Mitigating Urban Heat Island Effect Through Climate-Sensitive Urban Design UCL Major Research Project

Exposure to excessive heat is responsible for thousands of deaths and emergency room visits annually in the United States. Due to climate change, Texas cities have been warming faster than the rest of the world. Within 25 years, the number of 100 F days is expected to double.

Adapting cities to this new climate reality is critical to ensure the vitality of public spaces and the health of urban dwellers. This major research project (MRP) evaluates the most effective means to reduce UHI at a neighborhood scale in a humid subtropical context. The MRP presents two massing frameworks and nine toolkit items that can be used by architects and urban designers to lower the air temperature and improve human thermal comfort.

Toolkit Mechanisms

Which design mechanisms are proven to reduce UHI?

The literature review determined that three mechanisms reduce ambient air temperatures and UHI - urban form, materials, and trees & vegetation. Some of the tools are made up of overlapping mechanisms, as shown here.

Street orientation (wind)

Street length (wind)

Street orientation (solar) Downhill cooling

Deep urban canyon

Refined concept

MASSING FRAMEWORK - MEDINA SHADE CANYON

Applying the concept

Urban Form

Diagonal street grid for mutual solar shading Narrow street. H/W 2.2

Civic street. H/W 1.0

Green roof at all buildings

Sun plazas with deciduous trees. Allows light in winter. Provides shade in summer

Long street length (civic) facilitates wind velocity

Streets aligned within 30 degrees of summer wind direction (south)

trees & vegetation

Standard pavement at narrow canyon streets (less solar radiation)

Cool pavements at civic streets

Materials

Cool pavements at sun plazas (more solar radiation)

Note: cool roof not used. Interchangeable with green roof

MASSING FRAMEWORK - SHADOW UMBRELLA

Applying the concept

Refined concept

Urban Form

Cool pavement (roof terraces)

Tree canopy. Most existing trees preserved

East-west oriented paths are narrow to reduce solar exposure

Additional trees at western edge for solar protection

Urban canyon. H/W 0.8 min

North-south oriented streets are cooler. No East-West streets

Green roof

Cool pavement (roads)

Cool pavement (walks)

Streets aligned with summer wind direction (south)

Downhill cooling/ Park cooling islands preserved and enhanced

New trees to fill canopy gaps

trees & vegetation

Green roof at tall & medium buildings

Cool roof at single family home

Materials

Thermal Performance Analysis Utci

Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) medina

Special thanks to…

Dissertation support by: Colin Hayes, Visiting Professor

UHI analysis by: https://rheologic.net/ office@rheologic.net

Morning Ln Community Collaboration

London, England |

This graduate school group project aimed to imagine the development and social benefit potential of a single story Tesco grocery store next to a major town center, retail high street, and transportation hub. Through exploration, ideation, and collaboration witha grassroots community group, our team created a financially viable community oriented mixed use development that included 280 housing units ( 50% social housing), affordable retail space for small business, public spaces, and an extension of the adjacent and successful pedestrianized high street.

Public Realm Opportunites

REIMAGINE THE BUS DEPOT

Plans call for the bus depot to be relocated out of the town center. Opportunity to provide additional housing at St John Square and additional small enterprise retail at Bohemia Place, making it an authentic Hackney Central destination.

BOHEMIA PLACE IMPROVEMENTS

Ugrade street circulation while retaining day time blue collar trades, and promote night time entertainment

RAIL ARCH RETAIL EXPANSION

Activate rail arches south of the railroad, allowing retail spaces to spill out onto a new pedestrian walkway

ENHANCE LEGIBILITY AND CIRCULATION

Open up two railway arches to allow for better town center access retail access, and commuter access to nearby rail station. The railway arches with smaller floor space are prioritized to reduce disruption to existing viable business

Morninglane Narrowwayextension

NARROW WAY EXTENSION

The Narrow Way is the retail heartland of Hackney Central, rich in cultural assets and architectural identity. We can build on that vibrancy, and limit the amount of big box chain stores to hedge against displacement

