Place identity, walkability and urban sustainability: a method of analysis

Pedestrian-intensive areas, in particular urban cultural and historical poles of attraction, increasingly bear the imprint of globalisation, conveying messages which have developed in an uncontrolled manner and are aimed at conveying their users' patterns of thought and action. The sustainability of a place depends on a series of factors which contribute to the quality of life, sense of place and recognition of identity. An activity like walking, which in itself is obviously "sustainable", can become non sustainable if the context in which it is carried out does not meet the conditions for an adequate quality of life. This work is aimed at proposing the analytical method of PlaceMaker and the relative complex map to identify and represent the urban elements in contemporary cities and support sustainable urban identity design. The method's potential for areas with a predominantly pedestrian vocation is illustrated by means of two case studies: the Ramblas in Barcelona and the Esplanade area in Helsinki. The aim of the two studies was to comprehend whether the current identity of these places is compatible with their walkability and whether there are critical points where an urban planning process may be developed to enhance their identity, and improve their image together with walkability and safety. As regards the Ramblas, the strong presence of many urban elements made it difficult to recognise those elements which can truly be said to characterise the identity of this area. Here, place identity emerged to the greatest extent in the central pedestrian avenue rather than in the side streets. Indeed along the central area, the visitor finds more characteristic urban scenes and it is here that strollers congregate in a continuous, sustained flow often becoming an active part of the urban scene itself. In some points, the strong blend of hybrid elements incoming from the side streets and from some areas of the central avenue make identity unsustainable, creating, as will shown by interpretation of the complex map and replies to the questionnaire, perceptions of unease and the sensation of a lack of safety amongst passers-by. Addressing the place study implemented using PlaceMaker, data emerging for possible use in re-designing the critical points of the Ramblas were many and varied, and were rooted in the medley of requirements of the users and of the places themselves. In the case of the Esplanade, the study area, albeit representative of the city, cannot be regarded as typically characteristic of Finland, and is rather classifiable as North-European in general terms, and this fact generated a need for a complex operation of identity discovery. From the analysis performed, it emerged that the greatest flow of persons occurs externally to the central portion, and in particular is concentrated on the Pohjesplanadi, where vicinity to the historic centre, the presence of imposing institutional buildings, large hotels, stylish, big-name emporia and quality souvenir shops, a good urban furnishing project and bars with sidewalk tables, make it more striking for visitors. The critical points of the Esplanade area, surveyed with the PlaceMaker method, has indicated the need for re-design of some parts of the area. The new design should aim for increased characterisation of its image and utilisation of the Park area for all age groups, making it a more attracting place of aggregation, as well as enhancement of the Etelesplanadi portion.