Urban Design Paradigm: Working Manuscripts

Copyright © 2015 by Abeer Elshater.

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Contents

Acknowledgements

List of Figures

Preface

Urban Design Redux

Urban Design Terms

History of Urban Design Thought: the First Proof

Twelve Notions do not come for all Human Settlements

Paradigm Shifts

Egyptian Status Que: Second Proof

Not All Egyptian Settlements are Cities to Adapt Urban Design

The New Intellectual Paradigm ‘Umran Design vs. Urban Design’

Approach in Urban Design Teaching

A Complete Idea with Critical Questions

The Egyptian Academic Scene

Life and Death of Great Egyptian Cities vs. the Academic Situations

Definitions and Concepts vs. Intended Learning Outcomes

Graduates’ Intended Learning Outcome

Urban Design Outcomes-Based Learning: an Integrated Proposal

Prosperity of Thought towards Prosperity of Application

Tactical Urbanism & Vendors

City Repair

A Movement and Theory

Hidden Community Empowerment within Informal Activities

Vendors and Heliopolis

Short Term Action towards Long-Term Change

Everyday Urbanism and Gestalt Laws

Seven Questions

Review on Urban Visualization

Gestalt Laws and Principles of Everyday Urbanism

Tactical Approach for Raising City Potentialities

Outcomes and Discussion

Lessons Learned from Cairo

New Urbanism & Dimensions

The Urbanism Today

History and Upbringing

Urban Design Dimensions

Discussions

Good Relationship with a Weak Points

Urban Reloading Philosophy

Renewal by Emptying

Great Egyptian Cities Today

What is the Urban Reloading Theory?

A Philosophy of Adequate People—Place

Epilogue

Bibliography

To Hisham and Seif

Acknowledgements

After thanking God, I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Shafek Elwakeel, Prof. Dr. Omar El-Hosseny, and Prof. Dr. Mohamed Abelbaki for their tremendous contribution and support towards the completion of these working papers. Additionally, special thanks should be forwarded to Prof. Dr. Hisham Abu-Saada for his fruitful discussions with the main author while accomplishing the current work. My deep regards to Prof. Dr. Ameen Elkharboutly, Prof. Dr. Sadek Saad, and Prof. Dr. Youhansin Eid for their precious time and effort spent refereeing one of the listed manuscripts. I also show my gratitude to Mrs. Manuela Jasper, Eng., Yasmeen El-Mogy, Eng., Sarah Noeir, Eng., Ibraheem El-Shewei, and all who contributed in one way or the other in the field survey process and language revision. Additionally, special mentions to my respected professors, students, and colleagues in Ain Shams University -–-Department of Urban Design.

List of Figures

Figure 1: Graphical abstract of the research methodology

Figure 2: The questionnaire results. The numbers on chart represses the percent of interviewees’ viewpoint, source: author analyzed the repose on www.freeonlinesurvey.com

Figure 3: Urban design paradigm complied by author

Figure 4: The four key dimensions and six derivatives

Figure 5: The principle of responsive environments based on (Bentley, McGlynn, Smith, Murrain, & Alcock, 1985, p. 9)

Figure 6: The right is a locational map of Egypt. The left is the human settlement

Figure 7: The assessment of developing projects in Fayoum Governorate based on the urban design key complied in (Table 2)

Figure 8: The proposed paradigm; Umran Design can come with three main tasks to achieve a quality of life, livable place and responsive environments

Figure 9: The research questions gain from the literature review and the work justification

Figure 10: The timeline of significant urban design definitions, the citation are collected from (Billingham, J. 1994); (Hirst, C., 1995, p. 6); (Department of the Environment, 1995, p. 2); (Ali Madanipour, 1997); (UK Essays, 1997); (Moughtin, C., 1999); (Mumford, E., 2009); (Ilewelyn, 2010, p. 12); (Salat, Bourdic, & Labbe, 2014)

Figure 11: Urban designer’s roles in the literature review versus the graduate’s intended attributes

Figure 12: Learning process, source: the author derives it from (California State University, 1998)

Figure 13: Urban design scope of work in its course curriculum

Figure 14: the five characteristic elements of tactical approaches, source: the author based on documents from (Lydon & Garcia, 2014), (Shackelford, 2014)

Figure 15: The principles of tactical urbanism, source: author

Figure 16: The types of mobile

Figure 17: The four sets of literature of street vending

Figure 18: Site analysis and the existence of vendors

Figure 19: the proposed four axial solution of the vending probl

Figure 20: The most popular pioneers in urban design, who discuss issues of visual dimension

Figure 21: Urban visualization in design process,

Figure 22: The four core items; dimensions scopes, criteria, and principles

Figure 23: The six urban design dimensions

Figure 24: In the process of urban design visualization, there are six dimensions, four criteria, and six principles

Figure 25: The proposed approach

Figure 26: The three axes of analysis

Figure 27: The chaotic visualization at the site. The symbols in (Figure 30) refer to the location and direction of the photographer’s position.

Figure 28: Figure-Ground of the site

Figure 29: The proposed matrix

Figure 30: The trends of Abcs of Urbanism

Figure 31: The principles (pedestrian friendly/walkability…) of New Urbanism

Figure 32: The principles (responsiveness) of New Urbanism from CNU point of view and its use in Copenhagen and Adelaide.

