Public Open Space Research Articles

Management Strategy for Public Green Open Spaces in Medan City Using SWOT Analysis

Medan City, the third-largest city in Indonesia, faces significant challenges in managing its public green open spaces (RTH) due to high population density, rapid urbanization, and insufficient green space, which falls far short of the 30% mandated by law. This research assesses the management of public green spaces in Medan through a SWOT analysis, revealing internal strengths such as a Regional Spatial Plan and government commitment, alongside weaknesses like suboptimal management, lack of coordination between agencies, and inadequate regulations. External factors, including opportunities from NGO funding and potential land acquisition, contrast with threats like rapid population growth and misuse of green spaces. Through data collection methods, including focus group discussions, questionnaires, and interviews with key stakeholders, the research identified key areas for improvement in green space management. Strategic recommendations include strengthening policies, increasing public awareness, optimizing cross-sector collaboration, and promoting sustainable urban planning. Additionally, leveraging green spaces for economic growth through multifunctional uses can enhance their value to the community. This study concludes that public green open spaces in Medan City can contribute significantly to sustainable urban development and environmental balance if managed more effectively, with better coordination, stronger regulations, and resource allocation. The findings aim to provide valuable insights for urban planners and policy makers in achieving urban sustainability goals.

The Public Open Space Quality in a Rural Village and an Urban Neighborhood: A Re-Examination after Decades

The Public Open Space Quality in a Rural Village and an Urban Neighborhood: A Re-Examination after Decades

Campus Commons: Analysis of IIT Patna’s Public open Spaces

The Public open spaces offer amenities including areas for social interaction and physical activity, which are crucial for the overall wellness of society and the enhancement of living quality. Many studies on POSs have been conducted in developed countries (the US, Australia, and Europe, particularly Germany, Spain, and France). POSs for the Indian context haven't been thoroughly studied, though. Using importance-performance analysis (IPA), this study attempts to investigate the role and effectiveness of public open spaces on the campus of National Institute of Technology, Patna, India. It has been noted that stakeholders' perceptions of the importance & satisfaction, from the use of public open spaces within the IIT Patna campus, varies. Consequently, this study could be useful in determining the importance and satisfaction of public open spaces, enabling the prioritization of these areas in order to enhance management and restore them in order to accomplish environmental sustainability locally. Furthermore, this study recommends that public open spaces' benefits to education, recreation, & the environment be taken into account by those in authority over campus planning early on.

Small Open Space

People can participate in the public realm by using public open spaces. In contrast to the setting of home or job, it is a place where people can physically join the larger community. The absence of neighbour interactions and the isolation of people as a result of a lack of well-maintained public open spaces have been characteristics of a new emerging town. Many public open places around the world have been underappreciated and severely neglected. A well-planned public open space would entice residents to leave their homes and participate in a variety of activities. When it comes to use and occupancy, this can raise the quality of the area. By evaluating the architectural and urban elements of the public open spaces, this research intends to discover and analyse dysfunctional public open spaces and weak linkages in those areas, and come up with solutions to improve these spaces and stimulate public life.

Analysis of Public Satisfaction Levels in Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) City Forest Based on Socio-Cultural Functions

The Jakarta City Government, along with the central government, has implemented various measures to address the issue of air pollution that has become a serious problem for the city. One of the efforts undertaken is to increase the provision of urban green spaces and restore the function of the GBK City Forest as a public green open space (GOS). However, there has been no research showing the public's perspective and satisfaction with the utilization of the GBK City Forest. This study aims to determine the level of public satisfaction with the GBK City Forest based on social-cultural functions. The assessment indicators used to measure public satisfaction in this study are based on the theory of cultural ecosystem services developed by Shijie Gai et al. The data used in this study were obtained using mixed methods data collection techniques through questionnaires (quantitative) as well as in-depth interviews and literature studies (qualitative). Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that the majority of the public is highly satisfied with the utilization of the social-cultural functions of the GBK City Forest. However, some people still complain about the lack of supporting facilities for recreational activities and the disturbances from external parties that make them feel uncomfortable when engaging in activities at the GBK City Forest. Therefore, it is important for the government and the GBK City Forest management to consider public feedback and improve the quality and safety of the existing facilities.

