Highlight in Urban Planning: The High Line

5 05 2011

Back in September of 2010, I wrote a blog post titled ‘Top 20 Urban Successes‘ which discussed the Top 20 most successful urban developments originally posted here.  Perhaps the most recent of these successes was the opening of the High Line in New York City.  The first phase of this multi-phase project opened on June 9, 2009 and has been an incredible success ever since.

For those unaware of the project, the High Line has essentially taken the abandoned and unsed railway platform that was originally built a floor or two above street level in the 1930′s and has recreated it into a beautiful urban park.  When all the phases are complete, this ‘High Line’ park will essentially run for a mile and a half through several different neighbourhoods in western Manhattan.

So what makes this project such a success?  Well, first off, those who came up with the ‘High Line’ were clearly thinking outside of the box.  Secondly, the park provides beautiful public space away from traffic in a city that obviously lacks a lot of free space.   And finally, the ‘High Line’ takes advantage of existing unused structures that could be re-purposed.  And it is these very reasons that the High Line is an amazing highlight in urban planning.


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Highlight in Urban Planning: Beijing’s Outdoor Gyms

7 01 2011

Photo courtesy of Alex Balfour, London

Here in North America, the concept of an outdoor gym is pretty foreign (I can only think of ‘Muscle Beach’ down in Los Angeles), yet in Beijing, China, outdoor gyms are a common sight.  Since 1998, the government has built approximately 4000 outdoor gyms throughout the city.  These gyms create a free and convenient alternative to the rather expensive and often-inconvenient indoor gyms.

The equipment at these outdoor gyms is rather simple: instead of each machine having it’s own weight stack, these machines use the individual’s own body weight to create resistance.  And apart from the look of the machines (they are generally in bright colours), they look quite similar to what you would find in a normal indoor gym.  You can read more about this excellent urban development here.


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Highlight in Urban Planning: Melbourne’s Southbank District

17 10 2010

 

For many forward thinking cities, it has become quite common practice to take old industrial land and change it into a residential and/or commercial space.  There are literally dozens (maybe even hundreds) of examples of this reuse of land and many have become quite successful.  One of my personal favorites is the Southbank District in Melbourne.  With a location across from downtown on the Yarra River, it seemed that such an area would be a perfect candidate for a change into something more hospitable than the factories that used to reside in it.

Starting in the 90′s and continuing into the new millennium, Melbourne has created the Southbank district to be an exciting, walkable and distinct space.  Southbank is such a success that one could argue that it is one of the most popular areas in the city for both locals and tourists alike.  And with the completion of the Eureka Tower (the tallest skyscraper in the southern hemisphere to the roof), the district finally got it’s most distinct landmark.

Having lived in Melbourne for several months five years ago, I can honestly attest to how successful the transition was.  The Southbank district now houses a massive casino and entertainment complex, several hotels, dozens of shops and restaurants and a performing arts centre.  With all these highlights, it is truly remarkable to think the same space was in disrepair several decades before.


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Highlight in Urban Planning: Vancouver’s Canada Line

9 07 2010

Photo courtesy of Flickr user S. Yume

I recently took a small trip over to Vancouver for the Canada long weekend.  Vancouver has always come across as a cleaner, fresher city in comparison to my current hometown of Toronto although it does have a horrendous homelessness issue.   Anyways, after I landed in Vancouver, I quickly found out that one could simply take a subway to the center of the city.  This certainly isn’t anything new, but what I did find quite fascinating was just how recent the subway line, better known as the Canada Line was put into place.  It opened in 2009, 15 weeks ahead of schedule.

I find it quite remarkable that in this day in age, a city is still able to successfully build and financially support such a giant development and even finish it ahead of schedule when most major projects fall short by months or even years.  This also truly hits home since Toronto lacks any high speed public transport to the airport and it looks like it may never happen as it apparently is too costly.  But one has to wonder why when a city like Vancouver is able to succeed at building the same thing.  I took a look at Wikipedia for some financial information on the subway line and it was apparently paid for by a private-public partnership.  The total cost was approximately $2.054 billion and the main sources of funding were the Canadian Government ($450 million), Government of British Columbia ($435 million) and the Vancouver Airport Authority ($300 million).

