Urbanism Portfolio by Jiya Benni

AN URBANISM

PORTFOLIO

BY JIYA BENNI

CONTACT: Jiya Benni, 2612 - 170 Fort York Blvd, Toronto, ON M5V 0E6 jiya.benni@gmail.com +1 -(416)-871 -3839 Cover page: Sketch collage by author 2

CONTENTS 1. Co-designing Active Neighbourhoods

04

2. Workshop Tool: Complete Streets Game

05

3. Floating City Apps

06

4. Building with Nature

10

5. Communication Graphics

22

6. FoodShare

25

7. DRIP Pop-up

26

3

1. CO-DESIGNING ACTIVE NEIGHBOURHOODS Year: 2018 - 2020 Organisation: The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT) Type of project: Participatory planning Funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada, this was a collaborative project between The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT) in Toronto, Montreal Ecology Urban Centre in Montreal and Sustainable Calgary in Calgary. I worked closely with the different partners for multiple things, couple of which are listed below: •

•

4

NeighbourPLAN - This was a neighbourhood design project that put residents at the centre. As part of this, design workshops were held with community members and professional experts from fields such as architecture and urban design. I co-facilitated two of these workshops.

Co-design toolkit - This toolkit consists of various tools such as Asset Mapping, Emotional Mapping, Empathy Walk, Infrastructure Audit etc which can be used in workshops by communities to understand the state of active transportation in their neighbourhoods. Each tool includes a facilitation guide and some sample materials.

An intersection that was co-designed at a NeighbourPLAN workshop in Peterborough.

Facilitating a NeighbourPLAN workshop in Peterborough.

Facilitation Guides that have been developed for the co-design toolkit.

2. WORKSHOP TOOL: COMPLETE STREETS GAME Year: 2018 - 2020 Organisation: The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT) Type of project: Participatory planning The Complete Streets Game is a workshop tool that allows participants to design a street together while understanding what the opportunities and trade-offs of the process are. The game consists of magnetic pieces that represent different components of a street like sidewalks, bike lanes, vehicle lanes, transit lanes etc.

The game also consists of a Right-Of-Way ruler on which the street can be built.

The tactile nature of the game allows for a collaborative design experience and allows for design to be accessible to those who are not adept at drawing or design.

The Complete Streets Game

For this game, I reviewed different design guidelines such as NACTO design guides, TAC design guide and OTM Book 18 to develop the components of the game.

I also helped develop the content for the Instructions Guide and also designed it.

Post production, I facilitated couple of workshops with the Game.

Facilitating a design workshop with the Game.

Instruction guide for the Game.

5

3. FLOATING CITY APPS Year: 2014 - 2015 Firm: Waterstudio.NL, The Netherlands Type of project: Slum upgrading, Social entrepreneurship Floating City Apps are shipping containers on floating platforms that are retrofitted with basic facilities like sanitation, health and education to upgrade wetslums in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Being small and floating, they can easily be placed on water. If it is no longer required, it can be “plugged” out and moved elsewhere making them a flexible solution for uncertain entities like slums.

Developing countries with high densities always exhibit a lack of space when it comes to slum upgrading. This problem is all the more profound when it comes to wetslums i.e waterfront slums.

How Floating City Apps can be part of wetslums.

Through our research, we confirmed that the nature of slums is dependent on its location. A slum close to water will exhibit characteristics that are very different from a slum that is not. The study surmised that while upgrading a slum, it is important to take into consideration it’s location. This study was published as in the journal ‘Habitat International’.

Render of Communication App in Korail slum in Dhaka, Bangladesh

6

Korail slum in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2001

Korail slum in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2014

7

In the following stages, we studied the relation between flooding and deprivation of basic facilities in these wetslums through GISmapping.

Floating City Apps can be plugged in and plugged out as per demand. As they are floating structures, the removal process is relatively low-impact.

Communication App constructed and used by school-kids in the Netherlands.

8

Through the study, we were able to find out that the flood-prone part of the slums had fewer basic facilities. By correlating these features, it became possible to understand which part of the slum required most attention thereby guiding practitioners to a more precise and targeted slum upgrading process.

