PLAN 496/539
Class Syllabus
Class Goals & Objectives

The goal of this class is to empower planners to integrate their knowledge of the evolution of urban form into their recommendations on public policy and investment choices.

To achieve this goal, the class has established the four following objectives:

To achieve an understanding of the components of city form.
To have a working understanding of the comparative planning systems of the United Kingdom and the United States.
To develop an understanding of the linkages between public policy, public investment and the shaping of the urban form.
To demonstrate capability to portray results of analysis in graphic and written form.

Class Lectures, Field Exercises, Studio Exercises & Field Trips

The course will be composed of a variety of learning experiences, combining a series of lectures, practical exercises and field visits to provide a robust and busy three-weeks of study. The topics of the various items are described below:

Lecture Topics		Speakers
Urban Genesis		Winchell
Morphology & Morphogenesis		Grimes
Conceptualizing City Form		Winchell, Grimes
Elements of Urban Change		Grimes
Conceptual History of the UK (1200 – 2000)		Grimes
History of Northwest England		Laxton (University of Liverpool)
History of Chester's city centre		Massey (University of Liverpool)
Public Participation Emphasis: Topics, Theory & Method		Grimes, Winchell

Index page

Exercises		Purpose
Scavenger Hunt		Wayfinding in an unfamiliar urban environment, forcing participants to notice detail, read maps, ask questions of locals and pay attention to their surroundings.
Morphological Concepts		Educating participants on concepts such as aspect (ratio of street width to building height), massing (grouping of building bulk), linkages (formal and informal connections between uses), cadastre (patterns of property ownership) and temporalism (relative timing of development phases).
Space Syntax Study		Demonstrating the relationship and sequencing of spaces in structures and in urban environments, concentrating on divisions between public and private space, differentiation between vertical and horizontal circulation and linkages between spaces.
District Identification		Sensitizing participants to the physical cues defining separation of urban districts, putting into practice the morphological concepts described above and other urban form tools as described in the lectures.
Map Reading		Showing participants what map data is available and then demonstrating in the field how various graphic devices, such as topographic lines, street lines and building lines, translate into real world form.
Figure & Form Study		Learning how to illustrate urban fabric in terms of figure and form, comparing different urban districts and developing the technique as an effective presentation tool.
Sketching		Slowing participant pace to both develop sketching skills and to experience the sights, sounds, smells and activity within an urban area.
Final Presentation		Refining comparative concepts, assembling material gained in lectures and field visits and preparing a graphic and oral presentation on evolutionary tracks, forces and trends.

Index page