Health-Oriented Evaluation and Optimization of Urban Square Space Elderly Suitability: A Case Study of Yiyang City Center

Abstract

Urban squares are the main place for older adults’ daily activities. The spatial layout of the urban square is not only related to the construction of a healthy city and the equitable distribution of public resources, but also of great significance in enhancing the sense of gain, security, and happiness of older adults. This essay takes “health needs of older adults” as the perspective, and constructs a multi-dimensional evaluation index system of urban square space for elderly suitability in terms of physiological, psychological, and social health. It also takes six urban squares in Yiyang city center as an example and analyzes and evaluates them using GIS network analysis and the entropy weight method. The results of the study show that (1) Yiyang city center squares show the distribution characteristics of “dense in the middle and scattered around”, and the spatial distribution is not balanced, which leads to a small service area. (2) The overall intervention value of urban square space is mainly distributed between 0.291 and 0.710, with an average value of 0.481, and the overall intervention effect of the square is good. The reasons for differences in health interventions for older adults in urban square spaces centered on six aspects: the quality of the square space, the variety and convenience of travel lines, the tidiness of the environment, physical activities, safety, and social interaction. Based on this, this essay proposes three optimization strategies for the renewal of urban squares, the construction of characteristic squares, and the reconstruction of the urban square space system. The aim is to provide a reference for the future design and renewal of the elderly suitability of urban squares, so as to promote the construction of a healthy city.