scholarly journals Satisfaction with Selected Indicators of the Quality of Urban Space by Polonia in the Greater Toronto Area

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 778
Author(s):  
Kamila Ziółkowska-Weiss

The main objective of this article is to determine the quality of life of Polonia living in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), with particular emphasis on urban quality, which influences their assessment of the standard of living in this city. The presented results of the research are based on a survey questionnaire conducted with the participation of 583 respondents. The respondents evaluated, among others: accessibility to recreational tourism in the city, public transport, possibilities of finding a job, accessibility to housing and quality of the natural environment. Assessment of the selected indicators was correlated with the application of the statistical coefficient of the chi-squared test with particular sociodemographic characteristics of the examined respondents (with age, place of residence of the respondents (Toronto, suburbs) and their duration of residence in the GTA). On the basis of the formulated research hypotheses and conducted studies, it can be concluded—among others—that the satisfaction level with regard to accessibility to housing increases with age, that people living in the GTA suburbs rate accessibility to transportation lower than people living in Toronto and that people living in the GTA for more than 20 years rate accessibility to tourism, leisure and relaxation lower than people living in the GTA for a period shorter than 20 years.

Author(s):  
Kamila Ziółkowska-Weiss

The main goal of the article is to describe selected components of standard of living and quality of life within the Polish diaspora of the Greater Toronto Area which includes four districts: Halton, Peel, York and Durham. An author-composed model of mutually affecting objective factors (standard of living) and subjective factors (quality of life) will be presented in the paper. Individual factors (demographic, social, cultural, economic, legal, educational, geographical, and health-related) included in the field research among respondents and based on assigned indices influencing the quality of life in the Polish diaspora of the Greater Toronto Area, will be presented. The evaluation of satisfaction with areas of life selected by the Canadian Polish diaspora will be discussed, as well as their evaluation of standard of living in the Greater Toronto Area, such as Polish schools, parishes, travel agencies, and non-governmental organisations (such as the Song and Dance Ensemble or scouting). Their evaluation of whether their needs were met and accessibility to selected components of the city will also be analysed. Data correlating the length of time respondents have lived in Toronto, and a general evaluation of the quality of life will be presented.


2021 ◽  
Vol 47 (3 (181)) ◽  
pp. 79-100
Author(s):  
Kamila Ziółkowska-Weiss

The quality of life is commonly referred to as a determinant of well-being, contentment, happiness or a sense of satisfaction with one’s own existence. Often used interchangeably with the level, conditions or standard of living. Quality of life is the satisfaction of meeting all human needs. The main aim of this research is to determine the level and quality of life in terms of tourism by the Polish community living in the Greater Toronto Area, which includes the city of Toronto and four regions: Halton, Peel, York and Durham.The article will present its own model of objective factors (standard of living) and subjective factors (life quality) interacting with each other with a particular emphasis on geographic and tourism aspects. The main aim of this article is to show how the Polish community living in the Greater Toronto Area assesses the aspects related to tourism management in the city. The results of the study will be presented on the basis of a survey questionnaire conducted on 583 respondents. The respondents assessed, among other things, whether they were satisfied with the conditions of rest and relaxation in this city, public transport and the environmental quality. Respondents were also asked to evaluate the activity of Polish travel agencies operating in the Greater Toronto Area. The study will also address matters related to improving the quality of life and tourism development in the city. As indicated by the respondents, such activities as supporting existing tourist activities, expansion of bicycle paths or increasing sports and recreational infrastructure (i.e. construction projects of swimming pools, tennis courts) are the main needs in the city, which could contribute to the higher rated aspects of Toronto related to tourism. Data will be presented showing that in the Polish community in the last twelve months their household had enough income to cover the costs related to leisure, vacations, holidays or school breaks.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 48-60
Author(s):  
Fernanda Fonseca de Oliveira ◽  
Jean Guilherme Oliveira ◽  
Tiago Bonfim Dias ◽  
Mayara Pissutti Albano Vieira

