‘To create space in Mumbai, open up eastern waterfront’
MUMBAI: Joan Busquets, an architect, urban planner and professor at Harvard University Graduate School of Design delivered a lecture on ‘Plans v/s Projects’ at the Urban Design Research institute on Monday.
Busquets spoke about the Eastern waterfront project, impact of climate change on urban planning and compact urban cities.
“As a planner, I feel a city should not just be efficient, but also be comfortable enough for the its residents,” said Busquets explaining the ideal way of planning a city.
Busquets agreed that the eastern waterfront project opens up opportunities for the financial capital. “There is the principle that cities love water, and they tend to shift towards it. Less than a hundred years ago, the city’s perspective was quite different. In those days, cities hated the water as it was just a way of getting rid of their waste and sewage,’’ he said.
“Mumbai should use this opportunity with eastern water front for creating public and green spaces within the city,” said Busquets .
“The development in an area should be about interactive neighbourhood and a plan that suits the requirements for different age groups,’’ Busquets added.
The eastern waterfront project opens up the entire 28km eastern coastline of Mumbai — from Colaba to Wadala — bordering 742 hectares, for the public use. Sitting at the picturesque Royal Bombay Yacht club near Gateway of India in south Mumbai, Busquets suggested a restricted usage of cars vis a vis time restrictions for instance in south Mumbai, as one of the solutions to the city’s parking and traffic woes.
Busquets said, “The reduction in use of cars and push to pedestrian movement will lift the area. People will walk more, discover more and it will be more inclusive.”
“People are commuting more than before in the city . Better, cost effective and efficient connectivity is the need of the hour,” said Joan Busquets explaining how mobility sustainability is one of the key demands in urban planning today.