While one has to wonder how much of a role the 2010 Olympics played into making this project a reality, I will note that the Wikipedia article also specified that the project had been in the works since the early 90′s, long before Vancouver had been announced as the host of the 2010 Olympics.  While the Canada Line project was a massive disruption for the city as many roads were torn up, it still was considered a justifiable risk since it completed the important link between downtown Vancouver and the Vancouver airport.  Maybe other cities should wake up and stop using the cost as an excuse.


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Highlight in Urban Planning: San Antonio’s Museum Reach

2 04 2010

Photo courtesy of Flickr user lannadelarosa

For those familiar with San Antonio, the most popular attraction (apart from the Alamo) is the famous River Walk.  The walk consists of a somewhat narrow pedestrian pathway that runs along the San Antonio through the center of the city.  While the walk is a great detour from the streets above, it has become overly crowded and a haven for chain tourist shops and restaurants.  To certain locals, the walk seemed like nothing more than a tourist trap.

However, the river walk was recently extended 1.3 miles northwards away from the center of the city towards the San Antonio Museum of Art and other cultural institutions.  The difference between the two stretches of the walk?  The new one (called the Museum Reach) feels a lot more like it made for the residents of the city.  The new walk provides wider paths, far more green space beside the pathway and a far less commercial atmosphere all the while still providing the same fun atmosphere of the original River Walk.  Along the walkway is a number of fantastic public art and water features making the walk more entertaining and culturally enriching.  While a city like San Antonio has a far way to go in the urban planning sense, the Museum Reach is a fantastic start.  For more information check out the Museum Reach page.


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Highlight in Urban Planning: Atlanta’s Belt Line and Midtown Mile

19 12 2009

Atlanta is certainly not a city you associate with forward thinking urban planning.  Despite being a fairly pleasant American city, Atlanta suffers from both a massive growing suburban population to a famous traffic problem.  However, there isn’t a city in North America attempting to improve itself more.  Perhaps the two biggest initiatives undertaken by the city right now are the Midtown Mile and the Belt Line.   Atlanta is trying to create a richer urban environment within the center of the city by increasing public transport, retail as well as parkland.  I briefly discuss the Midtown Mile and Belt Line below.

Midtown Mile: The Midtown Mile is an attempted to attract over 1 million of square feet along a large stretch of Peachtree Street through the center of Midtown making it the primary shopping destination within the inner city.    However, the Midtown Mile initiative also emphasizes density along with creating an increasing residential population. Midtown Mile Website

The Belt Line: The Belt Line initiative undertaken by the Atlanta BeltLine Inc. will create both an increasing park and recreational presence in and around the inner city of Atlanta as well as building a new light rail line which would run in a circular track around both downtown and midtown Atlanta linking many various tourist attractions and neighbourhoods more easily. Belt Line Website

As a whole, it is very refreshing to hear such large and forward thinking initiatives happening in a city such as Atlanta.  I’m very interested to see these move forward.

P.S. I just wanted to wish happy holidays to all the readers of my blog.


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Highlight in Urban Planning: Portland (The City with the Plan)

10 10 2009

Portland, Oregon (and more specifically, downtown Portland) is often cited as one of the major successful urban planning initiatives of the past quarter decade or so.    I thought i’d quickly highlight this area since it has been such a success in creating a vibrant, cultural and livable district right in the center of the city.  The public transit system (consisting of both light rail, streetcars and buses throughout the central part of the city) has established a strong and growing reputation.  However, it is specifically, the Pearl District, an area of former warehouses and light industries turned which have been converted into lofts, retail and galleries, throughout the nineties that has garnered a tremendous amount of accolade.  Today, the district is home to the rather large and famous Powell Books and Jamieson Square, known for it’s popular fountain attractions.  For those, that wish to obtain more information on both central Portland as well as the Pearl District, you can find the links below.

Downtown Portland Plan

The Pearl District


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