Urban Design Qualities Research Articles

Hedonic modelling of high street retail properties: a quality design perspective

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between urban design quality and the real estate value of high street retail properties. Quantitative research on the added value of quality design has seen little advancement during the past two decades and hedonic analysis of the high street retail sector remains embryonic. This paper bridges this gap by providing empirical evidence on the added value of quality design.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a unique dataset of 301 Belfast City Centre retail transactions during the period 1994‐2009. Ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analysis is used to estimate a hedonic pricing model that utilises a composite range of variables. These variables were designed employing quantitative and qualitative approaches complementarily to strengthen the value of the empirical research.FindingsThe findings suggest that aspects of quality design such as connectivity, frontage continuity and variety, material quality and massing appropriateness add to real estate value. These findings supplement those on sector‐specific value determinants that emphasise the high impact of location, tenant characteristic and Zone‐A price calculations.Practical implicationsIn analysing high street retail rent determinants this paper focuses on the impact of various aspects of quality design to inform investors and developers about those aspects that are highly valued by city centre retail tenants. Policy makers benefit from the findings through empirically justified built environment benchmarks for improving the quality of life in our cities.Originality/valueThis study provides a quantitative model for measuring urban design quality which uses data from a UK city but has a wider application range. It bridges a significant gap in the literature related to hedonic investigation of the added value of quality design by providing a holistic approach to quality.

The impact of urban design features and qualities on walkability and health in under-construction environments: The case of Hashtgerd New Town in Iran

A number of recent studies have examined the relationship between the built environment and the health of the residents. However, to our knowledge, no studies have focused on neighborhoods that are under construction. The new town of Hashtgerd near Tehran was selected for this study because individuals have been residing in the town during the construction phase while a high percentage of the area remains vacant and undeveloped. The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of the formal–spatial factors of such an environment on walkability and health. Because different impacts were expected for men and women, the study also included gender differences to understand how such an environment affects the walkability and health outcomes for each group. First, a cross-sectional study enabled us to collect data on the physical activity and Body-Mass Index BMI of the residents in selected clusters. In the following phase, the residents were surveyed regarding the environmental barriers to walking. These barriers were then regarded as potential urban design features, which later, were classified as the three main urban design qualities. A regression analysis was performed to reveal the impact of each barrier (urban design quality) on walkability and health. Our results demonstrated that, in this environment, continuity has the largest effect on walkability, complexity has an important effect on non-work travel, and scale attributes play a significant role in work travel. Additionally, it was concluded that this environment has a stronger influence on female residents than on male residents. Safety was the most important factor for women, whereas distance to destinations was the most important factor for men.

The Building of Culture Atmosphere in Urban Design

The building of culture atmosphere is one of the core goals of urban design and an important aspect in the evaluation for urban design project. Based on the interpretation and analysis for the theory of culture district, the theory of city image, and the theory of place, the paper discusses the key points and related technical routes in the building of culture atmosphere with different space location (old town and new city town) or different space level (whole city, cultural blocks and landmark nodes). The building of culture atmosphere can help to improve the quality of urban design, and enhance the city's cultural charm.

Does Urban Design Influence Physical Activity in the Reduction of Obesity? A Review of Evidence

Abstract Obesity has risen progressively over the past three decades, and is a major health problem around the world. Biological, psychological, behavioural, and social factors are unable to fully explain or limit the obesity outbreak. Therefore, questions arise about whether a well-designed built environment (BE) can enhance desire and opportunity for physical activities including incidental exercise and recreation in the local community. Many studies in public health have confirmed that physical activity (PA) can help prevent obesity and PA has become a public health priority in modern societies. With individual policies often failing to encourage PA, there has been much focus upon various ecological models that emphasise importance of the BE in promoting PA. Structure and quality of the BE can influence the need, the desire or the opportunity for people to walk, cycle and undertake PA as part of daily routine, incidental exercise for recreation. Thus, the question arises whether urban design being a multidimensional design tool could help improve the BE of neighbourhoods and encourage PA. This paper aims to review evidence related to the influence of conceptual urban design qualities in the improvement of PA and to summarise guidelines to promote PA through these qualities. The method adopted to address this aim involves a content analysis of available academic literature, with focus on the public health, planning, transport and urban design fields. The findings demonstrate that in spite of some contradictory evidence, many studies have confirmed that good urban design qualities can play a partial role in encouraging PA.