Figure 33: The principles (aesthetics, appropriateness…) of New Urbanism from CNU point of view and its application in Copenhagen and Adelaide. The dotted line refers to the relationship with the paradigm

Figure 34: the principles (variety and robustness) of New Urbanism from CNU point of view and its application in Copenhagen and Adelaide. The dotted line refers to the relationship with the paradigm, source: the author based on: (Gehl, 2002); (Kersi F., 2000); (Evans, 2012).

Figure 35: The six common dimensions of urban design

Figure 36: The relationship between the urban design dimensions and principles of New Urbanism. It shows that the behavioral Dimension is the most connected to all New Urbanism principles,

Figure 37: The matrix "New Urbanism versus behavioral dimension

Figure 38: (a) Medan El Gamea Square, captured by Ibrahim Shewei (b) A bird-eye view of the Basilica Church Plaza

Figure 39: The location of the Basilica Church Plaza

Figure 40: The characteristics movement pattern in Basilica Church Plaza: (a) the high capacity of traffic in Al-Ahram Street; (b) the occupation of sidewalks by shops extension and roadside parking; (c) bad treatment of sidewalks pavement; (d) The occupation of sidewalks by vendors (e) the greenery area nearby the Basilica Church surrounded by a fence; not accessible and not used as outdoor space (source: author); (f) Medan El-Gamaa district (source: Ibrahim Shewei); (g) the unsafe pedestrian movement, source: third-year students, Ain Shams University, 2011.

Figure 41: The matrix ‘Pedestrian Friendly/Walkability, Car Oriented and Connectivity’’ versus behavioral dimensions (source: author).

Figure 42: The matrix ‘responsiveness’ versus behavioral dimensions

Figure 43: The matrix ‘aesthetics, appropriateness and quality of architecture’ versus behavioral dimensions

Figure 44: The matrix ‘variety and robustness’ versus behavioral dimensions

Figure 45: The chaos in the urban environment in Sayeda Zeineb, 2013 (photography: Ibrahim El-Sheiwi)

Figure 46: Some proposal presented in the competition, source: (Abayazeed, 2012)

Figure 47: The selected location marked by doting line and the valuable buildings and historical appeal record in black

Figure 48: The multitude of urban design philosophy that was illustrated in Figure 3. The bold letters enrolled with the research problem

Figure 49: The significant enrollment explains the urban design Paradigm

Figure 50: The four factors of the proposed theory.

List of Tables

Table 1:   The twelve notions through the paradigm of the pre urban design, the urban design, and paradigm shift

Table 2:   urban design keys; the compiled tasks, paradigm, dimension and principles of urban design

Table 3:   The types of human settlement in Fayoum Governorate, (continued) source: compiled by the author

Table 4:   types of human settlement in Fayoum Governorate

Table 5:   The main topics of urban design discussed in the Egyptian universities

Table 6:   The graduate’s questionnaire results

Table 7:   Intended learning outcomes (ILOs) gained from the literature review

Table 8:   Some of the constructive topics

Table 9:   The outline of the pentagonal urban design module

Table 10:   Classifications of vendors in Cairo, source: author’s observation of street vendors and (United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), 2013)

Table 11:   Vendors’ opinion versus the users’

Table 12:   Laws of the Gestalt School, source: author, based on (Reyes, 2010)

Table 13:   The main and sub-issues of the behavioral dimension

Table 14:   The survey technique

Table 15:   Specification s of finding extra load and Specifications of ‘Finding Lost Space’

Preface

The current work represents six collective working manuscripts. The main interest is in urban design disciplines. The justification of each manuscript holds the motive for writing the current papers. The research methodologies and approaches were selected to confirm the hypotheses and obtain conclusions and recommendations. Additionally, the following preface gives a hint about each manuscript that is discussed in detailed in each section.

The first manuscript, Urban Design Redux, starts with a thoroughly inductive analysis of the concept of urban design theories and discourse. The exploratory, descriptive approach follows some development projects that use urban design for several types of settlements, neither a city nor town. Finally, this section proves that Umran Design is not opposite to Urban Design. The recommendation to make is that Urban Design works in cities/town as well as provides experts who are aware of the national context with opportunities to follow the design process of other types of human settlements. The disengagement can provide room in applicable research projects for the Arabic expression to work on communities and hold a variety of types. The second, A Comprehensive Approach in Urban Design Teaching, focuses on the relevant question of practicality in urban design studios; when will specialists discuss their educational visions around urban design in teaching plans? Currently, although Egyptian architecture and urban environments follow those of postwar European cities, numerous architectural schools teach the new urban design paradigm while ignoring the decline of cities. To reverse this trend, the author proposes that architectural educational institutions in Egypt need to alter their learning programs. Therefore, this study aims to create a new urban design module which depends on outcome- based learning and would be consistent with the present Egyptian city scene on the basis of intended learning outcomes.

The third chapter follows the principles of Tactical Urbanism. It presents an approach to solve problems of vendors in Cairo. The core issue revolving around: "make a relative balance in the application of the