URBAN DESIGN PROJECT

FORMULATION
REFERENCE:
1) PUBLIC PLACES - URBAN SPACES The Dimensions of Urban Design Matthew Carmona, Tim
Heath, Toner Oc and Steven Tiesdell
2) CREATING PLACES FOR PEOPLE AN URBAN DESIGN PROTOCOL FOR AUSTRALIAN CITIES
3) Kees Christiaanse; Campus to City: Urban Design for Universities
4) The University of Arizona Manual of Design and Specification Standards
5) Pickering City Centre Urban Design Guidelines
6) http://www.uttipec.nic.in/index1.asp?linkid=31&langid=1
7) Waterfronts open spaces and interfaces of edge environments
8) URDPFI, draft 2014
9) https://www.pps.org/reference/stepstocreatingagreatwaterfront/
10) LA WATERFRONT DESIGN GUIDELINES
 URBAN DESIGN PROJECT FORMULATION

• Project preparation

DEVELOPMENT FEASIBILITY AND

DEVELOPEMNT PRESSURE AND
• Feasibility of the project
• Aim and goal of the project
• Objectives
• Scope and limitation
• Area delineation
• Survey and Analysis

PROSPECTS

PROPOSAL
• Identification of issues and solutions
• Vision
• Urban design strategies towards a structure plan
• Urban design policies, development controls along with Master plan

IMPLEMENTATION
• Finding appropriate organisation structure, agencies, financing.
• Implementation
• Phasing of the project and Execution
 DEVELOPMENT PRESSURE AND PROSPECTS
External influences - economic growth, fiscal policies, the impact of long-term social and
demographic trends, technological developments, market restructuring, etc. - create
development pressure and prospects

When development opportunities arise, appropriate sites are sought, with activity really
beginning when a development proposal finds an appropriate site, or a development site
finds a suitable proposal.

Initiation of development may come from a developer or third party (including the public
sector) anticipating demand for a certain type of development and seeking an appropriate site.
It may also come from the site owner (or third party) who envisages a higher value use for an
existing site.
 DEVELOPMENT FEASIBILITY

• OWNERSHIP CONSTRAINTS
Land availability is often restricted by planning, physical, valuation or ownership
constraints. Multiple Ownership cases, Land acquisition powers.

• PHYSICAL CONDITIONS
The physical conditions of site are assessed (e.g. ground levels, soil structure,
levels of contamination). Its physical capacity (subject to criteria of 'good‘ urban form)
to accommodate satisfactorily the intended volume of development will also be
assessed. Considerations of good urban form might be internal and might limit or
determine density, massing and/or height. Site capacity may be external and may, for
example, be imposed through planning policies, a zoning ordinance, a development
brief, an urban design framework or a master plan.
 DEVELOPMENT FEASIBILITY
• PUBLIC PROCEDURES
All legal and other public procedure issues relating to the site and/or the proposed
development must be assessed, including the likelihood of obtaining
planning/development consent. Consents may also be required for a range of issues
pertaining to land and property ownership; conservation and/or historic preservation;
diversion or closure of rights of way, light, and support; actions necessary to connect
with main services and infrastructure; etc.

• MARKET CONDITIONS
Appraisal of market conditions assesses whether there is demand both now and in the
future for the proposed development.

• PROJECT VIABILITY
Project viability assesses whether demand can be met at the desired rate of profit. For
private sector development, this assessment includes analysis of the market (i.e. the
likely demand) for the proposed development and the potential returns in relation to
the costs and the risk to be borne. In the public sector, it assesses whether
appropriate forms of cost recovery are available, whether the development
constitutes an appropriate use for public money (relative to other purposes for which
the money could be used), whether it provides value for money.
 PROPOSAL AND IMPLEMENTATION

• A properly worked out proposal with a vision, master plan, strategies, policies and
development controls and guidelines.
• Financing and Phasing.
• The final, implementation, stage includes both construction and sale or letting.
• The main task is to ensure that work is carried out at the appropriate speed, cost and quality.
DEVELOPMENT ROLES AND ACTORS
DEVELOPMENT ROLES AND ACTORS
DEVELOPMENT ROLES AND ACTORS
BENIFICIARIES OF VALUES IN URBAN DESIGN
BENIFICIARIES OF VALUES IN URBAN DESIGN
URBAN DESIGN AT VARIOUS SCALES
 URBAN DESIGN PROJECT FORMULATION IN VARIOUS
SCALES

AT MACRO LEVEL National and Regional

Metropolitan city
Project levels

AT MICRO LEVEL Campus planning

City centers
Transportation corridors
Residential neighborhood
Water fronts
MACRO LEVEL
 URBAN DESIGN AT NATIONAL AND REGIONAL LEVEL

