Article

The Image of the Smart City: New Challenges

Giuseppe Borruso 1, * and Ginevra Balletto 2

1 Department of Economics, Business, Mathematics and Statistics “Bruno de Finetti”, University of Trieste,
Via A. Valerio 4/1, 34127 Trieste, Italy
2 Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari,
Via Marengo 2, 09123 Cagliari, Italy; [email protected]
* Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +39-040-558-7008

Abstract: The image of the Smart City recalls Lynch’s “Image of the City” (1960) and the ways in
which urban spaces are perceived by the community and users. The categories presented there hold
a physical, tangible component, related to the spatial and material aspects of the city. Talking about
Smart Cities, a little formulated and tackled question refers to what the image of the Smart City is, and
how it is possible to represent it. The debate on the Smart City regards mainly the digital component
and technological aspects, often not visible or perceivable, neglecting the more humanistic aspects
and implications. We carry on a reflection on the “image of the smart city”. We propose some possible
evolutions of the concept and research directions, in light of the new challenges posed by COVID-19
and the pandemic, as well as the need for a more human-centric approach to planning and managing
urban areas and human settlements.

Keywords: Smart City; city; urban geography; sustainable development; urban sustainability





 1. Introduction
Citation: Borruso, G.; Balletto, G. The The aim of the paper is a reflection on today’s meaning and representation of the Smart
Image of the Smart City: New City. The starting point is its visualization and representation, for proposing a framework
Challenges. Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5. for comparing both the evolution of the concept, and also trying a possible categorization
https://doi.org/10.3390/urbansci of the different Smart City models so far encountered during nearly two decades of talks,
6010005 modelling, policies, and applications to the urban environment.
Academic Editor: Thomas The research aims at categorizing, in time and space, the different stages of evolution
W. Sanchez of the Smart City. This is put it into a framework of a model capable of meeting the needs
of different cities around the world, but allowing, at the same time, to understand if, and
Received: 15 January 2022
what of, the different “models” could be more or less suitable for a certain urban context.
Accepted: 27 January 2022
In doing so, we also consider an evolutionary approach from a merely technological to a
Published: 29 January 2022
more human and humanistic city.
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral
with regard to jurisdictional claims in 1.1. Images of the Smart Cities
published maps and institutional affil- The image of the city was first introduced by Kevin Lynch in 1960 [1], and referred to
iations. the ways in which urban space is perceived by their users, and how these acts are based on
mental maps, whose elements can be put into well-defined categories: paths, nodes, edges,
districts, and landmarks. Such categories, needed to drive those who live and move into the
city, hold a physical and material component, strictly related to the spatiality of the city. The
Copyright: © 2022 by the authors.
physical form of the city, therefore, could evoke images in citizens and city users, defined as
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
“imageability”, allowing the formation of security and intensity in the relations among the
This article is an open access article
people and the city itself [2,3]. The work by Lynch led researchers and scholars to reflect
distributed under the terms and
and debate on these categories, and explore their validity and sustainability through time.
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
The theory was widely studied in urban planning and geography, together with other social
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
sciences, with several studies focusing on the different aspects of the methods originally
4.0/). adopted, and on the main elements of classification of the images themselves [4–7].

Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/urbansci6010005 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/urbansci

Urban Sci. 2022, 6, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 13

Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 phy, together with other social sciences, with several studies focusing on the different 2 ofas-
12
pects of the methods originally adopted, and on the main elements of classification of the
images themselves [4–7].
Thedigital
The digitalrevolution,
revolution,particularly
particularly thethe more
more recent
recent oneone coming
coming out from
out from the wide-
the widespread
spread development of ICT-affected urban environments, contributed
development of ICT-affected urban environments, contributed to new suggestions and op- to new suggestions
and opportunities
portunities for a in
for a change change in theof
the images images of and
the city, the city, and
on the on the
ways ways to and
to evaluate evaluate and
interpret
interpret it, thanks to the widespread use of social networks and media,
it, thanks to the widespread use of social networks and media, as well as mobile phones as well as mobile
phones
and andapps.
related related
Thatapps.
alsoThat alsoaopened
opened wide set a wide set of applications
of applications of methods of for
methods for ana-
analyzing the
lyzingof
image thetheimage of well
city, as the city, as well as identifying
as identifying its constituting
its constituting elements [8–11].
elements [8–11].
Talking about
Talking about the
the Smart
SmartCity,
City,ananoften
oftenunderestimated
underestimatedquestionquestion could
couldbe:be:what is the
what is
image of the city, and how can we represent it? Research on a
the image of the city, and how can we represent it? Research on a popular search engine popular search engine
(Google) on
(Google) on thethe “images”
“images” of of the
the Smart
Smart City
City gave
gave aa set
set of results
results where
where aa real,
real, tangible
tangible city
city
cannotbe
cannot beseen.
seen.TheThesearch
searchprovides,
provides, asas results,
results, images
images of kinds.
of all all kinds. There
There is generally
is generally a city,a
city, made
made of tallofskyscrapers
tall skyscrapers and road
and wide wide avenues,
road avenues, with several
with several icons, icons,
symbols, symbols, and
and signs
signs added,
added, as wellasaswellWi-Fi assymbols,
Wi-Fi symbols, lines connecting
lines connecting dots to
dots to recall recall
wires, wires, connections
connections between
between digital
different different digital
nodes on nodes on communication
communication networks networks
(Figure 1).(Figure 1).

