As urban designers, we look to

great cities to understand the

many different qualities that

contribute to the sense of place. Our

vantage point is one that looks towards

the future. We seek to understand

the forces that shape the form and

character of the city as it evolves.

The heightened awareness of preserving

and repairing natural environments,

conserving resources, and living in a

more sustainable way guides much of

our thinking about how to approach

urban systems for the next generation.

This physical and cultural shift is

leading to smarter and more holistic

approaches to planning, design and

management of cities.

The other aspect of our work as

city planners, engineers, economists,

and architects, is to understand what

makes each city so distinct. How is

it that global cities such as Moscow,

London, Paris, Beijing, and New York

are so different even today? Will cities

continue to evolve in unique and with

regionally distinct patterns?

Cities are dynamic. Much of what

we all find compelling about cities is

influenced by the people living in the

neighborhoods, working in the offices

and shops, learning in the universities

and worshipping in churches, temples

and mosques. They may be recent

immigrants or from many generations

who have grown up living there. Each

generation leaves its mark, a trace of

a life lived with the city as home. The

best cities have a distinct personality,

one long remembered by visitors and

citizens alike.

As designers, we pick up clues as we

walk the streets, visit the markets, read

the history, and talk to ordinary citizens

about their place. We find that each city

has a language, accumulated through

the course of time and continuing to

add complexity and diversity.

As we think about the expanded city

we find patterns from Old Moscow

that can serve as the beginning of a

DNA for the New Moscow.

Two things stand out as important DNA

principles for most urban neighborhoods.

There is a clear perimeter of city-scale

addresses — typically the boulevards

and major public spaces where districts

come together and create larger scale,

more public places. Internally there is

a network of smaller, more intimate

streets, courtyards, and public spaces

that serve the population living and

working within the district.

Like the Kremlin, these districts have a

“wall” or public face, and then a much

more private realm that supports

neighborhood life. Each district is

distinct with its own mix of uses and

character. We have found a remarkable

pattern of urban spaces that are found

throughout the city.

The historic city is a complex web of

inter-connected neighborhoods and

districts. Like many other capital cities,

Moscow has been transformed by

industrialization and later by visionary

plans to create modern boulevards,

new transit and transportation systems

as well as more “modern” building

types and systems.

This amalgam of different eras, from

medieval to 19th to 20th century

gives the city a rich and diverse

pattern of districts, public spaces

and building types. The lessons from

the many neighborhoods arrayed

around the Kremlin and Kitay-Gorod

are instructive when we think about

the inherited qualities of districts and

neighborhoods in the New Moscow.

URBAN PATTERNS

MOSCOW DISTRICTS

Block Patterns

Building Types

Streets, Courtyards, and Public Spaces

PROMENADES

Muscovites and visitors to the city are drawn to the many parks

and public spaces that feature broad walkways, lawns, and

gardens designed for people to walk and talk with one another,

meet friends, and enjoy the city as theater.

LAKES & PONDS

In many of the parks throughout the city, small lakes and ponds

create great public spaces and beautiful settings. This appeal of

bringing water into the city is repeated in many different ways.

Sometimes in natural settings and sometimes as more formal

civic spaces.

RIVERS & CANALS

Moscow is at its core, a river city. Many visitors

have a chance to see the city from the vantage

point of the river. The radial form of the old city

leads you from your neighborhood to the rivers

edge. Each crossing becomes a celebration of

the connection to nature and to places linked to

one another.

BIG SQUARES & LITTLE SQUARES

Civic Squares that celebrate artists, writers, musicians, educators,

military and political leaders, historic events are the defining urban

elements throughout the historic city. This remarkable collection

of squares and spaces hold the history of the city for citizens

and visitors to experience and appreciate.

GARDEN STREETS

The city features a collection of primary and secondary garden streets that create

park settings for many neighborhoods. The most prominent of these designed

streets include the Boulevard Ring and the Garden Ring — intended to create a

citywide address. Others are neighborhood streets designed as part of a garden and

park to create a soft amenity for residents in the middle of a busy city.

Plan of a plaza in the Boulevard

0 5 10 15 20 M5Section of the Boulevard

COURTYARDS

Street edges in the center of Moscow are typically composed

of building, sidewalk, and street with little interruption. Trees,

gardens, and open spaces are typically celebrated in formal parks

and public spaces. The great Moscow invention is the courtyard

where in almost every block there is a network of park-like

spaces with playgrounds, gardens, and woodlands hidden from

the public hustle of the street.

PUBLIC ART & COMMEMORATIVE ART

You cannot walk very far without stopping to read about

someone who was important to the life of the city and the

nation. The care and importance of remembering and celebrating

the significant contributions of Russian people is a hallmark of

the city. Equally important is the gift of art to the neighborhoods

and public spaces, large and small.

Throughout the city, buildings tell a

story about time and place. While the

historic city has a diverse collection of

building types, architectural expressions,

and use of materials, Moscow buildings

speak to each other and to the public

spaces they front. There are repeating

traits that are found throughout the

many different districts that are similar.

This shared language adds a layer that

is uniquely Moscow.

MOSCOW BUILDINGS

PORTALS

Many buildings in the city create portals to internal courtyards

that signal a transition from public to more private spaces. These

occur at all scales and in many different locations. This gesture

repeats itself continuously along major boulevards and avenues

of the city. There is always a kind of mystery about what is just

beyond the portal.

ENTRANCES AS ART

Many buildings celebrate the public

entrances as expressive elements

that feature sculpture, applied art

and decorative tile and metalwork.

Each era expressed differently, yet

in a cultural agreement on what is

important to communicate about

the beauty and significance of

each entrance.

TOWERS

A survey of the cityscape from almost any vantage

point reveals a collection of towers in a variety of

sizes, shapes, and materials. These create landmarks

that sometimes define the city and other times mark

an important intersection or place in the district.

CORNERS & BAYS

Over the many generations of building in the old city,

corners have offered the most expressive canvas

for designers and builders. The variety of creative

responses to important corners on Moscow blocks has

generated a signature that is part of the city DNA. With

this gesture comes another that crosses all generations

and architectural expressions — the box bay window.

This desire to create light-filled rooms within offices and

apartments is evident in every quarter of the city.

COLORS

One of the most remarkable patterns is the use of color in the

buildings. The sense of how light and seasons affect the mood

in the city is captured by the careful attention of painters and

architects. This palette gives us clues how to create harmony

with the natural systems of gardens and parks, and the built

networks of neighborhoods and public spaces.

Capital Cities Planning Group

Urban Design Associates

Beasley and Associates, Planning Inc.

Gillespies

John Thompson & Partners

Nelson/Nygaard Consulting Associates

Buro Happhold Ltd.

Group Ark

Solving Efesco

Book Design

Susann Reimann

capital cities pl anning group + UDA