• Largest scale on which urban design should be practiced

• At this scale , the projects deals with the alteration of physical form of the natural terrain
and any decision is made on the land development.
• Examples:
• Large scale design and planning of economic and industrial areas. SEZ
• Industrial Corridor Eg: Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor DMIC
Visakhapatnam-Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC)
• Identifying and Demarcating national bioreserves, parklands, areas of wilderness and
preservation areas. Suggesting acceleration of programs to acquire lare scale open
spaces.
• Projects which result in stimulation of interstate commerce. National Highway Systems
etc.
• Rural highway designs accommodating the terrain it traverses.
• Watershed areas, Flood plain valleys, construction of dams.
• Classification of Natural and Man-made
things
• Topographic analysis
• Identifying developing regions
• Networks
• Wilderness , Flora and Fauna, Landscape
• Tourism, Infrastructure
• Preservation, Conservation, Revitalization
of the region

Image source: Google,

Alba Iulia - Sebes - Teius, Territorial Development Project ~ Romania, 2008
Industrial corridor
Bio Reserves
Rural highways and Watershed/Flood plain planning
 URBAN DESIGN AT METROPOLITAN LEVEL
• Thinks of the form of the entire physical setting.
• Establishing parklands for the city to relieve dense development.
• Suggesting intense corridors of settlement
• Planning for satellite suburban centers ensuring rational distribution of
population and relieving pressure of natural open space.
• A network of expressways.
 URBAN DESIGN AT METROPOLITAN LEVEL
• Development plans, Structure
plans(workable solutions), Transportation
networking, Activity and Land use
• Overall form of the city – open, built,
green areas, Infrastructure
• Hierarchy of spaces – (open areas)
• Transportation – Nodes, Links, Hierarchy
of roads, highways, modes of transport,
generators, new intrusions
• Approach to city and Imageability
• Views and Vistas, Skyline
• Special sites- Typology, development
regulations, Guidelines
Transit corridors, Park lands
EXAMPLES
METRO PROJECTS IN MAJOR CITIES

MONORAIL, MUMBAI

BUS RAPID TRANSITT SYSTEM (BRTS) IN

AHMEDABAD, DELHI
EXAMPLES
SATELLITE CITIES

Gurgaon (Satellite of Delhi)

Sonepat (Satellite of Delhi)
Noida (Satellite of Delhi)
Greater Noida(Satellite of Noida)
Ghaziabad (Satellite of Delhi)
Faridabad (Satellite city of Delhi)
Dwarka (Satellite of Delhi)
Sanand (satellite of Ahmedabad)
EXAMPLES
EXPRESSWAYS
SMART CITIES MISSION
JAWAHARLAL NEHRU URBAN RENEWAL MISSION (JNNURM)
URBAN INFRASTRUXCTURE DEVELOPMENT SCHEME FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM TOWNS
NORTH EASTERN REGION URBAN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
ATAL MISSION FOR REJUVENATION AND URBAN TRANSFORMATION (AMRUT)
HERITAGE CITY DEVELOPMENT AND AUGMENTATION YOJANA ( HRIDAY)
 PROJECT / URBAN/ CITY SCALE

• Housing projects, High density high rise and low rise, Mid rise, Low rise high density.
• Vehicular and pedestrian circulation routes
• CBD, New Town center
• Campus projects
• Plazas, Community centers, Malls, Markets
• Restored areas
• City level landscape projects, Waterfronts, Greenways, Promenade, Recreational
facilities
• Linked Urban spaces
• Individual buildings – Transportation terminals, Stations
 PROJECT / URBAN/ CITY SCALE

• Planning for urban open spaces – Use, hierarchy, types

• Pedestrian circulation – Formal/informal/Processional/Casual, Activity, Connecting other
modes of transport, Accent, Event
• Landscaping – Preservation of natural resources, planting of trees
• Urban lighting – Quantitative and Qualitative aspects
• Street furniture
• Urban art and sculpture – Landmarks, sense of scale
• Street hardware
• Rehabilitating old Neighborhood
• Historic preservation
• Suburban Centers and development and New towns
Image source: Google,
Mitchell street Central
Hermanus, Capetown

Image source: Google,

Belfast City Centre Public Realm Plan
MICRO LEVEL
CAMPUS PLANNING
 CAMPUS PLANNING
• The ‘campus’ is a phenomenon of increasing relevance to modern urban planning.

• The controversy over the desirability of openness and interaction with the urban
environment versus the increasing popularity of the ‘gated community’ and restricted
access, demonstrates the need for a radical debate on the shape and the position of the
campus in relationship to its context.

