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Pu b l i c S pa c e In both the UK and the US there is a sense of dissatisfaction and pessimism about the state of urban environments and particularly with the quality of everyday public spaces. Explanations for this have emphasised the poor quality of design that characterises many new public spaces; spaces that are dominated by parking, roads infrastructure, introspective buildings, a poor sense of place, and which in different ways for different groups are too often exclusionary. Yet many well designed public spaces have also experienced decline and neglect, as the services and activities upon which the continuing quality of those spaces depends have been subject to the same cuts and constraints as public services in general. These issues touch upon the daily management of public space, that is, the coordination of the many different activities that constantly define and redefine the characteristics and quality of public space. This book draws on four empirical research projects to examine the questions of public space management on an international stage. They are set within a context of theoretical debates about public space, its history, contemporary patterns of use, and the changing nature of Western society; and about the new management approaches that are increasingly being adopted. Matthew Carmona is Professor of Planning and Urban Design and Head of UCL’s Bartlett School of Planning. He is an architect-planner with research interests that span the policy context for delivering better quality built environments. His books are: The Design Dimension of Planning (1997), Housing Design Quality (2001), Delivering New Homes (2003), and Measuring Quality in Planning (2004), all published by Routledge, and Public Places Urban Spaces (2003), and Urban Design Reader (2007). Claudio de Magalhães is Senior Lecturer at UCL’s Bartlett School of Planning, and Director of the MSc in Urban Regeneration. He is an architect-planner, with research interests focusing on the relationship between urban governance, urban design, public space and an increasingly globalised property market. He has published widely on these topics including his book Urban Governance, Institutional Capacity and Social Milieux (2002). Leo Hammond took his MPhil Town Planning at UCL’s Bartlett School of Planning, following which he was appointed as Research Fellow. Subsequently he has worked as an urban designer in private practice and in the public sector. Pu b l i c S pace The management dimension Ma tthew C a r m o na C l a ud i o d e M a g a l hães Le o H a mm o nd First published 2008 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2008. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” © 2008 Matthew Carmona, Claudio de Magalhães and Leo Hammond All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. The publisher makes no representation, express or implied, with regard to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and cannot accept any legal responsibility or liability for any efforts or omissions that may be made. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Carmona, Matthew. Public space : the ma