PLANNING-NOTES-COMPILED.pdfPLANNING-NOTES-COMPILED.pdf
- 1. RODRIGUEZ, HANNAH CARYL N. || BS ARCH 4A PLANNING 2 KEVIN LYNCH LIFE OF KEVIN LYNCH • Kevin Andrew Lynch was born on 7th of January 1918 & died on 25th of April 1984. • He was an American Urban Planner. • He is best known for his work on Mental Mapping and perceptual forms of urban environments. • His famous book “The Image of the City”, which he published in 1960, is very famous among his works. • He was a disciple of FLW before he studied city planning, & spend his academic career at MIT, teaching there. • He practices site planning and urban design 10/2/2024 3 Career and Achievements: • Kevin Lynch's most well-known work is the book "The Image of the City," published in 1960. In this book, he explored how people mentally perceive and navigate urban environments. He introduced concepts such as "mental maps" and "imageability" to describe the ways people create cognitive representations of the cities they inhabit. • He conducted research on various cities and their urban form, leading to a better understanding of how urban spaces can be designed to be more legible, coherent, and user-friendly. • Lynch's ideas and principles had a significant influence on urban planning and design, particularly in the areas of wayfinding, urban legibility, and the creation of more user-friendly urban environments. • He authored other books, including "Site Planning" and "Good City Form," which continued to explore urban design and planning concepts. BOOKS 1960 - The Image of The City 1962 - Site Planning 1964 - The View from the Road 1972 - What Time is This Place? 1976 - Managing the Sense of a Region 1981 - Good City Form ABOUT THE BOOK: IMAGE OF THE CITY • This book is about the look of cities, whether this look is important, and whether it can be changed. • The book results from a five-year study of Boston, Jersey City and Los Angeles on how observers take in information about the city and use it to make mental maps. • Lynch’s conclusion was that people formed mental maps of their surroundings consisting of five basic elements. • The book looks at three American Cities: Boston, Jersey City, and Los Angeles Concept of Mental Mapping • A Person’s point-of-view Perception of their area of interaction. • A person’s perception of the world is known as mental map, it’s an individual own map of their known world. • The image which the user form in his mind about the architectural and urban components of the city and their places so he can direct his motion through the city after that. In summary, the advantages of mental mapping, as proposed by Kevin Lynch, lie in its contributions to effective navigation, memory, sense of place, urban design, community interaction, and the overall legibility of the built environment. Lynch's work has had a lasting impact on urban planning and design theory, influencing how designers approach the creation of user-friendly and memorable urban spaces. Mental maps of an individual can be investigated by: 1. Asking for directions to a landmark or other location. 2. Asking someone to draw a sketch map of an area or describe that area. 3. Asking a person to name as many places as possible in a short period of time. KEVIN LYNCH PRINCIPLES 1. PATHS/PATHWAYS Paths are the channels that help the observer to move along to the city. They can be streets, canals, railroads and so on. Paths are linear and continuous channels. They are essential since the way we observe city depends on the ways we walk. • Streets • Rail lines • Trails
- 2. 2. EDGES Basically, defined edges as a boundary of two phases. They are linear elements that in between city and sea for example. Opposite from the paths, the edges broke the continuity of a phases and from the edges there is another phase that began. Man-Made Edges Natural Edges • Clear transition zones and linear boundaries, water fronts 3. DISTRICTS It is like the sections of the city. The observer can go inside the districts. Districts can be defined with different physical characteristics such as texture, space, form, detail, symbol, building type, use, activity, inhabitants, degree of maintenance, and topography. Also, we can say some cultural activities can define a district, too. They can be in a relationship with each other, or they can be in their zone and stand single. • Quarters • Neighborhoods • Other sections of the city with distinctive character 4. NODES Are the strategic foci into which the observer can enter either junctions of paths or concentrations of some characteristic. We can say the break points of streets can be nodes. They are somehow reference points for observers of the city. • Strategic meeting points • Squares, • Junctions or train stations 5. LANDMARK Different from nodes, observers cannot enter the landmark. They are generally simple defined objects in the city. It can be buildings, signs, store or a mountain. Physical objects serve as public reference points.
