Urban Design & Planning
The Spaces In-Between:
An Introduction to Urban Design & Planning
United Nations’ Department of Economic and Social Affairs statistics tell us that 2007 was the historic tipping-point when the majority of the world’s population became city dwellers. The current urban in-migration has the potential for outcomes ranging from catastrophic to utopian. In the realm of the former, envision the pollution of vital land, air, and water resources, shortages of food, energy, and potable water, inadequate housing, killing commutes, impersonal highrise districts, and aesthetically mind-numbing residential wastelands.
Conversely, there is the potential for creating cities of transit-enabling density, dynamic public environments, distinctive open spaces, quality infrastructure, and sensible settlement patterns. Taken together, these can promote sustainable growth and enable cities and their residents to live, travel, work, and recreate in balance with nature and with each other.
Ultimately who and what will decide which of these divergent conditions of urban existence prevail?
The answer lies to an essential extent in the work of urban planners. These are the “city builders” whose realm is “the space in between,” “in between” the buildings that are the province of architecture, and “in between” the neighborhoods, cities and regions, the planning for which plays an often-under-appreciated role in the healthy development of our urban centers. Intelligent and comprehensive planning at scales ranging from the international and national down to the individual street, block, and parcel are critical to enabling mankind to create cities capable of healthful, sustainable growth.
“City building” as well describes the work of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP planning professionals. They are the ones responsible for the development and promulgation of principles of urban design, challenging the firm, its clients, as well as citizens, governments, and development professionals to think and build in terms of sustainability, accessibility, diversity, open space, compatibility, density, identity, adaptability and wholeness. By thinking and designing strategically and cooperatively within the context of these and other principles of intelligent city-building, SOM planners are able to further the development of urban environments that are positive, people-centric, ennobling, livable, and sustainable.
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