The initial case study data collection consisted of a questioning route to distill the processes of economic enquiry in each city, exploring what prompted the uptake of the biophilic element. This was coupled with an initial round of semi-structured interviews to provide an enhanced comprehension to the application of the biophilic element(s) in their respective city. This section provides a brief summary of each city (for the full case study write up, see Appendix A), describing and highlighting the biophilic element in each.
Berlin
Chicago
Figure 4-1: Visual representation of five cities
Portland City, Oregon, population 609,456 in 2013392, has had a long history of stormwater management issues. This case study explored the economic journey to determine the feasibility and uptake of green streets. Portland has one of the most comprehensive urban greening programs in the United States.393 394 The five-year Grey to Green (G2G) goal is to construct 920 green street facilities, emphasising partnerships with other city bureaus and agencies such as the Portland Water Bureau, the Portland Bureau of Transportation, and the Portland Development Commission.395 As of the fall of 2009, there were approximately 700 green street facilities in Portland that cumulatively manage an estimated 48 million gallons of stormwater runoff a year. Of the 920 planned facilities, an estimated 573 (62 percent) will be located in the combined sewer area.396 Demonstration projects and reports produced provided the City with enough evidence to push forward the Green Street agenda.397 Portland has now become a leader in green infrastructure, actively promoting and funding various projects. One reason the city has remained at the leading edge of the green infrastructure movement is its focus on monitoring the effectiveness of decentralized stormwater management technologies. Keeping this in mind, this case study focused on understanding the business case presented to trigger the wide-scale adoption of green streets prior to the 2007 Green Streets Policy.
Chicago City, Illinois, population 2.7 million people in 2013398, is renowned for the heavily awarded Millennium Park. This case study explored what prompted the uptake of this project and the monetary revenue this urban park has generated for Chicago. By creating a space that would boost real estate value and development in the area, this project was very triumphant in establishing benefits that could then be passed on to the community. This 0.99
Singapore
Portland Toronto
Chicago Berlin
ha park located between Chicago’s lakefront and in the midst of Chicago’s central business district, “the loop”399 now boasts an array of renowned works of architecture, sculpture, fountains and a skating rink, as well as performance facilities, restaurants and botanic garden spaces. Thus, Millennium Park is a great example of the triple bottom line analysis as it is socially beneficial, environmentally friendly and economically profitable.400 Not only does investigating this organic, risk-taking approach serve as a key, but also comprehending the interesting financial structure and tools utilised, and the rationale behind the City continuously supporting the Park’s ongoing maintenance costs (US$12.85 million in 2009)401 and providing the public with free programs (US$1.9 million in 2008)402 will further determine what is truly more significant - the direct economic benefits or the indirect social benefits. Also, understanding the role of culture and sensory returns play in biophilia could help inform an element of the business case for future biophilic projects.
Toronto, Ontario, population 2.8 million people in 2013403, is renowned for its Green Roof ByLaw. This case study explores the economic journey which eventuated to the uptake of the Green Roof Bylaw. Toronto is the first City in North America to have a bylaw to require and govern the construction of green roofs on new development.404 It was adopted by Toronto City Council in May 2009, under the authority of Section 108 of the City of Toronto Act.405 The Bylaw applies to new building permit applications for residential, commercial and institutional development made after January 31, 2010 and will apply to new industrial development as of April 30, 2012.406 This case study investigated the business case to encourage the adoption of green roofs throughout Toronto. Research undertaken on behalf of the City of Toronto gave evidence that green roofs could assist in restoring environmental quality in the city, while providing economic value to the city and increase liveability for residents.
Berlin, Germany, population 3.5 million people in 2013407, is renowned for its history of urban vegetation. This case study explores the economic journey which eventuated to the uptake of the Biotope Area Factor. Being the largest city in Germany, Berlin experiences the knock-on environmental effects of high density constructions in cities are multiplied. These relate to soil sealing, inadequate replenishment of the groundwater due to the rapid runoff of rainfall into the sewage system, lack of humidity and excess heat, and a loss of wildlife habitats. In order to reverse this trend Berlin has developed an innovative method to compensate these environmental deficits.408 Despite being a fairly dense city, Berlin has always been a vegetative city. Water is also quite prominent in the city of Berlin, with the Spree River running through the city’s centre, as well as lakes and canals that have been well preserved.409 This case study uncovered what makes Berlin very biophilic.
Singapore, population 5.4 million people in 2013410, is renowned for its history of urban vegetation. This case study explores the economic journey which eventuated to the uptake of the Biotope Area Factor. Singapore has been regarded as a biophilic city with its ambitious city-wide urban greening initiatives.411 This case study explores what prompted, maintains and enhances this vision. In Singapore, accessibility is a prime consideration and its planners are putting forth an even greener Singapore with a greater variety of parks and open spaces and target of 0.75 ha of parkland per 1000 population (currently 0.6 ha) in their vision to create a ‘dynamic, distinctive and delightful’ world class city in the 21st century.412 The main strategies of urban greening include:413 1) having more parks and gardens including ‘gardens in the sky’; 2) safeguarding the natural heritage; 3) and making the parks and gardens more accessible. The approach is to provide ‘seamless greenery’ through a network of park connectors and opportunities for greenery to occur beyond ground level; essentially nature trails with resting places, jogging and cycling tracks, the park connectors.