Mapping and Assessing Effective Participatory Planning Processes for Urban Green Spaces in Aotearoa New Zealand’s Diverse Communities

The multicultural landscape of Aotearoa New Zealand presents a rich tapestry of diversity and community needs, underscoring an imperative for inclusive participatory planning processes. This paper presents findings from an investigation of the challenges and opportunities inherent in community engagement initiatives, particularly within the context of New Zealand’s major ethnic groups, including New Zealand European, Māori, Chinese, and Pasifika. Drawing from the importance of community participation in reshaping public open spaces, this research addressed the gap in understanding which participatory planning processes are most effective across diverse cultural groups. To investigate the effectiveness of various approaches to community engagement, this research involved focus groups from the Wellington suburbs of Newtown and Porirua, utilising both on-site and online meetings. The findings identify the most effective participation processes for planning public open spaces in relation to each ethnicity. Correlations between participant preferences and their unique cultural backgrounds were assessed. In addition, the least effective participation methods along with several relatively effective participation methods are discussed. By highlighting engagement methods that can foster inclusivity, equity, and a sense of community, this research advances a collective goal of building a more cohesive and effective society for all its inhabitants.

Stand-off concealed firearm detection using motion tracking and convolutional neural networks

<p>The standoff detection of concealed firearms is crutial in managing public security in public spaces. Currently employed standoff concealed weapon detection techniques employ electromagnetic wave imaging which has been found to be extremely slow and may require expensive hardware and may not be applicable in public open spaces. Inorder to maintain safety in open spaces, artificial intelligence enabled video surveillance systems have been widely adopted. This poses an opportunity to explore video surveillance cameras as concealed weapon detectors. A review of existing video surveillance based automated weapon detection approaches discovered that the focus was on the detection of unconcealed firearms leaving a gap in the detection of concealed firearms. This study addresses the aforementioned gap by providing a standoff concealed firearm detection approach on video based on skeletal-based human motion tracking and convolutional neural networks. The motion of armed and unarmed persons was tracked using a depth camera and further classified using convolutional neural networks model. The developed model reported 100% accuracy, precision and recall scores. These results outperformed results obtained from traditional machine learning models therefore highlighting the superior capability of the proposed approach for concealed firearm detection on video to complement the efforts of human video surveillance operators.</p>

Public space and everyday heritage: An inquiry into children's and adults' perception

This paper examines how the spatial environment and the activities within these spaces contribute to their social value in turn informing the concept of everyday heritage within urban public spaces. We develop a novel methodological framework that combines visual representation and narrative analysis to provide insights into how the physical, emotional and perceptual dimensions of a public open space translate into associative social values. By including both adults and children in our study, we capture a comprehensive range of perceptions, highlighting the diverse ways in which different user groups give meaning to everyday heritage. Children and their guardians showed agreement on natural elements and personal representations, but differed on the garden's spatial layout and activities. While they shared values like childhood memories and family time, children prioritized play, forming new friendships, and connecting with nature, whereas parents emphasized children's happiness and personal space. Notably, both groups indicate that childhood – both lived and remembered – is that which gives this public urban space its everyday heritage status. The findings advocate for an expanded understanding of urban public spaces, recognizing the significance of everyday heritage in shaping collective cultural identity.

Crowdsourced data as a strategic approach to include the human dimension in outdoor environmental quality assessments

Outdoor environments extend living spaces as venues for various activities. Comfortable open public spaces can positively impact citizens' health and well-being, thereby improving the livability and resilience of cities. Considering the visitors' perception of these environments in comfort studies is crucial for ensuring their well-being and promoting the use of these spaces. However, traditional survey methods may be time- and resource-consuming to gather significant sample sizes, usually focusing on selected homogeneous samples. Crowdsourced data, then, has emerged as an alternative for assessing human perception, as it eases the collection of subjective feedback and potentially amplifies impact and inclusivity. This study presents a strategic approach for analyzing publicly available and willingly reported crowdsourced data from a digital mapping platform in outdoor comfort evaluations, aiming to verify whether these data are informative regarding environmental quality perception and to identify the environmental factors that people are most sensitive to. Urban parks located in New York City served as a case study. A multi-source, interdisciplinary information framework combined crowdsourced reviews with environmental data used to determine prevailing thermal conditions. Overall perception of parks was well-rated, revealing that their attractions and activities are probably the most appealing characteristics for park attendance. Regarding environmental perception, acoustic and thermal factors are clearly the most influential. Acoustics were well-rated, while the main aspect regarding the thermal domain is the recognition of shading as a mitigator for hot conditions. Environmental data provided complementary insights, particularly concerning the range of thermal sensations experienced in urban parks. The findings confirm that willingly reported crowdsourced data can provide valuable insights into urban crowd environmental perception, presenting a potentially suitable and effective method to include the human perspective in environmental quality assessments, as well as to evaluate and predict environmental-related risks.

