Public Space

by Stephen Carr

This book reveals the social basis for public space use, design and management. The authors - an architect/environmental designer, a landscape architect, an environmental psychologist, and an open space administrator - offer a well-integrated perspective of how to integrate public space and public life. They contend that three critical human dimensions should guide the process of design and management of public space: the users' essential needs, their spatial rights, and the meanings they seek. To develop and explain these three dimensions, the authors draw on the history of public life and public space, evidence from recent social research, and a series of original case studies, all amply illustrated. Public Space offers an innovative approach for adapting the dimensions to the unique social and environmental context of each project.

'Amply filling its slot in the Environment and Behaviour series, this book examines the ways in which public places, whether ancient in Europe or deliberately designed in contemporary America, are actually used by the populace ... There is a lot to learn from carefully observed American experience.' Architectural Review
'Public Space is a valuable resource for anyone who delves into the complex subject of shared space in American cities ... At this time in history, when civic consciousness often seems foreign to the psyche of the contemporary city and a consensus for the ideal appears unreachable, Public Space confidently extolls the necessity and possibility for a commonly held regard for a rewarding and enriching public life.' Landscape Journal
'The evocative chapters gathered in Public Space conclude with a section on 'Making Public Space' that should be required reading for everyone participating in 'public infrastructure' - advocates, sponsors, designers, or managers.' Children's Environments

List of case studies; Series foreword; Preface; 1. Public space and public life; 2. Human dimensions of public space; 3. Making public space; The authors; Bibliography; Name index; Subject index.