10 Design Principles for Placemaking

I was recently asked; what design principles should be used to make places? Now, I do not believe that a design led approach to the creation of places is the right approach, as there are many factors beyond design that help fulfil the quality of a place.

For instance; the attachment created by meeting fundamental needs, the art of economic activity carefully shaped to support transactions of experience, and the ability to foster spontaneous connections that drive the burst of inspirational thinking. In essence, this is what placemaking is, if you want to simplify it. Design principles are some of the tools that we should employ to make this happen, so that is how I see its role, not as a first option but a supporting one.

So, which design principles are best and who do you draw inspiration from?

As an Urban Designer do I use the tried and trusted industry standards such can be found in Lynch, Jacobs, Whyte, Calthorpe, Hayden, Landry, etc? You could, for each is a master in their own domain, be it; city image, urban planning, cultural studies, creative communities, but few are specific in putting the whole place product together.

For design centric principles I automatically look at product designers for my inspiration to set the core principle values, and then using my professional theoretical knowledge for its application to the built environment.

Within the industrial design world there is few better than Dieter Rams. He established the importance of a well-executed strategy in creating aesthetic pleasing, usable and legible products that were desired and have intrinsic attachment value. His influence flowed to Jony Ives of Apple fame who undoubtably continued this appreciation and acceptance of key design principles that have become somewhat universal for product design today and for their success.

I have unashamedly followed suit, however, as stated earlier, have applied Rams’s good design principles for placemaking and changed its language to what our built environment profession understands. These principles are not solutions but directions as to what you should achieve, how you resolve it depends upon what professional approach you execute.

Therefore the 10 design principles I use for guiding placemaking are; 

1.     Places should be innovative - aiming to be unique and not a copy

2.     Places should be useful - aiming to fulfil certain purposes that are needed

3.     Places should be aesthetic - aiming to create fascination and attachment with its beauty

4.     Places should be understandable - aiming to clearly express its function

5.     Places should be unobtrusive - aiming to find balance between embellishment and restraint

6.     Places should be honest - aiming to provide what it promises

7.     Places should be long lasting - aiming to avoid fashionable trends

8.     Places are thorough to the last detail - aiming to ensure nothing is left for chance

9.     Places respect the environment - aiming to conserve physical and visual pollution

10.  Places are not over designed - aiming to concentrate on the essential aspects  

Again, using these 10 principles in the belief you would create a great place is not how it works. Over the years I have developed an approach that you need to invest in creating place specific values at the beginning of this process. These values must be derived from all stakeholders including the users of these places, not superimposed. These 10 design principles are what you would use beyond the generated values, guiding when you develop specific design and development guidelines that respond to place values, they are your moral compass as a built environment professional.

In the following articles I will explore each of these principles in more detail, helping us all to create better places, for everyone.