Description

“This book shows the incredible transformation of what was once seen as basic urban infrastructure into social spaces and community assets.” – Isabel Zempel, Sasaki, ASLA

Reprogramming the City is a 214-page collection of over 40 examples of adaptive reuse in an urban context from 17 countries showing innovative ways existing urban infrastructure and other elements are being reused and repurposed for new use in cities around the world. From billboards in Lima, Peru, that now generate fresh drinking water to bus stops in northern Sweden transformed to boost the mental health of commuters during dark winter months, Reprogramming the City reveals the untapped potential of adaptive reuse and repurposing urban objects for new use to improve life for urban residents. Organized into the thematic chapters of Food and Water, Housing and Shelter, Health and Wellbeing, Energy and Ecology and Renewal and Recovery, this book shows how the full range of human needs can be realized from the assets cities already have in place through adaptive reuse and repurposing. Featuring the following projects:

FOOD AND WATER

Water Billboard | Lima, Peru Repurposing a billboard to produce fresh drinking water for local residents

Air Orchard | Lima, Peru Growing pollution free produce with a water billboard-fed irrigation system

Borneo Project | Montreal, Canada Adaptive Reuse of fire hydrants into public drinking fountains

LA20 | Los Angeles, USA Repurposing concrete river viaducts into farming and desalinating water systems

BuzzBuilding | Stockholm, Sweden Reimagining traffic roundabouts as food production and growing areas

Growing Underground | London, UK Producing local food in abandoned subway tunnels beneath stores and restaurants

Fenway Farms | Boston, USA Converting disused areas of the iconic baseball park into an urban farm

T5 Farm | New York, USA Growing air-to-table food at JFK’s Depature Terminal

Kääntöpöytä | Helsinki, Finland Rejuvenating an abandoned train turntable into organic food hub

GroCycle Urban Mushroom Farm | Exeter, UK Converting abandoned office space and spent coffee grounds into a mushroom farming business  

ENERGY AND ECOLOGY

Culture Urbaine | Geneva, Switzerland Repurposing a motorway bridge into a CO2-eating, fuel-producing unit

SolaRoad | Krommenie, NL Transforming roads and bike paths into energy-producing surfaces

Pavegen | London, UK Reducing the city’s energy footprint by generating power from pedestrian footsteps

LucidPipe | Portland, USA Generating hydro power from water flowing through under city streets

Open Air | Los Angeles, USA Cleaning and cooling urban air by replacing billboard advertising units with bamboo forests

Energy Column | Minneapolis, USA Using building height and waste energy to produce power onsite

Climate Tiles | Copenhagen, Denmark Increasing the functionality of sidewalk tiles to utilize water and prevent flooding

Kungsbrohuset | Stockholm, Sweden Harnessing the energy generated by commuters to heat buildings  

HOUSING AND SHELTER

Grünerløkka Studenthus | Oslo, Norway Adaptive Reuse of industrial grain silos into student housing

HAWSE | London, UK Converting abandoned parking units into housing for recently homeless individuals

paraSITE | Cambridge, USA Using building HVAC vents inflate and warm pop-up homeless shelters

LIFT | Honolulu, USA Converting disused pubic transportation buses into homeless shelters and service units

LOL | London, UK Reimagining Victorian train viaducts as affordable housing units

Arcade Providence | Providence, USA Converting America’s first enclosed mall into a model for micro housing

SCADPad | Atlanta, USA Using underused parking garages as adaptive housing units

The Billboard House | Mexico City, Mexico Creating an agile housing unit from a billboard structure  

HEALTH AND WELLBEING

Ljusterapi | Umeå, Sweden Improving commuter mental health by replacing bus stop lights with light therapy tubes

Lampbrella | Saint Petersburg, Russia Tactical urbanism, transforming street lights into rain-activated pop-up umbrellas

The Cascade | Hong Kong Increasing the functionality of an urban stairway with a micro park for relaxation and social gatherings

Lido Line | London, UK Proposing a commuter swimming line as future use for abandoned industrial canals

Soft Walks | New York, USA Bolt-on seating and dining areas to repurpose New York’s scaffolding sidewalk sheds

La Grande Cantine | Paris, France Tactical Urbanism that transforms cement waterfront stairs into picnic areas and social spaces

Marsupial Bridge | Milwaukee, USA Reusing legacy infrastructure to support green transportation and community life

Lava Mae | San Francisco, USA Providing mobile sanitation services with repurposed city busses  

RENEWAL AND RECOVERY

A1 Charging Booths | Vienna, Austria Adaptive Reuse of underused public payphone booths as electronic car charging stations

EV Charging Call Box | Baltimore, USA Converting old urban call boxes into Electric Vehicle charging stations

Under the Bridge | Stockholm, Sweden Finding opportunity for new pedestrian use and cultural spaces in an underused bridge

Goedzak | Amsterdam, NL Augmenting the city’s trash collection systems with a free cycling system for unwanted goods

City Tickets | Boston, USA Adaptive Reuse of multi-space parking pay machines into fault-reporting and public suggestion units

(IN)spires | London, UK Converting disused church spires into studios and creative industry incubators

Urban Mining | Norrköping, Sweden Recovering and recycling metals from outdated infrastructure beneath the city

The Park-Ing | Tokyo, Japan Designing studios, galleries and retail spaces into an underused parking garage

First Class Meal | Los Angeles, USA Adaptive Reuse of abandoned and underused postal facilities for community food services