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Folkets Park

New playground at Folkets Park. Image: Kenneth A. Balfelt.

Nørrebro, one of the most densely populated, diverse, and disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Copenhagen, is home to Folkets Park (literally, “People’s Park”). It is a small urban park with a rich history as a place associated with local grassroots activism.

Residents created the park in 1971 on the site of a burned down building as a place for children to play. The adjacent Folkets Hus community centre was the site of local activism between the 1960s and 1980s, largely focused on disagreement over urban renewal. In the decades following there was not much municipal intervention in the park, but this shifted after a violent crime in 2012 that spurred the need for a re-design process focused on safety and inclusion.

The 2013 renovation of Folkets Park aimed to create a public space where all users could feel safe and comfortable. Perceived safety and the provision of public greenspace were the main determinants of health for this project. Another key aspect of this project was the aspiration to embed an inclusive and collaborative approach throughout the design process. As explained in guidance by the Gehl Institute, this exemplary project demonstrates how “when designing healthy places, inclusion can be a goal, a process, and a result”.(1)

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies and this case study was written by Elizabeth Cooper.

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UniverCity Childcare Centre

Playground at UniverCity Childcare. Image: Martin Tessler

The UniverCity Childcare Centre at Simon Fraser University (SFU) was the first childcare centre in the world to obtain the Living Building Challenge (LBC) standard. It was an early adopter of the LBC standard, which originated in British Columbia. The Centre is linked to the SFU Faculty of Education for research on the provision of innovative childcare. After the building was completed and in operation, university researchers engaged with staff at the Childcare Centre in a community of practice model to study and inform the use of the building itself as part of the children’s ‘play-based holistic learning’ about sustainability.(1)

The design process was informed by sustainable building practices and the Childcare Centre’s adoption of the Reggio Emilia pedagogical three ‘teachers’ model whereby educators are considered to be the more than teaching staff, but also the environment in which the children learn and the community in which they live. Inclusive design processes helped the project team understand how children and staff wanted to use the space to support education and development.

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies.

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Mariposa

Mariposa apartments. Image: Denver Housing Authority.

Mariposa is located on the site of a former public housing project in Denver, Colorado. The project is a master planned development of a transit-oriented mixed-income housing, senior housing, retail, and common outdoor areas (e.g. playgrounds and gardens) that was led by the Denver Housing Authority (DHA). The development was planned to maximise the amount of residential, commercial and recreation space that is within roughly 15-minutes walking distance from public transportation. The re-development aimed to create a connected and healthy place through improved access to physical, economic, and social amenities.  The goal of the master plan was to redevelop the area while preserving the positive qualities of the existing South Lincoln neighbourhood.

The DHA phased the redevelopment project over seven years to reduce the displacement of families, the elderly and disabled residents of the former public housing project. Before redevelopment, the 17.5-acre (7 hectares) Mariposa site was home to approximately 250 residents living in brick-clad apartments built in 1954. As of 2017, there were about 1,500 residents living in the same area. Of these 1,500 residents approximately 48 percent were returning residents, in comparison to the typical 10 to 15 percent for similar ‘raze and rebuild’ projects.(1)

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies and this case study was written by Elizabeth Cooper.

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Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

Open space and surrounding residential blocks in East Village.

The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park (QEOP) is large-scale, master planned urban regeneration project on the site of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games. The vision of the project was to use the opportunity of the London 2012 Games to create a dynamic new metropolitan centre for London and an inspiring place where people want to – and can afford to – live, work and visit.

Totalling 560 acres (226 hectares), the QEOP includes plans for up to 6,800 new homes and 91,000 square metres of new commercial space around substantial green and blue infrastructure. The open space includes ‘35km of pathways and cycleways, 6.5km of waterways, over 100 hectares (ha) of land capable of designation as Metropolitan Open Land, 45ha of Biodiversity Action Plan Habitat, 4000 trees, playgrounds and a Park suitable for year-round events and sporting activities’ (1). There are five residential neighbourhoods led by different private sector partners, in addition to East Village (the former Athletes’ Village), including Chobham Manor, East Wick, Sweetwater, Marshgate Wharf and Pudding Mill.

QEOP borders four East London boroughs, Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Newham and Waltham Forest, each with high levels of deprivation and comparatively poor health outcomes. Regeneration plans in each borough aimed to transform the site’s post-industrial landscape and create better living conditions for residents. The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) is the official planning authority of the Olympic Park and was established in 2012 as a mayoral development corporation under the power of the Localism Act 2011. All the planning applications submitted within the boundaries of the Growth Area are processed by the LLDC instead of the local boroughs. This mechanism ensures an integrated approach to the ongoing development in a way which aims to be responsive and accountable to local concerns while reflecting the area’s strategic significance for London.

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies.

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Via Verde

Via Verde Housing Complex, Bronx, NY - Designed by Grimshaw Architects and Dattner Architects.

The Via Verde project was a response to several challenges for the South Bronx community of New York City: lack of high-quality affordable housing and high rates of asthma and obesity. Delivered through a public-private partnership with a complex financing model, Via Verde offers affordable high-quality homes for a broad range of income levels. Based on existing case study reports, its most successful features are the health-focused amenities and sustainable design, alongside the project’s value in changing perceptions about high-rise housing in America.

Green roofs and food gardens are planted on the rooftops of each building – the organising design feature behind the project’s name, Via Verde, meaning green way in Spanish. The project was the winning design in the New Housing New York Legacy Project (NHNY) competition. The multi-award-winning project is hailed as ‘a model for affordable, green, and healthy urban living’ by the Urban Land Institute.(1)

This project is featured as one of our healthy urban development case studies.

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