A GIS-Based Analysis of the Public Open Space Distribution and Accessibility in Gurugram City, India

The rapid pace of urbanization and increasing urban density in India has led to critical concern about the sustainability and livability of urban environments. In the city of Gurugram, public open spaces (POS) like parks and playgrounds are limited, highlighting the problem regarding their availability and accessibility. This study analyzes the current distribution of POS in the city of Gurugram at the ward level and compares the existing situation with national planning guidelines. It also aims to identify the population served by POS and the areas deficit in POS provision. The analysis reveals a deficit in per-capita POS at the city level, which stands at 3.14 m2 and shows high variability across different wards. A significant gap in the provision of housing area and neighborhood level POS was observed. The accessibility index calculated using Geographic Information System (GIS) based network analysis, reveals uneven access patterns across the city, with five wards lacking POS accessibility for residents, located primarily in central and southern-central areas. None of the wards of the city had all of its area serviced by POS, and only six wards had above 50 percent of the population residing in area serviced. These findings emphasize the need for strategic interventions to ensure universal access to POS, aligning with the sustainable development goals for urban areas.

Accurate and efficient feature classification of urban public open spaces: A deep learning-based multivariate time-series approach

Urban public open spaces (POS) are pivotal in sustainable urban planning, recognized for their positive impacts on the health of residents and environments. However, understanding their physical features in detail via remote sensing remains challenging due to the small and complex area characteristics. Advanced approaches struggle with the requirement for extensive training datasets, which are difficult to obtain and potentially inaccurate in certain settings. Sparse sampling of training data may offer a solution to these challenges, but its inability to consider useful contextual characteristics from objects remains as a significant barrier.To address these challenges, we propose an innovative methodology utilizing the Multivariate Long Short Term Memory–Fully Convolutional Network (MLSTM-FCN). This approach is adept at capturing subtle temporal and spectral variations from sparsely annotated data, making it particularly suited for optical remote sensing in urban POS. Our novel approach has achieved 97.86% accuracy in classifying POS features into 11 classes using only 1,870 annotated sample points and maintained over 90% of accuracy even with 187 samples or 10% of total samples, significantly outperform comparison models. This methodology allows for detailed and efficient monitoring of POS and enhances management strategies with minimal resources and effort. Our research opens new pathways for precise urban landscape study.

Urban Regeneration through Cultural–Tourism Entrepreneurship Based on Albergo Diffuso Development: The Venac Historic Core in Sombor, Serbia

The inner core of Sombor, known as “Venac”, is probably the best-preserved one among medium-sized cities in Serbia. The stagnation of Sombor during the 20th century and its urban shrinkage in the 21st century have prevented significant transformations of the core, enabling its preservation under state protection as an urban heritage site. However, the recent rise of cultural tourism has triggered urban regeneration. As the city is still unprepared for this change, this regeneration has mostly omitted the inner core. Realising this, local representatives and experts have started rethinking innovative approaches to its regeneration, including the concept of Albergo Diffuso. This sustainable concept is created to revive the historic cores of small, shrinking cities and towns. Basically, it represents a hotel situated in several old buildings dispersed throughout a historic urban fabric, fitting perfectly into the regeneration of Venac. However, the current lack of precise spatial indicators and thresholds makes their incorporation into the planning process challenging. Considering this, this study focuses on the current spatial development of tourism in Venac, analysing the elements that would support and facilitate the application of this concept in the future. This article also proposes a set of new planning measures to support a strategically organised approach—from the emphasis on urban reuse and physical renewal to multileveled linking of basic concept conditions to the prioritization of pedestrian-friendly places and the application of innovative urban design in open public spaces. By connecting the selected Albergo Diffuso approach with spatial development and its analysis, this study also contributes to the spatial imprint of the concept’s implementation.

Optimizing human thermal comfort and mitigating the urban heat island effect on public open spaces in Rome, Italy through sustainable design strategies

The climate affects how a city’s outdoor spaces are utilized. It is more likely that people will use and appreciate public areas designed for pedestrian use, such as parks, squares, streets, and foot-cycle pathways, when they provide a comfortable and healthy environment. A predicted increase in global temperature has made the climate uncomfortable, especially during the summer when heat stress is strengthened and anticipated. This phenomenon is more severe in urban areas, often affected by the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect. Since the spatial characteristics of a city influence its climate, urban design can be deployed to mitigate the combined effects of climate change and UHI. This research is conducted to study the UHI effect on thermal comfort in an urban open space in Rome (Italy) and aims at identifying and implementing a methodology that urban designers can follow to reduce the impact of urban heat islands and increase thermal comfort in urban outdoor space. This study is based on an urban design concept adopting the Sustainable Development Goals as guidelines; it investigates how UHI’s effect affects the use of public space and examines the influence of urban microclimatic conditions on the thermal perception of users through PET, PMV and PPD values, that were assessed through simulations with ENVI-MET software. The study thus proposes a redesign for the site in Rome, with a masterplan based on sustainable design principles, aimed at improving the microclimatic conditions in the site. The design solution was then validated through ex post simulations.

