things into
memory in a certain order, which is what we believe the order that
they happen.
➢Time is actually a variable and has a relationship with gravity as
they both affect each other, we don’t actually feel time spending
up or lowering down because we exist in within time. Time could
in fact speed up, down, slow down or go into reverse and wouldn’t
know.
➢An ability to feel the lapse of time and to estimate and compare
intervals especially of short duration.
How to create and identify Sense of Time?
➢Time’s evidences are necessary for recognition and avoiding
common misunderstanding. In the field of designing, urban design
as a profession of increasing the public realm qualities, attention
to fourth dimensions, which is emphasized by most of the
designer is the time.

➢In order to use this concept in urban design, temporal dimension

needs precise theories and applications of time in city. Cities are
changed through the time. New buildings are constructed and
older are destructed and urban environments are continuously
along changes.

➢One of the most significant and useful meanings in temporal

dimension, that designers have to know are those things which
changes during time and those remains without change.
➢The principles in new methods of urban design is to endeavor the
accent of sense of place and link the time to past and as a result
preserve the character of place.

➢The aim and scope of this, is to recognize the content and

application of temporal dimension as an important concept in
urban design.

➢Some related terms such as sense of time, time perception, time

management, time cycle and periods of changes and continuity of
place came up with temporal dimension in urban design.
Topic #6: Sign and Symbols in
Urban Design
Lecture and Discussion
• Signage
➢A good signage system can perform multiple function. On the
most basic level, it provides effective information and direction for
people to find their way around a downtown, a building complex,
park, or other public spaces.

➢It can also encourage learning experiences; create and maintain

an image for a place; communication rules; and provide a sense of
place and local pride by incorporating history or cultural details.

➢Placing signage in conjunction with other amenities such as

benches, cafes, restrooms and phones or places where paths
cross, can create min-destination or place-within –a-place.
Types of Signage
1. Maps
• At entry point within the boundaries of a place, and along set distances of
pathways can help to increase and enhance user’s knowledge, curiosity and
interest about a place.
• Maps not only can help visitors guide and direct themselves, but highlight
point of interest as well.

2. Information Kiosks / Bulletin Boards

• Helps user who are only familiar with part of a place that they frequent, and
unaware of its entire range of features or facilities.
• Users are also informed about events and activities, as well as renovation or
management plan.
• It serve as an outreach tool to better inform the user about what’s going on.
3. Educational Sign
• Can be conceived as a fun way to engage people in the interesting or unique
aspects about a place.
• Consider the various audiences and their interest, as well as their reasons for
being in a place that would complement the type of educational signage to be
developed.

4. Directional Sign
• Posted intermittently serve to help people keep their bearing, and feel
located and secure.
• Can make use of landmarks or other point of interest in performing its
function.
5. Mandatory Sign
• Refers to a sign prescribing behavior.
• These sign are required to be blue.
• It shows what action is required.
• Mandatory signs generally use a white symbol on a blue background.
6. Prohibition Sign
• Refers to a type of sign used to try and prevent various activities in certain
situation.
7. Warning Sign
• Refers to a type of sign which indicates a potential hazard, obstacle or
condition requiring special attention.
8. Safety Sign
• A type of sign designated to warn of hazards, indicate mandatory actions or
required use of Personal protective equipment, prohibit actions or objects,
and identify the location of firefighting or safety equipment, or marking of
exit routes.
Topic #7: Elements of Urban Design

Lecture and Discussion

 Elements of Urban Design
1. Buildings
 The most pronounced elements of urban design.
 They shape and articulate space by forming the street walls of the city.
 Well design buildings and groups of buildings work together to create a sense of place.

2. Public Space
 Great spaces are the living room of the city.
 The place where people come together to enjoy the city and each other.
 Public spaces make high quality life in the city possible, they form the stage and backdrop to
drama of life.
 Public spaces range from grand central plazas & square, to small, local neighborhood parks
3. Streets
 The connection between spaces & places as well as being spaces themselves.
 They are defined by their physical dimension & character as well as the scale, size,
character of the buildings that line them.
 Street range from Grand Avenue to small intimate pedestrian streets.
 The pattern of the street network is part of what define a city & what makes each city
unique.

4. Transport
 Transport system connect the part of cities & help shape them, & enable movement
throughout the city.
 They include road, rail, bicycle & pedestrian network & together form the total movement
system of the city.
 The balance of these various transport system is what helps define the quality & character
of the city & makes them either friendly or hostile to pedestrian.
 The best cities are the one that elevate the experience of the pedestrian while minimizing
the dominance of the private automobile.
5. Landscape
 The green part of the city that waves throughout in the form of urban park, street trees, plants,
flower & water many forms.
 Landscape helps define the character and beauty of a city & creates soft contrasting spaces &
elements.
 Green space in cities range from parks to small, intimate pocket parks.
Topic #8: The Image of the City

Lecture and Discussion:

▪ The Image of the City
➢ A city is described with its surroundings and elements, it explains the people’s perception of the
city.
➢ Going through a city from the viewer’s mind is “image of the city”.
➢ Elements like nodes, path, districts, edge and landmarks makes a city.

