The article explores the transformative journey of urban design in crafting sustainable and livable cities, using Gràcia, Barcelona, as a case study. From the historical evolution of Urban blocks to the modern-day challenges and possible solutions, the narrative delves into the significance of public spaces, community engagement, and the implementation of innovative concepts like the SuperBlocks. The focus on sustainability and resilience highlights the need for adaptable urban planning. The article concludes by envisioning the future with Climate Positive Neighbourhoods, emphasising biodiversity, and green homes and emphasising the role of collaborative efforts in crafting cities for climate-conscious urban development for future generations.
Urban designing is the art of shaping the physical and social fabric of our cities, so it stands at an intersection of art, science and sociology. Urban design can essentially be boiled down to urban blocks, these urban blocks make up the city’s morphology, and make it the city’s DNA.
Contextual Analysis: Where History Meets Innovation
To understand our modern-day urban planning, let’s look at the modern-day blocks of Gràcia, Barcelona. What we see today are these unique looking blocks which are famous worldwide, but that was not the case a couple of centuries ago, the origins of the city can be dated back to the Romans, who settled in the area in 15BC, where they built a mediaeval city of Barcino and it was surrounded by a wall roughly 1.5km, and it had your typical Roman grid with perpendicular streets.
The city had 2 visible characteristics that would define Barcelona’s development over the years to come, first is the city had its residents crammed tightly together as a result of the physical walls surrounding them. Second is the intentional city closely conceived & constructed by planners.
By the mid-19th century, the population skyrocketed and so did the spread of illnesses, after the 1854 chapter of the wall being taken down and the rapid and uneven expansion of the urban space, came the extraordinary chapter in the Urban design history, Ildefons Cerdà, a Spanish engineer known for the proposal of the extension of Barcelona called “Eixample”, your modern-day Barcelona.
Public Space: The Pulse of Urban Life
A well-designed public realm caters to diversity, promoting inclusivity and accessibility. In the Eixample given by Cerdà, the goal of the model was to combine the advantages of Rural living (green space, fresh air and food, community) with Urban living (commerce, culture, free flow of goods and ideas).
Originally each block was to have buildings on just 2 or 3 sides, occupying less than 50% of the total area, but in recent years, Barcelona has been grappling with the consequences of its spiralling success, it is subjected to tourists, leading to the increase in retail pricing and essentially pushing out long term residents and increase in the built space with minimal green & open spaces, and a increase usage of cars, bringing with them noise & air pollution along with congestion.
But Cerda’s model of the city proved to be adaptable and resilient. When faced with excessive pollution and noise levels, the city had to come up with a new mobility plan to reduce traffic and create what they called “citizen spaces”. The plan was based around the idea of Superilles (Superblocks) – mini neighbourhoods around which traffic would flow, and in which spaces would be repurposed to “fill our city with life”, as its tagline says.
Community Engagement: Designing with, not for
The most successful urban designs emerge from the collaboration with the communities they serve. Participatory design processes and public consultations ensure that the aspirations and needs of residents are integrated into the planning process.
The Urban Density is directly proportional to the affordability of the housing, but it ends up being inversely proportional to the green spaces, the same occurred with the blocks. To mitigate this dwindling of green spaces and the impact of pollution caused by cars, an experimental redesign was researched, which led to the implementation of smart strategies through tactical urbanism also known as the SuperBlocks. The concept of SuperBlocks is essentially quite simple and cost-effective.
Characteristics of SuperBlock:
- Where a normal street block consists of a building block of 600 inhabitants a SuperBlock consists of nine building blocks of houses, and each SuperBlock covers an area of 400 x 400 mts with around 5000 – 6000 inhabitants per SuperBlock, and the roads within the SuperBlocks will be transformed to give access only to the pedestrians, bikes and the destination traffic. These are smaller than neighbourhoods but bigger than actual blocks.
- The main goal of this project is to free up to 60% of the vehicular traffic and use that area for public space and green infrastructure while creating multifunctional ‘citizen spaces’ as well as tackling the urban heat island effect.
- Through the usage of Tactical urbanism which is a gradual trial-and-error method of sorts, with initial measures such as changing road signs and bus routes.
- Studies have also shown that after the implementation of the project air pollution has been cut down by a third with a 35.8% increase in green spaces.
All these helped in bringing the community closer with safer blocks and improved the mental health of the inhabitants.
Sustainability and Resilience: Building for the Future
Sustainability is the cornerstone of 21st-century urban design. The SuperBlock urban model has effectively worked in Gràcia, Barcelona because of the initial planning of the urban landscape which was resilient and allowed them to experiment. But that may not be the case for other ever-expanding urban areas in this rapidly changing climate around the world. That is where the new term “Climate Positive Neighbourhoods” came into use, this comes from the momentum in the green building movement, and climate action in New York City’s built environment, so the 2024 Next New York series by Urban Design Forum, Rewire will invite experts from different walks of life to advance ideas on transforming our existing buildings and public spaces to meet the climate emergency.
The working groups are:
- Biodiverse places
- How can we foster biodiversity and nature-inclusive spaces in our streets, plazas, parks, and commercial corridors to improve quality of life?
- Resilient commutes
- Adapting existing transportation networks to reduce carbon emissions and support livable commutes for everyone.
- Circular hubs
- Transformation of industrial zones to provide a cleaner environment, preserve low-barrier and offer sites for climate action.
- Connected anchors
- Supporting neighbourhood institutions to drive their carbon reductions and empower them as conduits to local climate literacy.
- Green home
- Accelerating energy retrofits in our existing homes while also supporting affordable living.
Thoughts:
In conclusion, urban design is a very dynamic and interdisciplinary field that goes beyond the aesthetics of buildings and streets. It is about creating environments that enrich lives, promote sustainability, and stand resilient against the test of time. As designers may it be urban or architects, our responsibility is not merely to design spaces, it is to craft cities that inspire, connect, and endure for generations to come. Through strategic planning, community collaboration, and a commitment to innovate we can shape urban landscapes that embody the essence of livability and sustainability.
References:
- Moughtin, J. C., & Shirley, P. (2005). Urban Design: Green Dimensions, Second Edition (2nd ed.). Architectural Press.
- Studioninedots. (2021, November 24). Cityplot Concept.
- Vox [2016] Superblocks: How Barcelona is taking city streets back from cars [Youtube]. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZORzsubQA_M [29 Jan 2024]
- Image 1:
- Westend61 [Year unknown]. Aerial view above of Barcelona superblocks, Spain. [Photograph], Available at: https://www.citiesforum.org/news/superblock-superilla-barcelona-a-city-redefined/
- Climate positive neighbourhoods
- Urban design forum. [2024]. Rewire working group. [online]. Available at: https://urbandesignforum.org/initiative/rewire/rewire-working-groups/ [24 Jan 2024]
- Reshaping buildings and public spaces as engines for climate positive cities.
- Urban design forum. [2024]. Rewire. [online]. Available at: https://urbandesignforum.org/initiative/rewire/ [24 Jan 2024]
