Cyprus

1
HOUSING IN THE URBAN FRINGEPERCEPTIONS ON
CYPRUSAND OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIESProfessor
Malachy McEldowney
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CYPRUS - PERCEPTIONS FROM OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

• EU COST Action C10

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Perceptions on Cyprusfrom Austria (Axel
Borsdorf)

• Nicosia as series of towns cultural centre
  town, shopping centre town, university town
• Surburbia more important than outskirts
• Evidence of buoyant economy in Cyprus
• Lack of public open space, public transport
• Problem of derelict sites, lack of maintenance

4
Perceptions on Cyprus from Denmark (John
Jorgensen)

• Cyprus wants planning - but not too much
• British system but not enthusiastic
• Re-centring Nicosia like Berlin
• Piecemeal development/lack of footpaths etc.
• Buffer-zone great public landscape opportunity

5
Perceptions on Cyprus from Belgium (Jean-Marie
Halleux)

• Dominance of the single-family house syndrome
• Nicosia - 200.000 people in space for 1 million
  people
• Most intensive outskirtisation of all COST cities
• House building as dominant sector of economy?
• Housing demand rather than housing need?

6
Perceptions on Cyprusfrom Slovenia (Metka
Sitar)

• Similarities with Slovenia and Mediterranean area
• Much work for developers and architects, but not
  for urban designers
• Communal space limited residential space
  privatised
• Houses close together people are private but
  friendly!

7
Perceptions on Cyprusfrom Switzerland (Maresa
Schumacher)

• Compared to Switzerland, Cyprus uses land very
  inefficiently
• Interesting architecture high quality, organic,
  refugee housing
• Taxis for everything to airport, to pub, to
  shops
• Buffer zone outskirts in centre of city

8
Perceptions on Cyprusfrom Spain (Andrés
Walliser)

• Familiar Mediterranean, plus unfamiliar
  (British?) character
• Family-focus rather than community-focus
• Organic architecture - houses to grow as family
  grows
• Extensive middle-class prosperous
• Immigration future problem?

9
Perceptions on Cyprusfrom France (Genevieve
Dubois-Taine)

• Dynamic city in dynamic economy
• Divided city - cf. Berlin, Belfast
• Ambiguity towards past no strong conservation
  ethic?
• Low-density city - high plot ratios
• Poly-nuclear city emerging - planned or
  accidental?
• Governance - lacks integration and enforcement ?

10
Perceptions on Cyprusfrom UK/Ireland
(McEldowney/Houston)

• Contrast with Northern European cities - low
  density, privatised
• Political rather than technical influences on
  planning ?
• British planning structures but local
  interpretations like Ireland
• Divided city - cf. Belfast urban sprawl cf.
  Dublin
• Dominance of 60s architecture what is Cypriot
  architectural character ?

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LESSONS FROM OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

• COST C10 Cities Classification
• Governance and Legislation
• Case Study Cities Copenhagen, Madrid,
  Zurich/Limmertal

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Classification of Cities

• PARIS, MADRID
• Core city - dense, homogeneous, small family
  apartments
• Transport stars and rings
• Family houses in large/medium-size satellite
  towns
• Sprawl outside the agglomeration

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Classification of Cities

• BIARRITZ, ANGLET,
• BAYONNE, SAN SEBASTIAN
• Towns and urban villages forming a network of
  centres and poles
• Family housing in Anglet suburb, in villages and
  in Basque countryside

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Classification of Cities

• COPENHAGEN, HELSINKI,
• INNSBRUCK
• Finger patterns along transport routes
• Topographical constraints (Innsbruck)
• Green wedges well controlled
• Little housing dissemination beyond urban
  boundaries
• Single-family housing in planned pearls
  (Chagen,Hsinki) or traditional villages
  (Innsbruck)

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Classification of Cities

• BELFAST
• Low-density family housing in suburbs
• Medium-density family social housing in inner
  city
• Sprawl contained by Green Belt
• Scattered family housing in rural areas beyond
  green belt

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Classification of Cities

• BERLIN, FLORENCE, NICOSIA
• Patchwork of housing, industrial estates, green
  areas, satellite towns
• Dissemination of family housing in countryside
  villas in Florence region, housing settlements in
  Brandenburg, individual houses in the Nicosia
  countryside

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Governance and Legislation

• From Newman and Thornley (1998)
• 4 legal and administrative families in Western
  Europe
• Cyprus in Napoleonic and Mediterranean area but
  in British system
• British system characterised by centralised
  policy guidance and local planning discretion
• Other European systems characterised by
  decentralised planning and codified regulations

