Locating New Urbanism Developments in the U.S.: Which Cities Have New Urbanism and Why?

This article aims to examine the characteristics of cities where New Urbanism (NU) developments are located as of 2019. We first develop a set of hypotheses to explore why some cities are welcoming NU developments more than other cities and how the cities differ in terms of general real estate development determinants, fiscal capacity and regulatory authority, advocacy group support, and cultural diversity. We then employ a Negative Binomial Regression to test the relationship between concentrations of NU developments and a variety of city characteristics by using a data set of 6923 urban cities. The results suggest that NU developments are advocated by cities with a higher level of environmental awareness, better fiscal and regulatory status, and better cultural diversity. The research results highlight the importance of continuously gaining support from environmental groups and the general public for effective expansion of New Urbanist developments within the U.S. These findings also indicate that for noteworthy changes in growth patterns to arise at a large scale across the U.S., there must be changes in values and preferences, and institutional capacity in updating land-use regulations that allow for sustainable growth.

Spectacle Urbanism

This article addresses the current and rapid transformations that have occurred with the imposition of new "urban consensus" and also the new rules that replaced "modern planning" - strongly characterized by State actions and domination, by strategic or "competitive planning between cities ” which is intended to be flexible, but highly permissible. Therefore, we detect the phenomenon of the glamor of the market economy and the emergence of the unique thinking of cities defined as a kind of common conceptual matrix at the origin of new urban strategies that multiply throughout the world, globalizing and homogenizing cities considering culture as the identity anchor of the new urbanism of the spectacle at the expense of social well-being. Idealizing the new aesthetics of architectures in this new urban scenario grafted on artificialities, we toured cities impacted by calendars of major events, such as the city of Munich, due to the 2006 World Cup, and the city of Rio de Janeiro due to the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympic Games in 2016 successively, to elucidate the purposes of new ventures that excel in intense communication and promotion with a view to building an adequate image for the city through the image making policy or the city marketing strategy launching the city into the world, or rather, selling the city.

PRINCIPLES AND STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT OF THE GARDEN CITY CONCEPT: AN ARCHITECTURAL ASPECT

The article highlights the semantic meaning of the term "garden city", the formation of the garden city concept and its spread in the global architectural space. The question of the influence of the idea of a garden city on the incipience of new phenomena in architecture and urban planning, in particular, the New Urbanism movement, is revealed. Examples of the implemented garden cities outline the factors that can ensure a balance between the nature of the environment and the high urban loads that are characteristic of the present time. The relevance of the topic is determined by the need to systematize the available factual and analytical materials for further popularization of the principles, which were established in the garden city concept

Rethinking the Suburban Shopping Centre

<p>Auckland city is New Zealand’s fastest growing city which continues to sprawl outwards degrading the biodiversity of the natural systems. The population’s culture of the ‘quarter-acre dream’ opposes intensification in low rise suburbia. While suburban shopping centres are the product of urban sprawl they are now situated in central areas relative to the growing city. Their land is now more valuable than the surface car parking that occupies the majority of the site and has the opportunity to foster intensification. In addition, these centres no longer provide a new exciting retail experience and the retail environments lack any point of difference between suburb to suburb, city to city and country to country. The research explores three bodies of work; new urbanists Jan Gehl and Peter Calthorpe; retail theory on theatrical experience from the architect Jon Jerde, and eco-master planning of Ken Yeang. Forming the hypothesis that ecology has the ability to facilitate the hybridisation of new urbanism and retail environments creating identity and sense of place for an intensified suburban-centre. Ecology has the capacity to create a theatrical experience to re-image the retail environments towards environmental conscious consumption. The inquiry contends that urban planning and development has fragmented the regions natural systems degrading the biodiversity of species that once occupied the built area. As we continue to consume more land and more commodities, we become removed from the environment, the thing that gives us life. The outcome of this investigation is an urban masterplan and framework for Highland Park Shopping Centre, accommodating commercial, retail, recreational and residential activities in the form of a new suburban centre that reconnects and enhances the region’s natural systems. The centre becomes a catalyst for further intensification in its surrounding context. The strategies employed for the design case study can be replicated at other suburban centres allowing intensification to be enriched from the sites ecology.</p>

