Urban planners find it challenging to come to a consensus on a single definition of a “city”. This is due to its subjective nature, a city could mean different things to different individuals. However, a widely accepted definition of the city was put forth by Lewis Mumford in 1937. According to Mumford, a “city in its complete sense, then, is a geographic plexus, an economic organisation, an institutional process. a theatre of social action, and an aesthetic symbol of collective unity” (Mumford, 29). It has been described as a living breathing organism that has multiple functions and each function is vital to the smooth functioning of the city. It is these principles that form the foundation of the design strategies employed in the construction of Karle Town Centre in Bangalore.
Geography
Karle Town Centre (KTC) is located in the North of Bangalore. It has a direct connection to the city’s ring road arterial and expanding metro lines. It is positioned prominently next to the established Manyata Tech Park with scenic views over Nagavara Lake and is designed to act as a natural magnet for people and activities in the urban panorama.
Architecture
The architectural style of KTC is different from the usual branded contemporary buildings that define the city’s skyline. The buildings have been painted with UNStudio and Monopol Color’s unique patented ‘Coolest White’ paint that adds a contemporary look to the design. Even the architectural language is made to complement the same design philosophies. The planter edges, the bollards, and the architectural features found in the landscape merge and blend into the green pockets and roofscapes of the building facades.
Bangalore’s 21st Century Garden City
Bangalore or Bengaluru has been the capital of Karnataka since 1830. Throughout these years as the capital, it has earned itself a few monikers. For instance, Silicon Valley of India, IT City, Garden City, etc. Due to the Rapid urbanisation seen in Bangalore, there has been a reduction in its green parks and lakes, which previously functioned as the lungs of the city. It was quite literally the reason Bangalore earned the moniker of Garden City. However, due to modern problems like the urban heat island effect and freshwater shortages the lushness of the city is reducing. UNStudios chose to enhance this diminishing feature while creating the master plan of Karle Town Centre. To make this dream a reality they partnered with BALJON Landscape architects from Amsterdam and created this masterplan that keeps the concepts of garden spaces at the centre as a place of leisure and relaxation.
Urban Branding Manual
An Urban Branding Manual serves as a thorough guide to guarantee uniformity and efficacy in the way the city is portrayed to citizens, tourists, and the general public.
It seeks to provide an answer to the age-old query of how to draw individuals, families, and capital to the core of their concept. UNStudios developed its handbook around three ideas to assist in streamlining it and make it simpler to grasp for all parties involved, including the client, engineers, architects, and urban planners. These ideas/concepts act as pillars of their design. The first pillar is ‘Garden’ which not only throws homage to the title ‘Garden City’ but also aims to return to the state of glory when it had earned it. To incorporate this into the plan there have been ample amounts of green plants and environments have been created around nature. The goal of the penultimate pillar, ‘Health’, is to uphold and advance a particular norm for health in urban landscapes that serves as a kind of benchmark for other national development initiatives. The final pillar is ‘Culture’, which emphasises a modern approach while also remembering not to deviate entirely from the culture an aspect which is rather important in a nation like India.
The Masterplan
The site acquired for this plan is 62 acres with a building area of 12 lakh square metres. The space area program of the site isn’t limited to a single function. It incorporates functions or rather ‘precincts’ such as Residential, Office, and Leisure. The aforementioned were chosen to ensure the site would be accessible and used by individuals during all times of the day. The residential area would always be occupied, while the office sector would operate according to set hours. During the day, the office sectors would incorporate the common areas of the plan, or rather the social spaces of the design, while the residential sectors would take up the latter part of the day. The principal reason for such a mixed-use function is to reduce dead spaces. Functions under the ‘Leisure’ precinct will be hard to schedule and are thus used as a method to limit dead zones while the latter falls short. It incorporates entertainment spaces consisting of cultural museums, art galleries, lake-view banquet halls, etc. Additionally, there are dining and shopping spaces within the community.
Now, planners and architects have also developed some solutions to accommodate this massive influx of people. There is a network of streets that flow easily into designated drop-off locations. This keeps travel times to a minimum, reduces traffic congestion, and helps with noise abatement. Additionally, the idea links all of these different locations with lush, shaded walkways, encouraging more foot traffic—a feature that is notably absent from most metropolitan architectural structures.
Ben Van Berkel a Dutch architect and founder of UNStudios has stated “We have so much data at our fingertips that can be used to analyse behaviour and inform design on an urban scale. We should use this to devise urban solutions that allow us to live in healthy environments that enable social interaction and capitalise on our free time more valuably.” This leads us to the goal of this smart city’s design in India which is, to improve the quality of life for everyone. It combines an existing approach to utilising these data and analytics and creates a plan that maximises their contributions. Thus, all other masterplans in the country must strive to attain this level of technological proficiency.
References:
Mumford, L. (1937) What is a City?, Editors’ Introduction. Architectural Record, pp. 28-32
UNStudio (2016). Karle Town Centre. [online]. Available at: www.unstudio.com/en/page/11717/karle-town-centre [Accessed date: 20 June 2024].
Niall Patrick Walsh (2019). UNStudio Designs a Smart Karle Town Center Master Plan for Bangalore, India [online]. (Last updated: 22 May 2019) Available at: www.archdaily.com/917645/unstudio-designs-a-smart-karle-town-center-masterplan-for-bangalore-india [Accessed date: 20 June 2024].
India Block (2019). UNStudio masterplans smart city in Bangalore[online]. (Last updated: 24 May 2019). Available at: www.dezeen.com/2019/05/24/karle-town-centre-unstudio-masterplan-bangalore-india/ [Accessed date: 20 June 2024].
Karle Town Centre (2019). Karle Town Centre. [online]. Available at: www.karletowncentre.com/ [Accessed date: 20 June 2024].
