elda solloso senior analyst isocarp design convergence...

LINKING URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION IN A SMALL CITY: AN APPROACH IN CUENCA, SPAIN

BY

Summary: This paper studies the approach of Cuenca, Spain in promoting sustainable urbanization. Cuenca brings together nature and culture, ranking first in Spain and second in Europe in terms of municipal area covered by forest, and its historic core being listed as UNESCO World Heritage site. This paper identifies viable, sustainable urban development strategies promoted by a small city in order to contribute both to the mitigation and adaptation to climate change. Special emphasis is given to strategies than draw linkages with local economic development and improved urban livability. This paper provides an integrative approach, successful precedents, and draws lessons for actions plans on urban form, land use, housing, mobility, energy and local economic development tools.

Key Words: climate change; sustainable urban development; urban planning; urban design

Pablo Vaggione Secretary General

ISOCARP [email protected]

Elda Solloso Senior Analyst

Design Convergence Urbanism (DCU) [email protected]

Linking urban development and climate change mitigation and adaptation in a small city: an approach in Cuenca, Spain

Fifth Urban Research Symposium 2009

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INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................ 3

I. FRAMEWORK FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT ................................................................. 4

1. Key features of Spanish urban development pattern ....................................................................... 4

2. Supra-municipal framework ............................................................................................................ 5

3. Choosing the right tool: City Development Strategy (CDS) ........................................................... 5

II. URBAN DIAGNOSIS OF CUENCA ........................................................................................................... 7

1. Review of planning initiatives ......................................................................................................... 7

2. Urban diagnosis ............................................................................................................................... 8

III. VISION ........................................................................................................................................... 11

IV. ECONOMY ...................................................................................................................................... 12

1. Building a municipal biomass plant in Cuenca .............................................................................. 12

2. Install biomass boilers in municipal buildings ............................................................................... 12

3. Production of electricity in the Municipal Wood Factory .............................................................. 12

4. Biogas generation in the new landfill ............................................................................................ 13

5. Biomass powered Industrial Park .................................................................................................. 13

6. Partnerships to establish a R&D biomass and wood hub in Cuenca .............................................. 13

7. Diversifying the Municipal Wood Factory to produce urban furniture ......................................... 13

V. URBAN ENVIRONMENT ...................................................................................................................... 14

1. Eco-neighborhood .......................................................................................................................... 16

2. AVE Boulevard .............................................................................................................................. 17

3. Urban Forest and Convention Center ............................................................................................ 18

4. PERI 9 (Rail yards area) ................................................................................................................ 18

5. Valorization of the Moscas Creek .................................................................................................. 20

6. Revitalization of San Antón ........................................................................................................... 21

7. Industrial and Business Park .......................................................................................................... 21

VI. CONCLUDING REMARKS .............................................................................................................. 23

VII. LIST OF REFERENCES ................................................................................................................... 24

VIII. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................................................. 27

IX. LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................................... 27

X. LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................................ 27



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INTRODUCTION This paper studies the approach taken by the city of Cuenca (pop. 53,000), in the region of Castilla La Mancha, Spain to guide sustainable urban development through a City Development Strategy (CDS). This paper focuses on process and methodology as the CDS, adopted in November 2008, is in early stages of implementation. Realizing that planning for effectively mitigating and adapting to climate change requires a cross-cutting approach and not just an environmental focus, the municipality of Cuenca adapted the methodology of Cities Alliance’s City Development Strategy (CDS) to its own context, thus introducing a new planning tool in Spain. Cuenca’s CDS is a non-binding planning tool that adopts a horizontal approach cutting across the sectors of urban planning, economic development and environment, and conducts a step-by-step methodology that establishes a vision and development principles. These are articulated through policy recommendations and catalyst projects, linking long term vision with short term implementable actions. Backed by extensive research including sustainable development frameworks and best practices, the result is a comprehensive strategy aiming to maximize priorities and initiatives across city departments, building partnerships, and providing an umbrella to guide sustainable urban development in the middle run.



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I. FRAMEWORK FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT Cuenca’s planning process departs from the new municipal team drive to promote a more sustainable city development. A brief snapshot of Spanish urban development pattern illustrates why tackling sustainable development is a pressing issue.