The study revealed how slums exhibited spatial diversity in their needs and emphasised how slum upgrading can be ineffective if practitioners assumed slums to be homogeneous.

- low incidence of flood - low - medium incidence of flood - medium incidence of flood - medium - high incidence of flood - high incidence of flood - on water Flood map of Korail

- cluster of highly deprived areas - cluster of slightly deprived areas - highly deprived areas surrounded by slightly deprived areas - slightly deprived areas surrounded by highly deprived areas - flood prone areas Correlating incidence of flood and deprivation of basic facilities

9

4. BUILDING WITH NATURE Year: 2012-2013 University: Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands Type of project: Master Thesis This project focusses on the coastal city of Kochi in India where urban development happens without form and structure, and often by reclaiming land, filling up waterbodies and eroding ecological structures which are part of Kochi’s natural flood management system.

Being a city that lies below sea level and receives an annual rainfall of over 300 cm, it is crucial that Kochi has a strong system to manage flood.

The project proposes a blue-green structure which can act as floodplains and help in efficient drainage of water.

Public spaces will be incorporated into this structure to make them part of urban life. Brownfield sites along this structure will be rejuvenated and made part of the structure as well.

Proposed blue-green structure to restore the city’s ecological and flood management system

While outside the structure, urban growth is allowed to happen organically, the structure itself will be out of bounds for any development.

wetlands and natural vegetation

canals

existing public spaces

The components of the proposed blue-green structure

10

abandoned railway lines

Now: Mangrove forests that have been cut down

Proposed: Replant mangrove forests with a public promenade next to it

“Instead of a city organized through its built form, Melun-Senart will be formless, defined by this system of emptiness that guarantees beauty, serenity, accessibility, identity regardless - or even in spite of - its future architecture.�

- Surrender S, M, L, XL Concept: Project proposes a co-existence of built environment and nature

11

Present

19th century

18th century

10th- 18th cent

2nd - 10th cent.

Until 2nd cent

UNDERSTANDING THE LAGOON AND THE CITY

21st cent

20th cent

19th cent

16th - 19th cent

Morphological evolution of the lagoon throughout the centuries (plotted from different sources)

Evolution of the city throughout the years (mapped from historical records)

In its growth, the city ate the green around it.

As can be seen from the morphological evolution, the lagoon has changed its form in the last many centuries. Kochi’s harbour was carved out in a massive flood in 1341 AD. This implies that the form may change in the coming centuries too. But unaware of the fragility and benefits of the ecological structure around it, Kochi grows, slowly devouring them.

The city’s vegetation and

12wetlands are now restricted to the fringes of the city.

In the past, there was a strong relationship between nature and the built environment. Settlement patterns of older parts of the city show this but in the newer parts, this relationship is weak.

Settlement pattern of Fort Kochi which was established in the 16th century

Settlement pattern of modern Kochi which was established in the 20th century

If the city continues to grow as it is doing now, the relationship between the natural and built environment will further weaken, and destroy the city’s natural flood management system.

Existing profile of the wetlands in the North-West of the city

If current trend continues, development will take over nature in these areas

What the city requires is a system where nature is given priority during urban development

13

UNDERSTANDING THE FLOOD PROBLEM rivers flowing in coastal flooding river flooding (June, July, Aug, Oct, Nov) soil erosion

The Kochi estuary’s flooding problem is multi-faceted. In the rainy season (June - August, October - November), the city is subjected to flash floods while the surrounding area gets flooded due to overflowing rivers.

Though not always predictable, the coastal parts also get flooded every year. Waves easily overtop the seawalls employed here for flood prevention.

The seawalls don’t prevent erosion nor encourage accretion.

Therefore, the coastline is considered to be highly eroding as well.

Map of canal system overlapped with flood map, created based on data

Flood and sedimentation

14map of the Kochi estuary

FLOODING PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS Other than flash floods in the city, the following problems were identified in the estuary.

Problem

Littoral drift gets blocked by groynes to facilitate navigation.

Solution

Seawalls don’t prevent beach erosion and waves easily overtop them.

After any flooding event, houses and fields along the coast remain waterlogged.

During dry season, saltwater intrusion hinders cultivation.

