CRISALIDE: Searching for Smart Solutions in Urban Development beyond the Political Slogans: a Case of Rostov-on-Don, Southern Russia

Recently in Russia, a shift in a political discourse towards the innovative economy, new technologies and smart cities solutions is noticeable. There are several national programs and strategies that orient economic development to use innovations and digital technologies. However, those initiatives seem too focused on technological solutions and lack a comprehensive understanding of what smart development is. A missingcomponent might be provided from the bottom level through the use of the place-based approach and implementation of smart planning tools responding to the wicked local problems. The paper explores opportunities provided by the current national policy in the Russian Federation and the local conditions of the city of Rostov-on-Don in Southern Russia for the implementation of the innovative decision-making support tool in urban planning. The findings demonstrate that the introduction of the innovative decision-making support tool corresponds to the current transformation processes happening in a contemporary Russian city, requests from the national level and, consequently, it can be replicated in a similar context

Housing issue in shrinking Russian cities: mapping the reality

Abstract. In Russia, housing issue has been remaining one of the most important political concerns since the beginning of the 20th century. In the recent political discourse, it is associated mainly with the need to provide new housing area and the improvement of housing conditions regardless of the difference in the development of regions or cities. However, the fact that over 70% of Russia's cities shrink (Batunova and Gunko, 2018) requires developing specific approaches to housing policy's formulation within depopulating territories. The phenomenon of urban shrinkage is generally understood as population decline which results in physical urban infrastructure surplus &amp; degradation. Dilapidated or abandoned houses become the most evident sign of a city's decline and one of the most important challenges for the local authorities. However, most examples known from the existing literature come from the countries of Western Europe and the US, where economic factors are the main drivers of urban depopulation. The real estate market reacts to the population decline by falling prices (Follain, 2010), which worsens the economic situation in the city and leads to a vicious circle of economic/population decline. Less is known about what happens with the housing stock of, in words of J. B. Hollander (2018), 'atypical shrinking cities', where demographic aspects are the primary causes of depopulation: the excess of mortality over fertility and ageing. Hollander applied the term 'atypical' to Japanese shrinking cities, but in Russia, urban shrinkage is also foremost a result of demographic change (Karachurina, 2013). International migration to Russia does not compensate natural population decline, while the national policies are oriented towards promoting growth in large metropolitan areas (Kinossian, 2013) which intensifies internal migration flows from cities which are not the foci of national development. Consequently, for many Russian cities, especially small peripheral ones, urban shrinkage is an inevitable process. Less is known about what happens with the housing stock of, in words of J. B. Hollander (2018), 'atypical shrinking cities', where demographic aspects are the primary causes of depopulation: the excess of mortality over fertility and ageing. Hollander applied the term 'atypical' to Japanese shrinking cities, but in Russia, urban shrinkage is also foremost a result of demographic change (Karachurina, 2013). International migration to Russia does not compensate natural population decline, while the national policies are oriented towards promoting growth in large metropolitan areas (Kinossian, 2013) which intensifies internal migration flows from cities which are not the foci of national development. Consequently, for many Russian cities, especially small peripheral ones, urban shrinkage is an inevitable process. Against this background our research questions are as follows: What happens to housing stock in shrinking Russian cities? What are the preconditions (tools, regulations) for managing housing stock in shrinking Russian cities: official discourse of urban shrinkage, reaction to the transformation of housing demand-supply, main approaches to manage housing excess? To answer the first question, we turned to cartographic methods of research. The study of housing in selected shrinking cities (Vorkuta, Komi Republic and Apatity, Murmansk region) was based on visualization of statistical information, crowdsourcing of spatial data and visual decoding of remote sensing data, based on the theory of decryption features for the recognition of objects. To interpret high-resolution images direct (geometry, brightness, and structural) and indirect signs were used. The utilized data includes images from WorldView 1/2/3, QuickBird, GeoEye, which are published on the web mapping services of Yandex.Maps, GoogleMaps, BingMaps (Microsoft), ArcGIS.Imagery (ESRI), Roscosmos Geoportal. Maps of scale 1:10000 and 1:100000 became cartographic data sources. For comparison of data on separate structures regional statistical data of BTI (Technical Inventory Bureau) were used, to identify and verify abandoned houses and apartments field observations were also conducted. The main stage of work was the logical organization of data and the development of the geodatabase structure for the future geoinformation analytical system. All presented information is divided into two types: spatial datasets of different geometry (layers) and tabular data with thematic attribute information. This integrated approach to the state of the urban environment has been implemented for the first time in Russia and, supplemented by the capabilities of automatic spatial analysis in GIS, will identify the most 'acute' issues for territorial planning and housing management in shrinking cities. In addition, a series of maps were created visualizing housing features and condition which were presented to the local administrations of the case study cities. To answer the second question, we conducted an analysis of the local strategic, planning and policy document as well as interviews with the local stakeholders. The results vary in two cities. While local planning and policy in the realm of housing in Vorkuta are adequate to the identifies housing issues, in Apatity local development plans still serve land provision for the future 'dreamt' housing construction, needs of which are calculated based on over-optimistic demographic projections that do not consider the real factors influencing population development.</p