1. Key features of Spanish urban development pattern There is consensus among the scientific community that climate change is real and is a consequence of human interference in the climate system. Based on data from the Spanish Strategies on Sustainable Development and Urban Environment, Cuenca reviewed some key challenges faced by the urban sector in Spain and used them to justify the rationale of its intervention. Massive land consumption. Between 1987 and 2005, the amount of land dedicated to urban, industrial and commercial use in Spain increased by 40%, about four times the population growth rate. Energy inefficient construction model. Construction has expanded at a fast pace and the number of new housing units in Spain in 2005 equaled the combined total of the UK, France and Italy. The construction related sectors of non metallic minerals including cement, glass and ceramic tiles account for 21% of the overall industrial energy consumption while they only contribute 5% of the sector’s GDP. Road Transport. Its contribution to the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions increased by 73% between 1990 and 2004 and accounts for about 22% of today’s total. In addition, transport is the most energy intensive sector accounting for 38% of the total energy consumed and the lion share of oil consumption in Spain. Related to this, the share of urbanized land area dedicated to transport in recent urban expansion projects reaches 50% in average. Pollution and Health. The great increase of the diesel car fleet from 1990 to 2004 has resulted in a parallel increase in NOx emissions, linked to respiratory diseases leading to death in urban areas. Threaten to natural areas. Protection to natural areas binds only about 8% of the territory. Spain uses an average 4.9 hectares of productive land per person, a figure that falls within the European average. While this represents a middle ground between the US (9.5 Ha) and China (1.5 Ha), this land consumption has potential to be reduced. Increasing generation of urban solid waste. The average urban solid waste generation is 1.4 kg/day/ person. The volume of urban solid waste in Spain increased by 39% between 1994 and 2004, in parallel to its GHG emissions increase, mostly due to methane. About 40% of all waste is construction related.



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2. Supra-municipal framework

For a small local government like Cuenca, efforts to emphasize compliance with the supra-municipal political framework is central, as it is perceived that compliance eases the way towards project implementation, and importantly, accessing funding. Cuenca conducted a review of key sustainable development plans, policies and legislation at the European (EU), national and regional levels. The review included but was not limited to the Aalborg Commitments, the EU Sustainable Development Strategy, the EU Strategy for Urban Environment, Spain’s Climate Change Strategy and Spain’s Renewable Energy Plan. This analysis allowed extracting a number of key thrusts for urban development, which could be summarized as follows: Integrative approaches. The need to approach urban development in an integrative way is critical to have a durable impact on sustainability. Cuenca adopted the term “urban environment” to emphasize planning coordination across departments. Sustainable consumption. On the demand side, resource rationalization and efficiency are emphasized. This includes the improved use and/or management of water, land, energy and other natural and rural resources and the reduction and improved management of solid waste. Sustainable production. On the supply side, the introduction of alternative sources and technologies is emphasized. This is the case of increasing the share of renewable energy, the adoption of bioclimatic construction techniques and the promotion of non-oil based mobility. Urban management. Key issues for urban management emerging by the review turn around the promotion of Urban Agenda 21 processes, then again emphasizing integration, and the need for a proactive role of the institutions in sustainable development through public sector led “exemplary practices”.

3. Choosing the right tool: City Development Strategy (CDS) The municipal team (2007- ) concurred that planning for effectively mitigating and adapting to climate change would require a cross-cutting approach rather than a separate focus from departments (environment, planning). This posed an initial impediment as Spanish municipalities, like it is common elsewhere, often find it difficult to conduct holistic approaches and municipal departments have a tendency to work as independent silos. Existing planning instruments, namely Structural Plans, Strategic Plans and Agenda 21 tend to replicate to a certain extent that fragmentation and are sometimes modified, put on hold or expedited according to election cycles. Structural Plans are the main binding instrument used by urban planning departments to guide spatial growth and shape development in the middle run (12 years). Spatial Plans are land use focused and prioritize uses and occupation intensities over long term strategy. Spanish municipalities have had a tendency to adopt development oriented structural plans in recent years partially incentivized by their financial dependence which of made land sales a major source of



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municipal revenue. Cuenca Structural Plan is currently being revised by the urban planning department. A Strategic Plan is a non-binding instrument typically used by economic development departments to establish a long term city vision and provide broad recommendations on a variety of urban related areas. Strategic plans usually lack a spatial focus, and as such, a linkage with structural plans. Cuenca’s previous local administration had launched a Strategic Plan process in 2005. Guided by a newly formed Steering Committee involving key public, private and civil society stakeholders, the Strategic Plan focused on consensus building and participatory processes including consultation and surveys to over 14,000 citizens. While an urban diagnosis and a city vision were produced out of that process, the Strategic Plan per se has not been completed yet and is currently on hold. An Agenda 21 is a non-binding instrument used to minimize the human impact on the environment by providing guidelines to make a more efficient use of the resources. While they were originally conceived as a cross-cutting instrument, they are essentially used by environmental departments to provide recommendations with respect to water, sanitation, solid waste management, energy, air quality and open spaces. An Agenda 21 preparation process had started in Cuenca in 2006; while the current administration supports the project, the Agenda 21 has not been completed yet and is still under elaboration. In sum, financial dependency versus increasing decentralized responsibilities, election cycles, conflicting sectoral interests and lack of incentives and institutional mechanisms are some of the factors impeding collaboration at the local level and need to be taken into account by efforts to launch more comprehensive planning processes like the one Cuenca was aiming for. Based on these premises, Cuenca decided to adapt Cities Alliance’s methodology and design a City Development Strategy (CDS) tailored to its own context. Cuenca’s four objectives for its CDS are:

• To create a non-binding planning tool to guide sustainable development in the middle run;

• To adopt a vertically-coordinated approach, backed by a substantial review of policy frameworks and recommendations and urban best practices at the European, national and regional levels;

• To increase resource efficiency by conciliating interests across urban planning, economic development and environment departments and by facilitating the involvement of the private sector;

• To be a flexible tool that links long term vision with short term implementable actions.