- 3. IMAGE OF THE CITY The title "The Image of the City" refers to the mental image or cognitive map that individuals create in their minds to understand and navigate the urban environment. Kevin Lynch used this term to describe the subjective and psychological perception that people have of the cities they inhabit. The concept of the "image" is not a literal visual representation but rather a mental construct that combines sensory information, personal experiences, and cognitive mapping. Lynch's interest was in understanding how people form mental images of the city and how these images influence their behavior, navigation, and sense of place within the urban environment. By studying how individuals perceive and organize the elements of the city in their minds, Lynch aimed to uncover patterns and principles that could inform better urban design and planning practices. PROS: 1. USER – CENTERED DESIGN 2. CLEAR PRINCIPLES 3. LEGIBILITY AND WAYFINDING 4. MEMORABILITY 5. SENSE OF PLACE 6. INFLUENCE OF URBAN PLANNING CONS: 1. SIMPLICITY & UNIVERSALITY 2. LIMITED CONSIDERATION OF SOCIAL FACTORS LYNCH LEGACY Achieving well-designed places. Planning policies and decisions should ensure that developments: 1. Are visually attractive 2. Are sympathetic to local character and history, 3. Establish or maintain strong sense of place, using the arrangement of streets, spaces, building types and materials.
- 4. ELEMENTS OF URBAN DESIGN WHAT IS URBAN DESIGN? • Urban design is concerned with the arrangement, appearance, and function of our suburbs, towns, and cities. • It is both a process and an outcome of creating localities in which people live, engage with each other, and engage with the physical place around them. • It involves the design and coordination of all that makes up cities and towns. ELEMENTS OF URBAN DESIGN • BUILDINGS • PUBLIC SPACES • STREETS • TRANSPORTS • LANDSCAPES 1. BUILDINGS • Buildings are the most pronounced elements of urban design. • They shape and articulate space by forming the street walls of the city. •Well-designed buildings and groups of buildings work together to create a sense of place. ATTRIBUTES: • Height and contour define a sense of enclosure and visibility. • Facade Designs animate & personalize urban space • Building forms are guided by specific uses of buildings. • As they have an impact on the streetscape, it is important that their forms respond to their surroundings. EXAMPLES: RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS These are structures where people dwell. A building is made up of one or more rooms used for housing, with the necessary facilities and utilities that satisfy a person's or family's living requirements. COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS These are buildings where commercial activities take place. Commercial buildings include office buildings, retail space, warehouses, and more. INSTITUTIONAL BUILDINGS An institutional building is one that is defined primarily by its function or use. Hospitals, government buildings, military, schools, office compounds, stadiums, galleries, and more, are categorized as institutional buildings. INDUSTRIAL BUILDINGS Industrial buildings include buildings used directly in the production of power, the manufacture of products, the mining of raw materials, and the storage of textiles, petroleum products, wood and paper products, chemicals, plastics, and metals. 2. PUBLIC PLACES • Great public 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 the drama of life. • Public spaces range from grand central plazas and squares to small, local neighborhood parks.
- 5. EXAMPLES: ST. PETER SQUARE located in front of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City TIME SQUARE New York’s famous city square located at the junction of Broadway and 7th avenue and stretches from West 42nd to West 47th streets PLAZA MAYOR The best-known plaza in Madrid, Spain, this impressive city square is one of the main stops on any tourist visit MANILA BAYWALK Located at Roxas boulevard, this baywalk catches the beautiful view of the sunset 3. STREETS • These are the connections between spaces and places, as well as being spaces • They are defined by their physical dimension and character as well as the size, scale, and character of the buildings that line them. • The pattern of the street network is part of what defines a city and what makes each city unique. EXAMPLES: HIGH STREET Frequently used for the street name of the primary business street of towns or cities, especially in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations OVERPASS It is also called an overbridge or flyover. It is a bridge, or road, railway, or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway. FOOTBRIDGE A footbridge (a pedestrian bridge, pedestrian overpass, or pedestrian over-crossing) is designed for pedestrians. SKYWAY An air lane. An elevated highway, especially one well above ground level, and composed of a series of spans. Skyway is usually used in the US for long or high bridges for traffic.