Система поддержки принятия решений в области градостроительного планирования: опыт международного проекта CRISALIDE

В статье представлены результаты научно-исследовательской работы «Система интеллектуальной поддержки принятия решений по управлению городской средой», выполненной в рамках российско-европейской программы ERA.NET-RUS PLUS (грантодатель с российской стороны ФГБУ «Фонд содействия малых форм предприятий в научно-технической сфере»). Разработанный в результате НИР программно-аппаратный комплекс является системой поддержки принятия решений в области градостроительного планирования и предполагает предоставление управляющей системе города современного инструмента оперативной оценки и сопоставления вариантов решения актуальных градостроительных задач, таких как новое строительство, редевелопмент территорий и т.п. В статье приведены наиболее важные результаты научной работы, выразившиеся в разработке онтологии города как предметной среды, разработке общих и частных задач, а также в методологии разработки программно-аппаратного комплекса

Do we Need Urban Shrinkage to Become Smarter Planners? The Masterplan for Novoshakhtinsk

The urban planning transition in Russia has been following the way from the so-called command-administrative system to a new one which should be more democratic, market-oriented, more adequate andcorresponding better to the current needs of the cities and regions. However, since the planning system is an element of the political system and is characterized by the same disadvantages such as lack of the local independency and resources, weak capacities of local authorities, absence of opportunity to implement the specific planning addressing local issues that are not into the national planning agenda. A silent but wide-spread process of urban shrinkage affects most of the Russian cities that are deprived of a possibility to develop new approaches to planning that could help them to confront this challenge and very few cases of the appropriate policy development appeared in the country. The present paper explores an example of aplanning experiment in a former mining city Novoshakhtinsk in southern Russia that is developing a master-plan aiming at addressing challenges provoked by urban shrinkage

Olympics and Urban Form: Evolution of the Scales of Representation, Planning and Construction

For a long period, hosting the Olympic Games has been viewed as an opportunity to promote and accelerate urban development, a driver of economic growth, a way for fast urban regeneration, also improving transport accessibility and cultural life. Being the most prestigious world mega-event and having over a hundred years of history, the Olympic Games have impacted many hosting cities' development trajectories. However, a general shift in attitude to the Olympics' organization that involves concepts of sustainability and territorial cohesion could change the mega-events local effects. In Italy, the twentieth century's Olympics were localized in a small but prestigious town as Cortina d'Ampezzo (1956 Winter Games) or in a big metropolis as Rome (1960 Summer Games), contributing to significant urban transformations and international repositioning. In 2006, the Turin's Winter Games had a regional scale and involved several localities and regional infrastructure. The Winter Olympic Games 2026 will spread in the macro-regional dimension in which the four territorial clusters will be located: 1) Milan and 2) Valtellina (200 km from Milan) in the Lombardy Region; 3) Cortina with Anterselva between the Veneto Region and the Autonomous Province of Bolzano (370 km from Milan); 4) Val di Fiemme in the Autonomous Province of Trento (300 km from Milan). Based on Italy's case, the study aims to shed light on the evolution of the Olympics projects' representation, planning, and construction scales. The event's macroscale diffusion further raises the question of its territorial impact in places, directly and indirectly, involved and the transformation of local expectations and event's perception. At the same time, in a global context of long-term regionalization of cities but also of recent restrictive measures to mobility due to the Covid-19 pandemic, this contribution aims to reflect about the potential role of mega-events in representing, planning, and constructing the spatial structure of a macro-region

Rethinking urban form in a shrinking Arctic city

Shrinking cities – places which need to ‘narrow down’ the too spacious settings – pose challenges to the mainstream urban planning which naturalizes growth and direct approaches advocating it. While shrinking cities are located worldwide, responses to the phenomenon are place-specific depending on the knowledge and resources of decision-makers, as well as the discourses of the desired spatial development. In this sense, it is still not precisely clear why and how urban planning changes under conditions of shrinkage. Since the beginning of the 1990s, many Russian cities began to lose population. Excluding the oil and gas provinces, the Russian Arctic has become a ‘showcase’ of the country’s population exodus. Our contribution is based on empirical evidence from Vorkuta (Komi Republic, Russia) an Arctic city with around 54 thousand people which is among the fastest shrinking cities of the country. Due to the simultaneous need for improving housing conditions, dealing with negative physical effects of shrinkage, and high maintenance costs of housing and infrastructure the local stakeholders had to come up with a new approach toward planning – the so-called ‘controlled shrinkage’ that helped reduce sprawl and fragmentation.Les villes en décroissance – soit des lieux qui nécessitent de ‘réduire’ leur vaste cadre - posent des défis à l'urbanisme général qui vise normalement à la croissance, et aux approches directes qui la préconisent. Bien que les villes en déclin se trouvent dans le monde entier, les réponses à ce phénomène sont spécifiques à chaque lieu en fonction des connaissances et des ressources des décideurs, ainsi que des discours sur le développement spatial souhaité. En ce sens, on ne sait pas encore exactement pourquoi et comment l'urbanisme évolue dans des conditions de rétrécissement. Depuis le début des années 1990, de nombreuses villes russes ont commencé à perdre de la population. À l'exception des provinces pétrolières et gazières, l'Arctique russe est devenu une ‘vitrine’ de l'exode de la population du pays. Notre contribution se fonde sur des données empiriques provenant de Vorkouta (République des Komis, Russie), une ville arctique d'environ 54 000 habitants qui fait partie de celles qui connaissent le déclin le plus rapide. En raison du besoin simultané d'améliorer les conditions de logement et de faire face aux effets physiques négatifs du rétrécissement, ainsi qu’aux coûts élevés d'entretien des logements et des infrastructures, les acteurs locaux ont dû trouver une nouvelle approche de la planification - la ‘décroissance contrôlée’, qui a permis d'éviter l'étalement et la fragmentation