Figure 1. The “images” of a Smart City. Source: Google, accessed on 8 January 2022.
Figure 1. The “images” of a Smart City. Source: Google, accessed on 8 January 2022.

Such
Such anan apparently
apparently trivial
trivial consideration
consideration is is central
central in in interpreting
interpreting and and understanding
understanding
the
the complexity
complexity of the Smart City, City, given
given the difficulty in visualizing and representing it.
There
Thereisisnotnotaawaywaytotosee seeand
and properly
properly represent
represent it. it.
A building
A building andand
a street can can
a street be visualized,
be visual-
walked,
ized, walked, touched, and crossed, which is impossible for the “smartness” ofbuilding
touched, and crossed, which is impossible for the “smartness” of a a buildingor
of
or aofroad. The
a road. TheIdeal
IdealCity
Cityofof
thetheRenaissance
Renaissancewas wasvisible,
visible,although
althoughidealized,
idealized,and and could
could
be
be imagined, represented,
represented, planned,
planned,partly
partlybuilt,
built,andandlived
lived in.in.
The The Smart
Smart City City
todaytoday is
is im-
immaterial; it recalls
material; it recalls thethe
ICTICT (Information
(Information andand Communication
Communication Technologies)
Technologies) that that are
are gen-
generally
erally veryvery smallsmall or hidden,
or hidden, andand visible
visible onlyonly in their
in their more more technical
technical aspects,
aspects, such such as
as the
the mobile phone and Wi-Fi network receivers, routers, or antennas,
mobile phone and Wi-Fi network receivers, routers, or antennas, and the smart devices and the smart devices
(smartphones
(smartphones and and tablets).
tablets). Also,
Also, and
and maybe
maybe mainly,
mainly, from from thethe political
political point
point of of view,
view, itit is
is
something
something that cannot be easily proposed and “sold” to the population and electors, ifif not
that cannot be easily proposed and “sold” to the population and electors, not
in
in terms
termsofofthethephysical,
physical,network
network infrastructure
infrastructure hardware
hardware or in
orthe soft soft
in the component
component software.
soft-
It is in fact particularly difficult to communicate something “smart”,
ware. It is in fact particularly difficult to communicate something “smart”, as there is gen- as there is generally
very
erallylittle
verytolittle
communicate
to communicate or inaugurate. According
or inaugurate. Accordingto various observers,
to various the Smart
observers, City
the Smart
is essentially the last utopia of the 21st century [12,13]. Furthermore,
City is essentially the last utopia of the 21st century [12,13]. Furthermore, it is evident that it is evident that the
Smart City is not a well-defined concept, as it can be associated
the Smart City is not a well-defined concept, as it can be associated with a large number with a large number of
different interpretations, ideas, visions, and projects
of different interpretations, ideas, visions, and projects [14]. [14].
Also,
Also, for
for this
this reason,
reason, the
the Smart
Smart CityCity is
is difficult
difficult to to interpret
interpret forfor aa political
political decision-
decision-
maker. Furthermore, the main technological aspects proposed by Smart City hardware
maker. Furthermore, the main technological aspects proposed by Smart City hardware
(optical fiber, Wi-Fi, 5G, smartphones, apps) shift the attention towards intangible compo-
nents of the city characterized by rapid obsolescence.
The Smart City therefore seems to be turning in this direction, effectively excluding a
part of the population that does not have access to such technologies: a digital divide, even
during the pandemic [15–17]. In other words, although the term Smart City is widely used
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 3 of 12

today [18–20], still no full light has been shed on its full meaning, and different research
contributions were realized on the topic [21–23]. We can certainly state that the Smart City
is the outcome of an evolution of the thought and reasoning of the city with reference
to sustainability, civic participation, and the rapid evolution of technology (Digital City,
Computable City and Virtual City) [24,25], whereas recently, the debate moved towards
more humanistic and naturalistic views [22,26].
The Smart City, at present, should be a city that tackles the needs of its citizens and
city-users, without focusing on their technological skills or devices. It should provide
solutions through technological infrastructure and devices, such as smartphones and apps,
now widely used, but the true change consists of putting the ICT-related procedure “under
the bonnet” and embedded into the processes, and therefore not necessarily visible and
detectable by the single citizen. The term therefore evolved in time from more purely
digital aspects to wider ones (Table 1).

