Whose Public Space?

by Ali Madanipour (editor)

Public spaces mirror the complexities of urban as historic social bonds have weakened and cities have become collections of individuals public open spaces have also changed from being embedded in the social fabric of the city to being a part of more impersonal and fragmented urban environments. Can making public spaces help overcome this fragmentation, where accessible spaces are created through inclusive processes? This book offers some answers to this question through analysing the process of urban design and development in international case studies, in which the changing character, level of accessibility, and the tensions of making public spaces are explored. The book uses a coherent theoretical outlook to investigate a series of case studies, crossing the cultural divides to examine the similarities and differences of public space in different urban contexts, and its critical analysis of the process of development, management and use of public space, with all its tensions and conflicts. While each case study investigates the specificities of a particular city, the book outlines some general themes in global urban processes. It shows how public spaces are a key theme in urban design and development everywhere, how they are appreciated and used by the people of these cities, but also being contested by and under pressure from different stakeholders.

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Ali Madanipour has studied (MArch, PhD), practised, researched, and taught architecture, urban design and planning, winning design and research awards, and working with academic and municipal partners from around the world. His work has been translated into French, German, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin, Persian and Spanish. His visiting positions include the City of Vienna Senior Visiting Professor at the Technical University of Vienna (2010), the Wits-Claude Leon Distinguished Scholar at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (2011), and Visiting Professor at the Polytechnic of Milan (2015).

Forthcoming book:

Handbook of Planning Theory (2017, co-ed, Routledge);
Published books include:

Cities in Time: Temporary Urbanism and the Future of Cities (2017, Bloomsbury)
Planning Theory, Volume I, Planning with Creativity, (2015, ed, Routledge);
Planning Theory, Volume II, Planning with Efficiency, (2015, ed, Routledge);
Planning Theory, Volume III, Planning with Flexibility, (2015, ed, Routledge);
Planning Theory, Volume IV, Planning with Contingency, (2015, ed, Routledge);
Reconsidering Localism (2015, co-ed, Routledge);
Urban Design, Space and Society (2014, Palgrave-Macmillan);
Public Space and the Challenges of Urban Transformation in Europe (2014, co-ed, Routledge);
Handboek Ruimtelijke Kwaliteit (2013, co-ed, ASP)
Knowledge Economy and the City (2011/2013, Routledge);
Whose Public Space? International Case Studies in Urban Design and Development (2010, ed, Routledge);
Designing the City of Reason (2007, Routledge);
Public and Private Spaces of the City (2003, Routledge);
Social Exclusion in European Cities (1998/2003, co-ed, Routledge);
Urban Governance, Institutional Capacity and Social Milieux (2002; co-ed, Ashgate);
The Governance of Place (2001, co-ed, Ashgate);
Tehran: the making of a metropolis (1998, Wiley);
Design of Urban Space: An inquiry into a socio-spatial process (1996, Wiley);
Managing Cities (1995, co-ed, Wiley).