scholarly journals Private control and public openness. The development of London’s public spaces since the Mayor’s 2009 manifesto

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 129
Author(s):  
Camilo Vladimir De Lima Amaral
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Planning Process ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Critical Approach ◽  
Policy Document ◽  
Lived Spaces ◽  
Space Production ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

This research aims to analyse the ongoing privatization of public spaces in London. It also seeks to explore the impact of the 2009 Mayor’s policy document named ‘A Manifesto for Public Space - London’s Great Outdoors’ in this process. The manifesto argues in opposition to the growing ‘corporatisation’ and exclusion of privately controlled spaces and in favour of spaces that are open ‘for all Londoners’ and with a planning process overseen by the Public Sector. In order to understand if these goals were achieved, an initial inventory listed all the developments after 2009. The projects’ examination made it possible to identify the most important cases in each group. This article analyses whether these developments are private public spaces or whether they remain genuinely public, thus examining the manifesto’s effectiveness on London’s lived spaces. In order to do that, a critical approach was constructed upon the literature review, in order to confront the ideas of public space with the spatial experience. This dissection demonstrated how recent complexity of urban space production has created new phenomena in the city, that can be assembled in the concepts of Velvet Ground, Tangled Orbits and Repeated Compulsion of Space Consumption. The concepts clarify the relationship between social control, the democratic openness of public space, and citizenship. The study concludes that a new form of privatized space is taking over the city, and the proposed policies were unable to stop this tendency.

scholarly journals Property Value, Urban Quality and Maintenance Condition: A Hedonic Analysis in the City of Naples, Italy

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 560-565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincenzo del Giudice ◽  
Francesca Torrieri ◽  
Pierfrancesco de Paola
Keyword(s):  
Real Estate ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Property Values ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Real Estate Market ◽  
Property Value ◽  
Standard Requirement ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

The article examines the relationship between property value and level of conservation of public urban space. While many studies have examined the effect of proximity of open space, parks, and trees on property value, there has been few examination of how projects of urban revitalization and ordinary and extraordinary maintenances of public spaces can influence property values. While intuition can suggest that a low level of quality and maintenance of a public space can negatively affect property value, even if the standard requirement of public spaces and services are meet, this yet to be empirically proven.We proposes the application of a new econometric models for quantitative analysis of the characteristics of real estate property (Generalized Additive Model), to assess the impact of maintenance condition on property values, due to the better prevision that these functions can obtain in a real estate market context.The control of the formal and logical adequacy of the proposed theoretical model is referred to the case study under analysis, in the city of Naples. The results obtained show that a well preserved urban environment influences property price by approximately 6%. The experimental test of the model has provided results that, by reason of their formal consistency with the results obtained in other contexts, can be considered representative of the effectiveness of the methodology proposed.

scholarly journals “The street is ours”. A comparative analysis of street trading, Covid-19 and new street geographies in Harare, Zimbabwe and Kisumu, Kenya

Food Security ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard Kiaka ◽  
Shiela Chikulo ◽  
Sacha Slootheer ◽  
Paul Hebinck
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Street Vendors ◽  
Urban Food Security ◽  
Street Trading ◽  
Food Economy ◽  
City State ◽  
Abstract Spaces ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

AbstractThis collaborative and comparative paper deals with the impact of Covid-19 on the use and governance of public space and street trade in particular in two major African cities. The importance of street trading for urban food security and urban-based livelihoods is beyond dispute. Trading on the streets does, however, not occur in neutral or abstract spaces, but rather in lived-in and contested spaces, governed by what is referred to as ‘street geographies’, evoking outbreaks of violence and repression. Vendors are subjected to the politics of municipalities and the state to modernize the socio-spatial ordering of the city and the urban food economy through restructuring, regulating, and restricting street vending. Street vendors are harassed, streets are swept clean, and hygiene standards imposed. We argue here that the everyday struggle for the street has intensified since and during the Covid-19 pandemic. Mobility and the use of urban space either being restricted by the city-state or being defended and opened up by street traders, is common to the situation in Harare and Kisumu. Covid-19, we pose, redefines, and creates ‘new’ street geographies. These geographies pivot on agency and creativity employed by street trade actors while navigating the lockdown measures imposed by state actors. Traders navigate the space or room for manoeuvre they create for themselves, but this space unfolds only temporarily, opens for a few only and closes for most of the street traders who become more uncertain and vulnerable than ever before, irrespective of whether they are licensed, paying rents for vending stalls to the city, or ‘illegally’ vending on the street.

