Charter of the New Urbanism

منشور شهرنشینی جدید

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Theory •Community Design •Built Environment •Historic Preservation •Education •University Plan •
Posted by Rezwan • Feb 22, 2009 • (2) Comments •
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The Shiraz University Planning Department calls itself the Department of Urbanism. What do they mean by this? Well, let's look at "New Urbanism". A movement with some supporters, a congress ("CNU") and a charter. How is the "New Urbanism" different from "Urbanism"? How do the principles of the charter fit with the issues facing Iran, and specifically, our home city, Shiraz?

"New Urbanism" is a movement that began in the United States in the 1980s. The Congress of New Urbanism (CNU) was started in 1993 by architects. Their primary work is advocacy.

CNU advocates the restructuring of public policy and development practices to support the restoration of existing urban centers and towns within coherent metropolitan regions.

Their Charter states the main issues as:

The Congress for the New Urbanism views disinvestment in central cities, the spread of placeless sprawl, increasing separation by race and income, environmental deterioration, loss of agricultural lands and wilderness, and the erosion of society's built heritage as one interrelated community-building challenge.

We stand for the restoration of existing urban centers and towns within coherent metropolitan regions, the reconfiguration of sprawling suburbs into communities of real neighborhoods and diverse districts, the conservation of natural environments, and the preservation of our built legacy.

We recognize that physical solutions by themselves will not solve social and economic problems, but neither can economic vitality, community stability, and environmental health be sustained without a coherent and supportive physical framework.

This is a movement is growing in North America, where urban sprawl and disinvestment in cities is a big problem. In Iran, rapid urbanization is a bigger problem, with people flocking to cities from villages.

We do also have cities sprawling out onto agricultural lands. This does not seem to be the biggest factor in the eradication of agricultural lands. I don't have any data, but I am inclined to think that environmental degradation from overgrazing and salinization of the water make agriculture a dead end here, and that people are behaving logically when they abandon farms for the city. Help me out with some data here, either way.

The two last questions:

1. Why is the Shiraz University Planning Department calling itself the college of Urbanism?


2. How is "Urbanism" different from "new Urbanism"?

In answer to 1: Is the University of Shiraz attempting to fashion itself as a champion of smart growth, green building and new urbanism? Does it advocate:

...the restructuring of public policy and development practices to support the following principles: neighborhoods should be diverse in use and population; communities should be designed for the pedestrian and transit as well as the car; cities and towns should be shaped by physically defined and universally accessible public spaces and community institutions; urban places should be framed by architecture and landscape design that celebrate local history, climate, ecology, and building practice.

That seems likely enough. It's good news, too. Time to dust that "SmartCode" off the shelf and have another crack at it. And I can't wait to see what proposals for reforming real estate development come out of this institution. I've seen studies on the feasability of Land Banks here (they're not). And Land Readjustment (somewhat more feasible - but the organizational barriers to overcome seem prohibitive.)

As to the other aspect of the New Urbanism, this university does have an urban design focus. It's city-centric rather than regional in approach. I have yet to see, however, anything that genuinely promotes "creating community". I suspect a barrier here is the strong division between public and private space which is unequaled in the west where New Urbanism has its roots.

Wikipedia defines "Urbanism" as:

Urbanism is the study of cities, their geographic, economic, political, social and cultural environment, and the impact of all these forces on the built environment. Urbanism is also a species of urban planning, focusing on the creation of communities for living, work, and play.

Thus, "Urbanism" may not be much different from the New Urbanism, but a revival. From the Intro to New Urbanism:

Making Urbanism Legal Again

Although compact, mixed-use urban form achieved such value before 1950, separate-use zoning codes and high-volume road standards subsequently helped to make sprawl (above right) today’s default development option. New Urbanists are providing leaders with tools (and more tools) to reverse course and strengthen the character, livability, and diversity of their communities.

More links: Canons of Sustainable Architecture

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