Conrad Kickert | SUNY: University at Buffalo (original) (raw)

Papers by Conrad Kickert

Urban Studies Journal, 2017

This paper explores the long-term sensitivity of street-level retailers to agglomeration to corro... more This paper explores the long-term sensitivity of street-level retailers to agglomeration to corroborate its theorised benefits under current economic modelling. It does so by studying the annualised chance of closure of retailers as a function of the number of surrounding retailers, as well as how different types of retailers respond differently to agglomeration. A time fixed effect model is used to study the mortality rate of retailers over the period of a century. The study draws from a self-created database of retail establishment locations and types in Detroit, Michigan and The Hague, Netherlands between 1911 and 2011. The case study cities have been selected for their combination of similarities and differences. While downtown Detroit is infamous for its high vacancy and The Hague has been praised as a vibrant Dutch urban core, both cities have in fact suffered significant loss of retail activity over the past century, allowing for the study of retail closure under different socioeconomic and cultural circumstances. The study demonstrates a significant sensitivity of retailers to agglomeration in both cities. The study also indicates a specifically high sensitivity to agglomeration in the case of comparison shops. Without a critical mass of peers, these retailers will face a significantly higher than average chance of closure. The sensitivity to agglomeration is remarkably similar between both case studies, urban cores which at first sight have experienced rather different fates over the past century. This cross-cultural similarity may point to a generalisability of the underlying mechanism of sensitivity to agglomeration.

Journal of Urban Design, 2019

This paper surveys dynamics and trends that have influenced and continue to influence the three k... more This paper surveys dynamics and trends that have influenced and continue to influence the three key tenants of American urban store-fronts: retailers, food services, and personal services. By connecting academic literature, economic statistics, and real estate and marketing industry reports, the article outlines what these three street-level industries can expect in the foreseeable future. E-commerce, the experience economy, the Maker Economy, and regulatory, cultural and demographic shifts will have a profound impact on American urban storefronts-but certainly not always a negative one. Urban designers have a key role in ensuring vibrant, inclusive and resilient commercial streets.

The combination of growing mobility needs and dwindling transportation budgets in the Dutch Delta... more The combination of growing mobility needs and dwindling transportation budgets in the Dutch Delta Metropolis has raised the need for smarter use of existing public transport infrastructure. A significant portion of this smarter use may come from strengthening the ties between infrastructure improvements and transit-oriented development. To further this goal, the Delta Metropolis Association has developed SprintCity (SprintStad in Dutch), a serious game and planning support tool that engages stakeholders in transit-oriented development to explore interaction between transport and land use, as described in Bertolini's node–place model. However, its underlying database has proven insufficient to draw conclusions regarding urban character and development capacity around stations. This paper focuses on morphological research that aims to improve this database by exploring the density and urban morphology of station areas in the Delta Metropolis beyond readily available statistics, and discusses the methodological and theoretical underpinnings of this survey. The surveying of station areas in 2010 was conducted by a team of six researchers, based on the Spacemate© methodology developed by Berghauser Pont and Haupt. The methodology allows detailed quantitative measurement of the density and spatial characteristics of clearly demarcated urban districts, defining their so-called 'spatial fingerprint'. The resulting database of 850 districts in 55 station areas has served descriptive goals, strengthening the realism in the SprintCity game, and serves as the database for further establishing the development potential of station areas. 1 Introduction: integrated spatial and infrastructural development in the Netherlands The Dutch Delta Metropolis (1) continues to attract new inhabitants and businesses. As the rapidly dispersing and expanding region faces a growing need for mobility that is not met by a significant increase in infrastructural capacity, it is very challenging to maintain high quality mobility within the growing Delta Metropolis (OECD, 2007). (2) Dispersion of development results not only in the space-consuming effects of advancing sprawl, but at the same time in traffic gridlock and decreasing quality of mobility. This will cause the region to become less attractive for living and working and less able to compete internationally, as well as hampering the ecological and spatial sustainability of the Delta Metropolis. The national government is clearly turning toward an ambition for compact development of the Delta Metropolis (I & M Ministry, 2008) supported by a quantum leap in the quality of the public transport, dramatically increasing train frequencies on main routes (I&M Ministry, 2008). However, the current economic downturn has severely limited the budgets for major new infrastructure investment. The focus on densification of the existing urban area and improvement of rail transport within a limited budget calls for an integrated and efficient approach to spatial and infrastructural planning. A dualistic planning strategy enables more passengers to live, work, and play within range of the existing rail network through innovative development and intensification of station locations, combined with a more efficient and intensive use of the existing rail infrastructure to create a higher quality public transport product. While the aforementioned government ambitions support this integrated approach to spatial and infrastructural development, its implementation is institutionally and territorially fragmented. On the institutional side, policy makers often focus either on compact spatial development or on planning for public transport improvements. Regional fragmentation of transportation and development initiatives has resulted in disconnected transport systems, even though crossing boundaries between regions, professions, and the public and private sector is an absolute precondition to the success of integrated land-use and transport planning (van der Hoeven, 2008). (3) A significant underlying reason for the lack of institutional and territorial integration is that thus far many relevant stakeholders lack an overview of the complex interplay between infrastructural and spatial development and have little knowledge of the existing characteristics and development potential of station areas. In this paper we describe a study of the spatial and density characteristics of station areas in the Delta Metropolis in order to gain further insight into the characterization of transit-oriented development and provide measures for exploring development potential. We provide an overview of the research methodologies that have been deployed as well as illustrating the conclusions of the study that provide both qualitative and quantitative spatial descriptions of station areas in connection with their position in the public transport network.

Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Urban Design and Planning, 2016

Urban design history and theory courses are a key element of urban design curricula across the gl... more Urban design history and theory courses are a key element of urban design curricula across the globe. These courses take a pause from the high paced decision-making environment of the design studio to reflect on the theoretical underpinning of cities, and their conscious and subconscious transformation in the past, present and future. The contemplative nature of history and theory courses can create a perceived disconnect between ‘theory’ and ‘practice’, and ‘lecture’ and ‘studio’ – often undeservedly. This paper discusses various methods of situated learning in urban design history and theory pedagogy that bridge these false dichotomies. The two case studies presented in this paper engage students in real-world applications of historical and theoretical research, convincing them that pasts and paradigms strongly influence their everyday and future environments. Both cases have energised students by demonstrating that theories from the past and present inform the practice and lived experience of the urban environment. Furthermore, the cases use techniques typically taught in studios, such as mapping, collage imagery and three-dimensional modelling, to analyse non-traditional topics. The bridging of theory, practice, past and present can further integrate history and theory pedagogically into the growing field of urban design education.

Journal of Urban Affairs, 2016

Journal of Urban Affairs, 2015

URBAN DESIGN International, 2016

The ground floors of buildings are a key element of the urban experience, yet the dynamics that s... more The ground floors of buildings are a key element of the urban experience, yet the dynamics that shape frontages are largely unknown. This article delves into the forces and patterns behind the transforming relationship between architecture and public space in Western urban cores over the past century. After defining a methodology for structurally measuring the interactivity of ground floor frontages over time, the study focuses on two case study urban cores of Detroit, Michigan and The Hague, Netherlands. Through a combination of narrative historiography, detailed mapping and statistical studies a set of recommendations is generated to help urban designers and planners better understand and counter frontage decline. The two seemingly disparate cities are demonstrated to have undergone remarkably similar patterns of frontage interactivity erosion, with outcomes diverging as a result of an often reinforcing set of forces. Only upon understanding frontages as social, economic, cultural, political and technological constructs with physical, functional and connotative effects on public space will the profession be able to effectively steer the future of the architecture of public life.

URBAN DESIGN International, 2015

Proceedings of the ICE - Urban Design and Planning, 2013

In an era of increasing competition between urban cores, positive pedestrian experiences become c... more In an era of increasing competition between urban cores, positive pedestrian experiences become crucial in attracting visitors and retaining residents. The dichotomy between use and evaluation of public spaces enables the prioritisation of urban design and management interventions in an age of austerity. When spaces are highly used but evaluated as poor, they warrant improvements over other spaces. The results therefore substantiate evidence-based design that achieves significant yet cost-effective improvements of the city centre pedestrian experience. This paper presents an approach to understanding city centre pedestrian behaviour and experiences by deploying global positioning system tracking technology. This technology enables accurate measurement of routing and behaviour in public space.

URBAN DESIGN International, 2013

This article addresses spatial patterns of growth and decline in Detroit from 1776 to the present... more This article addresses spatial patterns of growth and decline in Detroit from 1776 to the present. It maps industrial distribution, and uses space syntax to analyse the relationship among the street network, industry, streetcar transportation, and retail activity in the city. Special emphasis is given to the first half of the twentieth century, when Detroit reaches its peak of industrial production, in comparison with the second half, when it looses its vitality with the instalment of motorways and suburbanisation. The findings show that in the 1920s industry, streetcar transportation and retail settled along global movement routes that linked the city core with the expanding urban system. Since the 1950s the street network has lost its capacity to integrate the social and economic activities in the city, which followed a new logic of production, consumption and distribution. The motorways and the industrial landscape, which remained unchanged once reaching its peak, disrupted the street patterns in the city. This analysis can illuminate the role the street network plays in how cities prosper and thrive or shrink and decline. It leads to the suggestion that planning policy and urban design should integrate spatial configuration in their attempts to develop sustainable futures.

Books by Conrad Kickert