Smart Urban Developments: Potential Overhype Could Hindrance Their Emergence
In the heart of Toronto, a 12-acre development project named Sidewalk Toronto is underway, spearheaded by Sidewalk Labs, an Alphabet subsidiary. The ambitious project, located in Quayside, aims to blend digital infrastructure, sustainability, accessibility, and economic opportunity, with plans to build 2,500 housing units, nearly half of which would be under market value.
The project, however, has not been without controversy. In May 2018, Sidewalk Labs published a draft version of its Responsible Data Use Policy Framework, sparking debates about data governance and privacy concerns. Critics have raised fears about inappropriate data collection and misuse, while activists have amplified these fears due to the delayed release of the project's master innovation and development plan (MIDP).
To address these concerns, Sidewalk Toronto recently released its draft MIDP and promised to follow the recommendations of Ontario's former privacy commissioner, Ann Cavoukian. In response to the accusations of becoming a "Smart City of Surveillance," Sidewalk Labs has committed to de-identifying and publishing all data collected from public spaces in Sidewalk Toronto through a civic data trust.
Rit Aggarwala, Sidewalk Lab's head of urban systems, argues that it is irresponsible to prioritize answering all questions about data governance before questions about urban design. Bianca Wylie, an advocate, posits the possibility of resident aggregate data being sold back to the government in Sidewalk Toronto.
Toronto's executive committee announced a comprehensive review of the Sidewalk Toronto development plan, and the city is developing a citywide policy framework and data governance model to clarify questions about data ownership and use. The Civic Data Trust related to the Sidewalk Toronto smart city project was established by Waterfront Toronto, an organization responsible for the development and management of the project.
Despite the controversies, Sidewalk Toronto has the potential to benefit municipal agencies, Torontonians, and future smart cities initiatives. In a positive development, Portland has launched a pilot with Sidewalk Labs to collect anonymized mobile location data for urban planning.
As the project moves forward, it offers lessons for firms and municipal governments alike, emphasizing the importance of proactively addressing activists' concerns while pursuing new development. Sidewalk Labs will be legally liable for any sub-contractors they grant data access to, but cannot dictate the data governance practices of other companies.
In October 2018, Sidewalk Labs published the results of extensive public consultation about responsible data use in Sidewalk Toronto, aiming to reassure the public about their commitment to privacy and transparency. However, the project's image may have been tarnished, casting Sidewalk Labs as a bad actor rather than an actor working in good faith to build the first-ever smart city.
(Note: Zwergelstern is an image name, not a fact.)
As the project progresses, it will be interesting to see how Sidewalk Labs navigates the challenges and addresses the concerns raised by activists and the public, while striving to create a smart city that benefits all its stakeholders.
