What do 21st century London and 2,000 BCE Babylon have in common? It turns out, the answer is “quite a lot” as Monica Smith, Professor of Anthropology at UCLA argues in her book Cities: the first 6,000 years.

There are three main things ancient and modern cities share: their building blocks; their allure in terms of scale and opportunities; and the problems they face.

The five building blocks of urbanism are

1. Language: gives people the tool to talk about the past and future.

2. Objects: enables cities to form networks and expand beyond their physical and political domain through exchanging objects.

3. Migration: transforms cities into “demographic sinks” which grow by attracting people from other places.

4. Architecture: serves as the interchange between people and the built environment.

5. Infrastructure: allows cities to scale whilst supporting their existing or future population.

All five building blocks serve one unified goal – to build and sustain communities. An unsupported community will inevitably lead to declining cities and places.

What lessons can we take for 21st century cities? For one, cities are “living” objects but unlike living organisms with a set life span, a city can revive itself by rebuilding the community it has lost.

We can apply this community-centric approach to reviving struggling high streets. This is a Government priority with a £1 billion funding commitment through the Future High Streets fund[1].

No high street or town centre revitalisation scheme is viable without a concurrent investment in its economic foundations. The most potent pill for Britain’s high streets is to increase residents’ spending power through good, high-paying jobs. That means having the right skills, business base and quality office space in place[2].

Whilst economic and skills intervention are vital, their benefits are often intangible will take time to materialise. This intangibility means that socioeconomic policies cannot give a place a distinct sense of identity.

After rebuilding the economic foundations of places by providing good jobs and attracting workers to the local area, there needs to be a compelling reason for those workers to stay. This is especially important for retaining highly skilled and mobile workers, 64% of whom report the place of work as more important as more important than the company itself[3].

Of Professor Smith’s five building blocks, architecture and infrastructure can contribute the most to building this sense of identity. Say the word “London” and the first things that come to mind are unlikely to be “low vacancy rate” or “high GVA”. For many, the first things that come to mind will be Big Ben, Buckingham Palace or St Paul’s cathedral.

There are several examples to evidence the regenerative power of public spaces. King’s Cross is a recent example. A £3bn construction investment[4] breathed life into this formerly underutilised industrial heartland; transforming it into a creative industries and tech-hub where tech giants like Google co-locate with smaller start-ups and boutique fashion brands.

Reshaping public spaces isn’t just about big-budget investments. A bold policy move that redefines public space can kick-start positive change.

In Bogota, Colombia’s Ciclovia scheme closes streets off to cars every Sunday between 7am and 2pm. The scheme started in the 70s when suburbs were expanding and city centres hollowing out, criss-crossed by highways.

The Ciclovia route stretches over 120km running from affluent parts of town into more working-class areas, bringing together Columbians from a range of socio-economic backgrounds. Cycling would be a “symbol of the revolution”, promoting urban mobility, social and environmental consciousness[5].

Four decades later, Ciclovia has embedded itself into Bogota’s identity, inspiring cities in Latin America and elsewhere to adopt similar schemes. Today, Bogota proclaims itself as Latin America’s “ideal city” for hosting international conferences, bringing millions into the city and country[6].

Making streets pedestrian and bike friendly has a wide range of economic, health and social benefits from crime reduction[7] and higher sales revenue from increased footfall. Cyclists and pedestrians visit shops more often than those travelling by car. In Copenhagen, these two groups yield 50% of retailer revenues in larger city centres[8].

Public spaces need to adapt to the schedule and lifestyle of the community. That means recognising that people get together outside daylight hours and making this easier. As of September 2019, Walthamstow High Street was declared London’s first Night Time Enterprise Zone.

Waltham Forrest Council will provide help for businesses and community groups access venues after 6 p.m; comply with planning and licensing rules; provide funding to support evening activities and a marketing budget to promote evening events and encouraging residents to support local businesses[9].

The borough has also distinguished itself by being one among three boroughs to receive TfL grants from the Mini-Holland programme. Waltham Forrest has received over £30m in funding promote cycling among residents. By naming its cycling scheme “Mini-Holland” is a clear example on the marketing power of attractive, liveable spaces.

There’s more to creating public spaces capable of sustaining a vibrant community than the number of zero’s behind an investment and cost-benefit ratios. Policy makers need to answer more fundamental questions – who are spaces designed for and what purpose should they serve.

[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/1-billion-future-high-streets-fund-expanded-to-50-more-areas

[2] https://www.centreforcities.org/publication/whats-in-store-british-high-streets/

[3] http://charleslandry.com/panel/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Strategy%20&%20Business.pdf

[4] https://www.argentllp.co.uk/content/The-Economic-and-Social-Story-of-Kings-Cross.pdf

[5] https://www.bicycling.com/news/a20039854/how-a-colombian-cycling-tradition-changed-the-world/

[6] https://www.colombia.co/en/trade-with-colombia/investment/bogota-convention-capital/

[7] https://www.c40.org/blog_posts/how-walking-cycling-is-transforming-cities

[8] https://futureplaceleadership.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Tallinn-High-Street-Case-studies-Future-Place-Leadership.pdf

[9] https://www.london.gov.uk/what-we-do/arts-and-culture/24-hour-london/night-time-enterprise-zone