Table 1. Evolution of the concept of Smart City. Authors: Borruso G. and Balletto G., 2021. Source:
Original elaboration by authors, inspired by ABB and TEH—Ambrosetti, 2012 [27].

Years Concept of Smart City Focus

Early 2000 Digital City Hardware
Mid 2000 Socially Inclusive City Software
2010 Quality of Living City Hardware/Software
From 2020 Health and Sustainability City Orgware

1.2. Building Blocks of the Smart Cities

This is the result of the New Economy’s short-term memory and separation from
the administrative processes, focused, instead, on the uses and applications. The New
Economy has been using, from the beginning, new technologies, but not always resulting
from real needs and potentials. This accelerates the aging of new technologies, which
already present such character. Furthermore, the New Economy accelerated the process of
internationalization of economic systems up to configuring the well-known globalization,
reducing distances and times of the production, economic, and social processes [28].
In such a framework, the organization of the city, and, in particular, that of metropoli-
tan cities and their related production systems, are reorganized in the direction of new long-
and short-range networks and hierarchies of nodes, towards the extreme configuration of
the City–State completion [29]. Furthermore, the knowledge and availability of information
represent the raw materials from which the urban and its territorial renewals are formed. If,
in the past, the raw materials were from mines and quarries [30], today, the raw materials
derive from data mines, favoring the creation of economic opportunities such as the circular
economy [31]; and help solve complex public problems, improve governance, and empower
citizens [32,33]. In this synthetic framework, the goal is conceptual understanding through
a comparative synthesis of the Smart City and its image through the main typologies and
geographical contexts to evaluate future trends.
The rest of the paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents the Materials and
Methods, organized in subsections dealing with Smart City and Smart Cities; Blueprint-
Greenfield City; Brownfield City; and Blueprint-Brownfield City. Section 3 describes the Italian
Smart Cities: A Problem of Definition. Section 4 describes Smart Cities and Emergencies;
Some Reflections; and Research Suggestions. Discussions: Challenges and Proposals are
tackled in Section 5; whereas Section 6 contains the Conclusions.

2. Materials and Methods

In this section, our aim is the systematization of different “images” and “models” of
the Smart City, envisioning the different characteristics that, in time and space, developed
with reference to the different evolutions of the concept. After the observation in the
previous paragraph on the evolutions of the Smart City from the technological, towards the
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 4 of 12

human and humanistic point of view, we propose a framework for categorizing the different
ongoing processes involving the transformation of the cities towards a “Smart” framework.

2.1. Smart City and Smart Cities

The Smart City cannot be a unique concept, as there is not a single Smart City model,
but several Smart Cities, with these considering different flavors of the same inspiring idea,
that of an ICT city meeting the users’ needs, respecting environmental issues.
The most recent evolutions of the Smart City concept [34] have highlighted the im-
portance of the soft components, as well as the hard components of the city, that is the
connections between citizens, and between citizens and the city itself. The Smart City is
indeed a technological city, but it is a city offering services and solutions to its citizens and
users [35]. In other words, the Smart City arises from the need to govern the progress of
urbanization processes, which will grow differently in different countries.
In particular, Western cities have longer processes of adaptation and growth. Eastern
cities, newly industrialized, are those where changes are expected to be faster and more rad-
ical [36], as well as needing the most important and striking investments and interventions.
This also translates into different interpretations and applications of the concept of Smart
City in the different territorial contexts worldwide, connected to different ways of planning
and financing initiatives, interventions in decision-making processes, and political systems.
Current Western cities, in fact, are the outcome of a long process of growth with different
moments of acceleration, i.e., the industrial revolutions or the post-war reconstruction
periods generally face growth in terms of population and built infrastructure buildings
and utilities. On the other side, among the issues related to a rapid urbanization, as South-
eastern Asian, South American, and African cities have been experimenting in the recent
decades, there is that of an urban growth, in terms of population and buildings, not always
coupled with the necessary set of utilities, the latter of which including ICT ones.

