Urban Design Review: A Guide for Planners

Urban design is a process to safeguard environmental quality as a city changes. It lies between the professions of city planning and architecture and deals with such issues as site selection and compatibility of a proposed building to its natural surroundings. The most commonly used and practical implementation tool for urban design is “design review”: all the criteria and methods used in implementing urban design policies and/or plans, including both functional and aesthetic concerns. As an overall implementation tool, design review aids in regulating segments of the visual, sensory and functionally built environment of a defined area in accordance with the values and goals of the particular “community of interests” and relates design features such as pedestrian amenities and building massing to the sensory environment. In other words, design review is the process of evaluating property developments or development proposals to ensure that they meet a community's design policies. This book includes case studies of projects in Boston (Charlestown Savings Bank), Minneapolis (The Crossing), New York City (Olympic Tower) and San Francisco (One Market Tower).