An analytical study of attributes of urban public spaces that contribute to qualitative public life with special reference emerging public spaces in Colombo

Abstract

Urban Public Space (UPS) is a vital component in the formation of a cityscape. They are also the activity nodes where people interact with each other in various manners or simply spent time in relaxation. It is understood that urban public spaces (UPS’s) play a considerable role as means for social transformation in today’s context. Researchers have proved that high quality UPS’s have a direct impact in terms of public benefits which may be in two folds of physical and psychological. The importance of UPS’s is that it helps to keep a balance between built and un-built areas in a city as most of the time UPS’s are open spaces. Public squares, water fronts, parks, gardens and streets are some of the identifiable UPS’s. These UPS’s help to break the monotony and enrich the character of a city and further be amused for the restless lives of the urban population. Sometimes for some individuals the public spaces become memorable spaces of their day to day lives also becoming the communication & urban activity nodes which makes the cities as living entities. There are many physical elements present in UPS’s. It is of paramount importance that UPS’s are made user friendly and alive in order to make the space more viable and vibrant. The evolution and formation of UPS’s and their contribution for betterment of society was an essential aspect when analyzing the UPS’s. It is a fact with the rapid urbanization, UPS becomes an essential component and Sri Lanka too has no exemption to such prerequisite requirements. But in close scrutiny it will be disclosed that many UPS’s in Sri Lanka, had emerged without prior prerequisite requirements and thereby compelling, not to have proper design or standards in quality. Thus the need has arisen to understand the qualitative attributes of UPS’s when provides higher level of comfort, protection and enjoyable environment. Therefore it is important to identify the attributes of present UPS’s in the city of Colombo and the reaction to such by the public and their expectations of such places. This research helped in generating a suitable qualitative typology for the usage of future urban designers of UPS’s in the country.