Rethinking spatial planning for urban conviviality and social diversity: a study of nightlife in a Singapore public housing estate neighbourhood

Abstract

In Singapore, land constraints have steered planning policies toward higher-density living such that strangers must coexist in even closer proximity than ever before. As arenas for the enactment of everyday routines, neighbourhood nightlife spaces have the potential to generate a convivial atmosphere for social interactions among different users. Drawing on fieldwork in Toa Payoh Central, we begin by examining the physical environment as the point of departure for our observations on the social and civic qualities of a quotidian neighbourhood after dark, and from which we then discuss spatial planning for inclusive public spaces at night. The findings reveal that good quality public spaces can help promote urban conviviality and social diversity in a globalising city like Singapore.