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Figure 6.5
Diagram of sun angles in urban space. This infill development in Asheville, NC, around an historic
church benefits from careful study of sun penetration and shading of public space. (
Illustration courtesy of
Shook Kelly, architects
)
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DESIGN FIRST: DESIGN-BASED PLANNING FOR COMMUNITIES
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We also think it’s worth reprising some of the key
attributes of urban design to clarify them in the mind
of the reader, especially if that reader isn’t a design
professional. As educators, we know firsthand the
difficulty even architects and planners have in visual-
izing and designing the voids of urban space rather
than the solid form of objects. All too often urban
space is the residual area left over between buildings,
rather than a positive entity in its own right that
affects the buildings around it.
Urban designers use a vocabulary of straightforward
techniques to design and define space, and we have dis-
cussed several of them in Chapter 4, but here we want
to expand on three of them a little more. The first, and
most important, objective is to create spatial enclosure,
designing public space as a series of ‘urban rooms’ for
pedestrians – and, when appropriate, for vehicles also.
Second, and intimately related to spatial enclosure is
the architectural design of the building façades that
combine to create the walls of these urban rooms, be
they plazas or streets. Third is a set of concepts for con-
trolling the car, so that neighborhoods and districts are
conveniently accessible but not overrun by vehicles.
Some designers would put this first in the hierarchy of
issues to resolve, for if the cars aren’t handled efficiently
and conveniently, all other efforts at making urban
places for people are likely to be unsuccessful. But we
put people first. It’s a matter of principle.