Establishing the conditions for effective transit-oriented development in China: the case of Dalian

For many years, Dalian has been known as a green city with the modal split most favorable for public transport in all of China. But recent years show a rapid decline in bus and rail ridership. It appears that the consequences of the ’socialist market economy’, such as the unbundling of social life and production activities, the marketization of urban land, and large-scale suburbanization leading many residents to live in locations far away from their jobs and daily services, have promoted the rapid expansion of motorized travel. Consequently, road congestion, air pollution and traffic safety have become major problems in Dalian. Many Chinese metropolises consider the possibility of leading urban growth onto a more sustainable development pathway and turn to the concept of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD). However, TOD could only become a promising solution for sustainable urban transport if thorough examination is conducted at the local and regional levels on how and to what extent conditions for developing effective TOD are fulfilled. Therefore, this article makes an attempt to identify conditions for effective TOD and map them systematically. We will make a distinction between critical and important conditions. After this, the record of Dalian, a coastal city in China with over 6 million people and a good tradition in using public transport which officially embraced the TOD planning method, in meeting those conditions is examined. Conclusions are drawn as to where Dalian’s strengths and weaknesses lie and what actions the Dalian government has taken with regard to each of these conditions. Finally, to transfer the TOD lessons of Dalian to other Chinese cities, we conclude that to make TOD work in China, cities should at least meet all critical conditions such as pedestrian friendly urban design, good governance and high quality transit services. Furthermore, they should at least meet some of the important conditions. Meeting the latter ones can be a gradual process given the fact that most Chinese cities are still in an early stage of their TOD learning curve.

Place-Making in California’s Central Valley: Redesigning the Avenue 12 Corridor, Madera County

Place-Making in California’s Central Valley: Redesigning the Avenue 12 Corridor, Madera County

From neighborhood design and food options to residents’ weight status

This study examined associations of accessibility, availability, price, and quality of food choices and neighborhood urban design with weight status and utilitarian walking. To account for self-selection bias, data on adult residents of a middle-to-high-income neighborhood were used. Participants kept a 2-day activity/travel diary and self-reported socio-demographics, height, and weight. Geographic Information Systems data were used to objectively quantify walking-related aspects of urban design, and number of and distance to food outlets within respondents’ 1 km residential buffers. Food outlets were audited for availability, price, and quality of healthful food choices. Number of convenience stores and in-store healthful food choices were positively related to walking for errands which, in turn, was predictive of lower risk of being overweight/obese. Negative associations with overweight/obesity unexplained by walking were found for number of grocery stores and healthful food choices in sit-down restaurants. Aspects of urban form and food environment were associated with walking for eating purposes which, however, was not predictive of overweight/obesity. Access to diverse destinations, food outlets and healthful food choices may promote pedestrian activity and contribute to better weight regulation. Accessibility and availability of healthful food choices may lower the risk of overweight/obesity by providing opportunities for healthier dietary patterns.

Residential location and transit-oriented development in a new rail corridor

The relationship of form, use, and density in urban development and their influence on human behavior and travel is a key element of many land use and transport policies. Prior research indicates high-density urban development leads to decreased travel and thus sustainable mobility; however, personal attitudes seem to have greater effect on mobility than does the urban form. This research evaluates how households consider transit-oriented development (TOD) characteristics in their location decisions with regard to new Mandurah railway line stations opened in December 2007 in Perth, Western Australia. The results indicate that the choice of residence reflects neighborhood and housing attributes, with significant heterogeneity in the populations of the three precincts in terms of their valuation of various housing characteristics, proximity to urban facilities, and transport. There is also significant variation in households’ attitudes to natural and artificial environments. A better understanding of the complex relationships among environment, travel, socio-demographic characteristics, and household attitudes can help transport planners leverage the benefits of TOD and improve the quality of urban design and community life.

