A planning approach for inner city mixed use neighbourhoods : Inveresk as a case study

Most cities have inner neighbourhoods in which a mix of uses are established. In many cases the mix of uses has occurred as a consequence of changing policies regarding land use. In the belief that the residential value of these neighbourhoods was low, industrial and commercial uses were encouraged to establish. However, the transition from residential to industrial and commercial use has, in most cases, never been complete. The mixed character of these neighbourhoods has been problematic to mainstream planning. Although critics of the mainstream planning made their concerns known as early as the 1960's it is only relatively recently that there has been a receptiveness to alternative approaches. This professional project focuses attention on the urban form of these neighbourhoods and suggests that land use may not be the single most critical factor in determining the appropriateness of development. Although the quality of the urban environment is substantially influenced by the way in which planning provides for and regulates the development of private land, the quality of these neighbourhoods is also influenced by activities that are beyond the scope of statutory planning control, such as Council's capital works and maintenance programs and the activities of other government agencies and service providers. This calls for an integrated approach which will promote the best assets of inner city mixed use neighbourhoods and further the quest for liveable cities.