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II. URBAN DIAGNOSIS OF CUENCA The city conducted an urban diagnosis framed by the key thrusts for sustainability reviewed in the previous section. In addition, Cuenca wished to maximize the integration a series of initiatives formulated prior or concomitant to the CDS.

1. Review of planning initiatives With the goal of start promoting a more horizontal and cross-sectoral thinking within the municipality and build on work that had already been done, existing and planned initiatives led by other departments were reviewed. A summary of the most relevant initiatives at the strategy/policy level is included below:

• Draft Structural Plan (currently under revision), which estimated a population growth of 180,000 over the next 12 years and included a controversial provision supporting a commensurate land development;

• Diagnosis and City Vision, which had been recently produced under the Strategic Plan activities based on extensive consultation and consensus building;

• Agenda 21, launched by the city’s environmental department and which is still under preparation;

• A study to improve city wide mobility led by the public works department had just commenced.

In addition, a number of ongoing and/or planned urban projects were reviewed, including ongoing projects:

• High speed train (Alta Velocidad, AVE). Cuenca will be served by the new AVE route between Madrid and Valencia by 2010 (latest estimate). This project has the potential to significantly improve the city’s connectivity placing it at approximately 1 hour distance from each of those urban centers and giving access to a combined population of about 8 million.

• A-40 highway to Madrid, upgrading the current two-way road, estimated to be completed by 2010 and which will connect Madrid to Cuenca in 1.5 hours.

• San Antón neighborhood revitalization, through an EU €10 M grant targeting urban regeneration in marginalized urban areas.

Planned projects:

• A boulevard linking the AVE train station in the outskirts with the city (Boulevard AVE); • New landfill; • A Convention Center, linked to the Cuenca 2016 European City of Culture candidacy; • New 350 hectare Technology and Business Park geared to renewable energy industries; • Traffic reduction measures and promotion of bike use; • Revitalization and clean up of the Moscas creek.



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Accepting the framework provided by these initiatives, it was decided that the CDS would:

• Not be a substitute for the sectoral planning made within departments, but would become an input and document of reference in the planning exercise conducted for the Structural Plan, the Strategic Plan, the Agenda 21 and the mobility improvement study;

• Build on the urban vision and consensus established by the Strategic Plan work; • Take ongoing projects as a given and maximize the integration of planned projects.

Figure 1: Cuenca, ongoing and planned projects

1-AVE Station; 2- Boulevard; 3- Business Park; 4-New landfill; 5-Moscas Creek; 6-Convention Center; 7-PERI 9 area; 8-San Antón neighbhorhood; 9-Plaza de España (new municipal facility); 10- Carretería Street. Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008

2. Urban diagnosis Beyond studying the above initiatives, the CDS conducted its own urban diagnosis of Cuenca from the scope of the key thrusts for sustainability identified in section 1. Main findings by topic are summarized below:



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• Population growth. Cuenca (53,000) is the smallest of the five provincial cities of Castilla La Mancha region. The city has grown at rate at 2.4% for the past five years mostly as a result of an inflow of foreign born populations.

• Urbanization needs. The draft Structural Plan development needs are based on a forecasted

population of 230,000 by 2020, or an annual growth rate of 11.29% per annum. This estimate multiplies by 4.6 the current growth rate according to which city would reach 73,000 by 2020. The diagnosis found the Structural Plan development needs estimate unrealistic and in contradiction with the revised Land occupation Law (Ley del Suelo 2007).

Year / Population

Table 1: Projected population growth

(2007-2020)

Current annual

rate

Current annual rate

x 2

Current annual rate

x 3

Draft Master Plan: Current annual rate x

4,6 2.46% 4.92% 7.38% 11.29%

2007 52,980 52,980 52,980 52,980 2012 59,900 67,750 76,630 93,150 2017 67,750 86,650 110,850 163,800 2020 72,950 100,430 138,330 230,000

Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008 • Economic Development. There is a consensus about the need to make Cuenca’s economic

base more dynamic. The city has a low industrial base with only 6.6% of its population engaged in industrial activities and a comparatively lower entrepreneurship activity. Cuenca’s topography, limiting interregional accessibility, and its hinterland characterized by low density small rural settlements development have traditionally been important deterrents of Cuenca’s development.

• Human capital. Cuenca faces a challenge of keeping qualified workers in the city, not to mention of attracting new ones. There is also a perception that the city lacks facilities, leisure and cultural opportunities, and attractive housing compared to other surrounding regional capitals, which contributes to diminish Cuenca’s attractiveness for younger people.

