Phase 1:
What particular aspect interests you within the urban discourse- write a short 600 word paper on this with an idea of a project proposal and site choice
Port Elizabeth: The Design of A Mixed Use Transportation Hub to Catalyse Development for a more Connected & Integrated City
Matthew Birkholtz 211 089 672 07/03/2016
What is interesting in the urban discourse is the fact that urban centres or cities are really shaped by the nature in which they are connected through transportation, at a regional and local scale. Cities pull people in to them like gravity holding our feet to the ground, they provide the allure of economic status, success and the ability of consistency and security. These things are naturally imbedded into our human psyche and our unconscious fight for survival which will eventually bring all people into cities. The technology which has become readily available in cities attracted more people and opportunities, and so with more people came more development and the need for increased access to agriculture, goods and increasingly specialized services.
In Port Elizabeth the events which dictated our physical and spatial development were similar in nature although informed by topography and the way in which we used it. The historical CBD remained mostly unchanged and now suffers with abandoned buildings along streets while new suburbs were being developed on the periphery. The introduction of the car and roadways began to dominate the approach of planners who were blinded with the aspirations for technological advancement in the name of modernity; this gave them the reason they required for creating disconnected zoned planning in the apartheid regime. As a result our city has become dispersed and segregated by various types of urban thresholds, disconnected suburbs which cause people to depend on the car in order to navigate through them and perform their daily activities because of the vast distances to travel. Freeways and main roads mono-functional applications create dead and lifeless spaces and often begin to separate urban spaces on one side from the other - “Streets and their sidewalks- the main public places of a city-are its vital organs.” Jacobs (1961:273), PE’s urban framework is connected in a dysfunctional manner and promotes the need for privacy and seclusion from society instead of embracing it.
In Developed cities, travelling from one place to another is easily done with a combination of connected bicycle and public transport routes provided; most people don’t need to use a car. “Developments in Copenhagen, Denmark, and Melbourne, Australia, are of special interest here, because not only have these cities systematically improved the conditions for city life and pedestrian traffic, they have also recorded the development and can document changes and growth in city life in step with the improvements carried out.” Gehl (2010:13). Certain lessons can be learned from our European counterparts about creating a better place for people; a more pedestrian oriented city where people from all different backgrounds can interact along connected streets and congregate where the activities are densified at nodal points and different transport mediums intersect.
As the issue of sustainability becomes more pressing, changes must be expected to be made in order for our cities to evolve and adapt to the ever changing economic and social dynamics of modern cities where being more connected is an ever growing urgency. “In a society becoming steadily more privatized with private homes, cars, computers, offices and shopping centres, the public component of our lives is disappearing. Public life in good quality public spaces is an important part of a democratic life and a full life.” Gehl (1987/2011).
The cities which have made changes to improve public transport and promote mixed use of space from the CBD to the neighbourhoods have seen a lowering of CO2 emissions, increased social cohesion and diversity, and an increase in the general health of the community (with the use of bike lanes) as well as having economic benefits present themselves. Moving pedestrians through the suburbs and CBD into mixed use zones will act as an urban catalyst for development and revitalization of run down areas around these nodal points.
The
Site and Context:
The area adjacent to and around the existing Port Elizabeth Railway Station.
The Architectural Intervention:
This project is about proposing an architectural intervention which can deal with the broad spectrum of urban connectivity at a regional and local scale. It is about connecting people around the city in a culturally rich and diverse environment, by providing a solid base for economic opportunity with mixed use capability in a place which expresses the unique history and culture that Port Elizabeth has to offer.
This basis for development will be achieved through the initiation of a classic Transit Oriented Development Scheme which would consist of a Main Transportation Hub operating from the Bottom of Central within the zone sown above, connected to that will be Micro Hubs located in specific areas around the city. These hubs will cater for Bicycles, Busses, Trains, Trams and Taxis while providing the opportunity for mixed use office space, low and high income generating retailers, informal trading and market spaces with public plazas and gathering spaces. “Districts must serve more than one primary function to ensure presence of people using the same common facilities at different times.” Jacobs (1961).
The areas around the Hubs will be effected immediately by the activity at all times of the day – ensuring there are always people on the streets and using them, promoting a pedestrian oriented city and thus safer with “more eyes on the street.”
Reference List:
- Jacobs, Jane (1961) The Death and Life of Great American Cities, New York: Random House.
- Gehl, Jan (2010) Cities For People, Island Press.
- Gehl, Jan (1987/2011) Life Between Buildings: Using Public Space, Island Press.
- Jacobs, Jane (1961) The Death and Life of Great American Cities, New York: Random House.
