A follow-up report on the 18th Smart City Round Table Brunch.
The question of how to achieve urban quality of life was addressed on October 24 at the premises of the Initiative Architektur by around 30 participants from the building department, urban and transport planning, politics, the city of Salzburg’s citizens through targeted innovations. This time, the aim was to discuss specific strategies for transforming public (street) spaces. Thomas Prinz and Günter Gruber from Research Studio iSPACE were present and contributed their experiences from the trans|formator:in research project to the discussions.
Placemaking and adaptive urbanism
Florian Lorenz (co-founder of LAUT – Landscape Architecture and Urban Transformation OG) was invited to give a keynote speech on placemaking and adaptive urbanism. Placemaking in this context refers to the design of public spaces with the aim of creating places that are meaningful, functional and appealing for the community – and with the involvement of the residents. At the same time, adaptive urbanism aims to design cities in such a way that they can respond better to social changes. Lorenz emphasized the importance of data innovations and embedded them in important strategies.
Best practice examples as role models
During the subsequent joint exchange, the status quo was discussed and ideas were collected on what could be improved in Salzburg. Numerous examples of best practice were used, not only from Vienna, but also from various cities in Europe. Examples such as „add on. 20 Höhenmeter” and „Gürtelfrische” in Vienna, as well as “Piazza Aperte” and the “Wanderbaumallee” from other regions in Europe, illustrated how different approaches can be successfully implemented. The combination of measure design with art seemed particularly exciting, with the principle of “just do it” being emphasized. The idea behind this is that people generally get used to change and accept it positively if it is well designed.
Opportunities for Salzburg
The enthusiasm of local residents was emphasized as a decisive factor for the success of projects. The possibility of participation, especially in combination with action alliances such as “Mobilitätswende” and “Platz für Salzburg”, was seen as an effective way of involving citizens in the design of their city. Franz-Josef-Straße in the Andräviertel district was seen as having great potential. But local projects are also trying to improve the quality of life in Salzburg. One particular focus of the discussion was on cycling and making important traffic routes more attractive.
Transformation in Salzburg
One example of this is the project trans|formator:in. It aims to promote sustainable mobility and ensure quality of life by developing innovative solutions for transforming public spaces. The focus is on environmentally friendly mobility, modal shift and digital planning to support the mobility transition in cities such as Vienna, Graz and Salzburg. In close cooperation with urban planning and local stakeholders, the iSPACE research studio is leading the pilot activities in Salzburg’s commercial district of Schallmoos. They focus on the challenges of the mobility transition in urban mixed-use areas and aim to create an environmentally friendly and efficient mobility space, taking into account urban planning, design and social aspects.
Hopes for the future
One idea from the round table was the establishment of a mobility agency for Salzburg. This should act as a mediator between the administration and citizens in order to improve communication and develop joint solutions.
Overall, the Smart City Round Table Brunch once again served as an important platform for discussing relevant topics in the context of urban quality of life and planning concrete steps for the future. We, as Research Studio iSPACE, are pleased to have been part of a very inspiring discussion round and would like to thank the organizers.