• Industrial and Business Park. Cuenca’s planned 350 hectare park specializing in renewable

energy would be one of the largest of its kind in Spain. While they are a common initiative by Spanish municipalities, the promotion of industrial parks has not always resulted in and by itself in enhanced local economic development and there are many cases where fully urbanized industrial lots have remained partially empty because of lack of demand. In Cuenca, insufficient industrial land at an affordable rate does not appear to be the main factor underlying a lower level of economic activity, and lacking highway connections, out-migration of skilled workers and lack of support to entrepreneurship could have had more to do. While improved connectivity with Madrid and Valencia certainly poses a more favorable context for the attraction of new industrial and business activities to the industrial park,



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Cuenca is at competition other cities closer to Madrid. The diagnosis concluded that it appears necessary to concentrate of finding areas of specialization for Cuenca to support local economic development initiatives.

• Renewable Energy. An analysis supported by technical studies revealed that Cuenca has a competitive advantage with respect to its immediate competitors in terms of availability of biomass sources of renewable energy . Cuenca municipality is Spain’s number one jurisdiction in terms of area covered by forest (53,000 hectares), and Europe’s second after Geneva (Switzerland). The diagnosis estimated that only by using its forestry resources, Cuenca could potentially provide clean electricity to over 100,000 families. In addition, Cuenca’s woodwork tradition dates from the medieval period and its wood has been found Europe’s most resilient pine wood and very adequate for structural and external uses. A city-owned wood factory produces a range of wood products and provides 50 jobs and an annual revenue of € 3.3 million for the city.

• Cultural assets. Cuenca’s historic core was listed a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1996. There is consensus among all stakeholders that its cultural heritage and natural endowment are Cuenca’s main assets and should be the pillars of the city vision.

• Park areas. Despite its rich natural endowment, the diagnosis found that Cuenca’s ratio of

urban green areas is about 5m2 per capita, comparatively lower than other Spanish cities and below the WHO recommendation of 10 -15 m2/capita. Related to this, while two rivers, the Júcar and the Huécar, and one creek (Moscas) traverse the city, the relationship of the built up area with those water elements is somewhat diffuse.

• Urban Design. Despite its assets, the diagnosis determined that Cuenca’s more recent urban

expansion lacks character. While its famous Hanging Houses on river canyons (Casas Colgadas) were architectural avant-garde in medieval times, today the city’s architecture is quite generic. In addition, the urban fabric is interrupted by a number of barriers that create non places in central parts of the city.

• Discontinuous growth. The diagnosis determined that main barriers include the traditional

rail tracks, yards and station, an area known as “PERI 9”, which have bisected the city for decades; and a series of underutilized industrial areas primarily involving warehousing located in adjacency to the existing city core to the southwest (figure 2). Based on the argument that the land belongs to the National Railway Infrastructure Agency (ADIF), the draft Structural Plan takes leaves the PERI 9 as a “blank” area.

• Mobility. There is a disproportionate reliance on private vehicles as the main mode of

intercity mobility, causing traffic jams and parking problems. There is also an apparent mismatch between public transportation options and desired routes.

• Water, solid waste, energy. Cuenca has no systematic criteria of water, energy and solid

waste management and bioclimatic building requirements.



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Figure 2: Cuenca, main urban barriers

Vías de tren= railyards; zona industrial= industrial area. Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008

III. VISION Based on the diagnosis, key urban issues that Cuenca City Development Strategy (CDS) should address were identified. These included:

1) Optimize resources by coordinating projects and initiatives at the municipal level;

2) Explore the potential of biomass to produce renewable energy and as a source of both economic and urban development;

3) Make the city attractive for its residents: enhance the character of the urban fabric and

reintroduce the green;

4) Balance urban land conversion and guide development in a sustainable way;

5) Minimize barriers in the urban fabric and reuse obsolete lands. Consistently with the Strategic Plan, Cuenca established as its vision: “To become a model of sustainable urban development, guided by nature and culture”.



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In order to provide guidance on how to materialize the vision and address key issues, the CDS develops a number of recommendations broken down in two broad categories, namely economy and urban environment. Furthermore, a series of catalyst projects are proposed that illustrate how to channel recommendations into specific physical planning, housing typologies, urban design, and mobility interventions. IV. ECONOMY The city of Cuenca explored several ways to make an innovative use of its forestry resources and its biomass both for economic development and sustainable urban development. The study of successful precedents on both topics highlighted the great potential for synergies existing among traditionally separated urban functions, like solid and/or wood waste and energy. The following recommendations were established by the CDS:

1. Building a municipal biomass plant in Cuenca Biomass fed plants can generate centralized heating and hot water to serve an entire neighborhood. Cuenca studied the experience of Cuellar (9,000), Spain, a town rich in forestry resources. The success of Cuellar’s centralized heating plant shows that this system is both effective and convenient and can save up to 10% of energy costs to its 1,000 users. In addition, Cuellar’s biomass plant has created new jobs in forest cleaning and wood processing and transportation, and has reduced overall GHG city emissions. While Spanish municipalities rarely participate in energy supply, the great scale and proximity of its forestry assets coupled with available support both from regional and national energy agencies through loans and technical expertise makes this recommendation feasible for Cuenca.

