37th International

Making Cities Livable Conference on

The European Square

Siena, Italy

June 15-19, 2003


An international conference for Mayors, councilors and city officials committed to making livable cities and towns, and for practitioners and scholars in architecture, urban design, planning, historic preservation and urban affairs.

The Siena conference emphasizes the significant role of squares and public spaces in the life of the city, and recommends policies (in planning, architecture, urban design, architecture) that promote well-being.

IMCL Conference participants have helped shape thinking about cities worldwide.

The program on "The European Square" will:

Siena

Siena offers a magical experience: with its incomparable shell-shaped Piazza il Campo, the city opens its heart and embraces Sienese and visitors alike. The Piazza is the place for meetings, civic life, festivals and celebrations.

The "effects of good government" portrayed in 1340 by Lorenzetti on the walls of Siena’s City Hall, and specified then in design guidelines, are still evident today in Siena’s ochre-toned brick Piazza and palazzi, its intact urban fabric, clear architectural identity (DNA) and rich mix of building uses.

Siena was the first Italian city to be pedestrianized, and nurtures its unique heritage and way of life. Its distinct neighborhoods ensure a strong sense of community, displayed in Piazza il Campo in the historic Palio festival.

Conference participants will be able to learn from Siena’s public places and community events, visit neighborhoods, and observe preparations for Palio.

Plenary & Panel Sessions

GENERAL THEMES

Socially Sustainable Town Development

New Urban Neighborhoods

Community Participation in Planning

Curbing Suburban Sprawl

Teaching the Livable City

Architecture & City Identity (DNA)

The City & the Square

LEARNING FROM THE EUROPEAN SQUARE

Learning from Siena

The European Square/Marketplace: Case Studies

Principles for Town Square Design

The Square as Community Catalyst

Tourism and the Town Square

New Architecture and the Historic Square

The European Square and Democracy

The Square, the City and the Region

The "European" Square around the World

Program

Siena, Italy

June 15-19, 2003

Subject to change

Sunday, June 15 March 4March 444

1.00 – 6.00 Registration

6.00 - 7.00 Welcome Reception

Monday, June 16

9.00 – 9.30 The City & the Square

9.30 - 12.00 Importance of the European Square/Marketplace

Learning from Siena

The Square as Community Catalyst

Case Studies

12.00 - 2.30 Conference Luncheon

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

2.30 - 5.30 Socially Sustainable Town Development

New Urban Neighborhoods

European Square/Marketplace: Case Studies

Teaching the Livable City

Discussion

Tuesday, June 17

9.00 - 12.00 Principles for Town Square Design

The Square, the City & the Region

Case Studies

Discussion

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

2.00 - 5.30 Tourism and the Town Square

New Architecture & the Historic Square

Architecture & City Identity

Innovative Affordable Housing

Case Studies

Discussion

Wednesday, June 18

9.00 - 12.00 The European Square & Democracy

The Square, the City, the Region

Historic & Community Festivals

Case Studies

CONCURRENT SESSIONS

2.00 - 5.30 The European Square around the World

Community Participation in Planning

Creating Public Places in Urban Neighborhoods

Curbing Suburban Sprawl

Thursday, June 19 5

9.00 - 12.00 Paper Sessions

Hotel Accommodations

A block of rooms has been reserved at the Garden Hotel, with panoramic views over Siena, a peaceful setting, and garden swimming pool. Special conference rates: 132 Euros double, 111 Euros single. Tel: +39-0577-47056, fax: +39-0577-46050; e-mail info@gardenhotel.it Please mention you are with the Making Cities Livable Seminar on "The European Square".

Speakers

Prof. Krzysztof Bieda, Krakow University Dept. of Architecture. Former Chief Architect, City of Krakow, POLAND. Krakow’s Rynek.

John Burrell, RIBA, Burrell Foley Fisher Architects, London, UK.

Mayor Maurizio Cenni, Siena, ITALY*

Bob Cools, Mayor a.D., Antwerp, BELGIUM. Antwerp’s Grand Place, Handschoenmarkt, Groenmarkt, etc.

Suzanne H. Crowhurst Lennard, Director, IMCL Conferences, Carmel, USA. Author, Livable Cities Observed; The European Square (forthcoming). Principles of Public Space Design.

Mayor Giustina Mistrello Destro, City of Padova, ITALY. Padova’s Historic Squares.

Libor Dobeš, Councillor, City of Nový Jicín, CZECH REPUBLIC. Nový Jicín’s Masarykovo Námesti

Prof. Derek Drummond, MacDonald Prof., McGill Univ., Montreal, CANADA;

Andreas Feldtkeller, Director (a.D.), City Planning & Restoration, Tübingen, GERMANY, Maintaining a Residential Population around Tübingen’s Markt..

Egon Grund, Baurat, a.D., Karlsruhe, GERMANY. Piazza San Marco, Venice.