scholarly journals The (No-)Public Space. Reviewing the Transformation of Al-Qaed Ibrahim's Urban Image

2020 ◽  
pp. 177-192
Author(s):  
Iman Hegazy
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Urban Image ◽  
Political Conflicts ◽  
Political Events ◽  
The One ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Public spaces are defined as places that should be accessible to all inhabitants without restrictions. They are spaces not only for gathering, socializing and celebrating but also for initiating discussions, protesting and demonstrating. Thus, public spaces are intangible expressions of democracy—a topic that the paper tackles its viability within the context of Alexandria, case study Al-Qaed Ibrahim square. On the one hand, Al-Qaed Ibrahim square which is named after Al-Qaed Ibrahim mosque is a sacred element in the urban fabric; whereas on the other it represents a non-religious revolutionary symbol in the Alexandrian urban public sphere. This contradiction necessitates finding an approach to study the characteristic of this square/mosque within the Alexandrian context—that is to realize the impact of the socio-political events on the image of Al-Qaed Ibrahim square, and how it has transformed into a revolutionary urban symbol and yet into a no-public space. The research revolves around the hypothesis that the political events taking place in Egypt after January 25th, 2011, have directly affected the development of urban public spaces, especially in Alexandria. Therefore methodologically, the paper reviews the development of Al-Qaed Ibrahim square throughout the Egyptian socio-political changes, with a focus on the square’s urban and emotional contextual transformations. For this reason, the study adheres to two theories: the "city elements" by Kevin Lynch and "emotionalizing the urban" by Frank Eckardt. The aim is not only to study the mentioned public space but also to figure out the changes in people’s societal behaviour and emotion toward it. Through empowering public spaces, the paper calls the different Egyptian political and civic powers to recognize each other, regardless of their religious, ethnical or political affiliations. It is a step towards replacing the ongoing political conflicts, polarization, and suppression with societal reconciliation, coexistence, and democracy.

scholarly journals »Reclaiming« the City: A Collective Endeavor

Dimensions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-202
Author(s):  
Sergiy Ilchenko
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Collective Actions ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
Urban Renaissance ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City ◽  
Being Moved

Abstract This contribution elaborates upon the appropriation of urban space in spatiotemporal and procedural interventions in the example of the city of Kharkiv, as well as the impact of urban space on the process of how various groups rediscover and use various parts of the city. Being moved during collective actions - in the sense of feeling urged to move along - goes beyond routine practices by influencing the city and its perception. It seems that these general processions, celebrations, and festive activities of the residents are their contributions to the process of »urban renaissance« - the rebirth of interest in the urban way of life. Since public spaces reflect the historical inheritance of local communities, joint transformative actions such as, »appropriation «, »production«, and »governance« of urban spaces are considered. This article advocates for the practice of domestication of urban space by the local community, as well as the need for the existence of »urban lagoons« - free (unregulated) areas of the city used as resources for urban development and interaction of citizens.

scholarly journals Exploring Successful Small Urban Spaces’ Criteria with Emphasis on Cultural Context

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 475-482
Author(s):  
Parvin Partovi ◽  
Kebria Sedaghat Rostami ◽  
Amir Shakibamanesh
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Model ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Cultural Context ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Urban Spaces ◽  
Cultural Issues ◽  
Human Needs ◽  
Short Time ◽  
The City

