Multi-Functional Use of

7/10/2021
Public Spaces
Abstract Submission

Prepared by:
Fairuz Noshin (1615006), DURP, BUET.
Mahmuda Sultana Mimi (1615008), DURP, BUET.
Sara Fatima Shefa (1615015), DURP, BUET.
Multi-Functional Use of Public Spaces
Public spaces are integral elements of the planning of an urban area, as they connect the residents
of the city to its spatial magnitude. Public spaces can be defined as privately or publicly owned
property such as roads, footpaths, public squares, plazas, parks and open spaces to which people
have unrestricted access (Mitchel, 2009; Sendi, 2012). Public spaces are necessary for the
functioning of the city and enhancing the quality of life of the residents. They provide both
public and private infrastructure such as roads, sewage systems, parks, energy grids,
telecommunication networks, etc and serve both the technical and social functions. High quality
public space thereby contributes to the health, economy, social integrity and wellbeing and
biodiversity of the region (Duivenvoorden et al., 2020). Public spaces would perform in a
functional way if certain considerations are taken into account such as- the location and
microclimate of the region, usefulness of the provided amenities (furnishing, food and beverage,
pedestrian facilities), possible activities, nature of the space (public/ private), visiting hours and
inclusiveness (Heng and Chan, 2000).

Figure 1, 2, 3, 4: Example of Public Spaces (Source: Department of Transportation, NY, n.d.; Author, 2021)

1
Cities' public areas have long been locations outside the authority of individuals or small groups,
nearly everywhere and at any time (Frick, 2007). They serve a range of practical and symbolic
purposes, many of which overlap. As a result, urban open public areas have often been
multifunctional places. Everyone may read and experience the city in public space. It allows city
users to orient themselves, navigate the city without the assistance of others, and be in command
of their surroundings (Schneider, 2000). Public spaces include soft open spaces such as parks and
hard open spaces such as squares and streets (Landman, 2015). Investment in urban public
spaces is now increasing gradually due to the pressure of rural-urban migration (Barash & Ford,
2018). Diverse lifestyles, preferences and needs of urban people require diverse functions of
public spaces. Planners need to recognize this diversity while planning for a public space. They
should ensure that no section of the community is neglected while planning a public space to
avoid conflict between stakeholders. Public space should be inclusive, secure and responsive to
the needs of men and women. Public spaces should be designed with better lighting and CCTVs
to prevent and respond to sexual violence against women (UN Women, 2017). The location
should be convenient and inviting to use. The design must pay full attention to maintenance and
management costs by using simple solutions and materials that are durable, simple, easily
replaceable and climatically adequate (National Institure for Urban Planning, 2013). Successful
public spaces are evolving (whether formal or informal in nature), diverse (avoiding one-size-
fits-all), free (with secure rights and responsibilities), delineated (clearly public in their use),
engaging (designing in active uses), meaningful (incorporating notable amenities and features),
social (encouraging social engagement) and balanced (between traffic and pedestrians)
(Carmona, 2018). So, all public spaces cannot be designed following a specific guideline.
Constantly changing intersections of physical places, the laws and regulations that govern them,
the people who claim them through their use or demands, and the government officials to answer
these demands should be investigated properly to tie public spaces to public spheres (Gehl &
Matan, 2009). One of the most intriguing experiences in other nations and places is seeing
cultural patterns and norms materialize in the usage of public space (Schneider, 2000). The roles
and uses of public space in general evolve throughout time and vary by culture (Gehl & Matan,
2009). The flexibility of public space's structure and capacity to change its uses, as well as its
unspecific multi-functionality, are critical to its long-term stability as a system.

