679 session 14: digital design methods - eCAADe 23 | A Parametric Approach to Urban Design Tentative formulations of a methodology Nicolai Steinø and Niels Einar Veirum The Urban Design Research Group Aalborg University School of Architecture and Design Østerågade 6 DK – 9000 Aalborg www.aod.aau.dk/ud steino@aod.aau.dk nev@aod.aau.dk Abstract. It is the thesis of this paper, that the application of a parametric design approach to urban design has great potentials for improving the systematic testing and subsequent argumentation for urban design proposals. Parametric design has so far mainly been applied to engineering. However, the ‘components’ constituting an urban design also share similarities that may be defined parametrically. Aspects such as density, use, mix, form, space, and typology may all be defined parametrically. By doing so, it is possible to not only perform a systematic de-sign process, but also to evaluate the pros and cons of scenarios with different para- metric settings. On the basis of a theoretical discussion, followed by a case study in the form of a student workshop, the paper will discuss the nature and scope of parametric urban design, draw some preliminary conclusions, and outline some possible perspec- tives for the development of parametric urban design. Keywords. parametric, parameters, urban design, methodology, workshop, CAD Introduction Urban design differs from other design dis- ciplines in a number of ways. While architectural design or product design is typically targeted at designing objects to a level of detailing at which they can be produced on the basis of the design, urban design is not always targeted at a unified end product (Steinø, 2003, p. 171). As expressed in Jonathan Barnett’s famous maxim that urban design is ‘designing cities without designing build- ings’, urban designs are often conceptual designs defining overall principles for urban development, rather than detailed designs. As urban designs must often be negotiated among several stakeholders, the question of docu- mentation and validation of the design is impor- tant. In other words, if the urban designer cannot convince the stakeholders that the design meets their requirements, the design is likely to fail. But