In the crowded cities of the present age, public spaces can provide a quiet area away from the hustle and bustle of the city that citizens can interact with by incorporating utility features and meeting human needs and Relax there. Small urban spaces are among the most important and effective urban spaces to achieve this goal. Because these spaces due to their small size and lower costs (compared to larger spaces) for construction can be created in large numbers and distributed throughout the city. In this way, citizens will be able to reach a public urban space on foot in a short time. If these spaces are well designed, they can encourage people to stay in and interact with each other. It is not difficult to identify and experience high-quality successful places, but identifying the reasons for their success is difficult and even more difficult, understanding if similar spaces in other places can be considered successful. This question is important because public space with deep social content is considered a cultural product. Public space is the product of the historical and socio-cultural forces of society. Therefore, one of the most important issues that should be considered in the study of public spaces and the reasons for their success is the cultural context. In Iranian cities that have been influenced by the values and principles of Islam,recognizing Islamic principles and their role in shaping public spaces can lead us to desirable results. The purpose of this article is to develop a conceptual model of successful small urban spaces with an emphasis on cultural issues, especially in Iranian-Islamic cities. In this regard, the effective criteria for the success of urban spaces in general and small urban spaces in particular in the two categories of Western countries and Iranian Islamic cities were examined and then, taking into account the criteria derived from cultural theorists, the conceptual model of research with 38 subcriteria is provided.

Analysis on Building Readable Image of Urban Public Spaces

2013 ◽  
Vol 409-410 ◽  
pp. 883-886
Author(s):  
Bo Xuan Zhao ◽  
Cong Ling Meng
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Space Images ◽  
Urban Public Space ◽  
Good Image ◽  
The Public ◽  
The City

City, is consisting of a series continuous or intermittent public space images, and every image for each of our people living in the city is varied: may be as awesome as forbidden city Meridian Gate, like Piazza San Marco as a cordial and pleasant space and might also be like Manhattan district of New York, which makes people excited and enthusiastic. To see why, people have different feelings because the public urban space ultimately belongs to democratic public space, people live and have emotions in it. In such domain, people can not only be liberated, free to enjoy the pleasures of urban public space, but also enjoy urban life which is brought by the city's charm through highlighting the vitality of the city with humanism atmosphere. To a conclusion, no matter how ordinary the city is, a good image of urban space can also bring people pleasure.

scholarly journals Urban water bodies as the basis for functioning of public spaces

2020 ◽  
Vol 217 ◽  
pp. 02005
Author(s):  
Valentina Kurochkina
Keyword(s):  
Urban Planning ◽  
Urban Environment ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Water Bodies ◽  
High Rate ◽  
The Creation ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The City

Recently, housing construction in cities has been carried out at a high rate. Increasingly, urban abandoned and flooded depressive spaces near water bodies (often rivers), which were previously used as industrial facilities or temporarily used, are becoming the sphere of architectural and landscape transformations. The restoration of such territories helps to improve the quality of urban space and improve its ecological properties. Correct development of territories near rivers and various water bodies has a great health-improving effect on the urban environment, improves its natural and climatic conditions. In addition, social and economic factors play an important role in this process, since such transformed territories and territories adjacent to them significantly increase investment attractiveness. This paper examines modern approaches to the development of urban public spaces, based on the formation of architectural environments that ensure the relationship of urban development with water bodies and adjacent territories. The paper notes that water bodies are not only an important component of the natural-ecological framework, but are also the basis for the framework of urban-planning natural-technogenic systems as a whole. And the creation of a continuous urban fabric is impossible without the organization of a ‘water’ line of development, provision of compositional, functional and communication interconnection of open urban and water spaces, which is actively being introduced today in architectural and urban planning practice. The paper examines the role of water bodies in the ecological system of the city, as well as in its structure as a whole. The aim of the study is to identify the features of the formation of a public urban space, to determine the patterns of its development, to identify criteria that reflect the nature, scale and features of the impact of urbanization on a water body. Some principles of revitalization of coastal areas, as well as the creation of a system of publicly accessible, compositionally expressive spaces are considered. The principles of space transformation aimed at the formation of a holistic image of the city, as well as the impact of such a spatial arrangement of urban and water bodies on the safety and quality of the urban environment are considered.