2. Install biomass boilers in municipal buildings As part of the “exemplary practice” precept, the public sector can adopt clean energy-based technologies to promote their use. Cuenca studied technical documents prepared by IDAE (Spanish Agency for Energy Diversification) on how to successfully install biomass boilers in public buildings, since success will be critical to gain credibility and encourage the adoption of the technology by the residents. The City is currently working on a project to install biomass boilers in city-owned buildings, including in a planned new municipal facility.

3. Production of electricity in the Municipal Wood Factory The production of electricity out of biomass is greatly subsidized under the new National Law 661/2007. This law was formulated to support the achievement of Spain’s Renewable Energy Plan (2005-2010), which multiplies by four the installed biomass capacity over the period. Being the owner of 23 woodland areas, this option is of foremost interest for the city. The city-owned wood factory processes about 55,000 m3 of wood annually generating an estimated 9,000 tons of waste. Based on that, Cuenca estimated that revenue generation from



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electricity sales in the wood factory could be in the region of € 900,000. Once capitalized the investment, the CDS mentions that additional revenue could be potentially used to feed a “Local Fund” to cross-subsidize sustainability related projects.

4. Biogas generation in the new landfill The planned landfill confronted the city with the possibility of studying the generation of biogas from its urban solid waste. Best practices were studied including Bilbao’s landfill which by generating biogas achieves annual average revenue of €300,000 from electricity sales while reducing both its operating cost and methane emissions. Like in Bilbao, Cuenca estimated that biogas generation equipment in the landfill cost could be partially financed through a mix of existing EU, national and regional targeted subsidies.

5. Biomass powered Industrial Park By undertaking the above mentioned concurrent actions (1 to 4), Cuenca expects to create momentum and obtain visibility as a biomass breeding ground which could hopefully attract additional related economic activities. Once the Industrial Park is approved and, importantly, construction properly phased, the CDS recommends building a biomass electricity plant to power the Park and make it energy self-sufficient. This intervention would ensure supply to incoming firms and result in increased visibility both for the city and the firms.

6. Partnerships to establish a R&D biomass and wood hub in Cuenca In order to further learn about biomass technology, Cuenca turned to the city of Växjö in Sweden. Växjö (78,000) has successfully taken advantage of its forestry resources to become a biomass hub known as “the greenest city in Europe”. Växjö University specializes in forestry, timber and bio-energy and taps on the city’s valuable accumulated experience in terms of CO2 reduction and use of local energy sources to innovate. Cuenca is aware that in the clean energy business, the area of research, development and innovation brings in the highest added value to the local economy and is instrumental for attracting qualified human capital. The CDS studied cutting edged areas of biomass research and recommends to actively seek a specialization in biomass and wood material sciences through building partnerships to bring regional and national educational programs and R&D facilities to Cuenca.

7. Diversifying the Municipal Wood Factory to produce urban furniture Cuenca’s pine wood has an excellent quality and has been found Europe’s best for structural use. Tapping on the city-owned wood factory, the CDS recommends diversifying its production to include innovative wood urban furniture manufacturing, façade refurbishment elements, pavements, signaling, etc. This recommendation is aimed at giving Cuenca a distinct modern image while nurturing local economic development. Building on this last recommendation, the city intends to launch two public competitions seeking designers for (1) a new iconic building made entirely of local wood and (2) wood urban furniture for Cuenca’s public spaces.



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V. URBAN ENVIRONMENT This section provides recommendations and ensuing catalyst projects aimed at making the city attractive for existing and future residents while promoting a sustainable development pattern. Successful precedents were studied and the following recommendations established for Cuenca:

1. Rationalize land development, through: (i) favoring infill and compact growth, (ii) coupling land development and population growth estimates, (iii) prioritizing growth in adjacency to the existing city and along the AVE Boulevard;

2. Favor more sustainable mobility patterns; 3. Establish quality design guidelines to create urban character; 4. Ensure bioclimatic architecture in city led developments; 5. Seek integrative sustainable development projects: Eco-neighborhood.

Figure 3: Cuenca, recommended growth strategy by phases and structuring natural elements

Actual= Current; Fase 1= Phase 1 Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008



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A series of catalyst projects translating these recommendations into specific urban planning and design interventions are articulated next. Three elements, namely nature, population and infrastructure provide the structure for these projects. Nature. The city’s natural rich endowment including its two rivers and one creek, along with its unique adjacencies between the rural and urban landscapes are taken as key structural elements for the strategy (figure 3). Population. The draft Structural Plan’s growth estimation is divided by two and phased with land development over a 12 year horizon. The CDS-proposed growth strategy prioritizes compact growth in adjacency to the existing urban fringe and on underutilized land, and directs future growth towards the future AVE train station to be located in the south of the city. In terms of density, while respecting existing municipal guidelines, the proposed density is intentionally modulated in relation to the territorial context. Values range from low density in proximity to natural assets (30 to 45 units / hectare) to high in adjacency to main infrastructure axes (over 60 units / hectare) (figure 3). Infrastructure. The new AVE train station creates a node that pushes the city’s geometrical center towards the south (figure 4). On that geometrical center, the CDS recommends solutions to address the existing rail tracks and train station, the existing warehousing area, as well as the connection from the AVE station.

