dimensions of urban sustainability in tammela infill
TRANSCRIPT
Dimensions of urban sustainability in Tammela infill
UTa Research Day on Sustainable Development31 October 2014
Minna Santaoja, Markus Laine, Helena LeinoPolitics of Nature and the Environment Research Group (PONTE) / School of management
Politics of Nature and the Environment Research Group (PONTE)• Part of the Research Program on the Politics of
Space and the Environment (POLEIS) in the School of Management• Led by professor Pekka Jokinen• Aim: To clarify the social essence of
environmental issues as well as produce practicable solutions to address and solve specific problems.• Research approaches: case studies, interpretative
policy analysis, science and technology studies; methodological and heuristic emphasis
SASUI project (Systemic Architectures for Sustainable Urban Innovation)
Consortium: University of Tampere, Aalto University (urban planning, professor Raine Mäntysalo)Funding: Tekes – the Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation, City of Espoo, City of TamperePartners: City of Tampere, Technical University of Tampere (professor Panu Lehtovuori & students), company partnersDuration: 2014-2015Aims: To find new ways of conducting public – private – people partnerships for sustainable urban innovationWeb: http://www.uta.fi/jkk/en/research/themes/ponte/projects/sasui.html
Uta SASUI team: Markus Laine, Helena Leino, Minna Santaoja
Case: Tammela infill construction
• Tammela district: ”a suburb in the centre of the city”• Chosen by the city of Tampere as a pilot area for
urban infill in 2009• Comprehensive urban densification plan in 2012• Now 6400 residents, adding 4000 more
Research undertakings
• Participatory action research approach, observation & collaboration
• Tammela-course 2013 and 2014, UTa and TUT together: interviewing residents, making preliminary infill sketches for willing housing companies (research – teaching –interface)
• Laine & Leino 2013: Strategista suunnittelua vai sirpaleista sijoittelua – täydennysrakentamisen mahdollisuudet kaupunkikeskustassa. Kunnallistieteellinen aikakauskirja 4:41, 407-422.
• Kontti keskellä kylää 15.-25.9.2014 – interacting with people from Tammela in an office container
Sustainability of Tammela infill
+ Economical sustainability• From the perspective of the city: a new resident in Tammela ca. 15 000e
cheaper than in Vuores (a ”virgin” district)• From the perspective of housing associations: financing renovations by
selling construction rights (have to be calculated carefully!)+ Ecological sustainability• Addressing climate change: reducing mobility needs, improving public
transportation network, increasing eco-efficiency of buildings? Social & cultural sustainabilityResidents’ fear of Tammela becoming a too dense ”slum”
Housing associations in key role
• Housing associations own the land in Tammela
• Planning process cannot proceed ”as usual”; housing associations as ”prosumers” in a key decision-making role
• Capability of housing associations to plan for infill construction?
• Capability of the city for collaborative planning?
Crucial interaction
Vocabulary:Speaking of infill, densification (”maximum building mass”) vs. revitalization, redevelopment, planning for livable cityVisual messages:Grey lego bricks or detailed alternatives to feed imagination?Overestimating citizens:Need to chrystallize and repeat arguments for infill -> continuityUnderestimating citizens:Capability to learn and change views from initial ”no” to ”maybe, if…” when encountered face-to-face
From economical to ecological argumentation• How to argument for urban infill and urban sustainability?• The financial bottomline is uncertain and does not
motivate e.g. housing companies that have already paid for major renovations• People care for views and green spaces – quality of living
environment• Adopting ecological urbanist perspective – urban
development as creating new green public spaces• Capability of the city organization to innovate?• Sustainability of research? (continuity, integrity)