Placemaking Unpacked
New York’s High Line, London’s Piccadilly Circus, and the graffiti-lined lanes in Melbourne. The common denominator of these urban spaces is their transformation from buildings into public realms offering inspiration, unique experiences and sense of community.
28 May 2019
New York’s High Line, London’s Piccadilly Circus, and the graffiti-lined lanes in Melbourne. The common denominator of these urban spaces is their transformation from buildings into public realms offering inspiration, unique experiences and sense of community. This transformation is known as placemaking.
Whist the communal element emanated by a building’s surroundings may not immediately come to mind as a key apparatus for creating financial value, forging a relationship between people and places can mobilize the “character” of an area through added versatility. Take Taipei’s Shilin Night Market, the physical assets populating the area are nothing to call home about – but, add the diversity of sensory experiences on offer and you get a public sphere with mainstream appeal – redefining the entire district’s identity.
Placemaking is just what it claims to be. Making a place. A more pronounced example is in New York’s High Line. All but unused railway lines. The transformation of this unused space into a 1.5 mile walkway weaved into a concrete jungle has made it a well-known global attraction to over 6 million visitors locals and tourist each year – giving way to the arrival of upscale residential complexes, hotels and restaurants and more significantly an increase in the value of surrounding real estate. The High Line has become a defining aspect of the city.
Through the lens of a real estate consultant, placemaking can be used to inject vitality into an asset. By creating a destination within a destination, the delivery of a building’s value transcends the traditional owner and occupier relationship and is extended to the general public. Aside from increasing pedestrian traffic in the area, placemaking adds a human element into the mixture – building resilience around it’s value.
Finally, as the piece of the property pie in many markets shrinks – pinned by low yields, value must be created and placemaking has become a legitimate avenue to achieve this.
Whist the communal element emanated by a building’s surroundings may not immediately come to mind as a key apparatus for creating financial value, forging a relationship between people and places can mobilize the “character” of an area through added versatility. Take Taipei’s Shilin Night Market, the physical assets populating the area are nothing to call home about – but, add the diversity of sensory experiences on offer and you get a public sphere with mainstream appeal – redefining the entire district’s identity.
Placemaking is just what it claims to be. Making a place. A more pronounced example is in New York’s High Line. All but unused railway lines. The transformation of this unused space into a 1.5 mile walkway weaved into a concrete jungle has made it a well-known global attraction to over 6 million visitors locals and tourist each year – giving way to the arrival of upscale residential complexes, hotels and restaurants and more significantly an increase in the value of surrounding real estate. The High Line has become a defining aspect of the city.
Through the lens of a real estate consultant, placemaking can be used to inject vitality into an asset. By creating a destination within a destination, the delivery of a building’s value transcends the traditional owner and occupier relationship and is extended to the general public. Aside from increasing pedestrian traffic in the area, placemaking adds a human element into the mixture – building resilience around it’s value.
Finally, as the piece of the property pie in many markets shrinks – pinned by low yields, value must be created and placemaking has become a legitimate avenue to achieve this.