LEGEND

EXISTING PEDESTRIAN ROUTE

POTENTIAL PEDESTRIAN ROUTE

POTENTIAL PEDESTRIAN IMPROVEMENT

HIGH STREET (EXISTING & POTENTIAL)

INCLUSIVE REGENERATION URBAN FABRIC

Development Proposal

Overview

Development Proposal

A total of 280 units will be delivered of which 85% will be affordable housing (affordable rent and social rent) This development sets out to fulfill the needs of providing genuinely affordable housing for the community The development is designed to maximize tenure integration through tenure-blind allocation of affordable housing with market housing The development also has relatively lower density to create quality livable spaces with greenery for the community Development proposal overview

Holloway Prison London, England |

Masterplan

HMP Holloway Prison was operational from the early 1800s till 2016. Since then, developers, community groups, and Islington Council have suggested development options for this large urban infill site. This group project aims to create sustainably inclusive and engaging spaces while providing ~1000 residential units to help alleviate London’s housing crisis.

Dimensional Perspectives

Viewing from South

Land Uses

Overview of Land Uses

Public Parks and Different Sports Amenities

Integrated Housing Development

Land Use Ground Floors

Pop-up Stalls

Pedestrian and Cycle Lanes with Parking

Facilities

Encourage active transport with higher permeability

Provided in the centre of the site for recreational use of residents

Mixed tenure with provision of about 1,000 units ranging 1-5 bedroom flats

Located at the entrance to allow higher visibility and dynamics to local economy

Play Street

Situated between buildings to create space for leisure at specific time

Viewing from West

Communal Garden

Connecting the community with sustainable space

Retails

Up to 1,612 sq.m of ground floor area is provided for retailing services

Viewing from North

Institutional Land Uses

Rooftop Garden

Green roofs act as a sustainable drainage measure and help create pleasant living environment

Preservation of the Protected View

Day Care Centre

Over 289 sq.m of centre area with private space for play space

Social Enterprise’s Workspace

Up to 663 sq.m of office space is located at the entrance where is the active frontage to create interaction with people

Women’s Centre

Combing two floors (1326 sq.m) to provide adequate space for women’s activities to continue the history

Active frontage of mixed development next to the main road

GP Surgery office

Over 476 sq.m of office space is located visibly and accessibly closed to main road

Viewing from East

1 3 2 4 Women’s Centre

Social Enterprise’s Workspace Day Care Centre GP Clinic

Preserving the Women’s Centre in the inner side of the blocks with more private space to facilitate users’ activities.

The centre provides childcare service with play space for children in the location with increased privacy and safety.

Community clinic is located at the frontage of the boulevard and easily accessible for residents to provide medical services.

Office space is provided for the social enterprises with active frontage to increase its connection with community

This proposal focuses on creating active frontages along the intersection of the site boulevard and Parkhurst Road, which connects to Holloway Road, by locating the retail space, offices, women’s centre and daycare centre. These land uses are more accessible to the main road and the community. The women’s and daycare centres are located on the inner side of the perimeter blocks so that the more semiprivate and private spaces can be used for events with increased privacy.

When we design urban housing we are designing cities. Designs for housing should begin as urban designs, driven in the first instance by our vision of a beautiful city.

- Peter Barber (Barber, 2018, 49)

The site is designed in accordance with London Plan goals, including creating green open spaces, providing places to relax and play, and reducing the dominance of cars by supporting active travel (transit, walking, and cycling). The site’s legibility is enhanced with a unifying tree-shaded central green space for active and passive recreation, a play street, a skate park, and community garden allotments.

Active frontages are provided at Parkhurst Road, with mixed use retail towers, a pop up retail centre for SMBs, a women’s centre, and medical offices.

Residential buildings have been oriented and “stacked” to maximize solar exposure and provide dual aspect units for better daylight and ventilation.

The 998 housing units are offered in a wide variety of bedroom configurations, including, and to ensure social diversity, 30% of units are reserved for families (3BD+).