Mangroves and coastal vegetation can act as a buffer for the floods as well as encourage soil accretion.

Floodplains and proper drainage

When the salinity of the water is high, these fields can be used for prawn farming.

Map of canal system overlapped with depth to water table, created based on data

According to the flood map, the main parts of the city is affected mostly by flash floods. Overflowing rivers or coastal floods don’t affect the main parts of the city.

An analysis of rainfall data, the city’s water table, and the overall canal network showed that the canal network was sufficient to manage the flood the city faces. It is enough if the canals are regularly cleaned and maintained.

The project proposes for the canal to be made part of the blue-green structure. This way, the canals will brought into focus.

15

STUDYING THE WETLANDS Along with flooding, the city’s wetlands and their benefits were also studied. The main types of vegetation include mangrove forests, paddy fields and coconut trees. The main benefits identified are: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Flood Management and Shoreline Stabilisation Biodiversity and Nutrition Retention Groundwater Retention Cultural Value and Wetland Products Tourism and Recreation

Wetlands that have cultural and economic value including tourism

16

Wetlands that help in flood management and shoreline stabilization

Wetlands that are threatened by pollution and urban development

Wetlands that help in biodiversity and nutrition retention

Wetlands that help in groundwater retention

Plants and animals found in the wetlands, chart based on data collected from various sources.

17

A FOUR-PHASE STRATEGY In order to protect the wetlands and the canal system, and ensure their role in flood management, the project proposed a four-phase strategy.

18

Phase 1 - includes regenerating old canals, planting mangroves and creating floodplains.

Coastal erosion and flooding will be managed by replenishing the beaches and reestablishing coastal floodplains using a sand engine and planting mangroves. One wetland that is under the threat of development will be protected as a wetland with public spaces around it.

Phase 2 - a green structure along the blue is created to be the structural backbone of the city. More vegetation is planted along abandoned railway lines and canals to ensure an ecological flow of birds and other animals through the city.

Phase 3 - to make the blue-green structure a part of the urban life, the next step is to create a continuous structure of public spaces along the blue-green structure.

Roads are laid out next to them to encourage urban development along them.

Phase 4 - the public space network established in Phase 3 is expanded all over the city in this phase.

Walking promenade on stilts framing the wetland and the potential buildings nearby.

Proposal for wetland in the West of the city to ensure the wetland is protected from development.

19

Section BB

Plan

Before urban development

Wetlands that also act as public spaces

Section BB

Plan

After urban development

The proposal for this wetland is a scaled down version of the proposal at the city scale. Similar to the strategy at the city scale, the strategy at the local scale also attempts to set off centres of growth in the future.

The design will 1. Investigate how wetlands act as flood management systems and 2. Organise urban development around these wetlands rather than on it.

At this scale, the fragmented wetlands are unified into a single structure to create a better flood management structure.

Section CC

Plan

Wetlands that are points of groundwater recharge

Section DD

Plan

Wetlands that border the coast

20

This is achieved by building a bridge over the wetlands. The green structure is organised based on the different roles it has to play – flood management, groundwater recharge point, ecological and recreational functions.

Some of the wetlands will be converted to unique public spaces by programming them. This way, these wetlands can become a seam rather than an edge, and act as a connector in the area.

Sketch of the wetlands with the proposed wetland structure and urban growth around it

The edges of the wetlands are defined by trees and a pedestrian loop. Based on landmarks and surrounding wetland types, different routes that can be made part of this pedestrian loop have been identified. According to the types of wetlands and the edges, the spatial experience identified with each part of the route will be different.

In this way, the wetland is anticipated to play a role in flood management as well be part of the urban life.

21

5. COMMUNICATION GRAPHICS Year: 2018 - 2019 Organisation: The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT) Type of project: Graphic Design AT TCAT, I also designed reports such as Increasing Cycling in Canada and Building Bike Culture Beyond Downtown including all the graphics that were in them.

Some of them are displayed in the next few pages.

Places in Canada with the highest growth in cycling rate

Coverpage: Increasing Cycling in Canada Factors affecting a person’s decision to bike & respective actions that can support cycling growth

22

Actions that can support cycling growth

Coverpage: Building Bike Culture Beyond Downtown

Who cycles in Toronto?