scholarly journals Sustainable urban structures to challenge climate change

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emil CREANGA ◽  
Maria DUDA
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Private Investment ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Capital City ◽  
Urban Structure ◽  
Urban Structures ◽  
Modern Development ◽  
The City

Public spaces within the city in all their form of different types - streets, boulevards, squares, plazas, market places, green areas - are the backbone of cities. Over the centuries buildings defined the shape and quality of public spaces, valorising them in various ways. The post-modern development of urban form generated a great number of “urban spaces”, where there is no longer correspondence between architectural forms and social and political messages: shopping malls and theme parks, inner public spaces, strip developments etc. Urban sprawl accompanied by loss of agricultural/rural land and its impact on the environment are serious concerns for most cities over Europe. To strike the right balance between inner city regeneration, under-use of urban land in the old abandoned sites and the ecological benefits that accompany the new private business initiatives in suburban areas, is one of the major challenges confronting cities in Europe. The paper will analyze the complex relations between architecture and public space, in an attempt to understand how traditional urban structures, public and green spaces, squares and streets, could provide orientation for quality-oriented regeneration. Case in point is Bucharest - capital city of Romania - where aggressive intervention in the urban structure during the 1980s disrupted the fabric of the city. The investigation is oriented towards fundamental questions such as: how to secure and preserve sites that serve as initial points in upgrading processes, how to balance private investment criteria and the quality interests of the urban communities.The major aim is to provide a support for decision making in restoring the fundamental role of public urban space in shaping urban form and supporting community life.

scholarly journals Urban Public Space of a Small City and the Needs of Residents in Realizing Practices of Socio-Cultural Interaction

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 325-335
Author(s):  
V. Petrova ◽  
V. Dvoinev
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Sociological Research ◽  
Cultural Interaction ◽  
Sociological Study ◽  
Urban Public Space ◽  
The City

To date, the urban environment is considered as an interesting area of sociological research. Urban space represents a built environment, which includes buildings, streets, squares, parks, embankments, etc. Every day, citizens interact with this public space, build their routes, form impressions and the image of the city, they also evaluate its effectiveness in connection with opportunities for the realization of their needs of socio–cultural interaction. Public spaces are those places where holidays are held, social and economic relations are formed, verbal and non-verbal communications are created. In urban public space take place meetings of friends and acquaintances, the integration of various cultures, social groups with diverse goals, norms and attitudes. Public spaces act as a stage for the social life of individuals when they are a comfortable, accessible and safe environment. The article presents the results of a sociological study of the conformity of public spaces of the city of Vyazma in the Smolensk region with the needs of its population. The study was conducted using observation and interview methods. An analysis of the collected data helped to identify the main purpose of the urban public space as it is seen by the residents, the types of their interactions, to determine the structure, functions and effectiveness, as well as to assess the quality of the content and equipment of the urban public spaces, as well as to identify the most active groups of population and how their activities change in the daily and seasonal cycles. Based on the results obtained, recommendations were developed for improving and developing public space and urban life in general. Recommendations can become the basis for creating design solutions for a comfortable, safe and innovative environment for both small and large cities.

scholarly journals PUBLIC PLACES IN THE MODERN CITY: DAILY PRACTICES OF THEIR CREATION AND PRESENTATION BY THE INHABITANTS OF THE CITY

2020 ◽  
pp. 24-27
Author(s):  
Mikhno Nadiya
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Urban Space ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Public Places ◽  
Modern City ◽  
Space Organization ◽  
The City ◽  
Ideological Context

The main focus of this article is on defining the specific characteristics of public space organization in a modern Ukrainian city. The study identified the vector of change in the organization of public spaces in recent decades under the influence of changing socio-historical, ideological context and under the influence of globalization processes. It is determined that the main formats of using public spaces in the city today are pragmatic formats of use – the practice of commercialization of urban space, the practice of interaction with strangers, «domestication» of public space, «Europeanization» of public space, desacralization and marking of public space as safe and convenient.

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