One of the most fascinating segments of the Town Branch Commons Competition was the event “Design Adds Value to the Commons: Five Landscape Architects.” The top five finalists in the competition each provided a public presentation discussing some truly beautiful urban, common spaces that people loved. You can see their videos below. If you’re like me, it was hard to view these incredible public, urban spaces presented by the landscape architects without feeling a sense of longing. I want to visit these spaces. Check out New York’s High Line, for example:
Don’t you want to experience that space?
If you’re interested, here’s a great Q&A via The Huffington Post with the woman who helped drive the High Line project.
Design in a city matters because it helps build an emotional connection. When you look at what truly attracts people to cars or even Apple products, so frequently it is the industrial design. Many people may claim that practicality drives their purchases, but businesses understand that emotion is a major driver of decision-making, as the Urbanophile explains.
What are your thoughts on the importance of design and the beautiful spaces presented by the finalist firms? Check out the videos below and share your thoughts in the comments!
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Michael Speaks, Dean, University of Kentucky College of Design from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Kate Orff, SCAPE/LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE, New York from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Mark Johnson, Civitas, Denver from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Julien de Smedt, JDS Architects & Diana Balmori, Balmori Architects from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Shane Coen, Coen+Partners, Minneapolis from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Petra Blaisse, Inside Outside from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
Design Adds Value to the Commons – Panel Discussion from UK/CoD on Vimeo.
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I love good design. I am a big supporter of the Town Branch project. That being said, I’m worried that these big projects to bring vitality back downtown overlook basic infrastructure and the scale of local economy. I think the biggest hindrance to a thriving Lexington downtown is the lack of small, affordable retail space that clusters together. Building a big project that is grand, beautiful, and expensive but that requires high rent that only corporate chains can afford does nothing for Lexington but give us a nicer place to send our local dollars out of state. I dont want Starbucks, I want Third St. I want Indie’s, not McDonalds. I want record stores and a local butcher. I want a year round farmer’s market with walls, coolers, and a sales staff. I want a bike shop. I want a store that can retail my furniture. I think we’re moving past a time that expensive playspaces can exisist without being integrated into a working, and I mean working in the sense that traditional small business operates there, city landscape.