Decision Support System Design as a Method to Enhance Public Participation in Urban Development: The CRISALIDE Project, Rostov-on-Don

Contemporary urban development in Russia differs from that of the Soviet period by the presence of many new actors, the existence of private property and capital influencing development decisions. A new season of public investment in city planning is emerging in Russia. There is an ongoing discussion of creating new master plans. However, how can be designed and proposed these tools useful and efficient? How to characterize them in their strategic and regulatory aspects? Above all, how to make sure that the master plans are truly tailor-made on the problems of the cities and not standardized tools that do not respond to the needs of the local communities? All these open questions call responsible authorities considering different interests in planning and policymaking. The previous system of administrative planning had to be changed to correspond adequately to new conditions. Officially, the current version of the Russian Urban Planning Code requires ‘public discussion’ of any urban development project that should be organised by local authorities. However, the formal evolution of the planning law has found little consequences in practice. Regularlyorganised public discussions remain more rituals than a real planning tool; they have ‘recommendatory nature’ according to the law that allows public administrations to ignore public opinion in their final decisions. The paper represents the results of the one-year experience of the CRISALIDE (EU/Russian Federation financed project through Eranet Rus Plus) project consortium in enhancing public participation in the urban development process. The R&D project, aiming at bringing together technological, social and organizational innovations, uses the area-based approach and experiments within the territory of a brownfield (old airport) in the selected city Rostov-on-Don. The chosen work area attracts notable attention of different local and regional actors due to its size, location, marketing potential and regional significance. Design of a decision support system for this area redevelopment becomes a kind of provocation that helped to involve in thedesign process local experts, activists and policy-makers. Through a series of the organised by the CRISALIDE consortium events, the new collaborations between the local and external actors established and the public discussions of the possible future redevelopment scenarios boosted. Public participation influences the DSS design process and is resulted in the system's goals and methods used that was its main target. At the same time, public discussions at the pre-planning stage is not a common practice in Russia, CRISALIDE proposed and tested a methodology for effectively and efficiently running a participatory planning process capable of grasping the local territorial demand coming from citizens and stakeholders. Moreover, the development of a smart platform, driven by IGis technology, aims at shaping the local decisional environment towards smart design and land use planning

CRISALIDE decision support system for urban development: from idea to implementation. Rostov-on-Don, Russia

This paper aims to synthesize the results of the two-year experience in implementation of the decision support system for urban development. CRISALIDE project (City Replicable and Integrated Smart Actions Leading Innovation to Develop Urban Economies) started in October 2018 and was one of the very few projects financed between E.U. and Russian Federation through the ERA NET RUS PLUS (ENRP) program. It was also the only financed project in ENRP dealing with urban planning topics in this current E.U. programming period (2013-2020). The project became possible due to the rising requests for innovations in urban life resulted in a noticeable shift in a political discourse towards the innovative ICT led economy, the new digital technologies, and the smart city policy in Russia. Though new initiatives seem too focused on technological solutions and lack a comprehensive understanding of smart development, they provoke the appearance of public discussions of the mentioned issues in cities, which themselves are the ecosystems for developing innovation. The missing components might be provided from the bottom level by using the place-based approach and implementing smart planning tools responding to the wicked local problems. This assumption lies in the basis of the CRISALIDE project aiming at bringing together technological, social, and organizational innovations. CRISALIDE was experimenting in the Russian city Rostov-on-Don through a collaborative approach involving E.U. and Russian researchers, creating an innovative digital platform to facilitate the renewal and regeneration of brownfields. The first selected experimental field was the area of the old airport relocated outside of the city. Attracting notable attention of different local and regional actors due to its size, location, marketing potential, and regional significance, the selected brownfield helped involve local experts, activists, and policy-makers to develop an innovation tool and raise a public discussion on urban development. A series of consortium events, new collaborations, and discussions became essential for designing future development scenarios. CRISALIDE system has an open, flexible structure based on urban ontology. It is a variant of artificial intelligence and will serve diverse issues in different cities. Oriented towards support in three main activities in urban development – new construction, reconstruction, and services provision – the system functions in three different modes. Three modes allow implementing required levels of public participation: from the internal communication within city administration to the public discussion involving all citizens