Abstract
A prominent place in the spatial arrangement of Czech as well as other post-socialist, Central European cities belongs to 19th century closed urban blocks and the open panel housing estates which were erected during the socialism era in the second half of 20th century. The urban characteristics of these two fundamentally diverse types of residential structures have, as we suppose, a different impact on the sustainable development of the urban area. The amount and character of local greenery, the spatial arrangement and accessibility of the courtyards, the spatial forms of the surrounding buildings and many other factors can influence the ecological stability of the area, its hygienic qualities, the intensity and way of using by various social groups, and also e.g. the prices of real estates. These and many other phenomena indicate the ecological, hygienic, social and economic sustainability of the urban area. The research methodology evaluates specific measureable indicators of sustainability within a range from 0 to 10 points where 5 points correspond to the general standard in the area, 0 points indicate degradation, and 10 points indicate the highest contribution to sustainable development. The survey results are reflected in the overall sustainability index and in the residents’ satisfaction index that reflects the subjective satisfaction based on questionnaires surveys. The paper analyses the residential structures in the Central European city of Brno, Czech Republic. The case studies of the urban blocks near the city centre and of the panel housing estate Brno - Vinohrady are compared. The results imply that a considerable positive impact on the sustainable development of the area should be ascribed to the green closed urban blocks near the city centre. These urban blocks with a closed courtyard provide a quality outdoor environment with a certain level of privacy. This factor can significantly support the development of local community.
Highlights
An important role in the spatial structure of Czech and other post-socialist cities play two types of housing development
A prominent place in the spatial arrangement of Czech as well as other post-socialist, Central European cities belongs to 19th century closed urban blocks and the open panel housing estates which were erected during the socialism era in the second half of 20th century
Two different urban structures matching two different urban planning conception were analysed in two localities in Brno, Czech Republic
Summary
An important role in the spatial structure of Czech and other post-socialist cities play two types of housing development. One of them are closed urban blocks from the 19th century and the other is an open housing estate structure from the second half of the 20th century Both types of housing development create spatial structures made up of multi-storey buildings and variously arranged spaces between houses. We will focus on the influence of the spaces between residential buildings on sustainability and on the satisfaction of the local community, for which we consider for research purposes the inhabitants of houses around the investigated spaces between houses. How do these spaces affect the character of the outdoor environment?
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