Visioning and Visualization (Book)

People, Pixels, and Plans

Author(s): Kwartler, Michael, and Gianni Longo
Publication Date: April 2008

$35.00; 104 pages; Inventory ID 180-4; English; Paperback; ISBN 978-1-55844-180-4

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Chapter 1: The Context	PDF	3.08 MB

Abstract

Two remarkable phenomena have affected the practice of planning over the past two decades: the rise of public involvement as an integral component of urban decision making, and the technological innovations that enable the visualization and simulation of physical reality. Together these phenomena anticipate the future, turning the planning process into a journey of discovery for professionals and laypeople alike.

Building on a series of workshops sponsored by the Lincoln Institute over the past five years, authors Michael Kwartler and Gianni Longo present principles, techniques, and cases based on their professional experiences in developing sophisticated public involvement processes that are used to apply information technology to planning and design. They suggest ways that digital visualization tools can be integrated in a public process to present participants with clear choices and help them make informed planning decisions. Evidence from communities throughout the country shows that public involvement supported by visualization leads to better plans and more livable places and communities.

This book will assist urban professionals, public sector leaders, and the public in navigating the complex and evolving public planning process. Richly illustrated with more than 100 color figures, photographs, and computer simulations, the material is organized in six chapters:

Chapter 1, The Context, presents an historic overview of the public involvement and digital visualization fields. It traces the trajectory of public involvement in planning from confrontational and adversarial tactics to the present emphasis on cooperation and inclusion. It expands on the evolution of representation techniques from perspective drawings to computer-aided visual simulations.

Chapter 2, Principles, Benefits, and Lessons Learned, outlines principles to guide the integration of public process and visualization tools in a democratic decision-making process. It also explores lessons learned in the application of digital visualization tools to planning activities.

Chapter 3, Public Involvement Techniques in Planning, illustrates a range of public involvement techniques that invite the use of visualization tools.

Chapter 4, Visual Simulation Tools, introduces specific tools and their uses in planning, such as representing existing conditions, visualizing alternatives, and monitoring impacts.

Chapter 5, Implementation, describes formal and informal ways the implementation of a plan can benefit from feedback opportunities created by visualization tools.

Chapter 6, Case Studies, presents four case studies spanning from the regional to the neighborhood scale where public involvement and visualization tools were used to help the public make informed decisions.
• Southwest Santa Fe City/County Master Planning Initiative for the City and County of Santa Fe, New Mexico
• Near Northside Economic Revitalization Planning Process for the City of Houston, Texas
• Kona Community Development Plan for the County of Hawaii, Hawaii
• Vision 2030: Shaping our Region’s Future Together, a five-county vision program developed for the Baltimore (Maryland) Regional Transportation Board

Visioning and Visualization is intended to be particularly helpful for those planning to initiate a public visioning process supported by visualization tools. Because the authors explain both the “why” of visioning along with the “how” of visualization, the reader is well-equipped to design the vision process and select appropriate tools and professional consultants to help carry it out. Visualization is seen in this work as a kind of analysis or inquiry—an activity that assists those engaged in the visioning process in exploring planning scenarios and design options under conditions of complexity and uncertainty.

About the Authors

Michael Kwartler, an architect, planner, urban designer, and educator, is the founding director of the Environmental Simulation Center (ESC) in New York City, a nonprofit research laboratory created to develop innovative applications of information technology for community planning, design, and decision making.

Gianni Longo is an architect and founding principal of ACP–Visioning & Planning in New York City. For the past two decades, he has pioneered the development of programs designed to involve citizens in the planning and decision-making process.