URBAN

DESIGN
PLANNING 2

GROUP 1 MEMBERS:
CEA, RACHEL
COLLADO, IAN
CRUZ, PHIL
LAIGO, ALYSSANDRA
VILORIA, HENRICK
TABLE OF CONTENTS
01 THE FUNDAMENTALS OF URBAN DESIGN
1.1. THE IMPORTANCE OF URBAN DESIGN
1.2. KEY ASPECTS OF DESIGN
1.3. HOW THE COMPEDIUM IS ORGANIZED

02 APPRECIATING THE CONTEXT

2.1. COMMUNITY
2.2. PLACE
2.3. NATURAL RESOURCES
2.4. CONNECTIONS
2.5. FEASIBILITY
2.6. VISION
01 WHAT IS URBAN DESIGN?
Urban design is the design of towns and cities, streets and spaces. It is the
collaborative and multi-disciplinary process of shaping the physical setting for
life – the art of making places.
1.1
IMPORTANCE OF URBAN DESIGN
URBAN DESIGN INVOLVES DIFFERENT THINGSLIKE HOW
BUILDINGS ARE MADE, HOW LAND IS USED, AND HOW
ROADS ARE PLANNED.

URBAN DESIGN SHOULD INCLUDE TALKING TO THE

PEOPLE WHO WILL USE THE AREA, AND WHO LIVES IN
THE AREA.
1.2.
KEY ASPECTS OF URBAN DESIGN
PLACES FOR THE PEOPLE

An environment where everyone can access and benefit

from the full range of opportunities available to members
of society

ENRICH THE EXISTING

New developments integrated into the existing urban form

and the natural and built environments

MAKE CONNECTIONS

Ease of movement and legibility

The connections between people and places by considering
the needs of people
WORK WITH THE LANDSCAPE

A balance between the natural and man-made environment

and utilize each site’s intrinsic resources.

MIX USES AND FORM

A variety of demands from the widest possible range of
users, amenities and social groups

MANAGE THE INVESTMENT

Market considerations
Economically viable

DESIGN FOR CHANGE

Adaptability
Designing for energy and resource efficiency; creating
flexibility in the use of property, public spaces, and the
service infrastructure.
1.3.
HOW THE COMPEDIUM IS ORGANISED

1. Commissioning and setting up

development projects

2. Designing individual schemes

3. Evaluating project proposals in

design terms
 1.4. THE STRUCTURE OF THE
COMPENDIUM

CREATING THE
APPRECIATING MAKING THE DETAILING THE IMPLEMENTATION
URBAN
THE CONTEXT CONNECTIONS PLACE AND DELIVERY
STRUCTURE

How urban design Working out the inter- Achieving sustainable Considering the detail Managing the design
thinking interprets relationship between movement systems – of buildings and the process to ensure that
and builds upon development blocks, the roads, streets, public realm, and the a commitment to
historic character, streets, buildings, footpaths, public crucial interface quality continues
natural resources and open space, landscape transport routes, between them - the beyond completion of
the aspirations of and all the other green corridors, and corner treatments, the construction.
local communities, features that make up systems for providing roof-lines, the
and arrives at a urban areas. service utilities, all of pavement, the street
realistic vision of what which improve urban lighting etc.
a place might become life .
1.5. THE VALUE OF GUIDANCE

Guidance contained within the Compendium

relating to both the ‘product’ and ‘process’ of
urban design provides a comprehensive
overview. For every piece of general
guidance produced, there is an excellent
place that defies the guidance, or shows
other ways of achieving high quality
solutions. Genius, or indeed serendipity,
breaks the rules.
1.6. THE VALUE OF GUIDANCE
The Compendium has been constructed in such a way that it can
be read as a single coherent narrative, tracing the design of a
project from first principles to specific features, but at the same
time it can be dipped into on a topic-by-topic basis.

There is no prescription in the Compendium but neither does it

shirk from giving quantitative advice where this is deemed
helpful.

Different parts of the Compendium will be relevant to different

types of project.

All significant area regeneration projects should pass through

each of these processes. Smaller projects will need to employ
some but not all of the stages.
 APPRECIATING
02 THE CONTEXT

2.1. COMMUNITY
The success or otherwise of a project is a product of
understanding the human as well as the physical geography.
Above all, places must be stimulating for people, and
buildings and open spaces must be comfortable and safe.