2.2. The Smart City Models According to the Urban Transformations: A Proposal
It is possible to summarize different models of the Smart City according to the different
characters of the project itself, rather than considering the different lands where a Smart
City is developed and implemented. In doing so, there is a need to define, preliminarily,
some basic ideas behind the proposed scheme of classification.
Smart Cities are often developed as a blueprint, as projects coming from private or
private–public partnership for either brand new development of urban land, or from the
conversion of already existing land previously dedicated to other uses, such as industrial
or manufacturing activities, or services, such as retail and logistics.
In some cases, “smart” cities are not based on blueprints, but from bottom-up ap-
proaches, such as tactical urbanism or other user-generated initiatives, not necessarily
implying a structured and highly funded project behind.
With reference to the quality of land involved, greenfield areas can be considered. In
this case, a free area is used to realize a brand-new project from the beginning, without
previous use. This is the easier and often less expensive solution, although the more
land-taking one.
More frequently, a Smart City project implies the conversion of a previously used set
of parcels of land for industrial or services usage. In the former case, the term brownfield is
used, whereas in the latter, less frequently considered up to the present time, but with a
high probability of growing, this is considered as greyfield. Some possible combinations of
land can be considered for the implementation of Smart City projects.
Furthermore, with the Smart city, mainly in Europe, thanks to ICT, transparency in the
dynamics of governance has begun, as well as in the quality of public and social services,
and citizen participation in the decision-making phase (participation in public life: from
top down to top down/bottom up) [17]. (Table 2).
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 5 of 12

Table 2. Synthetic comparison of the Smart City concepts (Authors: Borruso G. and Balletto G, 2021).

Smart City Blueprint-Greenfield Brownfield Blueprint-Brownfield

City of old origin, with an
It can involve new cities or cities
City was born from a real estate ancient urban layout and with
with an old system, through the
project, often on a private few possibilities for new
construction of new neighborhoods,
initiative, with strong support infrastructures. Smart
or through the massive
from the central/local interventions concern the
Characteristics redevelopment of existing, “smart”,
government. ICT infrastructures, creation of ICT infrastructures
project-based neighborhoods, with
new materials, and energy are and services. There are often
heavy investments by private
designed right from the initiatives of local Smart
initiatives, and in concert with the
construction of new cities Communities for urban reuse,
local government
even temporary and low cost
Participation Top Down Top Down/Bottom Up Top Down/Bottom Up
Newly industrialized countries
Geographical Industrialized countries (e.g., Industrialized countries (e.g.,
(e.g., Saudi Arabia, United Arab
contexts USA, Europe) Canada, USA, Europe)
Emirates, South Korea)
London (UK), Amsterdam
Neom (Saudi Arabia), Masdar Toronto—Quayside (Canada),
Examples (Netherlands), Copenhagen
(United Arab Emirates), Songdo Milan—City Life (Italy)
(Denmark), Milan (Italy)

In general terms, before going into the details of the different models, there is the need
to clarify the role of participation. Planning, in its more recent flavors, implies, generally,
the public participation during the different stages of its evolution.
However, the overall push given by ICT, particularly in implementing social networks,
allowed a wide majority of people to interact and take part in the social, economic, and
planning life of cities, which also implies a different way of perceiving and fostering the
projects involving cities and their transformation.
The different models observed, of course, imply different ways of participation, from
the top-down, generally typical of grand investment projects, to the bottom up, in which
local communities are promoters, or at least widely involved, in local projects, implying an
important transformation of their local urban environment.

2.2.1. Blueprint-Greenfield City

The city of Neom (Saudi Arabia) [37] is probably the symbol of this kind of Smart
City [38]. The storytelling of this city is quite interesting. It moved from an impressive
image of an empty shore on the Red Sea, the to-be location of future Neom, a city not yet
existing, to its transformation into “The Line”, a linear city that stretches for 170 km, to
represent a set of planned settlements linked together crossing Saudi Arabia towards the
Red Sea. Environmental sustainability, energy saving, quality of life, and business appear to
be the keywords of what the Arab Emirates plan to build on the Red Sea. A big investment
to move from an economy based on fossil fuels to one based on renewable energies, they
have decided to design a new city from scratch, a Smart City, which will make use of
advanced technologies, with the idea of being Smart, starting with its design. The process is
similar to the initiatives of private property developers who sell “climate houses”, or home
automation, designed from the outset to be “Smart”, to be ecologically compatible. “The
Line” is the latest example of other cities following the same principle: public initiative and
strong private investment (e.g., Ordos (Mongolia), Songdo City (Incheon Soul, South Korea),
Masdar (United Arab Emirates). They are the disruptive (and overbearing) proposals that
derive from those countries, from those forces that have the desire, the economic power,
and political-decision-making will to realize them. The citizen is missing here. Cities are
not only made up of buildings and infrastructure, but also of individuals, relationships,
interactions between individuals, and between individuals and cities. However, the Smart
City thus considered is a city that can represent the “grandeur” of a country. As is often the
case, the “blueprint” projects start having in mind the latest technologies of the moment,
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 6 of 12

which rapidly grow old. Songdo (South Korea) is an example, with buildings planned with
smart-card access in mind, without foreseeing the disruptive impact of smartphones in
managing most of the ICT functions [39].