▪ Mental Image of the City

➢ According to Kevin Lynch in any given city, a corresponding set of mental image exist in the minds
of the people who experience that city. Contributing to those image are the five qualities which
Lynch identifies as Path, Edge, Districts, Nodes and Landmarks.

➢ Mental image of a city is held by its citizens. It focus on one particular visual quality; the apparent
clarity or legibility of the cityscape. By this we mean the ease with which its pars can be recognized
and can be organized into coherent pattern.

➢ Although clarity or legibility is by means the only important property of a beautiful city, it is of special
importance when considering environments at the urban scale of size, time, and complexity.to
understand this we must consider not just the city as a thing in itself, but the city being perceived
by its inhabitants.

▪ Five Elements / Qualities of a City (Kevin Lynch)

1. Path
- Refers to the network of habitual or potential lines of movement through the urban complex.

2. Nodes
- Refers to the conceptual anchor points in the city.
- The essence of this elements is that it be a district, unforgettable place.
- It is possible to arrange a series of nodes to form a related structure and can be linked together
by close juxtaposition or allowing them to be indivisible.
- Strategic focus point for orientation like squares and junctions
3. Landmarks
- Refers to the physical objects which serves as public reference point.
- Control of landmarks and its context is needed; the restriction of signs to be specified, surface,
height limits.
- The object is also more remarkable if it has clarity of general form, as does a column 0r a
sphere
- Its location is crucial; if large or tall, the spatial setting must allow it to be seen; if small, there
are certain zones that receive more perceptual attention than other; floor surface, or nearby
façade at or slightly below eye level.

4. Edge
- Edge are linear elements that for boundaries between areas or linear breaks in continuity.
- These are wall, buildings and shorelines
- Boundaries
5. District
- Medium to large areas that are two-dimensional
- It sharpened by the definiteness and closure of its boundaries
- It may be structured within itself. There may be sub-districts, internally differentiated while
conforming to the whole; nodes which radiate structure by gradients or other hints; patterns of
internal paths.
- Areas characterized by common characteristics
Topic #9: Responsive Environment

Lecture and Discussion:

▪ Responsive Environment
⮚ The objective behind the concept of “responsive environment” is to survey the opportunities offered
by a given urban environment by taking into account different qualities of the city such as
permeability, variety, legibility, robustness, visual appropriation, richness and personalization.
⮚ This refers to the idea that built environment should provide its users with essentially democratic
setting, enriching their opportunities by maximizing the degree of choices available to them.

▪ Imageability in Urban Design

⮚ Refers to the quality of a place that makes it recognized and memorable. A place has high
imageability when physical elements and their arrangement evoke distinct images or positive
feelings.

▪ Responsiveness
⮚ These could be sensual or environmental.
a) Sensual – attempts to cater for all senses: Visual, Tactile, Olfactory, and Kinesthetic.
b) Environmental – which provides users with essentially democratic setting and enrich their
opportunities by maximizing the degree of choice available to them.

▪ Qualities of Responsive Environment

1. Permeability
- This refers to the number of alternative routes through an environment;
- It affects where people can go and where they cannot.
- This offer choice through accessibility and must be considered at the early stage of design.
2. Legibility
- This refers to the apparent clarity or “legibility of the cityscape.
- It means the ease with which its parts can be recognized and can be organized into a coherent
pattern. If it is legible, it can be visually grasped as a related pattern of recognizable symbols,
so a legitable city would be one whose districts or landmarks or pathway are easily identifiable
and are easily grouped into an over-all pattern.
- How people can understand what opportunities it offers.

3. Variety
- This refers to the range of uses available to people.
- First, assess the levels of demand for different types of uses on the site, next establish how
wide a mix uses it is economically and functionally feasible to have. Then a tentative volumes
must be establish.

4. Robustness
- This refers to the degree to which people can a given place.
- Focus on individual building and out-door places. Our objective is to make their spatial and
constructional organization suitable for the widest possible range of likely activities and
future uses, both in the short and long term.

5. Visual Appropriateness
- This refers to a detailed appearance of the place for different purposes.
- Focus on what it should look like.
 - It strongly affect the interpretation of people put on places, people do interpret places as
having meaning.

6. Richness
- This refers to the extent to which people can put their own stamp on a place.
- Developing design for sensory choice.

