What is Urban Design?

Urban design is the art of making wonderful places. Good urban design sets the stage for our daily lives by concerning itself with buildings, the spaces between buildings, land use, density, historic and natural features, materials, the public realm, and the quality of the existing and future built environment.

Urban design artfully integrates the necessary functional and technical aspects of the city with the desired physical form and appearance.

Urban Design is an expression of how we choose to live, and it shapes the quality of life in our urban setting.

All great cities display the qualities of this important, but only recently recognized discipline.

What do Urban Designers do?

Urban Designers are usually trained in a combination of some, or all, of the professions of architecture, landscape architecture, and city planning. Urban Designers use an inclusive, consultative approach to determine the aspirations that the city’s citizens have for their built environment. They then endeavour to fulfill those aspirations by coordinating professional disciplines as diverse as city planning, architecture, landscape architecture, civil engineering, urban forestry, public art, and many, many others. The resulting city is a system of inter-dependent and inter-related ideas all brought together by an Urban Design Plan.

Urban Design in HRM

A primary mandate of HRM Capital District staff is ensuring the highest possible quality of Urban Design in downtown Halifax and Dartmouth. The challenge for all those involved in the creation and shaping of this city's downtown and neighbourhoods is to recognize the opportunities offered by HRM’s spectacular natural setting, and unique historic and topographical characteristics, while responding effectively to site specific demands. The various Urban Design initiatives undertaken by Capital District staff assist in rising to this important challenge. By making good urban design choices now, the urban centre will be livable, vibrant and engaging for generations to come.