The success of a smart city is determined by the willingness and aspiration of citizens and governments to implement change and reform. By using emerging technologies, smart cities can bring benefits to their citizens.
Smart city planning: six considerations
Aside from these key factors, developing infrastructure will require special considerations from urban planners. These considerations are also relevant to business.
- Define the concept of a smart city
Since the concept of a smart city varies, it is important to agree on a common definition from the outset. This will set the scope and focus for what will be a complex journey of transformation that requires a high level of collaboration from all stakeholders.
Developing a collective vision for the future of a city is an enormous task. It also entails a collaborative act of creativity by the city’s key stakeholders. The vision must take into consideration the city’s unique character, the needs of its inhabitants, the challenges it faces, and its strengths – to name just a few. - Engage citizens
Today, the way forward in smart city planning is a community-driven approach. It is important to engage the local community in order to understand what matters most to them. Engaging the city’s inhabitants is essential, since improving citizen welfare is the end goal. Knowing what people need and want makes it easier to plan and to achieve buy-in when the project needs to be implemented. - Examine your resources
To determine the city’s capability to deliver on the established vision, it is necessary to bring the private and public sectors together to identify the best resources. For example, partnerships between academic institutions and the private sector can assist cities with funding and expanding resources. - Assess current technology
Smart city technologies help cities get more out of their assets, whether they have extensive legacy systems or they are starting from scratch. There is no getting around the need to invest in physical assets and maintenance, but smart technologies can add new capabilities as their core components are upgraded. - Financing
Smart cities require major reinvestment in and modernization of infrastructure – a daunting cost proposition for any city. It is necessary to identify business models to help attract private financing that will turn a city’s vision into reality. A strategic plan should capitalize on a project’s strong points, offering clear socioeconomic impacts and innovative financing structures for investors. - Create a customized plan
There are two dynamic components of a smart city plan. The first is the governance framework for program delivery and the data collected. Program governance establishes processes and structure for communication, implementation, monitoring, and ensuring that policies and best practices are followed. It also includes plans for reviewing the structure upon reaching certain milestones. The other imperative component of a smart city plan is a data governance framework. This will shape the plan’s philosophy on data acquisition, data management, and data archiving.
By understanding the key development role that each stakeholder in a city plays, the potential of a smart city can be realized. Digital transformation through the use of emerging technologies is creating benefits for citizens, and the private sector and urban planners have a major role to play in supplying the expertise and technology required to make smart cities a reality.
Today, the way forward in smart city planning is a community-driven approach. It is important to engage the local community in order to understand what matters most to them.
Summary
Planning for a smart city requires a tailored and holistic approach. This involves defining what “smart” means for your city, and not just engaging with your citizens but also keeping pace with their evolving needs. Smart technologies help cities get more out of their assets. As cities look at ways to become smarter in the future, innovative business models are also essential for translating vision into reality.
