[+] Five Big Ideas from Urbanity 23

The three days of Urbanity 23 brought together people working in every aspect of the property industry, from developers to builders, architects to marketers, and researchers to media. Outside a common interest in property, perhaps what brought such a range of people together was the that drives and evolution regardless of the subject—ideas. And there was no shortage of them at Urbanity 23, The Urban Developer’s flagship conference held on the Gold Coast. Across the three days, participants heard ideas from presenters as well as fellow attendees, ideas to prompt thought, contemplation, action … and more ideas. Here are just five of the best from Urbanity 23. ▲ Stefano Boeri Architetti’s Bosco Verticale, a two-tower vertical forest prototype in Milan. 1) Vertical forests champion biodiversity Meaningful and well-deployed vertical forests can significantly impact carbon emissions and reduce the heat island effect in cities by up to 2 degrees, according to Stefano Boeri Architetti architect Maria Lucrezia De Marco. The architecture firm created the ground-breaking Bosco Verticale, a two-tower vertical forest prototype in Milan, which champions biodiversity in a high-density setting. The two towers in the Porta Nuova area comprise about 800 trees, 15,000 perennials and 5000 shrubs across the 80m and 112m buildings. De Marco said that nine years after its construction the vertical forest in Milan was now home to people—and about 1600 birds and butterflies. With a ratio of two trees, eight shrubs and 40 bushes for each occupant, the building is championed as a “tower for trees, occupied by humans”. The vertical forest model was then applied to a social housing project in Eindhoven. Another project is now under way in Utrecht in the Netherlands, which is due for completion in 2024. ▲ Ben Martin-Henry during his keynote at Urbanity 23 on the Gold Coast. 2) Shorter down cycles Walking onto the main stage at Urbanity, keynote speaker Ben Martin-Henry, MSCI head of real assets research, Pacific, warned the room: “At this moment in the market, I don’t have a lot of positive things to say”. “There was a lot of positivity from the other speakers … so, now I get to burst everyone’s bubble.” Overall, he said, the numbers—based on settlements—indicate transaction volumes are at record lows, real returns on properties are in the negative and values of assets are declining. Across the sectors, only industrial had avoided any “negative capital growth”—that is, value loss. “It has been the darling of the property industry for the past five years, it may yet be the darling of the property industry for the next five years—it’s definitely one to watch,” he said With the bad news out of the way, however, the commercial property data cruncher did offer a glimpse of hope going forward. “If you look at the downturns we have had … back in the early 1990s, very sharp, quite protracted and it took a long time to get values back to where they were before. “Then look at the GFC, very sharp but didn’t take as long to get values back to where they were before. “And with Covid, obviously a health crisis with financial impacts, still a bit of a downturn but again shorter. “I’m hoping we’ll see a short one this time around as well. “What we’ve seen in markets across the world is that over the past 30 to 40 years or so, downturns have become shorter. They’re still quite sharp, the actual overall value decline doesn’t appear to be lessening, but importantly they are bouncing back quicker.” ▲ A render of the Aboriginal Art and Cultures Centre in Adelaide. 3) Placemaking and Designing with Country Designing with Country needs to move away from lip service and closer to yarning and a deeper understanding of the history of place. Speaking at Urbanity’s roundtable on The Value of Placemaking, WOWOWA’s Monique Woodward said Designing with Country was an important part of placemaking that needed to be incorporated from the outset. “It’s about acknowledging our gratitude,” Woodward said. Hoyne place strategy director Tom Payne agreed. Payne said they were entrenching this in their placemaking processes and the space was evolving. But it’s not just connecting with First Nations history, it’s also a living concept that needs to be part of a conversation. UAP managing principal Owen Craven said public art played an important role in storytelling and reinforcing connection to country and place. A roundtable delegate also contributed to this discussion on the naming of places and ensuring it was culturally sensitive and not appropriation for the sake of being seen to do the right thing. Designing with Country from the initiation of projects will lead to deeper sense of place and acknowledgement of First Nations connection to the land. ▲ Urbis director Kate Meyrick during her keynote presentation at Urbanity 23. 4) Economic growth tied to fairness Australian cities faced growing inequality, with fairness directly impacting economic growth and prosperity, warned urbanist and Urbis director Kate Meyrick . Although Australia’s GDP had grown over the past 50 years, the overall wellbeing, happiness, and fairness in society, termed as “urban equity”, had declined, Meyrick said. Cities that were unfair failed to prosper in the long run, she said. Using data from the 2021 census, Urbis analysed the fairness and equity of six major Australian cities across various parameters such as housing, green space, health, and education. The findings suggested that the sustainability of economic growth was directly related to the level of fairness in a city, Meyrick said. Cities such as London, New York, and Paris were experiencing chronic levels of disadvantage. Among Australian cities, Perth emerged as the fairest, while Brisbane and Gold Coast raised concerns. Sydney presented a mixed picture, and Melbourne was average in its fairness metrics. She urged cities to prioritise fairness as it directly impacted economic development and attracted investment. “Cities that are not fair, don’t prosper,” Meryrick told attendees during her keynote at Urbanity 23. ▲ Changing work patterns are affecting much more than our jobs, Dror Poleg told Urbanity 23. 5) The impact of changing work patterns As work patterns evolved, with a growing emphasis on flexibility and remote capabilities, the traditional structures of office spaces, retail environments and residential designs must adapt, presenter Dror Poleg, author of Rethinking Real Estate, said his presentation at Urbanity 23. The future of real estate was not just about constructing buildings but creating adaptive environments that catered to the modern workforce’s diverse needs. Offices should be versatile, accommodating team collaborations in communal hubs and individual tasks in serene remote work areas. This isn’t merely about aesthetics but about functionality that aligns with modern work patterns. The emphasis was on creating spaces that matched the fluidity and adaptability of today’s workforce. The implications of this shift extended beyond office boundaries, Poleg said. The broader real estate market, encompassing retail and housing, was also feeling the impact. Retail spaces might need to reimagine their purpose, potentially blending traditional shopping with workspaces. In the housing sector, the demand for homes with dedicated workspaces is on the rise, reflecting the remote work trend. Poleg suggested a holistic transformation of real estate, driven by changing work paradigms. You are currently experiencing The Urban Developer Plus (TUD+), our premium membership for property professionals. Click here to learn more.

[+] Five Big Ideas from Urbanity 23

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