Restorative Potential Assessment of Public Open Space in Old Urban Communities in the Context of Aging—A Case Study of Dabeizhuang Community in Maanshan, China

Restorative environments have a positive impact on improving the physical and mental health of the elderly. In China, the proportion of elderly residents in aging urban communities is significantly higher than in newly constructed ones, making it essential to understand the restorative potential of public open spaces (POSs) in these settings to promote the development of aging-in-place models. To investigate this issue, we employed the Fuzzy Delphi Method (FDM) and the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to construct an evaluation system for the restorative potential of public open spaces. Subsequently, we assessed the restorative effects of POSs in the Dabeizhuang community using 320 residents’ questionnaires and the fuzzy comprehension evaluation method. The results indicate that the dimension of safety is the most critical factor in creating restorative environments. In contrast, the dimension of comfort is the primary reason affecting the current evaluation of the community’s restorative environment. By establishing a restorative environment evaluation system, this research will facilitate the creation of more restorative environments in urban areas, thereby promoting active and healthy aging among elderly residents.

Numerical simulation of layout and landscape elements on the thermal environment of urban squares

Extreme urban heat poses significant challenges to the resilience and livability of cities. Urban squares are important open public spaces in cities, serving as main locations for residents' leisure and recreational activities and reflect the identity and cultural background of the cities. Improvement in thermal comfort in urban squares can improve the quality of the urban environment and help mitigate the urban heat island effect. This study developed 18 layout and landscape combination scenarios based on statistical analysis of data from 100 urban squares in regions with hot summers and cold winters. Further, the effectiveness of the proposed design solutions in improving the thermal environment was comprehensively analyzed. The results show that: 1) The block array layout with vegetation, water bodies, and permeable tiles is the most effective scenario, with a PET of 31.84 °C, approaching a comfortable level of heat stress; 2) Among the three layouts, the block array layout optimizes thermal comfort better than the main view entrance layout and main view center layout, and reduces physiological equivalent temperature by 10.51–10.77 °C compared with that of the other two layouts; 3) Scenarios incorporating water bodies provide better optimization effects than those with only trees, even when the total area covered by greenery remains unchanged; and 4) Permeable paving materials with high albedo more effectively improve the thermal comfort. Our results highlight a great potential of comprehensively using multiple landscape strategies to improve outdoor thermal comfort, and provides design basis for enhancing thermal comfort in similar sized urban squares in hot summer and cold winter areas.

Navigating between private and public: Understanding publicness of public open spaces in private developments in Hong Kong

Given that lands became increasingly expensive for governments to meet open space standards, there emerged a growing trend towards private sector involvement public open space provision. This collaboration has given rise to public open spaces in private developments (POSPD), characterised by varying levels of ‘publicness’ – the degree to which a space embodies public qualities and serves public interests. This research seeks to systematically understand the diverse manifestations of publicness in POSPDs using a proposed conceptual framework. Empirical examination of cases in Hong Kong yielded the statistical categorisation of POSPDs into five types, namely Edge Zone, Hide-and-Seek, Pseudo-Public Park, Consumers’ Paradise and Public Plaza. The results revealed a classist nature of POSPD publicness, with accessibility disproportionately favouring privileged groups. These findings contribute to a better understanding of POSPD publicness and highlights gaps in POS service and governance practice, provides valuable guidance for urban planners, policymakers, and developers in navigating the complexities of public space provision in increasingly privatized urban environments. The insights are relevant for creating more inclusive public spaces that cater to the needs of all community members, particularly in Asia’s high-density urban contexts.