2
Multi-functional use of public space can contribute to the overall quality of life for the city
residents, especially in developing countries where space is scarce and population density is
high. In developing countries, it is nearly impossible to provide large areas dedicated for public
space, thus maximizing the use of spaces should be prioritized. Footpaths, for example can be
used for a sitting or resting place for working class people along with pedestrian movements.
Parks can be used as open meeting places through establishing open stages or plazas. However, it
should be considered that the facilities provided in the places are functional and serving the
primary user of the space. Unnecessary use of public space can create chaos and have negative
impact on the area.

Categories of public space in Dhaka city are park, playground and sport facilities, urban
development open space, functional open space, streetscape, trails and buffer, urban forests and
natural park and protected areas (Khan, 2019). There are 54 green public parks and open spaces
in Dhaka (Rahman & Zhang, 2018). On average, just 14.5% is open space (including
playgrounds, parks, footpaths, water bodies, forestry, etc.), while 25% of open green space is
needed as sustainable portion of the quality life of urban dwellers (United Nations Environment
Programme, 2006). GISAT, one of the consortium partners under EO4SD-urban has done spatial
analysis of sustainable public spaces network in the Dhaka by describing characteristics such as
availability, accessibility, connectivity and inclusivity and identified public spaces by
determining physical characteristics with six criteria: distance to roads; proximity to water;
compactness; land cover patterns; location; and size (EO4SD, 2018). The lack of open spaces
and fair spatial distribution of Dhaka City parks are making them less accessible (Bai,
Fernandez, McMullan, & Scheres, 2013).
On the other hand, there are various types of planning standards for open space in different
countries. The standard depends on the planning context of the countries (Khan, 2019). That is
set based on assessment of the demand of the people of a particular area (Khan, 2019). Based on
the scope and spatial extent of the plans, there are many standards of open space for Dhaka city.
A total area of 4 acres per 1,000 people was proposed for open space in the Dhaka Master Plan
1959.
In DMDP structure plan, 4 acres park for 25000 people were proposed. Planning standard for
preparation of Master Plan for district level Paurashavas under DTIDP (District Towns
Infrastructure Development Project) has suggested for 10-12% of total land area for open space.
3
According to DMDP, open space per thousand population should be 0.16 acre for Dhaka city,
which is insufficient compared to the standards of other countries. The total amount of existing
open space in Dhaka city is about 1266 acres, setting 0.19 acres open space per thousand
population (Khan, 2019). On the contrary, all of these open spaces are not accessible for
common people. The open space accessible for common people is only 480 acres (DAP, 2010)
thereby open space per thousand population reduces to only meager 0.07 acres (Khan, 2019).
Asphalt, hardscaped streets should be counted as public space right alongside our leafy parks and
landscaped plazas (Clos, 2013). Together, they should make up 45 to 50 percent of a city’s land
area, with 30 to 35 percent of the area occupied by streets and 15 to 20 percent open space
(Clos, 2013).
Munni & Parvez (2014) investigated Ramna park area and Dhanmondi lake area based on
attributes such as comfort, access and linkage, use and activity, sociability and considered them
as successful public space of Dhaka city. Though these public spaces do not fulfill all the
attributes of a successful public space, they are considered as successful spaces because they are
fulfilling the demand of the public and the ratio of public space to population is low.
We have analyzed the Justice Shahabuddin park. The park has good accessibility with three
separate entrances and is surrounded with many trees. There are separate bicycle lanes, various
sitting arrangements, separate courtyards and toilets for men and women, playing courts,
waterfront corridor, drinking water basins and dustbins. Though the environment there is quite
warm and humid. The park has many paved surfaces. The park is clean and properly maintained.
Mixture of functions have been noticed. Various types of social groups come here for walking,
jogging, playing and social activities. This public space promotes human contact, community
involvement; ensures safety and accommodation for all users. It has visually interesting design
and architectural features which make it unique in spatial character.

Besides the ones described above, there must have efforts to keep more public open space and
ensure to fulfill the requirements of a successful public space in an urban area for the healthy
living pattern of city dweller.

