Guided long-term development with local insight
UPSA partnered with Gehl to shape the long-term development of a new urban center in Brasília — an ambitious, thirty-year vision aimed at creating a vibrant, inclusive, and human-scale city. Set within the context of Brazil’s shifting urban dynamics, the project sought to redefine how large-scale growth could better support public life, social interaction, and livability.
Working alongside the local planning team, Gehl helped advance the character and vision of future neighborhoods and precincts. This process led to the development of a comprehensive set of design principles, addressing elements such as block size, subdivision patterns, street types, land-use distribution, and building form, height, and massing. These principles offer a flexible but structured foundation to guide future development and architectural design.
At the heart of the project was a framework for a public space network — ensuring that parks, streets, and civic areas would be thoughtfully integrated with the built environment to support a vibrant public realm. The team at Gehl provided tailored, site-specific guidelines for each neighborhood that could be adapted over time to market shifts and evolving community needs.
The result is a forward-looking, locally grounded strategy that sets a new direction for urban development in Brasília — one that prioritizes people, place, and long-term sustainability.
