Urban Planning Concepts Research Articles

Uptake of ecosystem service concept in urban blue-green infrastructure planning and decision-making in Russia

ABSTRACT In the scientific community, ecosystem services (ESs) are well-recognized as a promising concept to more actively consider and plan for the multitude of benefits provided by the green environment and thus promote sustainable urban development. Yet, to have an impact on decision-making, the concept must spread from academia to practice. To understand to what extent ES have been adopted in practice and decision-making in Russia, we conducted a series of interviews and an online survey with both practitioners and scientists and complemented it by document analysis. Our results showed that ES are not adequately reflected in urban decision-making and planning processes. Moreover, we found no explicit references to ES in strategic urban planning and landscape development projects, although there are few implicit references in several reviewed documents. Among the identified challenges for better uptake of the concept in practice were many disagreements associated with the lack of a unified terminology, typology, and methods. Stakeholders understand the potential of applying ES valuation in practice, which includes a necessity to develop methodological materials and different tools based on real-life cases. Finally, a list of proposals on possible ways to better include ES in urban planning and in decision-making processes was formed by the respondents.

The ecosystem services concept in urban planning: the criteria for practical fit

ABSTRACT Application of the ecosystem services (ES) concept in urban planning has potential for improving environmental and human health outcomes in cities. We aimed to narrow an identified ES implementation gap by identifying the criteria for the practical fit of the ES concept in urban planning. We found that local relevance and adaptability within current planning approaches were core criteria for practical fit. If not met immediately, these criteria may be met over time through policy entrepreneurship. Further research in different locations and planning systems would increase understanding of the enabling factors for applying ES in urban planning.

Overlapping modernity and tradition: rethinking the danwei as a basic urban unit in modern China

ABSTRACT The danwei was the basic unit of social organization and urban form in China during the period of the planned economy, and this role, which encompasses various dimensions such as administration, production, and welfare, is a unique feature of China's modernization process. This study attempts to explain how the danwei actively influenced the development of socialist China from both modern and traditional perspectives. From a modern perspective, the danwei relates to the modern concept of urban planning, and its efficient spatial organization brings a new way of life in the industrial age. From a traditional perspective, the enclosed nature, social control, and patriarchal management style of the danwei maintained the characteristics of ancient society rooted in traditional culture, making it accepted by the public and facilitating the process of industrialization in a short period. This article aims to show that the danwei, as a pragmatic method blending modernity with tradition, played an indispensable role in China's transition from an agricultural to a modern society and continues to influence social life and urban form in contemporary China.

Wandering "paper" dominants: positions and functions of high-rise accents in the urban development projects of Pushchino, 1950–1980s

The subject of this study are the architectural and urban planning projects of the scientific town of Pushchino of the USSR Academy of Sciences, developed in the second half of the 20th century. It focuses on high-rise accents planned in the master plans from the 1950s to the 1980s, which, though never realized, played a crucial organizing role in the city's developmental compositions over the years. These "paper" projects significantly influenced the actual architectural ensemble of the city. Specific changes in the creative concepts are correlated with personnel shifts within the team that developed the projects for Pushchino. The dynamics and direction of architectural searches are considered within the broad context of the history of Soviet architecture and are compared with global processes and the positions of architectural theorists and philosophers. The research employs a formal and comparative analysis method, structured historically to segment the creative process into periods that reflect both the subject of the research and the broader historical and architectural context of the era. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the comprehensive analysis of numerous urban planning and architectural projects, gathered through extensive research in state and personal archives. This allowed for the first time to consider the work of architects on the planning projects of Pushchino as a dynamic process, revealing changes that occurred at each of its stages. Through the analysis of the development of “paper” dominants, wandering from project to project, changes in the global urban planning concepts of the city were traced. Consequently, the article provides insights into the development of urban planning in Pushchino, viewed through the lens of high-rise accents. It also paves the way for further research into other aspects of the process, contributing to a more comprehensive and profound understanding of urban architectural development.