Schöne Städte durch große Pläne? – Baukultur und integrierte Stadtentwicklungsplanung

In recent years building culture has become an issue of increasing interest in urban development policy in Germany. The deficiencies in urban design quality are in the focus of discussion. At the same time there is a discourse on the changed framework and characteristics of urban development planning. This article gives an introduction to current integrated urban development plans of the 20 major cities in Germany and analyses them with regard to statements and objectives about urban design. Finally the two case studies of Cologne and Munich illustrate the different treatment of the topic building culture in urban development planning.

Six Assessments of the Same Places: Comparing Views of Urban Design

How might an urban environment be evaluated visually? What different stories might be told when using different assessment techniques? Since the 1960s, researchers and others have developed a rich array of design evaluation approaches. This paper uses six different tools to measure three transit station area environments. Some focus mainly on visual issues such as colour, complexity and dominance. Others are more concerned with urban design features and qualities related to how people use environments. Together they provide a rich vocabulary for describing and assessing various design types and strategies such as transit-oriented development.

Third Places and the Social Life of Streets

Urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg defines a third place as a place of refuge other than the home or workplace where people can regularly visit and commune with friends, neighbors, coworkers, and even strangers. Because little is known about the place-based physical qualities of third places that support sociability and place attachment, this article examines how four urban design characteristics distinguish third-place businesses from other businesses on the Main Street. The article discusses a study conducted at Main Streets in two cities and one town in Massachusetts. As part of the study, visual surveys measured urban design qualities of businesses on the Main Streets, and interviews helped determine user perceptions. The findings suggest that third places are relatively high in both personalization (distinctiveness, recognizability) and permeability to the street, but seating and shelter provisions are perhaps the most crucial urban design characteristics that contribute to sociability on the Main Street.

Measuring the Unmeasurable: Urban Design Qualities Related to Walkability

This study attempts to comprehensively and objectively measure subjective qualities of the urban street environment. Using ratings from an expert panel, it was possible to measure five urban design qualities in terms of physical characteristics of streets and their edges: imageability, enclosure, human scale, transparency and complexity. The operational definitions do not always comport with the qualitative definitions, and provide new insights into the nature of these urban design qualities. The immediate purpose of this study is to arm researchers with operational definitions they can use to measure the street environment and test for significant associations with walking behaviour. A validation study is currently underway in New York City. Depending on the outcome of this and other follow-up research, the ultimate purpose would be to inform urban design practice.

Making places: The role of attachment in creating the sense of place for traditional streets in Malaysia

Sense of place definition includes the point where the physical element, activity and meaning are intertwined in the people experience of place. In urban design and place quality research, much has been discussed on the significance of the physical elements and activities in creating the sense of place; however, the role of place attachment as a component that gives places meaning(s) has not been adequately explored. This article is based on the main findings of a doctoral research examining attachment to traditional shopping streets in the city centre of Kuala Lumpur. Surveys and face-to-face interviews were conducted with users of the streets to investigate place attachment and its influence on place identity. The finding demonstrates that attachment to the traditional streets is strong and it influences the users’ perception on the identity of the places. The streets were regarded as very important in sustaining the economic activities and meaningful in accentuating cultural diversity and self and group identity. The historical significance of the area as the earliest shopping locations in the city evoked personal and shared meanings to the long-term users who developed stronger place attachment. The paper concludes by establishing that place attachment has a significant contribution to the sense of place therefore should be considered in the design of urban places especially when redevelopment is one of the options.

Identifying and Measuring Urban Design Qualities Related to Walkability.

