Since launching in February 2019, the EU-funded PlaceCity project has been researching and testing methods of placemaking in the Viennese context with the aim of strengthening the connection between people and the places in their living environment. The project team are working with local stakeholders to investigate which approach is best suited to Vienna and the public space in Floridsdorf, the 21st municipal district.
The neighbourhood as centre
Anyone in Vienna can become a placemaker. Placemaking is a creative, communal process to inspire people to adapt their city to the needs of the community and shape it according to their own ideas. The centre of Floridsdorf was chosen as the project area for Vienna because its location, potentials, and the challenges it faces are representative of those found in other peripheral centres in (European) cities. PlaceCity invites local residents to play an active role in the development of public spaces, especially with regard to how they are used. The spaces chosen for placemaking are outdoor public spaces in new urban neighbourhoods – or, as here, within the existing urban fabric. They give local people the opportunity to get involved and be creative, and they offer room for experiment. Autumn 2020 saw the launch of several different formats for exchange between experts and local residents. All suggestions are being collected within the framework of an open call and will be implemented as pilot projects in various public spaces over the winter months.
Partnerships and activities
The PlaceCity Floridsdorf project is embedded within a consortium of national and international project partners. The project partners in Vienna are the Municipal Department for Urban Development and Planning, superwien urbanism gmbh and the University of Applied Arts Vienna – Social Design, who are involved in a lively exchange with the project partners in Oslo (NO), the Netherlands and Belgium (Eutropian GmbH, Gallis Miljø og Kommunikasjon – Nabolagshager, STIPO, the City of Oslo, BIDs Belgium, Placemaking Europe).
PlaceCity activities originate not only from the public sector but especially also from private individuals, local initiatives and professional for-profit and non-profit placemakers. The activities range from the creation of traffic-calmed residential streets and parklets to themed walks and neighbourhood festivals, upcycling workshops and art installations. The project implements the Smart City Wien Framework Strategy goals of public engagement & participation and climate action, and is thus an important element on the way to translating the Strategy into practice.
This project is funded by JPI Urban Europe on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Transport, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT) with kind support from the municipal district authority of the 21st district of Vienna and the local area renewal office.
Project duration: 30 months
Project start: 1.2.2019
Contact
Julia Tollmann, City of Vienna – Municipal Department Urban Development and Planning
E-Mail: placecity-floridsdorf@ma18.wien.gv.at
Bahanur Nasya, Eutropian GmbH
E-Mail: bahanur.nasya@eutropian.org
