Attributing and Defining an Unbuilt 1859 Architectural Plan for the Site of Trogir’s Medieval Walls

This paper discusses the attribution of an anonymous and unbuilt 1859 plan for a four-storey apartment building with commercial spaces on the ground floor, located on the site of the old town walls in Trogir. It proposes Josip Slade as the architect of the plan, interpreting Slade’s architectural language and the development of his approach to architectural heritage. An analysis of the project in a historical socio-political and spatial context, moreover, supports the conclusion that this was intended as rental property, and this paper therefore offers insights into the first known example of the tenement housing building typology in the nineteenth-century Trogir

Guidelines on Unused Open Spaces between Buildings for Sustainable Urban Management

The side setback areas of buildings are generally underutilized urban spaces. Often, they are used as unauthorized commercial spaces, which lead to legal struggles and safety and sanitation hazards. However, the presence of these establishments implies a demand for using these spaces, and many argue that such structures enhance and vitalize cities. This study establishes a new direction for utilizing side setback areas that harmoniously meets the demands of city dwellers and business owners while ensuring safety and compliance with regulations. We examined the utilization status of 371 side setback areas in various districts of Seoul and surveyed 20 urban management experts. Th results indicate that at least 30% of all buildings in the study repeatedly violated laws regarding the use of their side setback spaces, and 100% of the experts agreed that the current regulatory system is inflexible. Our analysis suggests that reform is needed and offers tangible guidelines so that these generally underutilized spaces may become useful when safety and sanitation requirements are met. In the context of overpopulated urban spaces, side setback areas can be repurposed to meet the needs of urban residents while ensuring safety and sanitation.

Robot-Inclusive False Ceiling Design Guidelines

False ceilings are often utilised in residential and commercial spaces as a way to contain and conceal necessary but unattractive building infrastructure, including mechanical, electrical, and plumbing services. Concealing such elements has made it difficult to perform periodic inspection safely for maintenance. To complement this, there have been increasing research interests in mobile robots in recent years that are capable of accessing hard-to-reach locations, thus allowing workers to perform inspections remotely. However, current initiatives are met with challenges arising from unstructured site conditions that hamper the robot’s productivity for false ceiling inspection. The paper adopts a top-down approach known as “Design for Robots”, taking into account four robot-inclusive design principles: activity, accessibility, safety, observability. Falcon, a class of inspection robots, was used as a benchmark to identify spatial constraints according to the four principles. Following this, a list of false ceiling design guidelines for each category are proposed.

Matera: the Sassi through Trade, Consumption and Tourism

The European Capital of Culture (ECoC) process-event has contributed to amplify the main transformations of the commercial structure in Matera. This paper proposes an analysis of the recent transformation of the historical Sassi neighborhood, aimed at pointing out the changes in trade and consumption practices, considering the effects that the development of tourism, one among the main drivers of the changes occurred, has produced in this area. Indeed, the Sassi neighborhood represents a definitely peculiar commercial and touristic landscape: from the year of designation of Matera as ECoC until today, the neighborhood – already a privileged destination for local tourism – has invested in a decisive reconversion of its commercial spaces, focused on the food & drink segment. These commercial activities are addressed mainly for tourists, therefore the first and most evident result is, actually, the exclusion of the residents. What are the characteristics of such a touristic change? What is the position of these places in the urban context? What are the functions that characterize them? Attempting to answer these questions will enable to highlight the specific characteristics of the Sassi and their development based on the most remarkable forms of touristification.

The Evolving Neighbourhood Commercial Landscape in Toronto

This study explores the evolution of the neighbourhood commercial landscape in Toronto. First, we review the major character and historical changes of Toronto’s commercial landscape, most notably Queen Street and Kensington Market; how they emerged and how they continue to exist today. We then explore present day trends of neighbourhood commercial development. We discuss how to retain main street commerce (benefits, threats, and the role of Business Improvement Areas). We also investigate the challenge and success of growing new tower-based businesses in Toronto (looking to Regent Park and Thorncliffe Park as examples). Next, we look to the future of retail, exploring innovative business approaches from Toronto and elsewhere, including models such as shared spaces, pop-up retailing, mixed use light industrial, and small-space curation. Based on the insight from the literature, best practices, business performance, site observations, and interviews with key informants, we identify actionable recommendations for developing vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable commercial spaces in Toronto’s future neighbourhoods. These recommendations suggest how new neighbourhoods can “achieve new standards of sustainability, affordability, mobility, and economic opportunity” (Sidewalk Labs, 2018). We explore the past, present, and future of Toronto’s commercial spaces in order to glean transferable lessons.

The Evolving Neighbourhood Commercial Landscape in Toronto

This study explores the evolution of the neighbourhood commercial landscape in Toronto. First, we review the major character and historical changes of Toronto’s commercial landscape, most notably Queen Street and Kensington Market; how they emerged and how they continue to exist today. We then explore present day trends of neighbourhood commercial development. We discuss how to retain main street commerce (benefits, threats, and the role of Business Improvement Areas). We also investigate the challenge and success of growing new tower-based businesses in Toronto (looking to Regent Park and Thorncliffe Park as examples). Next, we look to the future of retail, exploring innovative business approaches from Toronto and elsewhere, including models such as shared spaces, pop-up retailing, mixed use light industrial, and small-space curation. Based on the insight from the literature, best practices, business performance, site observations, and interviews with key informants, we identify actionable recommendations for developing vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable commercial spaces in Toronto’s future neighbourhoods. These recommendations suggest how new neighbourhoods can “achieve new standards of sustainability, affordability, mobility, and economic opportunity” (Sidewalk Labs, 2018). We explore the past, present, and future of Toronto’s commercial spaces in order to glean transferable lessons.