Mass Urban

“A 3D Play for Citizen Planning

Nate Berg. June 26, 2012

The city of Gothenburg, Sweden, has taken a novel approach to getting locals involved in the planning process. Instead of relying only on public meetings and design charrettes, the city has developed an interactive and photorealistic 3D map that residents can use to drop in suggestions and ideas for improving their city.

MinStad, or “MyCity,” is a localized version of Google Earth where residents can zoom in and around the city to identify places where better transit access is needed, or where additional housing should go, or even where a dilapidated building should be torn down. With a population of more than 500,000, Gothenburg is the second largest city in Sweden and it’s actively trying to get more of its citizens involved in thinking about how the city should evolve.

The map highlights 10 specific neighborhoods, though the entire metropolitan area is included. Categories include walk, public transport, sporting, living, cycling, work, swimming, eat, nature, preserve, culture, sunbathing, and tear down, and suggestions so far have run the gamut. More than 200 have already been added since the site went public at the end of May.”

Via: The Atlantic

Photo: MinStad

“Participatory Maps for Inclusive Cities

Shriya Malhotra. March 7, 2012

Urban planners, designers and architects have their work cut out for them. The rate of urbanization around the world means that we have to reconfigure the way we think, design and plan cities. It is not like starting from scratch on a clean canvas. Reconstructing existing cities to fit the needs of a larger population will be especially difficult because it will require planners to accommodate the needs of current urbanites, while forecasting the needs of future urbanites. It will require a balancing act between the environment, public health and mobility, from the design stage all the way through implementation.

This is where participatory maps are an increasingly important aspect of studying and planning more inclusive cities. Inviting residents to participate in map-making gives them a voice in the spatial planning process. It also provides insights into how they use their cities – where they live, where they work, where they cycle. Take, for instance, the incredible map made by Anton Polsky, a Russian artist who goes by the name “Make” and is the founder of a participatory urban re-planning website:www.partizaning.org.

In 2010, Make designed and shared a map, which he calls “USE/LESS,” to bring to attention the dismal circumstances cyclists had to endure in his hometown of Moscow. Using the resources and opportunities available to him, Make created the map and designed a second online version to crowd-source the marking of cycling routes, dangerous roads and bicycle parking spaces. The map received a lot of support and attention from urban residents and the media, and it became part of an alternative vision for the city, called “Moscow 2020.” This is just one incredible example of participatory community mapping, which uses art as a method to engage citizens on important urban issues.”

Via: The City Fix

Image: Lee Shaver