In active living research, measures used to characterize the built environment have been mostly gross qualities such as neighborhood density and park access. This project has developed operational definitions and measurement protocols for subtler urban design qualities believed to be related to walkability. Methods included: 1) recruiting an expert panel; 2) shooting video clips of streetscapes; 3) rating urban design qualities of streetscapes by the expert panel; 4) measuring physical features of streetscapes from the video clips; 5) testing inter-rater reliability of physical measurements and urban design quality ratings; 6) statistically analyzing relationships between physical features and urban design quality ratings, 7) selecting of qualities for operationalization, and 8) developing of operational definitions and measurement protocols for urban design qualities based on statistical relationships. Operational definitions and measurement protocols were developed for five of nine urban design qualities: imageability, visual enclosure, human scale, transparency, and complexity. A field survey instrument has been developed, tested in the field, and further refined for use in active living research.

Developments in Conservation Policy: The Evolving Role of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment

The quality of urban design, particularly in the historic urban environment, has been recognized as a key issue in achieving the much-publicized urban renaissance. To redress the apparent loss of quality that has occurred over the last 30 years, the government has sponsored a number of initiatives that promote design through influence rather than by control. The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) was established in 2000 as a ‘design watchdog’, and has been afforded the opportunity to make comment on a kaleidoscopic array of private- and public-sector design issues. Yet, in the short time since its introduction, CABE has evolved rapidly and has begun to present a more pervasive agenda that goes beyond mere guidance. This is problematic, and indicates the potential introduction of a series of non-regulated requirements that need to be addressed by developers in their design solutions.

Urban Design as Public Policy: Evaluating the Design Dimension of Vancouver's Planning System

This paper examines Vancouver's system of urban design as public policy utilizing 12 principles derived from critiques of design review in the USA. These principles include community vision; the relationship of design, planning and zoning; substantive design principles; and due process in review. Vancouver's city-wide plan, neighbourhood visions and sub-area development plans provide the vision, while its cooperative planning, development levies and discretionary zoning system and guidelines support the pursuit of quality urban design. Its practices are based on generic and contextual design principles, while its processes are transparent, participative, backed by peer review, predictable and effective.

The role of design elements on the cost-effectiveness of streetscape improvement

This study discusses the effectiveness of contingent valuation methods in evaluating the visual quality of streets. Economic valuation methods provide effective design methods that balance cost-effectiveness with the quality of urban design. Research on conventional contingent valuation methods concentrates on estimating the total value of landscape resources such as forests, wetlands, and parks. In contrast, we assess street design plans from both economic and psychological points of view and analyze by factor analysis the relative importance of design elements such as vegetation, lighting columns, and pavements on the economic and perception-based values. We conducted experiments by using computer-simulated photomontage images as virtual alternatives for two street design projects in Saitama City. The elements considered various types of design with a varying cost of materials for street furniture. The respondents participating in this experiment were asked to evaluate the alternatives by a bidding game method, which is one of the elicitation methods used in contingent valuation. In the economic evaluation of alternatives, the availability of amenities and high design quality of a street are seen as benefits, and these can be compared with the material cost of an alternative. In this study, we use six indices for the economic evaluation of street design that include an acceptable cost derived from a contingent valuation method as well as composite indices related to the cost and benefits (cost ( C), amenity ( A), acceptable cost (AC), A/ C, AC/ C, A − C) and clarify their characteristics indicating cost-effectiveness. Acceptable cost had a strong correlation to the amenity score for each of the two street design projects. In addition, our analysis suggests that AC/ C is highly correlated to low cost plans and that A/ C is a moderate index balancing high amenity value and low cost. We also discuss how these six indices can help planners and designers in making decisions regarding the design strategy of a project. Our results should prove useful in actual street design where cost-effectiveness is an issue.

