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Governance of resilient urban form – cases from London and New York

Davis, Juliet ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2056-5792 and Uffer, Sabina 2013. Governance of resilient urban form – cases from London and New York. Presented at: Resilient Planning: Concepts, Substance, Actions: Association of American Geographers Conference, Los Angeles, CA, USA, 8-13 April 2013.

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Abstract

This paper focuses on resilience in terms of urban form and its governance. Resilience is defined as a capacity to deal not only with sudden disturbances, but also more gradual changes. In order to be able to survive and grow, cities need to adapt to the environmental, social, and economic changes to which they are continually exposed. This paper argues that adaptability is not merely a property of urban form but a process requiring good governance. It focuses particularly on the role of land owners in this process. The paper investigates two cases in London and New York, whose uses and economic viabilities of the urban fabric have evolved over time. Both are defined by the boundaries of historic land ownership and were first developed in the 18th century. Mayfair in London, originally an elite residential neighbourhood has undergone a series of functional transformations. Trinity in New York, developed originally for industry, underwent a period of major decline, which has only recently begun to reverse. The role of the landowners in these cases has however evolved quite differently. Whilst in Mayfair, Grosvenor has continued to manage its landholding, Trinity gradually sold off parcels of its land, thereby reducing its strategic influence on the future. The paper argues that whilst both areas have managed to adapt, Mayfair is the more resilient of the two. This owes in large part to the stewarding role played by the longterm landowner. In largely market-driven environments, long-term, large-scale landownership is able to play a key role in maintaining the adaptability of urban form.

Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)
Date Type: Completion
Status: Unpublished
Schools: Architecture
Subjects: N Fine Arts > NA Architecture
Related URLs:
Last Modified: 24 Oct 2022 11:01
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/46684

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