The right to suitable housing has become recognized and accepted by the international community since its inclusion in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, whosetext, in its article 25, alleges that everyone has the right to an adequate standard of living for the family’s health and welfare, including food, clothing, medical care and the necessary social services. In Brazil, low constructive and architectural quality mark the production of social housing, culminating on the reduction of the beneficiary’s quality of life and environmental problems. Therefore, the present work aims to submit surveys and analysis of Ana Jacinta housing complex in the city of Presidente Prudente, São Paulo, in order to evaluate the environmental and urban quality of the units delivered to beneficiaries in the early 1990s. The methodology isbased in bibliographic and documentary surveys.


Author(s):  
Sylwia Widzisz-Pronobis ◽  
◽  
Grzegorz Pronobis ◽  

Bytom is a polish, post-industrial city which is looking for a new vision of the future. City dwellers are between a history related to coal and new challenges. It is not easy for them to understand that industry is a thing of the past and you need to look for yourself and your identity again. Groups of social leaders are trying to show a different picture of the city and engage more and more people to act for the city. Building the city's identity and new image are basic ideas. However, in the era of global discussion about climate change and the technologization of city life, it becomes important to become aware of the role of greenery and community. In the article I want to show how Bytom social activists promote and animate the local community in the spirit of collectivism and improving the quality of life in the city. The assumption of the described groups was the maximum involvement of residents in activities to improve the space in Bytom. In the article I want to show what tools they used and what effects they obtained. Particularly important here are activities that contribute to making the community aware of the role of greenery and pedestrian space. The effects of social activities show more clearly how important are strong communities opposing local authorities and supporting good investment decisions. Analysis of the activities of social groups showed how important local leaders play and how various methods and tools used by them gave measurable effects in the city space. The bottom-up activity helped to understand the advantages of a pedestrian city, which is Bytom, and to show how little it takes for the city to gain a new image.


Urban History ◽  
1980 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 53-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bill Luckin

Now that the debate about the standard of living during the first half of the nineteenth century appears to have entered a relatively quiescent phase, historians have begun to turn their attention towards the more elusive concept of the quality of life. The incidence of fatal and non-fatal disease is clearly central to research of this type and so, too, is a delineation of the physical context in which infections have flourished and in which those who have been afflicted by them have lived. Although there has been a tendency to underestimate the ferocity of epidemics in rural areas in the period after about 1750, historians working on disease in the modern period are inevitably most usually concerned with processes which are specifically urban in character. And urban historians, especially those interested in such topics as the development of utilities, the growth of administrative bureau-cracies or the spatial segregation and different life experiences of the classes, can undoubtedly benefit from a knowledge of patterns of infection in the past.


Author(s):  
Katarzyna Nosal ◽  
Łukasz Franek ◽  
Sylwia Rogala

The quality of urban space in terms of walkability can be assessed taking many parameters into account, such as the presence of sidewalks, their density and continuity, appropriate technical parameters as well as the presence of greenery, squares, parks, which create the environment for pedestrian traffic. The lack of travel barriers, the possibility to shorten the route, travel safety and security, the presence of street furniture, shops and services are also significant. This article concerns some of the above described factors and presents selected research results on the use of space in city centers of several Polish cities – Kraków, Gdańsk, Szczecin, Warsaw, Gdynia, Wrocław and Poznań as well as the results of an analysis on the friendliness of this space for pedestrian traffic. The first phase of this study was to determine the share of public space within the analyzed city center areas, and then define areas used as roads, infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists, squares, green areas, parks and public courtyards. The balance of the used space was created for each researched area, and the space dedicated to pedestrian traffic was additionally analyzed in terms of the presence of obstacles as well as sidewalk location. The analysis results prove that that greatest amount of the public space is located in the city center of Poznań, and the smallest in Kraków. Warsaw is characterized by the greatest and Szczecin by the smallest percentage of the pedestrian infrastructure. Szczecin dominates in terms of the share of roads in the downtown area, Wrocław in terms of squares and Gdańsk – public courtyards.