This requires an appreciation of the dynamics of the local

community, including:

• local views and initiatives;

• local history and custom;
• the views of other stakeholder groups and individuals
(such as developers, landowners, utility organisations);
• organisational or institutional arrangements;
• the policy context.
COMMUNITY & POLICY APPRAISAL
OTHER
COMMUNITY LOCAL PLAN HERITAGE AND RELEVANT
PROFILE POLICIES CONSERVATION POLICIES AND
INITIATIVES

Stakeholders Design Conservation areas Supplementary

Local views, Strategic views Listed buildings planning guidance
preferences, and Land uses Ancient monuments Other relevant local
aspirations Transportation plans Archeology authority policies
Organizational Interim uses Sites of Special Scientific Relevant policies and
structures Specific constraints (eg. Interest requirements of other
Census and other airport protection Local Nature Reserves bodies (eg. RDAs,
statistical data zones) and other designated Environment Agency)
Cultural ecological sites Other local initiatives
characteristics Protected flora and
Safety and security fauna
Nature conservation,
Countryside and Green
Strategies
2.2. PLACE
The term genius loci refers to a place's pervasive sense of place and is used in urban design.
Perceptions of a place are made up of layers of understanding - the settlement in the landscape,
its overall structure, the district, the street, the building. They result from an awareness of a site's
natural landscape, human geography, history, and morphology of previous usage.
2.3.
NATURAL RESOURCES
Harnessing the intrinsic resources of the site to create more sustainable development.

• Integrates the various needs of the new

development;

• Identifies possibilities that the site offers; and

recognises the site’s limitations
WORK WITH THE ELEMENTS
maximum use of the site’s resources, minimum demands on the environment.

utilise the solar potential;

Use of Photovoltaic panels (Solar Panels)
Orient the building to maximize the light while minimizing the
thermal gain.

make full use of rain water and drainage systems;

rainwater collection system, and a greywater reuse for garden
and toilet flushing.

use the potential of the ground for heating or cooling;

harness wind energy;

wind turbines, roof turbines, natural ventilation

further reduce energy demands by, for instance, integrating a

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant into the development or
harnessing of biomass.
• Should the site be developed at all?

• If it should, then what parts of the site?

• What mitigation measures can be taken to avoid, reduce and

remedy negative environmental impacts?

• What types of development are appropriate and how can

these integrate with the wider urban structure?

• Which features can form the basis of the landscape structure?

‘IF IT AIN’T
• How can exploitation of the site’s assets reinforce a unique
sense of place?
BROKE,
DON’T FIX IT’
focus on how to repair and re-use previously developed or
damaged parts of the site, while retaining and respecting
undamaged parts

Identify landscape assets to preserve.

Re-use and repair brownfield land

Introducing new landscape features and wildlife

habitats;

‘IF IT AIN’T
restoring damaged parts by, for instance, re-profiling a
slope;

integrating elements from the site’s past life, such as

routes, structures and buildings. BROKE,
Strengthen the identity and structure of the landscape
DON’T FIX IT’
2.4. CONNECTIONS
Achieving careful integration with the landscape or surrounding built
environment.

Successful development depends on good access and connections. The connections between a site
and its surroundings are important for even the smallest of developments.
BASIS OF A MOVEMENT FRAMEWORK
WILL NEED TO ESTABLISH:
how routes from the new site will knit in with the existing infrastructure;
the provision made for all forms of movement, with positive discrimination
how the new development can benefit the area as a whole
how movement will be provided for at all stages in the development.
MATTER OF ESTABLISHING THE PRINCIPLES OF THE MOVEMENT
FRAMEWORK. THE STRUCTURE WILL BE DESIGNED LATER IN
RELATION TO THE OVERALL DEVELOPMENT SCHEME
Understand existing access and linkages
Observe the quality of movement
2.5. FEASIBILITY
In order to determine if a project is economically
and practically feasible, the requirements are:

community need;
market supply and demand;
funding sources;
site capacity;
land ownership, assembly and tenure;
integration with surrounding context;
construction costs;
engineering constraints;
local planning policy context.
2.6. VISION
VISION OF URBAN PLANNING

• increase the value of site when it provides social,

economic, and environmental benefits.

• gives solution, and big transformation to a city

• future changes in lifestyles