- 6. FREEWAY A freeway is a "controlled-access" highway — also known as an express highway — that's designed exclusively for high-speed vehicular traffic. Traffic flow on a freeway is unhindered because there are no traffic signals, or intersections with other roads, railways, or pedestrian paths. BOULEVARD A wide road in a city, usually with trees on each side or along the center. Boulevards are major areas with lots of space and traffic, but they can be commercial with bars, restaurants, stores, and famous landmarks, or they can be more parklike with greenery lining the boulevard. PROMENADE & ESPLANADE A promenade can be anywhere, and it is exclusively for walking, while an esplanade is for walking but also can include large boulevards or avenues with cars. ALLEY A narrow passageway between or behind buildings. It can refer to a narrow, usually paved, pedestrian path, often between the walls of buildings in towns and cities. 4. TRANSPORT • Transport systems connect the parts of cities and help shape them and enable movement throughout the city. • They include road, rail, bicycle, and pedestrian networks, and together form the total movement system of a city. • The balance of these various transport systems is what helps define the quality and character of cities and makes them either friendly or hostile to pedestrians. • The best cities are the ones that elevate the experience of the pedestrian while minimizing the dominance of the private automobile. EXAMPLES: TRAIN TRAIN STATION BUS
- 7. BUS STATION OTHER TRANSPORTATION JEEPNEY TAXI TRICYCLE BICYCLE PRIVATE AUTOMOBILES (e.g. cars) 5. LANDSCAPES • It is the green part of the city that weaves throughout, in the form of urban parks, street trees, plants, flowers, and water in many forms. • The landscape helps define the character and beauty of a city and creates soft, contrasting spaces and elements. Green spaces in cities range from grand parks to small intimate pocket parks. EXAMPLES: POCKET PARK Pocket Park (also known as a parkette, mini-park, vest-pocket park or vesty park) is a small park accessible to the general public. While the locations, elements, and uses of pocket parks vary considerably, the common defining characteristic of a pocket park is its small size TREES ALONG BOULEVARD PLANTERS ALONG SIDEWALK
- 8. WALKWAYS CONCLUSION: • In summary, the elements of urban designs shapes the urban environment. • Balance in elements, eco-friendly cities prioritizing well-being leads to urban success. • Through educating and understanding these elements, urban planners, architects and other related profession may be properly guided on the development and growth of the society. • Collaboration among urban planners, architects, and communities is key to crafting resilient, aesthetically pleasing, and economically thriving urban spaces that enrich the lives of residents and visitors alike. URBAN ECOLOGY FACTORS OF URBAN ECOLOGY • SOCIAL FACTORS • BIOLOGICAL FACTORS • PHYSICAL FACTORS • CHEMICAL FACTORS WHAT IS URBAN ECOLOGY? - is generally accepted as a field of study related to how living organisms (and we include human beings) create and interact with each other in urban environments. - Urban ecological systems include individual organisms, populations, communities, and landscapes, as well as buildings and infrastructure. 5 PRINCIPLES OF URBAN ECOLOGY • URBAN AREAS ARE ECOSYSTEM • CITIES ARE HETEROGENEOUS • CITIES ARE DYNAMIC • HUMAN AND NATURAL PROCESSES INTERACT IN CITIES • IMPORTANCE OF BIOPHYSICAL PROCESSES IN CITIES WHY STUDY URBAN ECOLOGY? Urban ecology promotes resilient and sustainable urban spaces where humans and nature coexist. When integrated in the right way, it can help in decreasing the air and water pollution while enabling new ways of food production, transportation, and housing for people as well. IMPORTANCE OF STUDYING URBAN ECOLOGY Urban ecologists often have to consider how they can help make an urban environment better for its human inhabitants while still maintaining green space and healthy ecosystems overall. It is important to study because cities are becoming increasingly more common, so it is vital that we understand what effects they have on our natural environment. Urban Ecology Creates Green Spaces Creating green spaces in urban environments has had incredibly beneficial effects on human health in the populations that utilize these spaces. Communities Benefit from Urban Ecology Having a habitat within a city improves ecological processes, providing a home for plant and animal life. Urban Ecosystems Urban ecosystems are not only about the plants and animals that live in urban environments, but also the social interactions of people. The way that cities are built can have a huge effect on animal habitats, as well as human health. Urban Population Density Population density plays a huge role in the diversity of species in urban environments.