Poor regional spatial planning makes the lack of water catchment functions and green open spaces result in environmental problems, particularly in Pekanbaru City, Indonesia. The solution is to utilise the potential of the Siak River and its historical heritage through waterfront city (WFC) management. Structuring a WFC based on a low-carbon concept can solve environmental problems by significantly reducing carbon emissions. This study aims to inventory, map, and evaluate the condition of the existing landscape, analyse public perceptions, and develop recommendations for a WFC with a low-carbon landscape concept. The methods used are historic urban landscape analysis, spatial analysis with land evaluation, community perception, and the preparation of recommendations. The results showed that the management of historical and cultural heritage is still poor. Based on the evaluation of land suitability, the WFC area has the potential to develop tourism, settlement, conservation, and pond areas with varying degrees of suitability according to the function of the area and several limiting factors. Through public perception, the level of enthusiasm of respondents is very high for applying the low-carbon landscape concept. Recommendations are made with the 15-Minute City Strategy through zoning and management programmes, namely tourism, mixed-use, conservation, and cultural preservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]