Mayor Edmond Hervé, Rennes, FRANCE.*

Hans-Jörg Kaiser, Dr. Planning Director, City of Steyr, AUSTRIA. Austrian Town Squares.

Mayor Julian Lanzarote Sastre, Salamanca, SPAIN.*

Prof. Henry L. Lennard, Carmel, CA, USA; Univ. of Calif., SF (a.D.) Author: The Forgotten Child. The City for Children.

Prof. Michael Lykoudis, Notre Dame, IN, USA. Author: Building Cities. Models for City Design.

Prof. Tom Martineau, School of Arch., Florida A&M Univ., Tallahassee, FL. USA. Munich’s Marienplatz.

Prof. Rolf Monheim, Urban Geography, Bayreuth Univ., GERMANY. Pedestrian Zones.

Mayor Robert Morrow, Hamilton, ON, CANADA.

Heleni Porfyriou, Ph.D., Researcher, Centre for Research on the Conservation of Works of Art, Rome, ITALY. Piazza Navona, Rome.

Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr., Charleston, SC, USA. Marion Square.

Prof. Edoardo Salzano, Dean, Urban Planning, Venice Univ., ITALY. The Venetian Campi.

Dr. Sven von Ungern-Sternberg, Regierungs-präsident (Governor) for Süd-Baden, GERMANY. Freiburg’s Münsterplatz.

Jirí Vanicek, Dr. PhD., Mayor (a.D.), Town Councillor, Town of Tabor, CZECH REPUBLIC. Czech Town Squares.

Mayor Hermann Vogler, Ravensburg, GER-MANY. Transforming Ravensburg’s Marienplatz from Traffic Route into a Pedestrian Square.

Samir Younes, Professor, University of Notre Dame, IN, USA. Appropriate Architecture for a Historic Square.

* Invited

Sponsors

Sponsors of IMCL Conferences include the Cities of Charleston, San Francisco, Santa Fe (USA), Freiburg (Germany), Venice & Siena (Italy), Vienna & Salzburg (Austria); also University of Venice (Department of Urban Planning) & University of Notre Dame (Department of Architecture).

Praise from participants

A wonderful Conference. I truly believe this is the best Conference on cities.

MAYOR JOSEPH P. RILEY Jr.
City of Charleston


Love for our cities unites all of us in this unique, impressive conference, with participants from different countries, with different professional backgrounds, but with one purpose:
making our cities more livable.

ANTONIO CASELLATI
Former Mayor, City of Venice, ITALY


The Vienna Conference was a great success. Please accept my congratulations on one more wonderful accomplishment.

MICHAEL LYKOUDIS
Chair, School of Architecture,
University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN


I want to thank Dr. Suzanne Lennard for organizing important meetings about this unique institution, the European Square.

GIUSTINA MISTRELLO DESTRO
Mayor, City of Padova, Italy


Congratulations for your extraordinary and successful effort. The Conference holds a magnifying glass to the world’s best cities, and their spatial organization, revealing why, and how they work.

BENJAMIN THOMPSON, FAIA
AIA Gold Medallist

Plenary & panel sessions

Principles for Livable New Towns

Identifying necessary infrastructure. Transportation principles. Role of mixed use, density & diversity. Architectural guidelines.

The Heart of the City

Identifying the center: where the action is. A place for social life & community. Design principles for the town square. Neighborhood gathering places.

Generating Community

Social catalysts for community.

Mixed Use Urban Fabric

Living downtown. Ensuring the right mix. Fine textured urban fabric.

Transportation for Accessibility & Social Contact

Transit based new neighborhoods and towns. Balancing transportation modes. New traffic calming techniques.

New Urban Neighborhoods

Principles for the design of new urban neighborhoods.

Regional Planning for Vital Cities

Inter-city collaboration. Directing regional development. Community participation in regional planning.

Making Cities Hospitable for Children & the Elderly

Teaching the Livable City

Architecture & planning curricula for livable cities.

Community Participation in Planning & Urban Design

Models of involving community in planning decisions and increasing civic engagement. Case studies

Reshaping Suburbia

Transforming shopping malls into mixed use neighborhood centers. Infill development.

Curbing Urban Sprawl

Limiting infrastructure & services. Issues of incorporation & annexation. Enlarging city boundaries.

The City of Short Distances.

The cellular city. Fine grained pattern of land use. Mixed use zoning.

Ecological Principles for New Towns

Principles of ecological design & social sustainability

Architecture & Town Identity

Defining the city’s DNA. Design guidelines for new appropriate architecture.

Village Style Development

The European Square

How the square fostered democracy. Essential elements of successful squares. Current threats to European squares. Case studies.

Evaluating N. American squares.

Opportunities and problems.

Growth & Change in American Cities

Hotel Accommodations

The Conference will take place at the historic Hilton Hotel, a few minutes walk from the Plaza, where a block of rooms has been reserved. Call 505-988-2811 or toll free 800-HILTONS, mentioning that you are with the Making Cities Livable Conference.