Figure 4: Cuenca, shifted centrality as a result of the upcoming high speed train (AVE) station

Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008



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Based on the recommendations and these structuring elements, the strategy introduces seven catalyst projects at a conceptual stage, subject to technical and financial feasibility studies. These include:

1. Eco-neighborhood An eco-neighborhood is proposed to address Cuenca’s immediate population needs in a sustainable way (figure 5). The eco-neighborhood development guidelines are based on the study of pioneering experiences in Hanover (Kronsberg) and Stockholm (Hamarby) and include:

• Renewable energy systems. Includes a centralized heating system fueled by local biomass, in-district solid waste management and the reuse of household water for irrigation.

• Housing typologies. Contemporary modern typologies are encouraged to inject character to the urban fabric and offer a differential and attractive element for younger couples. Modern architecture using local wood and featuring north-south orientation is encouraged. Density is intentionally modulated to reflect the changing relationship of the built-up area with its surrounding environment, including the Moscas creek.

• Development Plan. Cuenca’s CDS recommends the elaboration, prior to development, of a master plan establishing planning and design guidelines for buildings, streets, and public spaces. The individual design of buildings would be open to a number of architects in order to ensure visual diversity.

• Green space network. It forms the spine of the neighborhood and introduces the Moscas creek as a central recreational element.

• Mobility. Soft mobility is encouraged within the district, favoring pedestrian, bike and slow mobility (Zone 30 areas) options, as well as public transit along the neighborhood’s main axis, the AVE Boulevard.

• Design concept. The sentence “Cuenca ciudad sostenible 2008” in Morse code is introduced as the initial building arrangement hypothesis for the Eco-neighborhood. Following this principle, buildings are distributed in a series of short and long stripes forming a varied urban fabric coexisting with open spaces.

The city of Cuenca is currently seeking partners to develop a pilot “Eco-barrio” on municipal land, consisting of 200 affordable housing units. These guidelines and practical experience should feed both the draft Structural Plan and Agenda 21.



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Figure 5: Cuenca, artist’s impression of the Eco-neighborhood


2. AVE Boulevard The strategy provides both design and planning guidelines for the AVE Boulevard linking the new AVE train station with Cuenca downtown. A 72 meter wide axis planted with trees and providing with an ample central promenade and bike paths is proposed. In terms of phasing, the boulevard’s first segment would be developed along with the Eco-neighborhood and linked with the train station through a bus service that could be upgraded to dedicated lane and then tram as critical mass is acquired. Urban furniture and pavements made of local wood are introduced as new visual elements.



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Figure 6: Cuenca, artist’s impression of the AVE Boulevard


3. Urban Forest and Convention Center The strategy highlighted that once the AVE train station is built by 2010 the city’s new geographic center, an area currently occupied by the existing railways, the “old” train station and an industrial area involving primarily warehousing activities will acquire a central importance. A new urban forest replicating Cuenca’s woodlands and addressing the deficit of urban green spaces is proposed at the city core. The forest is traversed by the Moscas creek and would be directly linked to the AVE train station through the Boulevard and other key city destinations via bus/tram. Given the scenery and centrality of the site, the forest is also the CDS’ recommended location for the new Convention Center. Discussions regarding location must be undertaken with the regional government (project sponsor). These guidelines should feed both the draft Master Plan and Agenda 21.

4. PERI 9 (Rail yards area) Building on the CDS recommendation of favoring infill and compact growth, this catalyst project illustrates the removal of the traditional rail tracks and provides guidelines to realign them towards the city periphery. Once freed from the tracks, the area is conceived as a continuation of the urban forest penetrating into the urban fabric and healing the wound caused by the rail



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infrastructure. Cuenca is currently engaged in conversations with the National Railroad Infrastructure Agency (ADIF), owner of this land, to remove and realign the tracks, a project for which successful precedents exist in other Spanish cities. These guidelines should feed both the draft Structural Plan and Agenda 21. Figure 7: Cuenca, artist’s impression of the Urban Forest

Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008 Projects 1 to 4 are conceived as a major “green piece” which is inserted and heals the existing urban fabric while working as a powerful symbol of the city’s new attitude towards sustainable development.



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Figure 8: Cuenca, recommended infill and compact growth projects


5. Valorization of the Moscas Creek Building on an existing project proposal to improve the creek, the valorization of the creek is illustrated through the creation of a linear park combining walking and recreational spaces with sustainable mobility options, particularly biking. In addition, the project aims to introduce community gardening.