CARDO AND DECUMANUS IN THE HISTORICAL URBAN PLANNING OF KYIV

The article clarifies conceptual meaning of the classical terms of the ancient gromatic (urban planning) art — "cardo" and "decumanus". The issue of continuity of the Roman, Byzantine and Old Russian planning traditions is considered on the example of the city of Yaroslav’s layout in Kyiv. The planning value of the Golden Gate in Kyiv and Constantinople has been determined. The conclusion is made about the foundation of the city of Yaroslav after begining of the St. Sophia Cathedral construction. The development of the main planning axis of the city — cardo — is shown in the project of the classical reconstruction of Kyiv in the first half of the 19th and in 20th century. The problem of using traditional terms and concepts of ancient urban planning in modern research and urban planning practice is posed. In accordance with the clearly established boundaries of the ancient castrum on the territory of Kyiv Podol, the routes of its main streets can be clearly read. So the cardo (Via Praetoria) goes from north to south, approximately from the intersection of Mezhihirska and Yaroslavska streets (rear-guard gate, Porta Decumana), through the intersection of Kostyantynivska and Horiva Street (Pretoria), to the avant-garde gate (Rorta Praetoria) within the T-intersection of Frolivska Street with Borychiv Tik (one of the oldest streets in the city). From this place, the antique Podilska cardo in medieval times continued with Andriyivsky Uzvoz and the cardo of the new town of Yaroslav (1034), and at the beginning of the 19th century. within the limits of the classicist general plan of the city — along Volodymyrska Street to the south. In this way, we record the steady development of the urban planning tradition in Kyiv from the very beginning of the city's existence. Of course, one can question the legality of the application of the Roman- Byzantine urban planning concepts "cardo" and "decuman" in relation to the modern city. However, the planning structure of the central part of Kyiv within the boundaries of the Dnieper and Lybedi rivers did not develop all at once, but over the course of two thousand years of successive urban development, therefore the basic principles that determined the main features and directions of growth are critically important for understanding the urban design of the city to this day.

THE NEW URBAN CONCEPT OF HANSEATIC CITIES OF THE RIGA ARCHBISHOPRIC IN THE 13TH–14TH CENTURIES

Bishop of Riga Albert established bishoprics and centers of spiritual life on the Southern Baltic Sea coast to subjugate the local population. Sacred buildings were the main architectural highlights of the urban environment. Later, Riga became the main military base for expansion in the Baltics, the economic base of the Teutonic Order, and the administrative center of the Archbishopric of Riga (1255–1562). On the Baltic Sea coast, new bishoprics began to be established in the lands of the subject Prussians. Important cities were involved in the Hanseatic League. Consequently, the concept of urban planning and construction changed in the 13th– 14th centuries. Research object: urban space of the Hanseatic League cities on the Prussian lands in the 13th–14th centuries. Research problem: sacral buildings changed urban aesthetics and the urban space of the Hanseatic cities, which has not been studied enough to preserve their identity. Research goal: analysis of the impact of churches for the citizenship parishes on the planning, visual image, and architectural-spatial development of the Hanseatic League cities in the lands of the subject Prussians. Novelty: analysis of common and local features of the structural evolution of the Hanseatic cities under the authority of the Archbishopric of Riga during the 13th and 14th centuries. Research methods: analysis of archive documents, projects, cartographic materials, and studies of published literature.

Towards a liveable city: Measuring the liveability index in Tuban Regency, East Java

A liveable city is an urban planning concept where the city as a public space focuses on the social life and the entire community. Tuban Regency is one of the regencies in East Java that intends to measure the liveability of its city. For the first experiment, the measurement was conducted before and after the pandemic (2020 to 2023). This research tries to measure the liveability index at the regency level. The measurement uses district data units to measure the regency liveability index achievement in more detail. The result shows that the rural area index is higher than the urban in terms of the environment, food security, housing and settlements, and accessibility/transportation.

