Return our streets to the 'human' scale

How can a space constructed for a car be comfortable for a human being?

As soon as a street becomes uncomfortable for driving it immediately becomes more comfortable for walking.

This is why we need to rediscover the “high street”.

I remember every Saturday morning my Mother and I would travel into town and walk down the high street of Biloela in Central Queensland to buy some bread from the local bakery and meet with friends and family.

Very few shops had air conditioning so doors were wide open to the streets and in the morning you would escape the hot sun under the long line of awnings and by the afternoon you would switch to the other side of the street.

In winter we would do the opposite. Simple but effective.

This was all brought to my attention when I discovered Elizabeth St – the small but strong high street of Croydon.

Tucked away behind the freeways that are Port and South Road, I feel immediately at home in this informal, interactive community space.

Over 20 years, numerous high streets have been sunk by shopping centres turning our attention inwards and drawing our focus towards $9.99 FOR TODAY ONLY!!

These spaces are devoid of any external elements such as air, or light…

Read more at the Adelaide Independent News here

Placemaking and the City

Cities are back in fashion; on television (Sex in the City), in music (with ‘urban’ now the codeword for black, popular and rhythmic), in architecture (where density generates the most rewarding opportunities), among international agencies (seeking ways of managing post-Fordist and post-industrial societies), and within the planning establishment (with the reversal of ideas on the uses of the city). One of the most important issues facing planning at the beginning of the twenty-first century is how to revitalise cities. Today, cities are seen as assets rather than liabilities. Their role as engines of economic growth is widely accepted and their spheres of influence the city is becoming recognised as fundamental building blocks in the national fabric.

Bench Bombing in Philly

One simple way to transform public space

Read more here - Link

Sensual Streets - 7 Senses Streets

Residential streets are public spaces, at our front door. We engage with them throughout the day - commuting to work, afternoon walks with the dog, putting the bins out. Yet for most of us this space remains a placeholder between the traffic channel and our front fence. It's time to convert them into usable, inspiring place.

The above picture shows how the street is transformed into a tree-lined play and exploration zone, incorporating a sensory garden, community gathering space and improved connections between the street and the parklands that meet the cul-de-sac.


Here's the link to the article written by Tobias Volbert, a Landscape Architect and Project Development Manager at Playscape Creations.
http://www.placefocus.com/Blog/