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6. Revitalization of San Antón Building on a newly awarded EU-URBAN €10 million grant, the CDS provides a concept for the revitalization of San Antón neighborhood as a sample strategy of how to build the city from the inside. Due to its proximity to the university, the neighborhood is conceived as a “bohemian district” geared to students, young professionals and artists. The city expects that this intervention will contribute to correct the district’s stigmatized image.

Figure 9: Cuenca, artist’s impression of San Antón revitalization


7. Industrial and Business Park Guidelines to phase the Park’s construction are provided. Based on a study identifying main needs in other industrial parks, a range of plot subdivision, density and FAR criteria were provided to cater to a variety of uses, from R&D, incubators, offices and warehousing and distribution. These guidelines should feed the draft Structural Plan.



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Figure 10: Cuenca, summary of catalyst projects

1-Eco-barrio and Boulevard; 2-Urban Forest; 3-San Antón; 4-Carretería; 5-Moscas Creek; 6-Industrial & Business Park Source: Cuenca City Development Strategy, 2008



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VI. CONCLUDING REMARKS The Mayor of Cuenca presented the CDS, renamed as “Plan Revitaliza” in November 2008 and obtained support from over 200 representatives of business and civic organizations. The municipality is currently in project preparation stages for catalyst initiatives identified in the CDS. Specifically, it has started procurement procedures for introducing biomass boilers in public buildings; is mobilizing potential implementing partners for the Eco-neighborhood; and is organizing competitions for the design of an urban furniture system and a new institutional building, both featuring Cuenca’s wood. Cuenca’s City Development Strategy provides the following learnings:

• A structured methodology. The adaptation of an existing instrument (CDS) to the Spanish context has proven to be an advantageous tool to framework the promotion of climate change mitigation and adaptation in a small city.

• Vertical coordination. The CDS is anchored in an extensive research on urban

sustainability frameworks and best practices, which provides a common ground between regulations and recommendations at European, national, regional and local level. This vertical integration provides a solid foundation for the principles of Cuenca’s urban management.

• Horizontal coordination. The CDS built linkages between key local government departments such as urban planning, environment and economic development by conciliating interests and incorporating others’ needs. In that regard, the CDS can be influential for facilitating public-public cooperation within the municipality in the future as well as partnerships with the private sector.

• Internal coordination. The CDS was able to capture existing synergies among different

urban development instruments such as the Structural Plan, Strategic Plan and Agenda 21, which should be tapped in an integrated manner to promote sustainable urban development. Bringing together long term vision and short term action plans, the CDS provided the municipality with guidance on critical topics for accomplishing a balanced development including urban growth, density, land use, housing, mobility, and energy.



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VII. LIST OF REFERENCES Área de Promoción Económica, Planificación y Empleo (no date) Cuenca, Un Municipio en

Desarrollo, A municipality at development, Invertir en Cuenca, Ayuntamiento de Cuenca.

Ayuntamiento de Cuenca (2006), Revisión y Adaptación del Plan General de Ordenación Municipal de Cuenca, Madrid.

Bank Boston Economics Department (1997) MIT: The Impact of Innovation, Boston, Massachusetts.

Cities Alliance and Buitenlandse Zaken Ontwikkelings samenwerking (June 2007) Understanding your Local Economy, A resource Guide for Cities, Washington DC.

Cities Alliance (June 2006) Guide to City Development Strategies, Improving Urban Performance, Washington DC.

Ciudades para un futuro más sostenible, Buenas Prácticas Españolas, Concurso Internacional de Dubai (2000), Calefacción centralizada por biomasa, Cuellar, Segovia (España) <http://habitat.aq.upm.es/>

Civitas, Trendsetter (2006), Sustainable Urban Transport, Final Report from the European Project Trendsetter, Stockholm.

Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos de Castilla La Mancha, Demarcación de Cuenca (Septiembre 2006), Alegaciones al POM de Cuenca, Cuenca.

Comisión Europea, Plan de Acción sobre la Biomasa, COM (2005) 628 final, Bruselas 07.12.2005.

Consejo Social de la Ciudad de Cuenca (2006), Diagnóstico Socio-económico. Marco Estratégico 0. Cuenca, Un municipio en desarrollo, Cuenca.

Consejo Social de la Ciudad de Cuenca (2006), Diagnóstico Socio-económico, 1 Población. Cuenca, Un municipio en desarrollo, Ayuntamiento de Cuenca, Patronato de Promoción Económica

Energie Cités (2002) « Estudio de Caso de la generación de biogás en el Vertedero de Bilbao » <http://www.energie-cites.eu/>

European Union, Séptimo Programa Marco de Investigación, Desarrollo Tecnológico y Demostración (2007-2013) <http://www.eu.org>

European Union, Sustainable Development Strategy (2006) <http://www.europa.eu>

European Union, Thematic Strategy on Urban Environment (2006) <http://www.europa.eu>



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GEM y DEC (2007) GEM Cuenca Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Executive Report, Cuenca.

Harvard University Graduate School of Design (2005), Residential Waterfront Borneo Sporenburg, Amsterdam, Cambridge, Massachusetts.