Heritage and the Soviet city of the 1980s

The article examines changes in the architects’ and society’s understanding of the role of heritage in the Soviet city and its importance for the formation of the urban environment. It is known that the architecture of the Soviet period went through several turns in its development, determined by the change of State policy in this area. It seemed that urban planning concepts were also changing dramatically. However, with external differences, the deep layers of professional thinking of architects and urban planners changed little; the same problems of urban development and the preservation of historical buildings arose again and again. At the turn of the 1960s and the 1970s and then in the 1980s, there were certain advances in understanding the role of the historical city environment, but the conditions of urban planning in the country practically did not change, which contributed to the reproduction of established stereotypes. The last decade of the Soviet era was characterized by a paradoxical attitude towards heritage, which still largely remained in the post-Soviet period.

Land Use, Built-Up, and Vegetation Index in North Halmahera Regency through Spatio-Temporal Analysis

Monitoring land use, buildings, and vegetation index of ecotourism areas in North Halmahera can support planning space utilization in urban areas for tourist areas as the concept of land use management and urban planning. This study offers ideas for analyzing the distribution of buildings, vegetation index, and land use in the mangrove ecotourism area of North Halmahera Regency using the spatio-temporal analysis method. The spatio-temporal analysis method comprises several stages: data selection, preprocessing, data integration, spatial analysis, temporal analysis, spatio-temporal analysis, data visualization, interpretation and understanding, and data visualization. The results of this study show that changes in the livelihood strategy of local people, from farmers and fishermen to traders, also affect land use patterns, from agricultural activities to economic activities, which triggers an increase in the number of buildings for production activities to product distribution. The implications of these findings on ecotourism development programs and policies and infrastructure development in the North Halmahera Regency are to consider community livelihoods and space or land use behavior in ecotourism areas based on vegetation, soil, and building index values. Thus, the intensification of building distribution and changes in vegetation index values from 2013-2023 reflect changes in people's livelihood strategies from agrarian activities to trade and from fishermen's activities to tourism transportation service providers.

Research Progress and Prospects of Shrinking Cities

This Amidst the wave of globalization and urbanization, the phenomenon of urban shrinkage is gradually becoming a "new normal" in urban development, triggering a series of profound questions regarding urban sustainability. With profound changes in the domestic and international socio-economic environment, the phenomenon of urban shrinkage has also begun to emerge in some cities and regions in China, posing a severe challenge in the process of new urbanization. This phenomenon not only challenges the traditional concepts of urban planning and management, but also prompts scholars in the field of economic geography to re-examine and conduct further research. This article aims to summarize the latest progress in the study of shrinking cities, delve into their connotation, identification criteria and type classification, underlying causes and mechanisms, as well as coping strategies. By doing so, we hope to provide theoretical support and practical guidance for the research and practice of urban shrinkage issues in China, and promote sustainable urban development and modernization of governance.

Creating inequality in access to public transit? Densification, gentrification, and displacement

Densification is a key concept in contemporary urban planning. Yet, there are widespread concerns about densification causing displacement and gentrification. This paper examines densification around train stations—a prevalent form of transit-oriented development (TOD) in cities with established public transit systems—in the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland. We assess the effects of densification around train stations on the socioeconomic population composition in these areas and investigate three different potential displacement effects. Leveraging 1.8 million linked person-housing unit observations for all individuals within our study perimeter, we provide a more nuanced understanding of densification’s effects on the population composition and displacement than prior research. Our findings reveal that even though densification increases the absolute number of low-income residents, it primarily benefits middle- and high-income households. Specifically, there is a decline in the share of low-income residents, attributed to the influx of younger high-income individuals. Moreover, incumbent low-income residents experience an increased risk of direct displacement due to housing demolitions. These outcomes highlight the limitations of TOD strategies in mitigating persistent socioeconomic disparities in public transit access, emphasizing the need for more comprehensive measures to address the challenges of equitable housing and public transit accessibility.

Bikeability Disparities in Orange County, California: Intersection of Place and Demographics

Active transportation modes such as walking and biking are gaining popularity for their extensive health and environmental benefits, yet scholars know little about how place-based accessibility varies by area sociodemographic composition. This study is among the first to examine sociodemographic disparities (by both race and socioeconomic status) in bikeability while allowing for heterogeneity in disparities. Consideration of bikeability disparities is particularly critical within the framework of urban planning concepts that promote equitable accessibility and reduced dependency on automobiles, such as the 15-minute city. Geographically Weighted Regressions examined associations between census tract-level bikeability (using an index that combines five components), socioeconomic status, and percentage non-White residents (controlling for age of structures in tracts). Findings showed that the strength and directionality of associations between bikeability and race/socioeconomic status varied throughout the county, providing targeted information on where greater concentrations of low socioeconomic status and non-White residents were associated with lower bikeability.

