Evolving theories in urban design seek to reframe how cities are built and experienced. As theory and practice grows more empathetic towards the needs of its diverse stakeholders, queer urban design brings a broad and holistic shift to understanding identity and community in publicly inhabited spaces. The approach challenges traditional – often rigid – methods of city planning by applying principles of queer theory to reflect fluidity and interconnectedness. On occasion of Pride Month 2024, ArchDaily investigates the building blocks of “queer urban design” to influence city planning practices to be more inclusive.
Essentially, queer urban design focuses on creating safe and inclusive spaces for LGBTQ+ communities. It aims to cultivate a more inclusive vision of adaptable cities that cater to various human experiences. In some instances, queer urban design has manifested as a rejection of the notion of a preordained order in the field. The view of cities as dynamic ecosystems that contain diversity and interconnectedness takes center stage.
It’s important to recognize that public spaces are not always truly public for everyone. A 2019 survey revealed that 50% of the British public acknowledges that LGBTQ+ individuals often modify their self-presentation in public spaces to avoid being targeted. Even more concerning, some individuals, particularly those who are transgender, avoid certain areas altogether due to safety concerns. This vulnerability extends beyond the LGBTQ+ community, affecting various minority groups including disabled people, religious minorities, and ethnic minorities.
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Despite the emergence of queer enclaves or ‘gayborhoods’ in many cosmopolitan cities since the 1950s, there remains an urgent need to rethink public spaces more broadly. While areas like Soho in London or the Gay Village in Manchester have provided safe havens for LGBTQ+ expression, many individuals still feel compelled to ‘switch’ or hide their identities outside these enclaves. Moreover, gentrification and urban renewal threaten even these established queer spaces, often making them unaffordable for the very communities that shaped them.
To address these challenges, urban planners must think beyond preserving existing queer places and work towards incorporating LGBTQ+ inclusion and safety considerations into all public spaces. This involves using tools like equality impact assessments and actively consulting with LGBTQ+ groups during the planning process. Additionally, preserving queer heritage is crucial. This can be achieved by encouraging local LGBTQ+ communities to mark their heritage in public spaces, enabling new layers of memory and meaning to emerge organically.
Inclusive design practices should also be updated to go beyond access and mobility issues, incorporating considerations of poverty, deprivation, and lived experiences of marginalized groups. This approach could be supported by encouraging social enterprises to manage anchor businesses in sustainable ways and providing opportunities for organic development through mechanisms like the Community Infrastructure Levy.
While queering urban design offers possibilities for creating more inclusive cities, it’s crucial to recognize that this approach must be intersectional to be truly effective. Trans and BIPOC queer individuals often face multiple layers of discrimination and barriers that their cis counterparts may not experience. As Wyatt Gordon points out, “Even within queer urbanist circles, there’s a tendency to focus on shared concerns like car dependency and heteronormativity while overlooking how systemic inequities of racism, sexism, and transphobia persist in our field.”
For urban planners and designers looking to incorporate queer urbanism into their practice, James Rojas suggests starting by involving queer people of diverse identities at all levels of planning. This means hiring queer planners, engaging them in project consultations, and centering their voices during community engagement. It also involves challenging heteronormative assumptions in plans, creating flexible spaces adaptable to various needs, and directly asking queer individuals what would make them feel comfortable in a space.
This emphasis on collaborative planning unlocks a wealth of innovative solutions. Traditional, top-down approaches might overlook the specific needs of diverse communities. By involving residents in the design process, planners can uncover the need for public spaces that cater to unique cultural practices or social gatherings vital to specific groups.
Queering urban design goes beyond mere functionality. It challenges the notion that cities exist solely for efficiency and economic gain. Instead, it champions the idea of urban spaces that nurture the human spirit in all its dimensions. This might involve creating plazas that encourage spontaneous interaction and playful exploration, even if these activities lack a clear economic benefit.
The goal of queer urbanism isn’t just to create exclusive queer spaces, but to make all public spaces more inclusive. A true measure of success is when people feel comfortable displaying queerness openly in public, whether through clothing, speech, or affection. This visibility creates a positive feedback loop, increasing representation and comfort for all. Queer urban design allows for the democratization of design from increased direct contact with the social production of space.
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