2.2.2. Brownfield City

A second category is that of the Brownfield City, an area in a town or city that has
been used in the past for factories or offices, and that could now be used for new building
development. With reference to European cities, examples are: Amsterdam, Copenhagen,
London, and Milan. Projects related to “intelligence” can be dedicated to solutions to solve
real and effective problems of cities, such as those of urban sustainability. The issue is
that such cities are older, and we are not facing a “blank sheet” or a beach from which to
start building a city from scratch. There are infrastructural and physical constraints of an
existing productive and population fabric that must be considered, and major investments
on new areas are difficult to implement.
Here, ICT technologies, in some cases, have made possible some solutions that, until
recently, were unthinkable, i.e., Uber, Flixbus, and AirBnB would not have been possible
without ICT evolutions, and “smart” solutions have been realized with infrastructural
investments, i.e., city Wi-Fi and more traditional policies. As a matter of example, London
and Milan congestion charges allowed the development of car and bike sharing that has
no equal in other Italian cities, and even these initiatives were made possible by the
technological revolution of apps and of smartphones. A Brownfield City can be considered
as a stage of further evolutions towards the Blueprint-Brownfield city, where portions of
the city can be regenerated from scratch.

2.2.3. Blueprint-Brownfield City

A third category is that of the Blueprint-Brownfield City, where an existing, well-
established city is regenerated in new areas thanks to the deep reconversion of previously
industrial (or retail) locations as new areas of “smart” redevelopment. Such areas become
“cities within cities”. They present a consolidated urban layout, in which urban rede-
velopment or construction of new neighborhoods are designed in a “smart” logic, with
large investments in technology and innovative solutions, e.g., Milan-Citylife, and Toronto-
Sidewalk, the Alphabet-Google project to create a “Smart” neighborhood in Toronto.The
latter project is emblematic of the clash between top of private and public initiative down,
and bottom up of citizens’ initiative approaches [40]. Currently, the Sidewalk project has
been frozen due to the contrary pressure coming from the citizens of Toronto. An important
element refers to the cities and the emergencies they are called to face.
The element that makes this reflection more relevant than ever is the recent COVID-19
pandemic [41–45].
From the brief description of the three categories emerges the continuous need for
an “ideal city” according to the ancient model of Leonardo Da Vinci [46], where the most
advanced technologies of the time were used to solve the problems of water separation
and mobility. The issues of the supply of goods, mobility, water supply for domestic use,
and that of waste water management are topical. Always about water in response to shock
(climate change and catastrophic events), the architects of the Bjarke Ingels Group speak
with the Humanhattan 2050 (Figure 2).
Furthermore, after Hurricane Sandy, which brought New York City to its knees, the
reflection is on the containment and resilience of the city towards climate change. In this
context, the project envisages the construction of “drowned” barriers in urban leisure
structures parks, gardens, public spaces combined with a soft, coastal, tree-lined, and
floodable part of the city, with a dual purpose. In normal situations, the spaces are open to
the use of citizens, increasing the usability of the city; in emergency situations, the barriers
intervene and temporarily sacrifice green areas, those most capable, at the end of the crisis,
of being restored.
 From the brief description of the three categories emerges the continuous need for an
“ideal city” according to the ancient model of Leonardo Da Vinci [46], where the most
advanced technologies of the time were used to solve the problems of water separation
and mobility. The issues of the supply of goods, mobility, water supply for domestic use,
and that of waste water management are topical. Always about water in response to shock
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 7 of 12
(climate change and catastrophic events), the architects of the Bjarke Ingels Group speak
with the Humanhattan 2050 (Figure 2).

Figure2.2.Left:
Figure Left:Humanhattan
Humanhattan 2050, by Bjarke Ingels
Ingels Group,
Group, photo:
photo:Borruso
BorrusoG,G,“Biennale”,
“Biennale”,Venezia,
Venezia,
2018. Right: Leonardo, mockup
2018. Right: Leonardo, mockup ofof a “Città ideale” (Ideal City), photo: Borruso G, Trieste, 2019.
City), photo: Borruso G, Trieste, 2019.