SUSTAINABLE SMART CITIES: THE ROLE OF FINTECH IN PROMOTING ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

Sustainable smart cities are at the forefront of urban development, striving to balance economic prosperity with environmental sustainability. This Review delves into the critical role played by Financial Technology (Fintech) in advancing environmental sustainability within smart city initiatives. Fintech innovations are instrumental in optimizing resource management, enhancing citizen engagement, and fostering collaborative governance models, thereby contributing to the overarching goal of creating sustainable urban ecosystems. Through a historical perspective, this Review traces the evolution of sustainable smart cities, highlighting the transformative impact of technological advancements and the integration of Fintech solutions. From early urban planning concepts to the emergence of smart technologies in the 21st century, the evolution of sustainable smart cities underscores the importance of leveraging innovation to address urban challenges. The rise of Fintech has further accelerated this evolution, offering innovative financial services tailored to support green finance, renewable energy investment, and sustainable infrastructure development. Fintech platforms enable efficient allocation of resources, facilitate transparent and secure transactions, and empower citizens to participate in sustainable initiatives. By integrating Fintech solutions into urban development strategies, cities can unlock new opportunities for environmental sustainability while fostering economic growth and social equity. Looking ahead, the integration of sustainable smart cities and Fintech holds immense potential to address pressing environmental challenges such as climate change, pollution, and resource depletion. As cities continue to embrace digital transformation and adopt data-driven approaches, the role of Fintech in promoting environmental sustainability will become increasingly crucial. By leveraging historical insights and embracing emerging technologies, cities can chart a path towards a more resilient, inclusive, and environmentally sustainable future. This Review underscores the importance of collaboration among stakeholders, including governments, businesses, academia, and civil society, to drive collective action and accelerate the transition towards sustainable smart cities.
 Keywords: Sustainable, Smart Cities, Fintech, Promoting, Environmental.

Methodology, application and platform for urban security planning and management

With the acceleration of economic development and urban construction, urban security accidents have occurred around the world with alarming frequency, causing serious casualties and economic losses. Urban security planning and management as emerging areas of research have drawn widespread attention. For city development plans, urban security planning and management have become one of major topics. This paper first outlines the principles of urban security planning and management, combined with the construction of a digital and intelligent platform for urban emergency management. This research then analyzes the core technology and equipment support system of urban security management and its practical application. It also presents a new model based on urban security planning and management, followed by examples of its application in some mega infrastructure development for security planning and design (for example, Singapore Changi Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao Airport Transportation Hub). Additionally, a blast protection concept of urban security planning and management is provided.

Developing a 15-minute city: A comparative study of four Italian Cities-Cagliari, Perugia, Pisa, and Trieste

The pandemic and the environmental crisis raise the question of a radical transformation of cities to foster inclusion, sustainability, participation, and quality of life. The 15-minute city concept prefigures a reorganization of urban spaces, structures, and functions aimed at increasing residents’ access to essential services, favoring sustainable modes of transportation, and transforming public urban spaces into multifunctional places. The proposed study develops a set of indicators derived from the spatial and configurational analysis to evaluate the compliance of urban systems with the 15-minute city concept. The selected areas of study are the cities of Cagliari, Perugia, Pisa, and Trieste, in Italy. The study investigates four issues: i) defining a set of relevant, reproducible, and comparable indicators for measuring density, proximity, and diversity; ii) investigating the influence of distinct urban planning concepts, manifested by distinct spatial configurations, on density, proximity, and diversity; iii) defining urban scale metrics to measure levels of spatial injustice in terms of unequal conditions of access to essential services and iv) measuring the correlation between configurational factors and access to services. The analysis underlines the gap in access to essential services among central compact districts and dispersed outer areas, thus enabling the identification of inequalities in the distribution of spatial capital. Moreover, the study underlines the relationship between the urban environment structure and the location of functions. As a result, the study emphasizes that the proposed set of indicators is instrumental to understanding the urban environment's potential to meet urban populations' needs and facilitating informed decisions in urban planning.