Do two-wheeler riders propel towards autonomous driving? A path-based probabilistic study in Indian context

Regardless of the rational benefits of autonomous vehicle adoption towards mitigating mobility goals in urban and sub-urban areas of middle-income countries, adoption of such technology remains thought-provoking. Two wheeled vehicles are often utilized extensively all over the world for short distance trips in sub-urban areas. The present study investigates perceived risks of using four wheeled autonomous vehicles by captive two-wheeler riders for long and short distance trips in densely populated Indian cities. Theoretical autonomous vehicle technology acceptance models were modified considering Indian perceptions in this study. Offline stated preference responses were collected from various universities, open public spaces and governmental organizations of various cities within India. Structural equation models (SEM) and Random Forest (RF) were employed to generate meaningful insights from the surveys conducted. Random Forest (RF) analysis concluded that bicycle riders show medium to low levels of trust towards behavioural adoption intention of autonomous vehicles. According to proposed structural equation models, interest to adopt or willingness to buy autonomous vehicles for two wheeled vehicle users is mostly influenced by perceived trust and risk rather than perceived concerns/benefits for middle and old age groups in India. Perceived ease of use has the most significant marginal effects on two-wheeler riders' perceived risks towards autonomous vehicle adoption, which accounted for more than 20 % of unexplained variance. Results from this research may offer insightful diversity of attitudes towards adoption of autonomous vehicle technologies in India through the means of increased efficiency and reduced travel time and costs along with riders’ risks towards privacy and safety.

Ecological Analysis of Urban Parks for Sustainability in Bogor City

Abstract Urban parks as a type of public green open space have an important role in improving the quality of the urban environment and supporting the sustainability of the city. To find out the extent of the implementation of ecological functions and the perceptions and preferences of the community, it is necessary to carry out a comprehensive evaluation of these aspects. This study aims to identify vegetation, analyze the suitability of ecological functions, and analyze user perceptions and preferences of the landscape in each park for the sustainability of Bogor City. This research is located in three parks in Bogor City, including Heulang Park, Sempur Park, and Bogor City Square. This research method is divided into two methods, analysis of ecological functions and analysis of perceptions and preferences in each park. Ecological function will be analyzed by comparing existing conditions with standard criteria for ecological function, while analysis of community perceptions and preferences regarding park ecology will be analyzed by collecting data through questionnaires. The results of the ecological evaluation showed that Heulang Park was the best park in terms of noise reduction, temperature modification (shading), and windbreak functions. Sempur Park has vegetation that is quite good at fulfilling its function as a temperature modification (shading) and humidity control. Bogor City Square is the best park in terms of air humidity control function and quite good in windbreak and noise reduction function.

Role of green open spaces in the mental health and happiness of urban communities

Background: Mental health is the most important thing in human life, but in reality in Indonesia the level of mental health disorders is still high. People who live in urban areas are vulnerable to mental health disorders such as anxiety, stress and depression which are caused, among other things, by high work pressure and lack of recreational activities. Method: This article uses a non-experimental correlational method, collecting secondary data from various sources and journal articles without experimental manipulation. The focus is on urban communities. Findings: Difficulty accessing natural things, such as rural environments, even something "green". is one of the factors that makes urban residents easily experience depression. Depression can cause decreased energy, sleep disturbances, changes in appetite, and other physical problems, therefore fulfilling recreational needs that are cheap and easily accessible through public open spaces can be a solution to reduce people's stress levels. Conclusion: Green open space (RTH) provides an opportunity to escape from fatigue, work pressure, city crowds so that people can release their stress by immersing themselves in nature and connecting themselves with the natural environment. RTH has many positive benefits so its existence is very necessary, especially in densely populated residential areas. Novelty/Originality of this article: This study proposes a model for integrating green open space (GOS) into urban planning that considers physical aspects and therapeutic functions for mental health. This model combines evidence-based GOS design with community mental health programs, creating a 'green healing zone' that can be accessed and optimally utilized by city residents to reduce stress and improve mental well-being.

Examination of the Placemaking Concept on Bursa Historical Cumhuriyet Street

In historical cities, urban public open space’s identity is a fundamental aspect that contributes to shaping the identity of communities. The architectural elements succeeded in expressing the identity of the community and maintaining the continuity of identity. The city's identity is determined by the city's geographical context, cultural level, architectural elements, local traditions, and quality of public open spaces. In recent years the multi dimensional place-making concept become an interesting study area in increasing urban identity. The concept of place-making coines to describe a multi-disciplinary approach in planning, designing, and urban public open spaces management to improve the urban environment and the quality of life. In this study, the conceptual framework of the topic was drawn by putting forth the concept of place and place-making to improve the quality of places in historical public open spaces. The studying area is Cumhuriyet Street in the historical center of Bursa City, which is located in the traditional trade center as a pedestrian road. The historical background is examined to demonstrate its potential in creating a place-making concept in the city's historic core.