A Test of Character: Regulating Place-identity in Inner-city Melbourne

Abstract

meets powerful resident resistance to change, often in the name of 'neighbourhood character'. This conundrum is nowhere more apparent than in Melbourne where the state government's planning system seeks both to densify urban development and to protect existing 'character' . The metropolitan strategy aims to contain the city's outward expansion by identifying a growth boundary and by concentrating development in transit-oriented AbstractDuring the 1990s, urban planning in Melbourne changed from prescriptive regulation to a place-based performance framework with a focus on existing or desired 'urban character'. This paper is a case study of a contentious urban project in the innerMelbourne suburb of Fitzroy: a highly valued place characterised as an irregular and transgressive mix of differences: between building types, functions, forms, heights and people. Contrasting conceptions, experiences and constructions of 'character' are explored from the viewpoints of residents, architect/developer and the state. To what degree does the regulation of 'character' open or close the city to creative innovation? Can it become camoufl age for creative destruction? How to regulate for irregularity? The paper concludes with a discussion of theories of place (Massey vs Heidegger) and the prospects of concepts such as habitus (Bourdieu) and assemblage (Deleuze) for the interpretation of a progressive sense of place.

Meaningful perception of place: The most effective dimensions and factors

“…During the process of data collection, methodologies of several contemporary studies on this field of investigation (for example, Lynch, 1960;Gustafson, 2001;Manzo, 2005;Dovey et al, 2005;Davison, 2008;Dovey, 2009;Morgan, 2010), were used in order to analyze the images and perceptions of participants. These related studies are based on the use of qualitative methods in order to deeply explore the spectrum of place meanings or characters that participants assign to places, as well as experiences through which these meanings are created.…”

Leveraging VGI Integrated with 3D Spatial Technology to Support Urban Intensification in Melbourne, Australia

“…Further support of this bias towards using objective indicators can be seen in Dovey et al (2009a). The authors found that despite the emphasis placed on neighbourhood character in planning, Victorian residents' perspectives pertaining to character were reflected only to a limited extent in regulations.…”

“…Sepe & Pitt, 2014) and is best illustrated in Montgomery's (1998) (Montgomery, 1998). Dovey et al (2009a) described neighbourhood character as a function of urban typology, density and street life. The authors found three key determinants: residents' experience of the place, socio-cultural outcome of urban form, and the formal spatial structure and urban morphology.…”

“…In a study of Subiaco city in Western Australia, Davison and Rowden (2012) found that residents gave equal significance to the social and experiential meaning of places as they did to physical form and appearances of streets. These subjective aspects of neighbourhood character are regarded as key factors underlying residents' resistance to urban intensification strategies and projects (Davison & Rowden, 2012;Dovey et al, 2009a;Kyttä, Broberg, Tzoulas, & Snabb, 2013;Vallance, Perkins, & Moore, 2005).…”

“…Secondly, guidelines for higher density urban residential development require not only more information about the subjective aspects of the urban environment, but also greater integration of both objective and subjective elements. The ongoing frequency of opposition provides evidence that interpretation and application of urban residential development requirements still does not adequately reflect community perceptions of neighbourhood character (Dovey, Woodcock, & Wood, 2009a). In addition, a lack of consistency in interpretation between authorities, developers and the community further underscores the need to improve information inputs into development assessment to achieve broader priorities in urban intensification.…”