3. Italian Smart Cities:

Furthermore, afterAHurricane
Problem Sandy, of Definition
which brought New York City to its knees, the
reflection is on the containment and
What is the situation of Smart Cities in Italy? resilience of theWhat
city towards
are the climate
cities we change. In this
can define as
context, the
“Smart”? Thisproject envisages
question the construction
is certainly not easy toofanswer, “drowned” even barriers
if, in thisinparagraph,
urban leisure we
structures
will parks, gardens,
try to provide some ideas. public spacesput
Scholars combined with aonsoft,
the attention coastal,
different tree-lined,
aspects of theandcity,
floodable
from part of the city,and
their representation with a dual
image purpose.
[47,48], to theIn critical
normalaspects
situations,
raisedthebyspaces are open
the Smart City
to the
itself use ofto
[49,50], citizens,
the issuesincreasing
of planning the usability
[51,52]. With of thethecity; in emergency
historical situations,
conformation of thetheItalian
bar-
riers intervene
urban texture, itand temporarily
is difficult to thinksacrifice green areas,
of “dream” cities those
born frommost thecapable, at theproject,
Blueprint end of the
and
crisis,
the of being restored.
infrastructural heritage of the built environment and spaces of the existing cities need
to be considered [53,54]. Rather, it is easier to encounter a Brownfield context or a mixed
3. Italian Smart Cities:
Blueprint-Brownfield A Problem
context from aof Definition
Smart perspective, or to intervene from scratch in new
neighborhoods,
What is theborn from the
situation projectCities
of Smart or from the conversion
in Italy? What areofthe areas previously
cities we can defineintended as
for different
“Smart”? functions.
This question Such projects not
is certainly andeasy
initiatives ofteneven
to answer, sufferif,from a very
in this strong influence
paragraph, we will
oftrytheto private
provide component
some ideas. at the level
Scholars putof theinvestments,
attention on and therefore
different aspectsof of
“orientation”
the city, from in
the political–urban planning choices of the city towards technological
their representation and image [47,48], to the critical aspects raised by the Smart City itself solutions [23,24].
Furthermore,
[49,50], to thepublic–private
issues of planning partnerships
[51,52]. With linked thetohistorical
Smart Cities are often closely
conformation linked
of the Italian
tourban
technological
texture, itcomponents,
is difficult to andthinkpoorly integrated
of “dream” citieswith
bornurban
from the policies [25,26].
Blueprint Fromand
project, the
point of view of the
the infrastructural denomination,
heritage of the built there are manyand
environment cities that of
spaces refer
the to the “Smart
existing City”
cities need
label
to bewithin their[53,54].
considered organization,
Rather, and with reference
it is easier to encounter to the projects explicitly
a Brownfield context or funded
a mixed on
this item. Furthermore,
Blueprint-Brownfield as often
context fromhappens,
a Smartdifferent
perspective,rankings
or to attribute
intervenedifferent
from scratch weightsin
tonew
different indicators.born
neighborhoods, Among
fromthe therankings,
project orthe fromANCI “Urban Agenda”
the conversion of areasportal provided
previously in-
updated information on Smart Cities and related projects in
tended for different functions. Such projects and initiatives often suffer from a very strongItalian cities (the portal has
no longer been operational since 2019). In 2021, for the
influence of the private component at the level of investments, and therefore of “orienta-ICity Rank of ForumPA [55],
Florence
tion” in the waspolitical–urban
confirmed as the most choices
planning digital capital of Italy
of the city towardsfor the second consecutive
technological solutions
year,
[23,24].followed by Milan
Furthermore, (in second place)
public–private and Bologna
partnerships linked (intothird),
Smartwith CitiesRoma Capital
are often City,
closely
Modena,
linked toBergamo (on a par
technological with fourth
components, and place),
poorly Turin, Trento, with
integrated Cagliari,
urban and Parma [25,26].
policies to close
the
Fromtopthe ten.point
Other of rankings,
view of the such as that of Ernst
denomination, there andareYoung
many [56],
citiesplace Trento
that refer to at
thethe top of
“Smart
the Smart Cities, and the cities of Turin, Bologna, Mantua, Milan,
City” label within their organization, and with reference to the projects explicitly funded and Bolzano (respectively,
inon2nd,
this 3rd,
item.4th, and 5th place)
Furthermore, as oftenaccording
happens, to different
the related Smart City
rankings Index.
attribute Without
different going
weights
into the details of the different rankings, we can identify
to different indicators. Among the rankings, the ANCI “Urban Agenda” portal provided some elements that recur and
unite
updated these cities: belonging
information on Smart to aCities
metropolitan
and related dimension,
projects inor,Italian
usually, an(the
cities average
portal urban
has
dimension
no longer been and operational
a location in the 2019).
since NorthInor2021, Center-North,
for the ICitypart Rank ofof the old or better,
ForumPA new
[55], Flor-
industrial
ence was triangle.
confirmed In as
urban contexts,
the most economic
digital capital development
of Italy for theseems second to be combinedyear,
consecutive with
the “technological” sustainability demands of the Smart City, and in the various aspects
of the six dimensions of “smartness” [57–60]. In particular, the metropolitan dimensions,
not only administrative, but functional, of some urban contexts can allow governance and
development actions of new solutions and real markets linked to innovative aspects. The
urban reconversion of “Citylife”-type areas, as far as it concerns large conversion projects,
as well as the development of services based on technological innovation, find an adequate
scope of application.
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 8 of 12