Development of the TOD.id Mobile App

The rise of large cities worldwide has spurred the emergence of Transit Oriented Development (TOD) as an urban planning concept. Indonesia, including Jakarta, has begun implementing TOD strategies. To facilitate TOD in Indonesia, this study proposes a conceptual mobile app, TOD.id, informed by preliminary research. It introduces a novel tax approach, Land Value Capture (LVC) tax, to address funding challenges, which account for up to 53.8% of the problem. However, TOD.id remains in a developmental phase, with all features in the conceptual stage, making it unsuitable for immediate market launch. During this stage, this research aims to enhance the TOD.id mobile app by refining existing features and exploring potential new functionalities, which will be based by literature review and benchmarking against similar existing apps in Indonesia. The study employs a desk study method, a qualitative benchmark study method, and the collection of qualitative data. The outcomes of this research are expected to pave the way for the optimal realization of TOD.id in the Indonesian market, aligning with the projections from previous studies.

A transdisciplinary multiscaled approach to engage with green infrastructure planning, restoration and use in sub-Saharan Africa

The systematic integration of green infrastructure (GI) concepts in urban planning shows promise to reduce environmental hazards; while creating sociocultural benefits. However, cities in sub-Saharan Africa face rapid urbanisation and are challenged by the degradation of existing GI, increasing their vulnerability to climatic risks. This paper presents the findings of a transdisciplinary research project that investigated GI planning in the City of Tshwane, South Africa, over two years. The researchers conducted a community survey, an on-the-ground rapid assessment of multifunctional benefit provisions, first-hand observations of local stormwater systems, reviewed policy documents and conducted semi-structured interviews with metro officials. To integrate the above findings, four design studios and eight co-creation workshops were held that explored GI spatial planning in the city. The researchers examined the uptake of GI planning principles, and the challenges, opportunities and local proposals for GI applications, and here synthesised some main conclusions. Despite many well-known challenges, GI opportunities include creating socioeconomic incentives for stronger human-nature relations, providing for multifunctional benefits and anchoring GI in local communities. Interactive research can facilitate increased local awareness and engagement, but access to GI benefits is physically constrained and socially determined by knowledge, networks and safety factors. Based on the above findings, the researchers propose locally adapted planning strategies to enhance GI: creating opportunities for GI access and co-ownership, encouraging multifunctional, safe and flexible GI, supporting multiscale GI integration, and strengthening collaborative governance. A joint GI vision can reinforce city ownership along with flexible and creative design alternatives that are rooted in local communities.

Developing a 15-minute city: Evaluating urban quality using configurational analysis. The case study of Terni and Matera, Italy

the pandemic and the post-pandemic scenarios pose the question of a radical transformation of cities based on criteria of diversity, density, and proximity to foster inclusion, sustainability, participation, and quality of life. The 15-minute city emerges as a robust concept to inform the adaptation of the urban environment to the post-pandemic scenario. The 15-minute city concept combines the components of density, proximity, diversity, and digitalization to increase residents' access to basic services, favour sustainable modes of transportation, and transform public urban spaces into multifunctional places. The proposed study focuses on the dimensions of density, proximity, and diversity. It develops a set of indicators derived from the configurational analysis to evaluate urban quality in terms of the potential to actualize the 15-minute city concept. The selected areas of study are the cities of Terni and Matera in Italy. The study addresses three issues: i) defining a set of relevant, reproducible, and comparable indicators for measuring density, proximity, diversity, and imageability at the district scale; ii) investigating the influence of distinct urban planning concepts, manifested and reproduced by the configuration of public spaces, on density, proximity, diversity, and imageability; and iii) defining urban scale metrics to measure levels of spatial injustice in terms of unequal conditions of access to basic services. The analysis underlines the gap in terms of access to basic services and imageability among central compact districts and dispersed outer areas. As a result, the case study underlines that the proposed set of indicators is instrumental to understanding the urban environment's potential to meet the needs of urban populations. Moreover, by enabling the identification of inequalities in the distribution of spatial capital, the proposed set of indicators facilitates informed decisions in the context of urban planning.