4
References
Bai, X., Fernandez, I. S., McMullan, G., & Scheres, S. H. (2013). Ribosome structures to near-
atomic resolution from thirty thousand cryo-EM particles. ELife, 2, e00461.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.00461
Barash, F. P., & Ford, G. (2018). DESIGNING FOR THE URBAN SUBLIME: THE
UNCANNY AS A PROGRAMMATIC MOTIVATION IN NEW CITY PARKS. In
Staging Urban Landscapes: The Activation and Curation of Flexible Public Spaces (pp.
268–270). Birkhäuser. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783035610468-268
Carmona, M. (2019). Principles for public space design, planning to do better. URBAN DESIGN
International, 24(1), 47–59. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41289-018-0070-3
Clos, Dr. J. (2013). Streets as Public Spaces and Drivers of Urban Prosperity (p. 152). UN-
HABITAT. Retrieved from UN-HABITAT website:
https://mirror.unhabitat.org/pmss/listItemDetails.aspx?
publicationID=3513&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1
Department of Transportation New York. (n.d.). Retrieved from-
https://thecityfix.com/blog/public-spaces-10-principles-for-connecting-people-and-the-
streets-priscila-pacheco/
Duivenvoorden, E., Hartmann, T., Marlies , B. and Hesselmans, T. (2020). Managing public
space – A blind spot of urban planning and design. Cities. 109. 10.1016. Retrieved from-
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/345776189_Managing_public_space_-
_A_blind_spot_of_urban_planning_and_design
EO4SD. (2018). Urban Development Project, Service Operations Report—Dhaka.
Frick, D. (2007). Spatial Synergy and Supportiveness of Public Space. 12(2). Retrieved from-
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13574800701306369?journalCode=cjud20
Gehl, J., & Matan, A. (2009). Two perspectives on public spaces. Retrieved from
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09613210802519293
Heng, C, K and Chan, V. (2000). The making of successful public space: A case study of
People's Park Square. URBAN DESIGN International 5, 47±55. Retrieved from-
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/palgrave.udi.9000006

5
Khan, A. M. (2019). Revisiting Planning Standards for Open Spaces in Urban Areas from Global
and National Perspectives. Journal of Bangladesh Institute of Planners, 12, 20.
Landman, K. (2016). The transformation of public space in South Africa and the role of urban
design. URBAN DESIGN International, 21(1), 78–92.
https://doi.org/10.1057/udi.2015.24
Munni, S. R. S., & Parvez, A. K. M. M. (2014). Evaluating Public Spaces of Dhaka City in
Terms of its Desired Role in the Public Realm. 8.
Mitchell, D. and Staeheli, L, A. (2009). International Encyclopedia of Human Geography.
Retrieved from- https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/public-space
National Institure for Urban Planning. (2013). Chapter of Public Space.
Schneider, B. (2000). THE FUTURE OF PUBLIC SPACE. Retrieved October 4, 2021, from
http://doccentre.net/docsweb/urban-issues/pubspace-ud.html
Rahman, K. M. A., & Zhang, D. (2018). Analyzing the Level of Accessibility of Public Urban
Green Spaces to Different Socially Vulnerable Groups of People. MDPI, 10.
https://doi.org/10.3390/su10113917
Rajdhani Unnayan Kartipakkha, Ministry of Housing and Public Works, Government of
Bangladesh. (2010). Detail Area Plan of Dhaka Metropolitan Development Plan for
Dhaka City.
Sendi, R. and Marušić R, G. (2012). International Encyclopedia of Housing and Home.
Retrieved from- https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/public-space
UN Women. (2017). Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces: Global Results Report. Retrieved from
https://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/library/publication
s/2017/safe-cities-and-safe-public-spaces-global-results-report-en.pdf?la=en&vs=45
United Nations Environment Programme. (2006). Annual Report. Nairobi, Kenya. Retrieved
from https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/7476/-UNEP
%202006%20Annual%20Report-2007755.pdf