“Introduction,” “The Changing Nature of Public Space in City Centres,” and “Whose Public Space?”

Public space has always played an important role in cities. Aside from housing, more urban land is devoted to public space – streets, squares, plazas, and parks – than any other use. In cities, public spaces provide the connective tissue between privately owned and occupied spaces. They give access to private property, and are places for congregation and exchange. Because the space is public, communities have both the opportunity and responsibility of saying how it should be designed and managed to meet community needs and aspirations. But is “public space” always public, in the sense of being available and accessible for use by everyone?