Essential Urban Design: A Handbook for Architects, Designers and Planners

by Rob Cowan

Overview

Shaping our cities, streets and public spaces, urban design informs the places we live. It is a complex multi-disciplinary process, requiring the input of a wide variety of stakeholders and design and construction professionals. Each urban project invariably throws up a new set of problems and strategic decisions for the design team. This guide distils the essential information required for the expert direction of the day-to-day work of urban design, from strategic design to masterplanning through to character assessment and collaboration. Compact and accessible with over 250 hand-drawn figures and plans, it's the perfect everyday companion for junior practitioners and experienced heads alike across the built environment.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781859469019
Publisher:	RIBA Publishing
Publication date:	06/04/2021
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	7.44(w) x 9.69(h) x (d)

About the Author

Rob Cowan is the author of The Dictionary of Urbanism and director of the consultancy Urban Design Skills. He is editor of Context, the journal of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation. He invented Placecheck, and was the joint author of By Design, the UK government’s ground-breaking urban design guidance. He is a cartoonist and illustrator, and he presents the Plandemonium series of online videos.

Table of Contents

About the Author iv

Acknowledgements v

1 Place, Pioneers and Practitioners 1

2 Eight Design Objectives and How to Achieve Them 31

3 Context, Character and Quality 91

4 Politics, Collaboration and The Role of Local Authorities 123

5 Strategic Urban Design and Masterplanning 145

Appendix: Checklist for Assessing Context and Character 199

Notes 206

Index 210

Image Credits 218