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Governance and Legislation

• From Sellars (2004)
• EARLY 20TH CENTURY INITIATIVES
• Leaders Germany, Netherlands, UK (Extensive
  public housing, metropolitan planning,
  annexation)
• Mixed Cases Switzerland, Sweden (Sizeable
  public housing, limited planning, some
  annexation)
• Laggards France, USA, Canada (Limited planning
  and zoning, rent control, limited public housing)

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Governance and Legislation

• From Sellars (2004)
• EARLY 20TH CENTURY KEY INSTITUTIONAL
  INSTRUMENTS
• Local building regulations
• Local land use planning or zoning regulation
• Public enterprises for transport, housing,
  utilities
• Land expropriation for public purposes
• Compensation for expropriation
• Financing for public construction
• Public subsidies for housing
• Development of municipal enterprise

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CopenhagenGovernance and Legislation

• Finger Plan 1947 no judicial status, but basis
  of subsequent statutory plans
• Greater Copenhagen Council 1974 strategic
  planning and transportation functions
• Abolished 1989 regional planning by central
  government
• 1995 - Greater Copenhagen Authority established
  co-ordination of regional planning, economic
  development, tourism and traffic planning/public
  transport implementation
• Return to the past for metropolitan government

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CopenhagenGovernance and Legislation

• Strict zoning law since 1928 protects green
  wedges.
• Zoning successful because of strong
  interdependent hierarchy of plans national,
  regional, municipal, local (statutory)
• Municipal income tax (20)residential-based so no
  commercial incentive
• Regional (or national) strategic control since
  1970s e.g. out of town shopping centre (3000m2)
  banned since 1995
• Municipality owns most land around fingers
  uses to provide recreation etc. or sells with
  strict covenants (social housing etc.).

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MadridGovernance and Legislation

• 1940s-70s Uncontrolled development slums ,
  sub-standard housing south of city family social
  housing in high-rise flats
• No coherent planning system, reliance on central
  government favour, mono-centric model, strong
  public transport necessary
• 1980s-2000 Development of democracy, challenge
  to mono-centric model, production of
  metropolitan and municipal plans
• Massive family housing demand to be met by 8
  medium-density new settlements linked by short
  distance railway and new roads
• Dispersion and sprawl regarded as waste of land,
  but strong building industry and young family
  preferences fuelling decentralisation trends.

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MadridGovernance and Legislation

• Strong regional autonomy Madrid Region (178
  municipalities) sets urban planning agenda
• Strong tradition of land ownership rights since
  Franco even in favelas
• Booming private house market - 16 annual house
  price rise, 30 sales for investment, 7/1
  price/salery ratio
• Land Deregulation (1996) all land outside
  restricted areas/farmland available for
  development
• Strong development lobby - banks, landowners,
  politicians public spending focused on visible
  projects like transport or malls.

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ZurichGovernance and Legislation

• Decentralised settlement concentrations and
  networked system of towns
• Rural/urban integration small towns as heart of
  Swiss system, highly-efficient agriculture as
  part of urban agglomeration
• Inter-cantonal rivalry differential tax regimes
  to attract commercial investment or wealthy
  residents
• Strong on local governance, public participation,
  environmental regulation, weak on strategic
  planning

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ZurichGovernance and Legislation

• Planning system federalism and subsidiarity
• Federal level-transport and environmental policy
  only Canton-level Master Plans
  Municipal-level Zoning Plans (legal)
• Single-family housing areas innovative,
  imaginative, organic a kaleidoscope of private
  living-dreams

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NORTHERN IRELAND

• Urban Containment and Housing in the Countryside

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Green Belt and Countryside Policy

• Countryside as amenity and tourist resource
• Countryside policy areas where development
  pressure is strong
• Green belts to contain urban sprawl and to define
  key settlements

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Belfast Metropolitan Green Belt

• British green belt tradition
• Established 1963 - Matthew
• Stopline to Green Belt 1989
• Green belt breaches well - justified
• Whiteland for suburban development

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Green Belt Conditions

• Single houses permitted if
• replacement(150 area)
• in inset settlement
• agricultural need
• social justification
• special case

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Housing outside Green Belt
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Housing Design

• Celtic settlement pattern - dispersed single
  houses
• British settlement pattern nucleated villages
• Compromise protected areas and rural
  remainder
• Suburban styles poor design tradition
• Ineffective planning design guides as rule
  books

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The End