Stakeholder Views on Value and Urban Design

The value added by better urban design has for some time been contested. Nevertheless, the benefits of identifying a linkage between better urban design and enhanced economic value, as well as social and environmental value, are potentially significant. This article reports on one part of a recent research study that attempted to explore this linkage. It examines a review of stakeholder views on value and urban design on the basis of six case studies of varying urban design quality. The research method and case studies are briefly outlined, before the detailed views of key stakeholders--investors, developers, designers, occupiers, local authorities and everyday users--are presented and conclusions drawn. A key finding is that the benefits of better urban design are increasingly acknowledged across all key stakeholder groups, albeit in different ways and forms.

City urban design in a free market economy: The case of Ljubljana, Slovenia

A recent rapid political and economic changes in many eastern European countries demand corresponding changes in the town planning system, and especially in the development control and urban management process. For instance, at a present many historic city and town cores still remain relatively intact in their original form, but have become the target for development pressure. How should this pressure be channeled to achieve enhancement of the urban qualities of those areas (especially barracks and old factory sites), without jeopardising their competitiveness for attracting business and employment. This paper discusses the outcomes of research carried out at the Urban Planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia from 1995 to 1998, on the development of appropriate methods for the appraisal and promotion of design quality in relation to economic viability in city development projects especially for an urban renewal. The elements for the assessment of urban design quality derive from the basic principles of good urban design such as identity, permeability, legibility visual appropriateness, robustness, visual and symbolic richness, amongst others. The simplified computerised model for assessing financial viability is based on building costs and market value of the investment, and shows the profitability of the development. It can be a useful tool in both assessing design viability, and for determining extra profit or ?planning gain? in the planning process negotiations such ?surplus? can be used for satisfying local needs (e.g. additional programs, design of public spaces). This method for appraisal and promotion of design quality in relation to economic viability has been examined through an assessment of the competition projects for the renewal of the Rog factory area in the city centre of Ljubljana. This case study has revealed the need for a clear strategy for future city development, with marketing guidance and policies for positive planning to achieve better vitality and viability for the city as a whole. Subsequently, the research examined successful initiatives for the promotion of urban design on a national and local level of the planning process identifying the most important issues affecting city design in the market economy, such as partnership arrangements, joint ventures and city-entrepreneurs. The paper briefly discusses: salient features of the current planning system in Slovenia and the on-going changes relating to the new approaches to town planning; the proposed method for appraisal and promotion of design quality and economic viability of urban environment; the results of the examination of this method applied to a case study - the renewal of an industrial site in the city centre of Ljubljana.

City urban design in a free market economy – the case of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Recent political and economic transformations in many Eastern European countries demand corresponding changes in their town planning systems and especially in the development control, urban design and management practice. At present, most historic cities and town cores remain relatively intact but some have become the target for development initiatives. How should this development pressure be channelled positively to enhance urban qualities of those areas, especially barracks and old factory sites, without jeopardising their competitiveness for attracting business and employment opportunities? This paper discusses the outcomes of the research carried out at the Urban Planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia from 1995 to 1999 concerning the development of a method for the appraisal and promotion of design quality in relation to economic viability in city development projects, especially those associated with urban renewal initiatives. This method was applied in the assessment of the competition projects for the renewal of the Rog factory area in the city centre of Ljubljana. The case study identified the need for a clear strategy for future city development, with marketing guidance and policies for positive planning to achieve better vitality and viability for the city as a whole. Subsequently, the research examined successful initiatives for the promotion of urban design at the national and local level of the planning process, identifying the most important issues affecting city design in the market economy, such as partnership arrangements, joint ventures and city-entrepreneurship. The paper consists of three parts. Part one discusses salient features of the current Slovene planning system and the changes that are taking place as a result of political and economic restructuring processes. The second part introduces a new evaluation method for the appraisal and promotion of urban design qualities and economic viability of development projects. The third part presents the findings of the application of the new method in the assessment of architectural and urban design proposals for the renewal of the Rog factory site in the historic centre of Ljubljana.