Public Spaces and How They Shape the City
Public spaces are the most important parts of cities, even though most are un-programmed. These spaces allow for social interaction, connection to nature, and also act as spaces for politics. Public spaces typically do not have a defined use which empowers us to define what the spaces use is according to the needs at the moment. I have spoken about this example in a past semester, but I think Marion Square is a great case study for a public space. It offers itself to be a farmers market, place of gathering, hosts events all year, and is the gathering place for protests or political issues. I believe it is able to achieve all of these uses due to the fact that it is not overly programmed. These spaces are often the most important locations of cities because this is where people come together to make change happen and all walks of life can gather as a community. In the US specifically, I feel like we spend most of our time going from building to building or building to car, not interacting with our neighbors or making an effort to get to know them. Public spaces connect us to our neighbors and promote interaction that is often lacking in our daily lives.
I often think when I see these open green spaces with no program, was this intentional or were urban planners thinking "we need a break between all these buildings, let's put some green space in the middle." However, as I learned throughout my education, it could also be a place for the people to define how to use it. Like a blank canvas, people in the community have the option to utilize the space for whatever they want it to be and nothing to be defined for them.
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