RESIDENTIAL COMPLEXES BUILT BEHIND THE STATE INDUSTRY BUILDING IN THE STRUCTURE OF THE CAPITAL’S ADMINISTRATIVE CENTRE OF KHARKIV IN THE 1920S AND 1930S

The article is devoted to the history of the formation and features of three residential complexes: Chervonyi Promyslovets (1929–1931, architect S. Kravets), Budynok Spetsialistiv (1934–1936, architect L. Lemish), Novyi Pobut (1930–1932, architect M. Pokornyi), located near the new administrative centre of then the capital of Soviet Ukraine—Kharkiv. These complexes were created in the late 1920s and early 1930s and reflected the architectural and urban planning ideas, explorations, and concepts relevant in the early twentieth century. These include the idea of the garden city and the concepts of the commune house and the housing factory. The residential complexes Chervonyi Promyslovets and Budynok Spetsialistiv are a direct embodiment of the concept of a housing estate, and Novyi Pobut is a partial embodiment of the concept of socialisation of everyday life through the elements of a communal house. Looking at the overall structure of the complex of the capital’s administrative centre of Kharkiv, with its residential quarters separated from the administration and business centre by a broad green boulevard, we can note that this urban structure embodies the idea of a garden city. The article contains a compositional characterisation of all three complexes and describes their functional content and transformations through time. The article documents significant changes in the spatial planning schemes and approaches to the design of urban living environments, from perimeter development to free planning of neighbourhoods. The description focuses on documenting the monuments of modernist architecture in the capital city of Kharkiv, which is extremely important for consolidating its pivotal role in the world history of the Modern Movement. Since the preservation of architectural heritage is an integral part of the strategy of the modern European state and a prerequisite for understanding the value of the historic urban landscape and individual architectural objects, it is of utmost necessity and importance to document the architectural and urban heritage of metropolitan Kharkiv. The collected and structured material on the history of the construction and formation of residential complexes belonging to the administrative centre of the metropolitan Kharkiv, their spatial, compositional, and functional features will become the basis for preserving the historical character of the buildings and further development of the district. Keywords: Kharkiv, residential complex, house-quarter, Derzhprom.

ON THE QUESTION OF DEFINING THE CONCEPT OF ‘ARCHITECTURAL LANDSCAPE OF THE CITY’

The article highlights the problem of the absence of a holistic concept that could fully characterise the city. The idea of studying the city as a whole organism is not new. However, urban theories usually reveal one or several aspects, and the rest remain neglected. We used the historical-genetic and systematic methods of research and considered a few city-planning and urbanistic theories in development, showing which aspects of city life they illuminate and which remain undefined. So, we analysed the chronology of stages of the development of urban planning and drew a parallel with the sequence of the emergence of architecture, urban-planning, and urban theories. Theories demonstrating the evolution of theoretical thought from the twentieth century to the present are considered to determine the problems. Therefore, the research begins with the emergence of the concept of ‘garden city’ by E. Howard, includes the study of the formation of the concepts of districts and neighbourhoods, then the change in the concept of urban planning to urbanism, the invention of the concept of the urban environment by Glazychev, and ends with modern research on this issue. The analysis of the existing theories showed that all the proposed ones do not have a comprehensive overview and study one or several aspects without taking into account others. We identified seven core aspects of the architectural landscape of the city: geological-geographical, historical-cultural, semantic, functional, scenario, phenomenological, and social. The concept of architectural landscape combines all the listed above aspects of the study of the city. We are considering that the combination of the main aspects will avoid incompleteness and fragmentation of its understanding and will allow us to see and develop a comprehension of the life of the urban organism. Therefore, this article proposes to introduce a new concept of the architectural landscape of the city that, by forming a holistic view, would help to fill in the blank spots in modern urban theory. Keywords: theory of architecture, urbanism, theory of urban planning, architectural landscape, urban environment.