Why cycle?

A ‘big tent’ approach to cycling programming

Factors affecting neighbourhood potential for cycling

23

This infographic was made for the Policy Toolkit on participatoryplanning.ca.

Convenient and safe public transit and active transportation facilities increase physical activity, and decrease the amount of cars on the road.

Complete Streets are designed to be safe for all modes of transportation, ages and abilities. They support people to increase physical activity and safely choose active transportation.

24

How do healthy cities look like?

Providing attractive and safe streets can mitigate stressful commutes

Street connectivity encourages active transportation and increases physical activity.

Mixed land use creates walkable communities Complete communities have access to jobs, education, healthy food choices, and essential services within a neighbourhood

Exterior lighting can increase perception of safety

Attractive and accessible public spaces and parks provide opportunities for social interaction and outdoor physical activity.

Increased green spaces and vegetation help with air pollution and provide shade for pedestrians.

Access to green spaces and natural environments supports better mental well-being.

6. FOODSHARE Year: 2017 Organisation: Sprout Type of project: Precedent study Sprout is a charity organisation that does pro-bono landscape architecture for non-profits and community groups.

These pages are from a precedent study I did, as a volunteer, for Foodshare’s outdoor spaces at their Toronto headquarters.

i. Seating spaces integrated with planters Seating in the lunch spot can go beyond regular benches and picnic tables. Ideas that integrate benches and planters can be used to tie this space together with the goal of demonstrating urban agriculture in small fragmented spaces. ii. Screens Screens are an important element to maintain an intimate sense of enclosure and to reduce impact from traffic noise on discussions. The lack of room on the site means that installing proper footings for screens would split up the space where the property line runs down the middle of the street boulevard. An alternative that may be acceptable to the city is to use weighted screens that are not fixed by foundations and can be moved should the city require access to the boulevard. Any plans that make use of the city owned boulevard should be clearly discussed with the city in advance to ensure coordination.

If not discussed there is a high risk the city would remove unapproved elements.

Figure 19: Screen out the distractions

Figure 35, 36: Variations on planter with bench

Figure 20: Re-puroosed windows and planter box screen

18

18

27

Figure 37: Planted table with benches ii. Tables Instead of conventional picnic tables, planted tables which could take the form of a picnic table, coffee table or even a counter table are recommended for the lunch spot.

Figure 32:: Screen and planters from wooden pallets

Figure 33: Trellis with planter

iii. Counters & Service Space Keeping in mind, Foodshare’s daily lunch, creating small scale operational facilities to encourage outdoor use would be an encouraging option for staff and visitors and highlight the social dimension of a more sustainable way of living.

Figure 38: Planted counter 28

Pages from the precedent study done for FoodShare’s headquarters in Toronto.

25

25

7. DRIP POP-UP Year: 2016 Event: Ryerson Green Infrastructure Hackathon Type of project: Competition winner, team project The Ryerson Green Infrastructure Hackathon (2016) was a multiday workshop for students and new graduates to come up with a practical solution to implement green infrastructure.

Our proposal, the DRIP Pop-Ups, was a series of art installations that would educate communities while simultaneously activate public spaces.

It will help cities like Toronto reach the goal of a fully informed and engaged citizenry.

Conceptual render of the DRIP Pod that can be installed in a park.

concrete funnel

wireframe with soil movement of water

more drought-resistant vegetaion

solar panel path of water going through filtration path of pumped water pipe supplying polluted water water being treated pump water quality sensor

DRIP Pod filters stormwater using vegetation.

26

Impervious DRIP Chime

less drought-resistant vegetation

The aim was to educate the communities on stormwater issues that impact their neighbourhood and Toronto, educate the public about the ecological benefits of stormwater management through green infrastructure and activate public spaces.

They are designed to be scalable, adaptable and interactive. Three versions are proposed here.

Permeable DRIP Chime

lights capture of rainfall water visual markers of water level

DRIP Metre illustrates normal and major storm event flood levels using rain water.

DRIP Chime demonstrates the impact of permeable and impermeable surfaces on stormwater runoff.