ICMA (2006), Cluster Based Economic Development Strategies, IQ Report E-Document. Issue 1, Washington DC.

IDAE, Ministerio de Industria (2002) Biomasa. Calefacción Sostenible para edificios públicos, Madrid.

IDAE, Ministerio de Industria (2007) Biomasa: Producción Eléctrica y Cogeneración, Madrid.

IDAE, Ministerio de Industria, Comercio y Turismo (Agosto 2005) Plan de Energías Renovables 2005-2010 < http://www.idae.es>

IDAE, Ministerio de Industria, Comercio y Turismo (Julio 2007) Plan de Acción de la Estrategia de Ahorro y Eficiencia Energética, Resumen Ejecutivo < http://www.idae.es>

Instituto Nacional de Estadística de Castilla La Mancha, (2001) Censo de vivienda <http://www.ies.jccm.es/>

Junta de Comunidades de Castilla La Mancha (Junio 2007), Borrador Estrategia Regional de Desarrollo Sostenible de Castilla La Mancha, <http://www.jccm.es/>

Koven, Steven G. and Lyons, Thomas S. (2003) Economic Development Strategies for State and Local Practice, ICMA, Washington DC.

Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Diciembre 2007) Plan Nacional I+D+i 2008-2011, <http://www.plannacionalidi.es/>

Ministerio de Medio Ambiente (Noviembre 2007) Estrategia Española de Desarrollo Sostenible < http://www.mma.es/>

Ministerio de Medio Ambiente (Octubre 2007) Estrategia Española de Cambio Climático y Energías Limpias < http://www.mma.es/>

Ministerio de Medio Ambiente(Noviembre 2007), Borrador Estrategia Española de Medio Ambiente Urbano < http://www.mma.es/>

Penélope Bacchus (2002), Calefacción Central de Biomasa en Cuellar, Segovia, Spain, preparado por IDAE, Madrid.

SIBart y Altener, (2001) Elementos de desarrollo sostenible en el distrito de Kronsberg, Geohabitat.



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Stellan Fryxell (2008), “Planning Hammarby Sjostad Stockolm”, presentación powerpoint en conference: ULI Europe Trends Conference, Stockholm, May 2008.

The Aalborg Commitments (2004), Inspiring Futures, <http://www.aalborgplus10.dk/>

Legislation

Código Técnico de la Edificación (2006)

Ley 1/2007 del 15 de febrero de Fomento de Energías Renovables e Incentivación del Ahorro y Eficiencia Energética en Castilla La Mancha

Ley de Calidad de Aire y Protección de la Atmósfera (2007)

Ley de Suelo 8/ 2007

Real Decreto 661/2007 regulating the production of electric energy under a special clause

Consulted web-sites

Agencia para la Energía de Castilla la Mancha (AGECAM): http://www.agecam.es/

Asociación Española de Parques Tecnológicos (APTE): http://www.apte.org/

Ayuntamiento de Cuenca Maderas: http://www.maderascuenca.com/

Ayuntamiento de Cuenca: www.cuenca.es

Centro Nacional de Energías Renovables (CENER) de Navarra: www.cener.com

Cities Alliance: http://www.citiesalliance.org/

Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) at ICLEI http://www.iclei.org/index.php?id=800

Ciudad de Växjö: http://www.vaxjo.se/default.aspx?id=1630

European Union, European Comission, Sustainable Development : http://ec.europa.eu/environment/eussd/

Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): http://www.ipcc.ch/

Junta de Castilla La Mancha Proyecto de Innovación Regional I+D+I: http://www.clminnovacion.com/default.htm

Symbiocity: http://www.symbiocity.org



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UNESCO World Heritage Center Historic Walled Town of Cuenca: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/781

Wood Material Science and Engineering Research Programme: http://www.woodwisdom.fi/en/

VIII. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

IX. LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Ongoing and planned initiatives Figure 2: Main urban barriers Figure 3: Recommended growth strategy by phases and structuring natural elements Figure 4: Shifted centrality as a result of the upcoming high speed train (AVE) station Figure 5: Cuenca, artist’s impression of the Eco-neighborhood Figure 6: Cuenca, artist’s impression of the AVE Boulevard Figure 7: Cuenca, artist’s impression of the Urban Forest Figure 8: Recommended infill and compact growth projects Figure 9: Cuenca, artist’s impression of San Antón revitalization Figure 10: Summary of catalyst projects X. LIST OF TABLES

CDS: City Development Strategy GHG: Greenhouse gas NOx: Nitrogen oxide AVE: Spain’s High Speed Train Network MW: Megawatts WHO: World Health Organization ADIF: Spain’s National Railway Infrastructure Agency PERI 9: Planning Area corresponding to the train station and related rail infrastructure IDAE: Spanish Agency for Energy Diversification

Table 1: Projected population growth 2007-2020



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Design Convergence Urbanism Palacio de Miraflores Carrera de San Jerónimo, 15 2 Floor Madrid 28014 T +34 914 547 012 F +34 914 547 001 www.designconvergence.org

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