2024 Award "Best Practice in Citizen Participation"

18th Edition

Phase 6 of 7

Publication Preparation 08/09/2024 - 15/10/2024

Process phases

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Karşıyaka: Co-Design of a Public Space and the Implementation: Atakent (Car) Park

Official proposal

17/05/2024 13:31

The implementation of the 'Atakent (Car) Park' project was realized on a democratic platform based on the tendencies and expectations of local participants. With the participation of 178 local citizens, the conceptual design project, which was prepared and voted on with design science data including their wishes, needs, and suggestions for the space, was democratically voted and realized in the urban space. The most inspiring aspect of the work is that a non-designer citizen establishes a common design language and dialogue with a professional designer using active design tools.

This method also encompasses smart learning in the context of urban experience. In addition to the simplified design tools, the open object toolkit has been added to increase diversity. This expansion allowed the identification of urban elements and functions that had not previously been conceived by authorities or design experts. However, as with the parking lot element, the open object turned into a design trick, an example of how conflicting ideas can be distinguished in a participatory urban design approach. A voting step was added to the process to achieve consensus. The method also brings about consensus through collective intelligence.

The implementation revealed that individuals with different or special needs have a crucial role in the co-design process. This discovery underscores the need to rethink existing methodologies in citizen design science to promote inclusivity. For example, it facilitated the development of a three-dimensional and embossed model, a traditional design language tool, while making the 'mind mapping' process accessible to visually impaired citizens.

Therefore, the diversified participant profile has transformed the method into an experimental and tactical approach that increases inclusivity. The citizen design science method, which generates design science data as a participatory urban design approach, requires effective institutional collaboration in terms of its organization.

In this context, the organizational structure of the municipality was innovatively expanded by establishing the 'Citizen Participation Unit'. It has a role in strengthening communication between local government and citizens. Within the local government demand records, there are records of similar public space transformation practices by other neighborhood local users in the pilot district. The study was conducted in 4 other leftover public spaces in Karşıyaka.