• It developed from the limited size of the historical city, from its spatial structures, which
are based on walking distances, and from the limited scale and complexity of teaching and
research at that time.

• Under the influence of the industrial revolution and the emergence of social awareness,
large urban institutions were founded;
• huge mono functional entities to an isolated location beyond the city limits.
• Inner-city locations and their close interactions with the city.

• Mono-functional, isolated campus does not lead to a desirable socio-cultural and urban
environment due to isolated location, its mono-functional disposition and its remoteness
from mixed urban structures.
• Revisions generally aim at adding living quarters for students and staff, providing high-
quality public transport and attracting commercial and cultural functions, such as spin-off
enterprises, shops and a library or a theatre, which are also open to the inhabitants of the
surrounding suburbs.
Model of Science City with the existing buildings (white) and a potential development scenario (grey).
 CAMPUS PLANNING AND URBAN DESIGN GU IDELINES
• ESTABLISIHNG A GOAL:
Eg: Establish a sense of aesthetic continuity campus-wide, by developing and utilizing
design vocabularies and guidelines in the preservation and reuse of existing
structures and open space areas, as well as in the design of new facilities and open
spaces.
• BUILDINGS AND FACILITIES
- Orientation/Placement of Building On-site: views, circulation, open space, on-site
parking, future expansion, microclimate, and existing site features.
- Indoor-Outdoor Relationships
- Scale and Massing
- Architectural Style
- Building Materials
- Art work and graphics: sculpture, murals, architectural relief, and/or pavement
patterning.
- Strategic buildings : Gateway buildings, Landmark Buildings, Parking structures,
Decks.
 CAMPUS PLANNING AND URBAN DESIGN GU IDELINES

• CAMPUS OPEN SPACE

- Overall Character
- Malls and Corridor type open spaces
- Transition zones
- Intensely used plaza areas, activity nodes
• VISUAL CONTINUITY
• SCREENING
• LANDSCAPING
• CRIME PREVENTIVE DESIGN
• BARRIER FREE DESIGN
• CAMPUS LEGIBILITY
CITY CENTRES
 CITY CENTRES

• As a driver of economic growth and

major centre for employment.
• As an increasing popular residential
centre.
• As a major visitor destination.
• As a place to relax and spend time.
 CITY CENTRES

• SUSTAINABLE PLACEMAKING - Creating distinct places through creative design.

• FOCUS ON
1) Built form
2) Mobility
3) Public realm
CITY CENTRES
• BUILT FORM
• Understanding context
• Site Grading
• Building placement and
Orientation
• Street edge design
• Building setbacks,
separations
• Building entrances
• Walkways
• Parking
• Loading, services, utilities
• Landscape design
• Fences and Walls
• Site lighting, signage
 CITY CENTRES

• BUILDING DESIGN
• Transition and massing
• Materials and Façade treatment
• Building types – low rise, mid rise,
high rise, signature buildings
CITY CENTRES

• MOBILITY
• Pedestrians:
Pedestrian Zones,
paths, connections,
Crossings.
• Cyclists: Tracks,
Other facilities
• Transits : Transit
Corridors, mobility
Hubs, Transit
junctions, Transit
stops
• Motorists
• Street types
CITY CENTRES

• PUBLIC REALM
• Gathering places
at City level
• Civic parks
• Neighborhood
parks
• Public Buildings
• Squares
• Public art
 TRANSPORTATION CORRIDORS
TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD)
 TRANSPORTATION CORRIDORS
TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD)

Transit-oriented development, or TOD, is an

approach to development that focuses land uses
around a transit station or within a transit corridor.

Typically, it is characterized by:

A mix of uses
Moderate to high density
Pedestrian orientation/connectivity
Transportation choices
Reduced parking PETER CALOTHROPE TOD NEIGHBOURHOOD MODEL

High quality design

The rule of thumb is that TOD occurs within one-

quarter mile, or a five to seven minute walk, of a
transit station.
 TRANSPORTATION CORRIDORS
TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD)

Concept of Transit Oriented Development (TOD) applies along 500m catchment from centre line of MRTS
corridors with the following major aspects:

a. Flexibility & Mix of uses – to reduce travel demand and pressure on road based travel.
b. Optimum FAR and density norms to facilitate people to live work and seek entrainment within walking
distance of stations.
c. Creation of finer road networks within neighbourhoods for safer walking/ cycling.
d. Mix of incomes within communities with sharing of public spaces & amenities.
e. Increase in public safety esp. for women and children – through changes in key Development Code
aspects such as setback norms, boundary walls, built-to-edge buildings, active frontages, eyes-on-the-street,
etc.
f. Strict planning and regulation of on-street parking to reduce private vehicle use.
TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT GUIDELINES (TOD)
TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT GUIDELINES (TOD)
 TRANSPORTATION CORRIDORS
TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD)

