Milan is rich in industrial history. A nearby site includes the former Innocenti factory, most notable for producing Lambretta Scooters in the 1950’s and 1960’s. The present service-oriented economy means that many old factory sites are claiming vast swaths of land, acting as holes in the urban fabric. Overcoming such obstacles is a contemporary theme [...]
Roaring crowds, bright lights, and elaborate shows are all part of the visceral human feeling we have at stadiums. For a long time, people have been fascinated by the experience of large performances. These concerts and sporting events, as well as their buildings, are essential components of the human experience. Looking at one of our [...]
Besides infrastructure and built urban form, one of the most important aspects for cities is its physical green space. Nature can be aesthetic or functional, but it always serves the same purpose: to remind us that cities are living places bound to the laws of nature. While built space represents the structured evolution of our [...]
Each day, millions of people depend on reliable transportation for access at a high level of efficiency; and in this way, cities are the largest people movers around. From a logistical standpoint, the efficiency as well as effectiveness and sustainability of these systems is directly correlated with intelligent planning techniques that are able to react [...]
While we often think of cities according to their skylines, we overlook the fact that these are constantly changing in cities around the world. Because of cities’ organic nature, the essence of the city is thus manifested physically in the urban format. New transformations and new skylines are indicative of changing attitudes, and in many [...]
What happens when we run out of farmland, green recreation space, and forests that inhale carbon dioxide? An increasingly significant global problem is the amount of land and soil that is lost to urban development. With 70% of the world’s population expected to live in an urban area by 2050, efficient urban planning is essential [...]
The Universal Expo is coming to Milan in 2015, and construction is already underway for the major six-month event. The Universal Expo occurs only every five years, and encompasses a “universal” theme that is global in nature. This convention’s theme is “Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life,” in which sustainable development regarding food supply and [...]
The term “city” is a broad one at best to describe our heavily populated urban centers. What defines a city? Who puts the boundaries in place – often political and arbitrary – and our main issue: what is the essence of our cities? Patrizia Gabellini, Deputy Mayor for Urban Planning of Bologna, introduced in 2007 [...]
A big Global Site Plans welcome to our newest blogger, Maxwell Vidaver from Milan, Italy. Maxwell Vidaver is a graduate student in Urban Planning, Policy, and Design at Politecnico di Milano in Milan, Italy, and also holds a B.A. in Geography from Binghamton University, where he focused on urban economic analysis. He is originally from [...]
It is well known that urban planning has historically been a complicated affair. The process is often convoluted, requiring the coordination and cooperation of multiple public-private actors and stakeholders to approve new projects. In light of these facts and current economic trends, is it sensible for cities to continue major investments into this area? Milan [...]