7. Personalization
- This refers to peoples’ choice of sensory experience.
- The design of a place affects the choices people can make at many levels.
- Making the design encourage people to put their own mark on the places where they live
and work.
 Topic #10: Space in Urban
Design, Urban Aesthetics, Urban
Pattern
A. Space in Urban Design
▪ Concept of Space
1. Time or duration
2. Area or extension
▪ Two Main Categories of Space
1. Mental Space (experiential) – image of physical space.
2. Physical Space (existential) – defined and continuous, unbounded
extensions in three directions, regarded as void of matter or without
reference to it.
▪ Three Types of Space
1. Place-Space – major space that portray a sense of definite location or
position.
2. Path-Space – major transition space which are directional; corridor,
connector, passageway.
3. Transition Space – minor spaces which process a change from one
condition to another (between two destination, between exterior and
interior, between nature and buildings).
▪ Proxemics
1. Refers to the study of measureable distances between people as they
interact. This has something to do with the study of our use of space and
how various differences in the use can make us feel more relaxed on
anxious.
B. Urban Aesthetics
▪ Concept of Aesthetics
➢Aesthetics in urban design refers to the creative arrangement of the elements
of town in a beautiful and functional manner.

➢Order and beauty in a town are necessity, not an afterthought… they are as
much a prerequisite to human health as it’s as its fresh air.

➢At the beginning of the 3rd millennium, when urban settlements become
more and more crowded due to the work and life conditions they offer, urban
aesthetics is becoming increasingly imperative. This is all the more important
as population growth, in some cities has influenced directly the city’s
architecture, determining a growth of residential construction, which, seldom,
did not appeal to the “law of beauty”
➢In relation to public spaces and places aesthetics relates to the attractiveness
of an area and in particular the combined effects of various elements such as
the quality of views and vistas, and the arrangement of elements such as
furniture in the public realm. It require a connection between architectural
and landscape quality, the experiencing of attractions and the use of the city.

➢Attractiveness of the neighborhood environment is associated with overall

experience and use as walking, cycling, viewing and conservation. If a
neighborhood is attractive it invites people to use and enjoy its public spaces
and places and to feel safe in doing so.

➢When people use community spaces and associated assets they feel part of a
community and develop a sense of place. These two elements are important
in promoting wellbeing as they can form part of an individual’s identity,
increase an individual’s perceived quality of life and motivate people to be
even more active and participate in group programs.
▪ Elements
1. Extracted Form
➢Harmony between buildings and nature... e.g. consider basic slopes, angles of
hills, vegetation / tree canopies, and rock outcrops. Reflect dominant and
pervasive features of nature.
2. Vistas and Site Supremacy
➢View of landscape from the city …beautifully framed countryside (panorama).
3. Expression
➢Space markers / symbol / ornamental / detail e.g. tower and minarets;
landmarks; accent of urban landscape and skyline.
4. Entrance / Approach
➢Profound impact of cities on the visitors who traverses long, crowded streets
/ water.
5. Color and Light
➢Choice of colors to reflect aesthetics sensibility; quality of natural light an
important factor.
6. Water
➢Proximity to water and possible interplay a natural assets; water edges,
harbors, shorelines, islands, canals etc.
7. Geometry
➢Form and relationship of angles, lines, curve etc.
8. Human Scale
➢How each inhabitant would use space and how would feel in it.
How to Achieve?
1. Create attractive and welcoming streets by designing active,
interesting, and welcoming street frontages with contiguous
development.
2. Use buildings to frame public places and form a distinct street
frontage which creates a pleasing pedestrian edge and human
scale.
Encourage
1. Planting of broad canopy trees along streets to provide shade,
improve the visual amenity of the street and create a pleasant
environment.
2. Creation of stimulating and attractive routes by designing walking
and cycling routes to, and around, local landmarks and point of
interest.
3. Parks and open spaces designed to provide pleasant places for
people to sit, meet and talk.
Avoid
1. Inactive development, such as car parks, service areas, and blank
facades fronting streets and pedestrian and cycling routes.
2. Spaces with no seating or other elements for sitting
3. Street verges with insufficient space for street tree planting and
public furniture.
4. Poorly maintained parks and open space.
C. Urban Pattern
➢The pattern of the city is the way how different functions and
elements of the settlement form are distributed and mixed together
spatially.
➢It can be measured by the size of its grain.
➢Grain is fine when similar elements or functions are widely dispersed
throughout the district without forming any large cluster.
➢On the other hand, grain is coarse if different elements and functions
are segregated from each other in a way that extensive areas of one
thing are separated from extensive areas of other things.
▪ Form and Structure of Urban Areas
❖Aspects
1. Imageability
➢Physical Image vs. Functional Image – Image of the City (path, edges, nodes,
landmarks, and districts)
2. Form-Function Relationship
3. Main Variation of Urban Form and Structure – linear, radial, grid,
cluster, etc.
4. Objectives of Urban Form – includes growth, meaning and identity.
5. Growth and Decline – urban sprawl which describes how people
move from central urban areas to low-density areas outside of the
city; the deterioration of the inner city often caused by lack of
investment and maintenance. It is often but not exclusively
accompanied by a decline in population numbers, decreasing
economic performance and unemployment.