About the Book

Providing an in-depth exploration of the complexities of densification policy and processes, this book brings the important experiences of densification in Johannesburg into conversation with a range of cities in Africa, the BRICS countries and the Global North. It moves beyond the divisive debate over whether densification is good or bad, adding nuance and complexity to the calls from multilateral organisations for densification as a key urban strategy.

  Using empirical work in a comparative frame, Densifying the City? examines how densification policies and processes have manifested often in unanticipated or contrary ways. It offers important insights into resident-led densification and the processes and motivations that drive these activities.

This will be an invigorating read for urban studies and urban planning scholars looking to move beyond a basic understanding of densifying cities to understanding the strategy behind it and its successes. Urban policy makers will also appreciate the use of key case studies throughout the book.

Table of Contents:
Contents: SECTION A DENSIFICATION IN A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE 1 Thinking density through selected international case cities 2 Philip Harrison, Alison Todes, Margot Rubin and Alexandra Appelbaum 2 Thinking densification from and through Johannesburg 17 Alison Todes, Philip Harrison, Margot Rubin and Alexandra Appelbaum 3 Density, informality and the urban premium 40 Ivan Turok 4 The challenges of planning and managing urban density in the city of São Paulo, Brazil 52 Anderson Kazuo Nakano 5 Successes and challenges of densification strategies in Curitiba, Brazil 63 Garth Klein and Priscila Zanon 6 Form, function, density: understanding the legacies of a century of modernist planning and urbanisation in Istanbul 73 Murat Üçoğlu, K. Murat Güney and Roger Keil 7 Densities in Delhi, India: evolution, process and policies 83 PSN Rao 8 Drivers of density change: the case of Beijing, China 93 Philip Harrison and Yan Yang 9 Vibrancy and instability: grappling with tension in the densification trajectory of Nairobi’s multi-storey tenement districts 103 Marie Huchzermeyer 10 Understanding density in unplanned and unregulated settlements of peri-urban Africa: a case study of Maputo, Mozambique 114 Paul Jenkins and Johan Mottelson 11 Government policies and accelerating densification in Sydney 125 Glen Searle SECTION B EXPERIENCING DENSIFICATION IN JOHANNESBURG 12 Densification through intensification: sub-letting in the inner city of Johannesburg 136 Tanya Zack, Sarah Charlton, Rirhandzu Khoza, Kwena Letsoalo and Chloé Malavolti 13 Residential alienation or the right to the city? ‘Rooms’ and ‘spaces’ as a mode of densification in Johannesburg and Cape Town 147 Kayla Brown and Simon Sizwe Mayson 14 Densities, enclaves, and the daily lives of migrants in Johannesburg 159 Khangelani Moyo 15 Urban compounds: densifying bungalows in Johannesburg 168 Kirsten Dörmann 16 Densification processes in comparison: Alexandra and Marlboro South 179 Lindsay Blair Howe 17 Living with strangers: backyarding, density and intimacy in Johannesburg 190 Margot Rubin and Sarah Charlton 18 On the defensive: the residential strategies shaping densification in Johannesburg’s northern suburbs 202 Alexandra Parker and Alexandra Appelbaum 19 Three emerging medium-density housing types in Johannesburg: improving their spatial performance 213 Lone Poulsen and Melinda Silverman SECTION C DENSIFICATION THROUGH TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT: JOHANNESBURG’S CORRIDORS OF FREEDOM 20 Densifying through TOD: international experience with BRT 225 Sylvia Croese 21 Implementing transit-oriented development in Sandton Central: ambitions and realities 235 Miriam Maina 22 Density, access and public transport finance 246 Sean Cooke, Roger Behrens and Mark Zuidgeest 23 The politics of TOD: the case of Johannesburg’s Corridors of Freedom 256 Philip Harrison and Margot Rubin 24 Developers, density and the dreams of the Corridors of Freedom 266 Kirsten Harrison and Alison Todes 25 Proactive rezoning to promote inclusive densification 276 Stuart Denoon-Stevens and Verna Nel Index 284