22 January 2015
Episode 171
01 hour
How'd that get built? City-building at its best is innovative, democratic and aesthetically on point but that’s sadly not always the case. This week’s episode of The Urbanist looks at cathedrals of corruption, building blunders and just plain ugly additions to our cityscapes – how do these things get built?
22 January 2015
Share episode
DownloadWant more radio episodes like these in your inbox?
Sign up to Monocle’s email newsletters to stay on top of news and opinion, plus the latest from the magazine, radio, film and shop.
The Urbanist - latest episodes
A very Urbanist Christmas
Our holiday special brings you a collection of yuletide traditions from cities around the world. Then, we roll out another festive round of ‘The Urbanist’ quiz and give you the perfect gift idea for the urbanist in your…
Tall Stories 439: Deer Valley Resort, Utah
Jessica Bridger straps on her skis and takes us to a grand American resort whose wild, man-made landscape stuns visitors.
Swimmable cities, Battersea Power Station and indigenous retail
Matt Sykes, co-founder and convenor of Swimmable Cities, describes how our urban centres can band together to promote more swimmable urban waterways. Then Sebastien Ricard from Wilkinsoneyre unpacks the transformation of…
Tall Stories 438: Cusco’s duality
Elna Schutz explores how antiquity and modernity coexist in the city of Cusco, perched high in the Andes.
How municipal architects shape our cities
From the perspectives of towns, cities and countries, we look at the role of the municipal architect today to see how this centralised advisor can help to cut red tape, mould an identity and connect stakeholders for better…
Tall Stories 437: Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education and Innovation, New York
Paul Logothetis takes us to an intriguing new building that is just as awe inspiring as the exhibits housed within.
‘The Land is Full’, plus urbanism for young and old
We speak to Thomas Woltz of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects, whose new monograph, ‘The Land is Full’, explains why all land comes with deep history and cultural ties. Then we inspire young urbanists with the author…
Tall Stories 436: Tallinna Linnahall
David Plaisant visits a Soviet-era concert hall that has been disused for the best part of 15 years and is loved and loathed by the city’s residents in equal measure.
The positives of public parks, Kitchener’s glockenspiel and the art of letter carving
We assess all the benefits that public green space brings to a city, visit one of the most German cities in Canada to see how the town glockenspiel brings residents together and investigate the ancient art of letter carving…
Tall Stories 435: Streetcars in El Paso
Gregory Scruggs hops aboard a street car in El Paso to find out how the revival of this transportation option has struck a chord with the locals.
Protecting London’s past
We explore some iconic parts of London’s past through ‘London Lost Interiors’, a book revealing the great indoors of the UK capital. Plus: a cylindrical example of brutalist architecture, Space House, which has been pres…
Tall Stories 434: Millionaire’s Row, George Town
Tomás Pinheiro discusses the history of a prestigious street in the capital of Malaysia’s Penang state and assesses some of the new developments taking over the area.
Utopian Hours 2024
Monocle’s Ed Stocker reports from Turin’s annual festival of urbanism, Utopian Hours, where a collection of inspiring speakers discussed everything from meanwhile spaces to climate resilience. Plus: we visit the river Po…
Tall Stories 433: Holcim Foundation Awards series: Sou Fujimoto
Each week we welcome one of the jury chairs of the Holcim Foundation Awards – the world’s premier competition for sustainable design – to hear their views on creating uplifting places, fostering a healthy planet and buil…
US elections special
We are using the upcoming US election to put a spotlight on American cities and the challenges they face. We discuss housing struggles, how to get around, the changing world of work, the resulting state of downtown cores…
