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Are you interested in how urban planning can improve lifestyles?

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Our summary today works with the article titled Role of urban planning standards in improving lifestyle in a sustainable system from 2023 by Abdullah Addas, published in the Sustainability journal. This is a great preparation to our next interview with Amir Hussain in episode 206 talking about improving the urban experience through social approaches. Since we are investigating the future of cities, I thought it would be interesting to see how new indicators measure urbanization developments regarding land use and neighbourhoods. This article proposes urban planning standards and transitions to improve the living quality in a sustainable residential area.

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Welcome to today’s What is The Future For Cities podcast and its Research episode; my name is Fanni, and today I will introduce a research paper by summarising it. The episode really is just a short summary of the original paper, and, in case it is interesting enough, I would encourage everyone to check out the whole paper. Stay tuned until because I will give you the 3 most important things and some questions which would be interesting to discuss.

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In Saudi Arabia, neglect in urban planning has led to residential developments lacking essential services, resulting in poor living and health conditions. There’s a call for the adoption of comprehensive urban standards that support sustainable growth and improve living standards, focusing on functional, cultural, and ecological aspects. These standards are crucial for guiding spatial policies and strategies to address challenges brought by urban expansion. Additionally, the unchecked urban growth has led to issues like reduced air quality and inadequate living standards, highlighting the need for a substantial inclusion of green spaces in urban development to enhance aesthetic and living conditions. Emphasizing green areas within urban layouts can mitigate the negative effects of poor planning, thereby improving the well-being of residents by creating a balanced mix of development and accessible green spaces.

Efforts in metropolitan and rural sustainability highlight the need for urban standards that foster improved lifestyles and sustainable planning, integrating changes across urban infrastructure to meet future goals. Such standards focus on improving health and living standards, emphasizing the importance of accessible services and green spaces to enhance community well-being and attract residents. Despite recognized needs and existing guidelines, the implementation often falls short, pointing to a gap between ideal objectives and practical outcomes. There’s a critical call for centralized regulations to ensure accessible green and recreational spaces within urban developments, aiming to significantly enhance the quality of urban living environments.

In Jeddah and Alkharj, proposed urban planning standards stress the importance of easily accessible green, recreational, and sports areas within residential areas. These standards aim to ensure a significant portion of multi-family housing plots is allocated for biologically active areas. They also advocate for a balanced distribution of educational facilities based on population density and building intensity, enhancing community access and quality of life. However, there’s a notable gap between these ideal standards and their implementation, highlighting the need for centralized regulations to ensure the integration of green and recreational spaces in urban planning.

With increasing urban development intensity, there’s a growing need for more undeveloped land to be designated for green areas, necessitating a re-evaluation of urban development strategies. Post-1990 changes in building practices, influenced by rising land prices and regulatory changes, have led to denser construction, shifting the development intensity curve. This shift calls for a recalibration of urban planning indicators, accounting for changes in building proximity rules, population-based land use requirements, and innovations like underground parking, which can free up space for development and green areas.

The overall analysis suggests a move towards higher density urban living that still prioritizes green space and communal areas, efficiently accommodating modern urban needs. Refining urban standards is crucial to enhance housing environments, especially in multi-family dwellings. This refinement should consider the city’s scale and specific location within its structure when determining building intensity and explore new criteria for biologically active spaces, like vertical greenery. The goal is to create a compact, sustainable urban model that offers attractive living conditions, preventing suburban sprawl and emphasizing access to public services and nature. This approach underlines the urgent need for normative regulations and mandatory urban planning standards to ensure a balanced development that provides quality living spaces.

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What was the most interesting part for you? What questions did arise for you? Do you have any follow up question? Let me know on Twitter at WTF4Cities or on the wtf4cities.com website where the transcripts and show notes are available! Additionally, I will highly appreciate if you consider subscribing to the podcast or on the website. I hope this was an interesting paper for you as well, and thanks for tuning in!

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Finally, as the most important things, I would like to highlight 3 aspects:

1. There is a critical need for comprehensive urban planning standards to address the lack of essential services in residential areas, improving living and health conditions.
2. Focusing on creating a sustainable and compact urban model that prioritises green spaces and public services can prevent suburban sprawl.
3. Integrating green spaces into urban development is important to balance between built-up areas and accessible green spaces, enhancing urban living quality.

Additionally, it would be great to talk about the following questions:

1. How can urban planning evolve to better incorporate green spaces within high-density developments without compromising on housing needs?
2. In what ways can cities innovate to ensure accessible public services and green areas as they expand vertically and horizontally?
3. How can the integration of vertical greenery and other non-traditional biologically active spaces transform urban environments and resident well-being?
4. What role do citizens and community organizations play in shaping and advocating for sustainable urban standards and green spaces in their cities?

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