Urban Design Studies

I learn that urban design is the process of designing and shaping cities, towns and villages. Urban design address the larger scale of groups of buildings, streets, neighborhoods and districts. It unites all the built environment professions like architecture, landscape architecture, and city planning. Including the arrangement of public spaces, transport systems, services and amenities. Urban design enable the planning of frameworks that orders the elements into a network of streets, squares and blocks. Urban design is about making connections between people and places. Generally it enables the planning of urban areas to be functional, attractive and sustainable. Urban Design operates at 3 scales: Region(city and town), Neighborhood(district and corridor), Block(street and building)

Any Urban Design must deal with 3 elements.

• Firstly, Authorities. What are the visions of urban planning by the authorities and how its purpose will effect economically or politically.
• Secondly, Community. Whether the community understand and accept the visions set up by the authorities.
• Thirdly, Context. In terms of Geographical, Ecological, Topographical, Cultural, Historical  and Social Structure.

There are 3 components that makes a good urban design.

• Firstly, Infrastructure (transportation, energy, water managements, communications, waste management facilities, geophysical monitoring networks)
• Secondly, Public spaces (parks, streets, squares)
• Thirdly, Architecture ( Historic, conservation and Modern, planning)  

 

 

 

The Start of Urban Planning

Hippodamus of Miletus (498 BC — 408 BC) 

An ancient Greek architect, who was also an urban planner, physician, mathematician, meteorologist and philosopher was known as the “father” of urban planning. He is the originator of the idea thinking that a town plan might clarify a rational social order

His plans of Greek cities were done by order and regularity in contrast to the more intricacy and confusion common to cities of that period, even Athens.