Systems and Frameworks / Contextual Intelligence

Micro City

Kuwait City

aerial view of physical model showing urban density transitions and neighbourhood organisation

Program

Mixed-use residential masterplan integrating housing, civic anchors, landscape, and public realm

Status

Commissioned Study

Practice Area

Research and Urban Strategy

Area

Approx. 1.7 million m²

CONTEXT

Micro City is a commissioned urban design study in Kuwait City developed for the National Bank of Kuwait, responding to the challenge of delivering large-scale housing within a predominantly automobile-oriented suburban context. The commission asked how urban growth might be restructured within an existing suburban fabric to support civic life, walkability, and long-term adaptability.

Existing mosques within the site are identified as civic and social anchors, forming the organisational basis for neighbourhood structure and pedestrian connectivity.

diagram illustrating urban grain and block structure strategy for walkable neighbourhoods

diagram outlining distributed landscape and public space structure across neighbourhood blocks

diagram showing pedestrian movement networks and walkable neighbourhood systems

The project proposes a counter-model to suburban expansion, reframing large-scale housing delivery as a walkable, civic, and spatially legible urban system.

urban site plan establishing neighbourhood blocks, civic anchors, and pedestrian structure in micro city, kuwait city

DESIGN INTENT

The project responds by establishing a clear neighbourhood framework organised around embedded cultural anchors, with landscape and pedestrian public space structuring movement and proximity. Mosques are treated as civic and social organisers, generating a legible urban system composed of interconnected neighbourhoods. Working through repetition and variation, the masterplan establishes a coherent framework capable of accommodating diversity while maintaining formal discipline.

aerial view of district-scale physical model illustrating overall urban framework

A physical model testing block structure, neighbourhood grain, and the spatial relationship between built form and embedded landscape at the district scale.

district plan showing interconnected neighbourhoods and civic organisation within micro city urban framework

axonometric view of physical model showing block massing and spatial hierarchy

close-up of physical model highlighting pedestrian streets and residential block relationships

RESOLUTION AND OUTCOME

The project resolves as a flexible family of architectural typologies embedded within a legible neighbourhood structure. Urban form, public space, and housing operate as a unified system, supporting phased delivery, social proximity, and spatial clarity across city, district, and residential scales.

physical model site plan showing neighbourhood structure, civic anchors, and pedestrian networks

A flexible family of residential and civic typologies operating coherently within the larger urban framework while allowing variation across neighbourhood conditions.