4. Smart Cities and Emergencies: Some Reflections and Research Suggestions

The health emergency that emerged with COVID-19 has highlighted how the Smart
City model refers to constant growth scenarios. The shock, or rather the stop, imposed by
the international health emergency exposed urban vulnerability in many of its primary
services: health, education, and mobility. COVID-19 has, in fact, imposed two different
speeds on citizens, businesses, and public administrations. If, in the personal sphere, it
forced us to follow a slower pace, making us give up part of the hectic activities we were
used to, in the social and collective sphere, on the contrary, it pushed the accelerator of
digital transformation processes and the adoption of new technologies and IoT devices
(Internet of Things). There has been a push forward towards safe, efficient, sustainable
city models, but it is still unclear whether they are citizen-friendly. In particular, starting
from the six Smart dimensions of the Smart City [61], the economy (Smart Economy) is,
increasingly, centered on technological innovation in order to restart. Smart People are
increasingly involved in the choices of the community thanks to new communication
tools. In addition, the Administration (Smart Governance) pushes to improve remote
and digital services; more intelligent and sustainable mobility (Smart Mobility) (in the
post-COVID-19 phase, with electric mobility and the use of bicycles); the environment and
sustainable development (Smart Environment). In this framework, the material part of
the city intersects: that of the consolidated historical city and the suburbs; and that of the
regulatory instruments, referring to a past time, and where there is no flexibility necessary
for the post-pandemic city. For example, how should a city respond to the conflicting
objectives of regulating the use of scooters and services such as Uber and Lyft? Hence,
there is a frantic search for real-time data to encourage flexibility and mobility emerging in
a new regulatory framework between user needs and safety, not just health. The legislative
process of the many emerging forms of mobility is long and inherently slow.
Many innovative solutions bring unknown advantages and risks; therefore, writing
legislative rules is already a task full of pitfalls, which clashes with a previous and complex
regulatory system that, in recent years, has been amplified by as many and numerous
European directives. Without the infrastructures (in this case, telecommunications), various
activities could not have been established, such as: online shopping, call conferences, smart
working, remote lessons, telemedicine, etc., which respond to the need for flexibility of
work, no longer distinct as an activity limited in time and space. It is not clear whether
this is the cause or effect of the limited welfare policies, which change significantly from
country to country, helping to give a more or less complete meaning to the suffix Smart
placed in front of “work”.
The techno-digital revolution, similar to the electric revolution, has led to a wide
availability of devices, data connections, and the opportunity to connect them together,
developing applications with high added value: able, on the one hand, to improve the
quality of urban life, but also to interfere in privacy and personal spaces. In fact, with the
increase in life expectancy, especially that in Italian metropolitan cities, there has not been
an equally increasing individual and collective quality of life. Will the new technologies
save the cities of the future? Also, it is worth mentioning 5G and artificial intelligence
founded by Big-Data. In this sense, Big-Data emerges as a great contribution towards
sustainability: they are necessary, but not sufficient for the cities of the future, which are
now designed as large hyper-connected ecosystems, equipped with sensors and other
devices capable of collecting and processing large amounts of data.

5. Discussions: Challenges and Proposals

What is the post-pandemic Smart City, and what are its challenges? The pandemic
crisis from COVID-19 proceeds in successive waves, and there has been a use of drastic
actions to limit mobility and life and social interactions, especially urban ones. During
the so-called “lockdown”, the scientific, as well as journalistic, debate on the Smart City
has almost disappeared, replaced, instead referring to the city, to the challenges posed
in terms of “survival of the city”, in a hypothesized world made of teleworking, and/or
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 9 of 12

