Environmental modelling software can be useful for evaluating design interventions and formulating strategies to achieve a specific purpose, such as providing outdoor thermal comfort. It is less ...commonly used in predicting the dispersion of street pollutants. The aim of this research is to test selected morphological patterns with respect to their influence on wind conditions and the transport of traffic pollutants, and to verify the results against previous studies. The objective of the research is to evaluate relations between building typology in interactions with urban atmosphere. The method utilises a wind tunnel simulation with a static line source of emissions. Experiment results show that the exposed urban morphology models display an impact on flow conditions and consequently on the dispersion of traffic pollutants. At the same time, the results highlight the importance of urban aerodynamic perspective, particularly of urban spaces that can be expected to be subject to higher traffic pollutants in terms of urban air pollution.
There is no space without people and no people without space. The very theory of genius loci (the spirit of a place) highlights the importance of spatial identity, as it is precisely this ...prerequisite for the formation of awareness of belonging to a certain community. Urban theory, which deals with the morphological composition of the built space, focuses on recognizing existing morphological patterns and reacts to these patterns depending on the different levels of development of thought doctrines or individual interpretations of the researcher. On the other hand, the gestalt spatial-architectural theory focuses on the meaning of an individual particle and its influence on other building blocks within its spatial context. The question arises of the relationship between the patterns of the built space and their building blocks; of the relationship between urban composition and individual architecture - buildings. To intertwine these two levels of reading space, the Method for determining Architecturally Conditioned Spatial Identity (MAPPI) was developed. Using the MAPPI method, we systematically monitor and check qualitative and quantitative data about the building/settlement. The intertwining of two levels and the diversity of data verification offers a different view of the interdependence between the building/settlement, from which the possibility of determining a spatially conditioned identity arises. This can be achieved by recognizing contemporary trends in architectural identity and key changes in recent decades, as well as based on existing classifications of architectural typology. In this way, it is possible to redefine settlement and architectural typologies, their characteristics, and their spatial distribution. The various tools used in the MAPPI method are designed so that, through partial automation and data synthesis, they facilitate the determination of closed spatial entities. The applicability of the MAPPI tools and method was verified on the example of the Prebold settlement.
This study focused on improving the understanding of the actual extent and spatial impacts of the Rupnik Line as one of the two fortification systems of the Rapallo Border. To this end, the available ...sources were checked and the understanding about the sectoral division of the Rapallo Border’s elements was derived therefrom. The field investigation done at a micro-location level revealed the real scope of the Rupnik Line fortification facilities. By identifying and recording the individual Rupnik fortification facilities in the Municipality of Žiri and by conducting interviews, we made an overview map showing the locations of these fortification structures. This basis, testifying to the actual condition and extent of the Rupnik Line fortification system at the level of the Municipality of Žiri, made it possible to develop further in-depth research questions regarding the spatial roles and values of this system.
In the period between the two world wars, the latent tensions between the European nations resulted in the construction of defensive positions on the borderlines of major European countries. Under ...the same conditions, the Italian Kingdom built an extensive fortification line, i.e. the Alpine Wall. The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (SHS) replied to it with the Rupnik Line. On the base of the Treaty of Rapallo, a 289-km long demarcation line was built with an exceptional defence infrastructure, which interfered with vast natural areas of exceptional quality that are protected by various nature conservation regimes today. The research presented in this paper is focused on a specific land expropriation. The goal is to understand the historical perspectives and assess the current significance of this fortification system with its impact on the natural environment. The system of spatial assessment of the architectural, urban, regional and spatial planning aspects and landscape interpretation has been developed with the use of spatial planning mapping and other methods. It was tested on the case study of the Žiri Municipality to establish a possible systemic base on which the entirety of the Rapallo border with its defence infrastructures could be mapped and their contemporary role assessed.
Lack of financial resources has become one of the main issues in fulfilling social and physical needs in urban development. The declining levels of public resources make the collaboration between ...public and private investors necessary. When facing the challenges of ageing population, shared investment may contribute to the appropriate development of sheltered housing to meet the goals of spatial planning as well as certain standards at the level of urban design. By ensuring appropriate living conditions for all generations such urban PPP projects may contribute to the fulfilment of the public interest. The paper presents practice of PPP implementation in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where local authority with the collaboration of private partners ensured more than 400 sheltered apartments in the last years. Examples show the extension of the idea from the 70s onwards in finding new models of housing for the aging population. The development of new models can be a good example of strengthening the cooperation between public and private partners in the field of urban development practice.
Municipal centres differentiate by size, function, population density and population structure, access to employment and role (SPRS, 2004). Today in Slovenia, there are 119 small settlements with ...central significance, which are also municipal centres. In recent years, the majority of younger municipalities has addressed the need for new kindergartens, primary schools and sports halls. However, they failed to address their own centres, i.e. the community cores. In the study presented in this paper, we addressed the organisation of central areas of small(er) settlements with central significance (municipal centres) and/or the development stage of the central area of these settlements in relation to the indicators of the built environment. In contrast to any public space (square, park, street, river bank etc.), the central area of a municipal centre is the recognisable site which defines the place and shows its identity. The study basis was the data and the results from previous urban design and architectural workshops carried out at the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Ljubljana. By using a defined system of indicators of the built environment, we studied the stage of development of the central areas and proposed some basic guidelines for development and organisation of these areas.
Parking in park-and-ride (P + R) facilities on the outskirts of a city reduces the traffic inside the cities and follows the principles of sustainable mobility. However, large paved (asphalt) ...surfaces create urban heat islands (UHI). This causes the temperature to rise in vehicles during full-day parking, which has a negative effect on comfort level and driving performance. This study was conceptualized as two-stage research. The first (preliminary) stage dealt with the measurement and analysis of temperature data at two nearby open parking lots in the city of Ljubljana, one of which was the main research spatial area, P + R Barje (L1), and Trnovo parking (L2), which was used for comparison in the first-stage research. In the preliminary research, we underlined the problem of long-term parking in parking areas exposed to heatwaves (HW). The second stage involved the studying of greening schemes in P + R facilities, which would allow for optimal shading during parking. Advanced 3D and 4D models using ENVI-met and LEONARDO software were developed, which assessed the parking surfaces and the areas of optimum outdoor comfort. Shading by greenery was adopted in this paper, as the strategy aimed at improving the conditions by modelling different variants of greening the parking lot L1.
In the period between the two world wars, the latent tensions between the European nations resulted in the construction of defensive positions on the borderlines of major European countries. Under ...the same conditions, the Italian Kingdom built an extensive fortification line, i.e. the Alpine Wall. The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (SHS) replied to it with the Rupnik Line. On the base of the Treaty of Rapallo, a 289-km long demarcation line was built with an exceptional defence infrastructure, which interfered with vast natural areas of exceptional quality that are protected by various nature conservation regimes today. The research presented in this paper is focused on a specific land expropriation. The goal is to understand the historical perspectives and assess the current significance of this fortification system with its impact on the natural environment. The system of spatial assessment of the architectural, urban, regional and spatial planning aspects and landscape interpretation has been developed with the use of spatial planning mapping and other methods. It was tested on the case study of the 2iri Municipality to establish a possible systemic base on which the entirety of the Rapallo border with its defence infrastructures could be mapped and their contemporary role assessed. Keywords: Rapallo border, Treaty of Rapallo, Alpine Wall, Rupnik Line, fortification infrastructure and landscape, heritage interpretation, cartography as a method, 2iri municipality, heritage development potentials.