Theories of ‘Place‘

Urban Design 2020

Rabia Ezdi
Daniya Atta
‘Who has the power to make places of spaces? Who contests
this? Who is at stake?‘
Gupta and Ferguson, 1992
Placemaking-
Why the Issue?
The concepts behind Place-making originated in the 1960s, when
visionaries like Jane Jacobs and William “Holly” Whyte offered
ground breaking ideas about designing cities that catered to
people, not just to cars and shopping centres. Their work
focused on the importance of lively neighbourhoods and inviting
public spaces. Jane Jacobs advocated citizen ownership of streets
through the now-famous idea of “eyes on the street.” Holly
Whyte emphasized essential elements for creating social life in
public spaces.
 ‘UN Resolution on Placemaking‘: sustainable
urbanization, with a specific focus on Place-making,
Public Spaces, and Urban Quality of Life.
 ‘Sense of Place‘

“’Sense of Place’ therefore reflects a shared human

engagement with the 'soul' of the place. It occurs when
the users of a locality feel a deep-rooted attachment or
belonging. It is an outcome of good urban design as
well as other factors including culture, events, activities
etc. These are referred to as "social fabric'. While there
may not be consensus on the concept, we have all
experienced well designed urban projects that do not
have a sense of place!”
 The various debates on ‘Placemaking‘...

• The ontological (‘phenomenology‘) argument:

Heidigger

• The urban design argument: Jane Jacobs, Kevin

Lynch, William H Whyte, Enrique Penalosa

• The Event-Space argument- form and function are

constantly interacting with eachother: Bernard
Tschumi
"We need cities. Not as places of work or fabrication,
but as dense social concentrations, interpersonal
exchange centres, protracted fun places, sites of
pleasure and of the very quality which is etymologically
bound to cities – civility…”
(Meades, 1998)
The ‘Before i Die‘ project by Candy Chang
 ‘The Social Life of Small Urban Places‘-
William H. Whyte

“I end then in praise of small spaces. The multiplier effect is

tremendous. It is not just the number of people using them, but
the large number who pass by and enjoy them vicariously....For a
city, such places are priceless, whatever the cost. They are built
of a set of basics, and they are right in front of our noses. If we
will look“
‘The street is the river of life in the city‘- William H. Whyte
enclosures,
streets,
the market place (karachi itwar bazar),
the node,
the waterfront,
etc
 “It must be understood that a city is only a
means to a way of life, and every detail in a city
should reflect that human beings are sacred”
Enrique Penalosa
Itwar bazaar Karachi
 Streets
• “Streets and their sidewalks, the main public places of a city, are its most
vital organs…If a city’s streets look interesting, the city looks interesting; if
they look dull, the city looks dull” -Jane Jacobs

• “A street is characterized by the degree and quality of street life it

facilitates, whereas a road serves primarily as a through passage for road
vehicles” (lines of communication)

• " If there's a lesson in street watching it is that people do like basics -- and
as environments go, a street that is open to the sky and filled with people
and life is a splendid place to be” -William H. Whyte
“The myth that playgrounds and grass and hired guards
or supervisors are innately wholesome for children and
that city streets, filled with ordinary people are innately
evil for children, boils down to a deep contempt for
ordinary people“
‘Happy Street‘
 Activity and Program: the Impact of the
Surroundings

“Neighbourhood parks themselves are directly and

drastically affected by the way the neighbourhood acts
upon them...
Does anything about the physical arrangement of the
neighbourhood affect the park physically? Yes. A mixture of
uses of buildings directly produces for the park a mixture of
users who enter and leave the park at different times..The
park thus posses an intricate sequence of uses and users“-
Jane Jacobs

(example: Nasir Bagh, crime etc)

 The 24 hour Place: the need for mixed
primary uses

“On successful city streets, people must appear at

different times...hour by hour, throughout the day...this
is a necessity for street safety....“ -Jane Jacobs
 ‘Place and Society‘

• Bloomsbury group- Bloomsbury street

• Pak Tea House

• Hazuri Bagh (oral tradition as opposed to written tradition

eg Bhulleh Shah; role of spatial characteristics in creating this
‘platform‘)
The Bloomsbury Group
Pak Tea House (Lahore Tea House)
Urban Design and Place: “Urban design is not
just about physical form, but lived experience as well. It has a social and
psychological dimension. At its best, urban design is about feeling at home in
the world: creating a sense of continuity and authenticity.” (Buchanan, 2009)

• Scale & Proportion...

• The Immediate Surroundings...
• Enclosure...
• Legibility and Cognition...
• Robustness...the degree to which people can use a given space for
different purposes
• Richness...the extent to which a place provides sensory experience
• Permeability...how porous or accesible is a site
• ‘Intricacy‘ and Variety...the range of
programs/activities offered by a site
• Association...how well people personally relate to a place
“I believe a city reflects a society's values and a city also
creates values, it creates a way of life. It either creates
inequality and exclusion, or it creates equality and
inclusion. A city speaks in every detail; it either speaks
for human dignity or it speaks of a lack of respect for
human dignity”
Enrique Penalosa
 The Place Diagram is one of the tools PPS (‘Project for Public Spaces’) has developed to help
communities evaluate places. The inner ring represents key attributes, the middle ring intangible
qualities, and the outer ring measurable data.
www.pps.org
Flower Power Movement