BREAKTHROUGH IN THE CITY Why London's ... - Union Investment

Photos: DIFA (11); InWIS/Dirk A. Friedrich;
SV-Bilderdienst/A. Heddergott; City of London
PLACES & SPACES 22_23 PEOPLE & WORK
Red Tower and St James’s Church as well as the two town halls,
were suitably integrated into planning. The town planners’
strategy worked – and the “New Centre” surrounding Chemnitz
Town Hall is now a lively district. Working closely together
with investors along with well-known architects such as Helmut
Jahn, Hans Kollhoff, and Ingenhoven, Overdiek & Partners,
an area has taken shape with a clear sense of urban identity
– especially since the mixture of retail, offices, restaurants and
bars, housing, leisure and culture typical of urban districts has
been achieved.
Town planners are particularly proud of Tietz, a “cultural department
store.” Built in 1912, it now houses the library, adult
education centre, museum of natural history and the New Saxon
Gallery – and attracts some 6,000 visitors every day, boosting
the number of people coming to the district as a whole. It’s an
example of Eichener’s theory that “the quality of experience in
a city will decide whether its inner city will decay or survive the
competition with urban entertainment centres.”
NORDIC EXAMPLE
The revitalisation of abandoned industrial sites – something
which only joined the agenda in German cities in the
late 1980s and 1990s – was an issue that emerged in Norway’s
capital, Oslo, back in the late 1970s. It all began when the Aker
Brygge shipyard declined in importance as the production of
offshore oil rigs was increasingly relocated to the country’s west
coast. New ways of using the site were needed, and construction
work for one of the area’s most important future projects
began in 1984.
The goal was to create a truly urban district including apartments,
offices, restaurants, bars, cinemas and theatres. In
doing so, the planners aimed to preserve the character of
the former port through an exciting blend of stunning new
developments and refurbished shipyard buildings. Twenty years
later, their dream has been achieved: Aker Brygge has evolved
into a new centre in the inner-city. Hundreds of people now
live there, and the area has given rise to more jobs than in
its shipbuilding day. It attracts around 6 million visitors every
year, particularly in the summer. This prime example for many
"COMPROMISE IS
PART OF BEING A
CITY PLANNER"
Peter Wynne Rees,
city planning
officer,
City of London
"URBAN DEVELOPMENT MUST TRY TO COMPENSATE
FOR THE GROWING GAP BETWEEN RICH AND POOR,
YOUNG AND OLD"
Christiane Thalgott, Munich city planning officer
cities of successful development policy is also a clear signal to
property investors. Investments can be successful in the long
term if they are part of the whole known as the city and provide
a habitat for those who, in turn, will make sure the city
continues to survive long into the future.
Anne Wiktorin is a freelance journalist in Cologne.
DIFA-AWARD 2006
“What makes an urban district
worth living in?” This is the
question raised by the DIFA-
AWARD 2006 – and it under-
lines the importance of city
districts for urban develop-
ment in Europe. The organ-
isers are seeking outstanding
districts where people enjoy
working, shopping and living.
More than 75 entries from 16
European countries have been
received, while 30 districts
have been nominated by the
jury for the “Oscar of the real
estate sector,” which comes
with a cheque for 40,000
euros. The winner will be
officially announced on
October 24 at the Expo Real
2006 in Munich during the
DIFA forum “Reinventing
European Cities.”
The DIFA forum in conjunction
with the Urban Land Institute
(ULI) Europe will take place at
the Expo Real on October 24,
from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., in Hall
C2 (Planning & Partnerships
Forum).
For more information, visit:
www.difa.com