Rethinking the Suburban Shopping Centre

<p>Auckland city is New Zealand’s fastest growing city which continues to sprawl outwards degrading the biodiversity of the natural systems. The population’s culture of the ‘quarter-acre dream’ opposes intensification in low rise suburbia. While suburban shopping centres are the product of urban sprawl they are now situated in central areas relative to the growing city. Their land is now more valuable than the surface car parking that occupies the majority of the site and has the opportunity to foster intensification. In addition, these centres no longer provide a new exciting retail experience and the retail environments lack any point of difference between suburb to suburb, city to city and country to country. The research explores three bodies of work; new urbanists Jan Gehl and Peter Calthorpe; retail theory on theatrical experience from the architect Jon Jerde, and eco-master planning of Ken Yeang. Forming the hypothesis that ecology has the ability to facilitate the hybridisation of new urbanism and retail environments creating identity and sense of place for an intensified suburban-centre. Ecology has the capacity to create a theatrical experience to re-image the retail environments towards environmental conscious consumption. The inquiry contends that urban planning and development has fragmented the regions natural systems degrading the biodiversity of species that once occupied the built area. As we continue to consume more land and more commodities, we become removed from the environment, the thing that gives us life. The outcome of this investigation is an urban masterplan and framework for Highland Park Shopping Centre, accommodating commercial, retail, recreational and residential activities in the form of a new suburban centre that reconnects and enhances the region’s natural systems. The centre becomes a catalyst for further intensification in its surrounding context. The strategies employed for the design case study can be replicated at other suburban centres allowing intensification to be enriched from the sites ecology.</p>

Urban Trauma: The contemporary square and the New Urbanist city - Reintegrating Christchurch Cathedral Square

<p>This topic was chosen in response to the devastation caused to Cathedral Square, Christchurch, New Zealand following earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. Working amongst the demolition bought to attention questions about how to re-conceive the square within the rebuilt city. In particular, it raised questions as to how a central square could be better integrated and experienced as a contemporary addition to Christchurch city. This thesis seeks to investigate the ways in which central squares can be better integrated with the contemporary city and how New Urbanist design principles can contribute toward this union. The research principally focuses on the physical and spatial integration of the square with the contemporary city. A drawing-based analysis of select precedent case studies helped to determine early on that overall integration of the contemporary square could be attributed to several interdependent criteria. The detailed studies are supplemented further with literature-based research that narrowed the criteria to five integrative properties. These are: identity, scale and proportion, use, connectivity and natural landscape. These were synthesised, in part, from the integrative New Urbanist movement and the emerging integrative side of the more contemporary Post Urbanist movement. The literature-based research revealed that a more inclusive approach toward New Urbanist and Post Urbanist design methodologies may also produce a more integrated and contemporary square. Three design case studies, using the redesign of Cathedral Square, were undertaken to test this hypothesis. The case studies found that overall, integration was reliant on a harmonious balance between the five integrative properties, concluding that squares can be better integrated with the contemporary city. Further testing of the third concept, which embraced an allied New Urbanist / Post Urbanist approach to design, found that New Urbanism was limited in its contribution toward the integration of the square.</p>

Urban Trauma: The contemporary square and the New Urbanist city - Reintegrating Christchurch Cathedral Square

<p>This topic was chosen in response to the devastation caused to Cathedral Square, Christchurch, New Zealand following earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. Working amongst the demolition bought to attention questions about how to re-conceive the square within the rebuilt city. In particular, it raised questions as to how a central square could be better integrated and experienced as a contemporary addition to Christchurch city. This thesis seeks to investigate the ways in which central squares can be better integrated with the contemporary city and how New Urbanist design principles can contribute toward this union. The research principally focuses on the physical and spatial integration of the square with the contemporary city. A drawing-based analysis of select precedent case studies helped to determine early on that overall integration of the contemporary square could be attributed to several interdependent criteria. The detailed studies are supplemented further with literature-based research that narrowed the criteria to five integrative properties. These are: identity, scale and proportion, use, connectivity and natural landscape. These were synthesised, in part, from the integrative New Urbanist movement and the emerging integrative side of the more contemporary Post Urbanist movement. The literature-based research revealed that a more inclusive approach toward New Urbanist and Post Urbanist design methodologies may also produce a more integrated and contemporary square. Three design case studies, using the redesign of Cathedral Square, were undertaken to test this hypothesis. The case studies found that overall, integration was reliant on a harmonious balance between the five integrative properties, concluding that squares can be better integrated with the contemporary city. Further testing of the third concept, which embraced an allied New Urbanist / Post Urbanist approach to design, found that New Urbanism was limited in its contribution toward the integration of the square.</p>

Main provisions of modern urban concepts

The article considers the main provisions of modern urban concepts. The purpose of this article is to systematize and analyze them, as well as to identify universal models and strategies for the development and modernization of cities for modern global society. The authors explore the very concept of urbanization and the basic principles, concepts of modern urbanism to conduct a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of modern urban concepts and their systematization. The main aspects of the manifestation of the globality of urbanization at the present stage, philosophical and ideological, problematic and spatial (geographical), are studied. The main provisions of urban planning developed within the framework of the concept of New Urbanism are also given. After analyzing the main provisions considered, it is concluded that this concept is aimed at creating comfortable environmentally, ergonomically and socially balanced conditions for human habitation and for nature conservation. When studying the basic concepts of urbanization, a set of the following methods of economic research was used: monographic, program-target, logical. In the work on the study, such theoretical research methods as comparisons and generalizations, scientific abstraction and synthesis were also used.