• Active Transportation and Road Corridor Design: Favour walking, cycling, and public transit over the use
of private automobiles, thereby facilitating the use of modes of transportation that are socially
accessible, environmentally healthy and economically feasible.
• The Public Space and Total Corridor Context Principles
• Adjacent land designs for active transportation
• Locate buildings close to the road edge to spatially define the corridor
• Locate parking to the side or rear of buildings and buffer it from the pedestrian realm
• Orient and connect buildings to the road
• Locate taller buildings along the road and keep the corridor narrow.
• Consolidate road access and provide frequent intersections
• Road edge designs for active transportation: Street amenities, curb design, pedestrian paths, cycle
tracks
• Road way design: Multi use paths, intersection designs, Cross section designs
RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOODS
 RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOODS
Residential Zone: The core concept of this component is to be an integrated neighbourhood
development with easy access to social amenities and facilities like healthcare, education,
shopping, leisure and entertainment, sports.

A NEW STRATEGY OF SUSTAINABLE NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING: FIVE PRINCIPLES

THE FIVE PRINCIPLES ARE:

1. Adequate space for streets and an efficient street network. The street network should occupy at least 30
per cent of the land and at least 18 km of street length per km².
2. High density. At least 15,000 people per km², that is 150 people/ha or 61 people/acre.
3. Mixed land-use. At least 40 per cent of floor space should be allocated for economic use in any
neighbourhood.
4. Social mix. The availability of houses in different price ranges and tenures in any given neighbourhood to
accommodate different incomes; 20 to 50 per cent of the residential floor area should be for low cost
housing; and each tenure type should be not more than 50 per cent of the total.
5. Limited land-use specialization.
This is to limit single function blocks or neighbourhoods; single function blocks should cover less than 10
per cent of any neighbourhood.
 RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOODS
Planning objectives:
• Provision of community facilities: Schools, Community centres, Healthcare facilities
• Efficient use of resources: Land, Energy, Water, Travel patterns
• Amenity/Quality of life: Public open spaces, Safety and Security
• Conservation of natural and built environment: natural environment, Heritage.
 Neighborhood and existing conditions: Layout of streets, plot sizes, landscape and building
typologies
 Streetscape: Edge design, driveways, frontyard design, landscaping
 Building elements: Materials, Character, façade treatment, style
 Built form: Setbacks, Solid and Void ratios, Building heights
WATERFRONTS
 WATERFRONTS

Waterfront Development harnesses the waterfront’s potential by creating ideas, infrastructure

and experiences that stimulate business investment and community pride. These areas have
high aesthetic and functional values due to their proximity to the water and the city core.

Development Principles:
• Maximize continuous public access to the water’s edge;
• Create public spaces that are of high quality, rich in amenities and flexible in their use;
• Preserve and interpret historical uses, activities and forms of the waterfront, and conserve
lands with marine industrial use potential;
• Provide active and dynamic year-round destinations;
• Integrate well with, and support, the surrounding urban fabric;
• Exemplify architectural quality, have animated streetscapes, and respect and support activity
at the water’s edge, and;
• Are economically and environmentally sustainable.
WATERFRONTS
 WATERFRONTS

Three issues should be considered when building on the waterfront.

1) Urban designers involved in the planning process should first consider the functional value
of their work. This includes attention paid to accessibility and security.
2) As well as planning flood control, environmental education should also be implemented to
ensure protection of the land and wildlife.
3) Finally, the most important aspect of a proposed development is its contextual fit within the
existing landscape. (Breen & Rigby, 1991)

"The waterfront becomes symbolic of our human limitations – and of our potential. It functions as both a
physical and a psychological frontier. By representing what is deep and knowable, it suggests both our hopes
and our fears for the future. It is a shimmering mirror which reflects the sunlight of the day and the city lights
of the night, breaking them up into millions of sparkling rays, abstracting and making poeticour work-a-day
world." - John Rubin, 2004
 WATERFRONTS
• PUBLIC REALM
• Circulation: Promenade, Right of way, bicycle facilities
• Open space: Parks, Plazas, play spaces,
• Site furnishings: Paving, walls, fences, Public art, Water features
• ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
• Pedestrian Orientation: Building Orientation, Facades, Setbacks.
• Building Form
• Height
• Historic context
• Vehicle circulation
• Parking
• SIGNAGES
• LIGHTING
• PUBLIC AMENITIES