La Cornisa de Tetuán : Paseo de la Dirección : An integral transformation towards a more sustainable urban model for the Tetuán District

Abstract

This document summarizes the 2017-2018 Parallel Workshop Initiative between the Master in Urban and Territorial Planning at the School of Architecture at Madrid Polytechnic University and Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan. The initiative is framed by two institutional agreements defining a shared agenda between the Polytechnic University of Madrid, the Madrid City Council and the University of Michigan. Working across neighborhood and district scales, the workshop explores strategies of urban regeneration and integration to achive sustainable, innovative and feasible proposals in the case study “Paseo de la Dirección,” Madrid. The agreement signed with the Madrid City Council (Dirección General de Estrategia de Regeneración Urbana) includes these objectives: - Evaluation of urban planning solutions with sustainability criteria - Improvement of the energy efficiency and solar urbanism of the neighborhood. - Management measures and active participation strategies. - Sustainable mobility and walkable city. - Urban design of public space approaches with sustainability criteria. On the other hand, the agreement signed with Taubman College University of Michigan includes these academic objectives: - Show critical comprehension of the principles and significant theories concerning sustainable cities, urban and rural regeneration within historical and geographical contexts. - Demonstrate conceptual understanding of the drivers and the processes through which cities are influenced and strategies for the regeneration. - Analyze and develop critiques of policies when applied to regeneration proposals including the critical appreciation of stakeholders’ perspectives. - Evaluate regulatory strategies integrating social, economic and environmental issues. - Evaluate critically real-life solutions to specific regeneration schemes. - Propose alternate initiatives to regeneration policy and strategy. Over the course of the semester, the Parallel Workshop introduces theoretical content and an applied, project-based exercise addressing the agenda of urban sustainability. Working in collaboration throughout the semester, participating students bring a wide range of disciplinary and professional backgrounds to inform their proposals. The semester included a one-week field trip in Madrid, where students engaged in site documentation, lecture by experts, working time and presentations. Over the course of the semester, the course has engaged technology to share ongoing progress and generate the final proposals.