Urban Precinct Studio

This subject is not offered in 2014.

240 Hours

Students will undertake the subject as a capstone and so will have some background skills in

• Gather information from a range of sources relating to an urban place and the ability to meaningfully collate, interpret and analyse it.
• Spatially representation and analytical skills relevant to urban design and planning, and the ability to convey this to others in meaningful and relevant ways.
• Be able to develop strategies and designs for the ongoing spatial management of an urban place.
• Be able to reflect upon the implications of their plans and design in terms of social, economic,ecological and cultural concerns.
• Use appropriate means to deliver and convey information about their plans and designs using representation, written, oral and other relevant means.

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

The focus of this studio will be on the production of an urban design vision at the scale of a sustainable urban district or new settlement. Students will develop principles and practices for urban design at this scale: morphological and typological analysis, urban design frameworks, functional mix, spatial practices, pedestrian networks, density, place identity and iconography. This studio will have an emphasis on relating the fields of urban design and urban planning. It will include significant elements of urban analysis and policy development as a key component of the production of the urban design vision. This is the capstone subject for the Urban Design and Planning Major of the Bachelor of Environments and the subject will conclude with an exhibition.

At the completion of the subject students will be able to:

• demonstrate an ability to interrogate a brief;
• demonstrate an ability to generate a variety of design possibilities for a given situation;
• develop basic skills in various two, three and four-dimensional media;
• demonstrate an understanding of relationships between architecture, planning and urban design through the application of the above;
• develop the ability to make a case for proposals, and to convey it appropriately.

Preliminary urban analysis work: Due week 6 and worth 15%
Preliminary design work: Due week 8 and worth 15%
Final project, including 2000 word report: Due week 12 and worth 70% (50% for project, 20% for written component)

Nevolo, L, The History of the City, Scholar Press, London, 1980
Kostoff, S, The City Shaped: Urban Patterns and Meanings through History, Thames and Hudson, London, 1991.
Lynch, K, The Image of the City, Cambridge, Mass., 1960.
Mumford , L, The City in History, Penguin Books, 1961.
Webb, M, The City Square, Thames and Hudson, London, 1990.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.