THE world's first and only City Urbanist is preparing to stand down from his role after four years in the unique post created to help shape the future of Scotland's largest city.
Professor Brian Evans was appointed in 2019 on a £40,000-a-year salary for a two-day per week role - leaving many in the city scratching their heads as to what the position entailed.
Put simply, Mr Evans is a strategic advisor employed to take an overview of how Glasgow functions, how it is designed and how its residents live.
Read Professor Brian Evans's full piece here: Glasgow is constrained to initiate and drive its own projects
Reflecting on the purpose of his role, Evans writes in today's Herald: "To gather evidence on the city through the lens of place using the Scottish Government’s Place Principle, the independent role of the city urbanist offered the opportunity to establish a place commission to consider quality of life and quality of place in Glasgow following on from the earlier Connectivity Commission.
"During my tenure, I have spoken to every type of organisation from communities and professional bodies to the United Nations.
"There have been numerous keynote talks, presentations, interviews, podcasts and articles explaining the role and what it was intended to achieve."
It is perhaps not for Mr Evans to say whether the position has achieved what it was intended to, but the leader of Glasgow City Council, Susan Aitken, said the role had been carried out with "great distinction".
She added: "[He has helped] to embed place in thinking about how we - and the wider city - deliver services.
"Mr Evans’s work leading the Place Commission provides the city with a pioneering understanding of how Glasgow functions as an everyday, a metropolitan and an international city.
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"The Commission’s report is a hugely valuable addition to work being done not just in Scotland, but globally, on why great places matter so much for people.
"We been delighted to have the benefit of his many years of experience and insight during this part of his celebrated career."
Alongside the Place Commission report, another success Mr Evans points to is bringing the 2019 United Nations Economic Commission for Europe to Glasgow for a major conference on transition cities that produced the Glasgow Message on Sustainable and Affordable Housing to sit alongside the precedent set by Vienna in 2018.
Mr Evans is now engaged in helping to secure a City Architect for Glasgow.
It is six years since the SNP-controlled council pledged to introduce a City Architect but has failed to progress the plan until now.
The idea was a manifesto pledge at the 2017 local elections after Susan Aitken and her then-deputy, David McDonald, met and were inspired by Copenhagen's City Architect.
Mr Evans writes: "The role calls for thought leadership in the interaction of design, city, place and people to contribute to Glasgow’s on-going story and I suggest that this is an opportunity to put place at the centre of thinking and develop a narrative around Glasgow functioning simultaneously as an international, metropolitan and everyday city – a form of urban alchemy that the city carries off well."
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