smart working, reduction of social interactions, and, therefore, a possible “return to the
countryside” [62].
With the debate on the Smart City, attention has shifted to the “hard” elements (infras-
tructural, such as the network, hot-spots, etc.) and “soft” (social networks, apps, etc.), and
the same “apps” were seen as the way to solve the problems of cities. Trust in apps shifted
attention to the tool, without reflecting on the series of processes downstream of the same IT
applications. At present, some technological solutions have undoubtedly made life easier
for citizens, thanks to the use of technologies related to ICT, hard and soft. These span from
apps to platforms for e-commerce, which have represented the main methods of connection,
as well as access to information, and methods of educational, work, and cultural interac-
tion, from March 2020, the starting period of the pandemic-related restriction policies and
actions. This represents the positive and sparkling aspect of “smartness” and the Smart
City combined with the apparent positive effect of reducing pollution [63], restocking
vegetable and animal life in cities, and a slower lifestyle. What are the challenges? Which
elements of the Smart City, or rather, of the city, should be investigated in this key in the
most immediate future? Connection is a metaphor for division mending. In terms of the
Digital Divide, e-learning and smart working have highlighted the need for a network,
public or private, reliable and fast. Townsend [64] highlighted how different cities, in the
US’ case, had opted for public city Wi-Fi or private mobile phone operator investments. In
the current Smart City, this element should be rethought and evaluated. Furthermore, it is
also evident that there is a difference between center-periphery characterized by different
access speeds. Another aspect is related to connection and social characteristics [64].
The Digital Divide is a metaphor for access and social divide. In a world where
access to technologies is “equal for all” (reduced connection costs), however, the transition
to the virtual world remains a luxury for the benefit of a few, more than for access to
technology itself, for cultural and economic possibilities on the part of some to dedicate
time and resources to these tools. As an example, e-learning, where it works, required
a large organizational effort from families, not always possible for all workers. Another
important aspect is related to commercial distribution at the urban level. Here too, the use
of suppliers that, without the development of ICT, would not have been successful, i.e.,
Amazon, JustEat, Deliveroo, etc., especially during the lockdown period, has accentuated
the mobility of goods, of various sizes, but, above all, small ones, in a widespread way in
the cities. The challenge of urban logistics is very strongly linked to the need to think about
urban spaces precisely linked to the different ways of experiencing mobility, of people, but
also of goods. Among the primary challenges of the Smart City, are the real networking
and system of support modalities for the health sector based on ICT. Where possible, “at
home” care and support systems can be implemented starting from existing situations,
effectively developing the apparently hidden application of the Smart City to support the
quality of life of the citizens. Thus, there is the double advantage of reducing the stress
of health structures, with consequent reduction of the risk of crowding, as well as that of
spending a period of hospitalization in a family structure, such as one’s own home.

6. Conclusions
Main findings: The Smart City question is open, and probably, at present, it has
reached a turning point in which a reflection on the city, more generally, is required. The
recent pandemic, in fact, has almost eliminated the debate and reflection on the Smart
City. That was the case particularly during the most striking and exceptional period of the
lockdowns implemented in most of the countries of the world, during the first half of the
year 2020. In such a period, “true” Smart City solutions could have helped in tackling many
aspects of the pandemic, i.e., tracking and tracing of positive cases, better geo-localized
services for isolated people, etc.
Comparison with previous studies and existing literature: Still, the debate restarted
in more recent times, particularly on the more technological aspects, and related to the
influence of ICT, although there is a convergence in the belief that cities will be able to
Urban Sci. 2022, 6, 5 10 of 12

go out and resist this epochal event [42,59,62–68]. In fact, in the governance of the Smart
City, precisely because of its prevalent techno-digital component, the tools often make
a leap of species, and become objectives per se, fueling a distorted approach to urban
processes focusing more on tools and indicators rather than on the issues they are intended
to tackle and monitor. Furthermore, Smart Governance was the major absentee during the
epidemic, and shows no particular momentum in this current phase. The simplification
and streamlining of procedures are not enough; it is in fact necessary to seriously review the
government of territories and their programs, the mechanisms of the projects and related
processes, and to evolve towards new forms of partnership. In this sense, the epidemic is
an important reminder in respecting and adopting the objectives of the 2030 agenda, and,
despite the economic concerns, the dynamic spirit of the city is reflected in the development
of creative ideas, the ecological engine of the necessary change towards resilient cities [67].
Implications and recommendations: A holistic vision of urban processes and phenom-
ena based on interdisciplinary reciprocity relationships is therefore necessary and, given
the complexity to be governed, the multiple images of the Smart City [12,13] “without a
place” will be able to evolve towards places for prosperous coexistence [68].
Study limitations: The research we hereby propose is still ongoing, and there is the
need to integrate the analysis with further research on the applications from the political,
technological, and research points of view to the different urban cases around the world,
also considering the “pandemic break” that actually slowed down many projects and
reflections on Smart Cities. There will be the need to investigate how, and in which terms,
the Smart City will coexist with other emerging concepts, such as the 15-min City, the
Post-pandemic City, and the Augmented City [69], and, furthermore, if a model capable of
incorporating these latter evolutions could be proposed.

Author Contributions: This paper is the result of the joint work of the authors. Conceptualization,
G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso) and G.B. (Ginevra Balletto); methodology, G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso); formal
analysis, G.B. (Ginevra Balletto); investigation, G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso); resources, G.B. (Ginevra
Balletto); data curation, G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso); writing—original draft preparation, G.B. (Ginevra
Balletto); writing—review and editing, G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso); visualization, G.B. (Ginevra Balletto);
supervision, G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso). Graphic elaborations and photographs of Figures 1 and 2,
G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso). G.B. (Ginevra Balletto) wrote Sections 1.2, 4 and 6; G.B. (Giuseppe Borruso)
wrote Sections 1.1, 2, 3 and 5. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the
manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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