Thursday, June 27, 2013

The Facts Regarding Urban Design Firms

By Lana Bray


Urban design is a process that involves the shaping and designing of towns, cities and villages. The industry of architecture is not the same because it focuses on individual buildings. In contrast, urban design has a broader scope that includes neighborhoods, public spaces, cities, districts and streets. The main goal here is to create public areas that are more function, sustainable and visually appealing. Professionals who do work in this field may work at urban design firms.

This is recognized as an inter-disciplinary industry. Many different professions are involved in some respect, including: municipal engineering, civil engineering, architecture, planning and landscape architecture. It is common for people who work in these various disciplines to be involved in the work of this industry as well. In more recent times, sub-strands have been developed for this field, including: landscape urbanism, water-sensitive, sustainable urbanism and strategic.

Those who are involved in the process are expected to be informed on many subjects, including social science and physical geography. Furthermore, they should have an appreciation for real estate development, urban economics, social theory and political economy. Overall, this field is based around drawing connections between nature and fabrications, movement and form, and places and people.

In this process, many different elements and concepts related to economic viability, social equity, place-making and environmental stewardship are relevant. These are all used to create spaces that have distinct beauty, as well as identity. The field has transcended its derivatives. It is now much more than development economics, architectural design, landscape economics, transportation and planning policy, and engineering. The process involves many different elements that are put together to develop a vision that is realized through implementation of the proper resources and skills.

Those who own public land often hire these firms to help plan and manage public spaces, as well as the way these places are used and experienced. Public spaces refer to all areas that are used freely and on a daily basis by the general population. This includes, but is not limited to: public infrastructure, parks, plazas and streets. Some parts of privately owned areas, such as domestic gardens or building facades, are categorized as public space and therefore considered in the field.

This process is related to, but not the same as, urban planning. Planning involves focus on management of private development. Specifically, it involves private development done through regulatory planning methods and programs, or other statutory controls.

There are a lot of different things considered by professionals who do this work. Some, of the many, components assessed while planning such projects: aesthetics, nature implemented into city areas, pedestrian zones, structures, civil society, continuity and change, incident and order, typology, animals, wayfinding, accessibility, and mixed uses. The prices of these services will vary considerably.

Urban design firms are usually hired to help transform public areas into attractive, function and sustainable locations. This may include groups of buildings, districts, neighborhoods, streets, cities and other such public areas that are open to the public and free to access. Professionals in this field need to be experienced and knowledgeable.




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