2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (30) ◽  
pp. 31-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iwona Cieślak ◽  
Karol Szuniewicz

Abstract The system of pedestrian urban space is the primary source of information on the state of the space. Walking around a city, we are perceptually building in our mind its physiognomic silhouette, which becomes the basis for evaluating the attractiveness of a city. Unfortunately, pedestrian traffic is rarely the subject of careful planning and design. Usually it regulates itself or is a side-effect of building an extensive system of road communication. On the other hand, concepts of shaping this system as a primary one appear more and more often, and pedestrian space is seen as high priority public space. The purpose of the article was to evaluate qualitative evaluation methods determining the current state of pedestrian pathways in the town Giżycko. Valuing quality, as a part of the science called qualimetrics, refers to determining the quality of objects which are the product of human activities, designed to meet the needs of human beings. At the root, it is a science relating to the determination of the quality of market items, supporting the production management process. As space, particularly urbanized, is created by people to satisfy their needs, it was concluded that quality valuation methods may also be useful to assess the quality of space. The article focuses on the quality of pedestrian routes that are essential to the central part of Giżycko. For these routes, the current state of the features identified as key for their quality was investigated, and quality classes of the routes were determined by analysis. The procedure can be a tool supporting the planning and implementation of modernization and renovation works for the area of pedestrian communication, and thus the image of the city.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 340-359
Author(s):  
Miloš Mihajlović ◽  
Aleksandra Subotić ◽  
Vladimir Parežanin

This paper views proportion as a tool used by planners and architects to achieve a certain quality of space. Considering that proportion is used to observe the correlations between the whole and its parts, the paper examines the aspects of space from the spatial plan of a city to the architectural details. Also, despite the fact that proportion is the correlation of the dimensions of physical elements in space, the paper also perceives proportion through the correlation of the material and immaterial aspects of space. In this way, the focus is shifted onto the level of communication between the architectural - urban space and its users, that is, to orchestration through the perception and experience of space, rather than the outdated, proportional analysis of architectural form.


space&FORM ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2020 (46) ◽  
pp. 165-186
Author(s):  
Wojciech Skórzewski ◽  

Local spatial development plans, are one of the most important urban landscaping tools. Their goal is, on the one hand, to protect urban space including, inter alia, prevention of creation of illconsidered developments, that are bad to the urban landscape, the environment or the local communities. For this purpose, there is a number of restrictions introduced into local spatial development plans. On the other hand, the role of local plans is also creating the space, so they should be conducive to projects with high-quality architecture, that are often unconventional and innovative, adding new value to the architectural landscape of the city, which could be blocked by too strict regulations. The trick is to create regulations in a way that can help reconcile that two goals.


Author(s):  
V. A. Dianova

Rational planning of urban space is an important task, the level of resolution of which largely determines the quality of life of citizens. In addition, the rating of the city as the most convenient for life, or having a developed infrastructure has an impact on its investment attractiveness and, as a consequence, on the employment of the population in the production of goods and services. Therefore, the standard of living of people living in this municipality depends on how well and strategically planned the urban space is. The principles of the organization of life support systems of economic structures, basic management methods, urban planning of public works, the distribution of funds for their implementation and monitoring of implementation are fundamental to effective management. The article deals with the modern management of the city through the prism of the concept of spatial development, the use of which is necessary for regions with heterogeneous spatial structure. Since in the system of management of complex socio-economic development of the city is a fragment of the current state machine, the objectives of the management of the city - is the implementation of the tasks that can be carried out only within the framework of comprehensive planning of the state territorial development. The essence of strategic planning of the city should be considered as a social Corporation, reflecting and defending the interests of its citizens, urban communities, organizations and enterprises.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document