What Attracts People to Visit Community Open Spaces? A Case Study of the Overseas Chinese Town Community in Shenzhen, China

Yiyong Chen, Tao Liu, Xiaohuan Xie and Barbara Goličnik Marušić
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Yiyong Chen: School of Architecture & Urban Planning, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
Tao Liu: Center for Population and Development Studies, Renmin University of China, Beijing 100872, China
Xiaohuan Xie: School of Architecture & Urban Planning, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518000, China
Barbara Goličnik Marušić: Urban Planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia, Ljubljana SI 1000, Slovenia

IJERPH, 2016, vol. 13, issue 7, 1-17

Abstract: A well-designed open space that encourages outdoor activity and social communication is a community asset that could potentially contribute to the health of local residents and social harmony of the community. Numerous factors may influence the use of each single space and may result in a variety of visitors. Compared with previous studies that focused on accessibility, this study highlights the relationship between the utilization and characteristics of community open spaces in China. The Overseas Chinese Town community in Shenzhen is regarded as an example. The association between the number of visitors and space characteristics is examined with multivariate regression models. Results show that large areas with accessible lawns, well-maintained footpaths, seats, commercial facilities, and water landscapes are important characteristics that could increase the use of community open spaces. However, adding green vegetation, sculptures, and landscape accessories in open spaces has limited effects on increasing the outdoor activities of residents. Thus, to increase the use of community open spaces, landscape designers should focus more on creating user-oriented spaces with facilities that encourage active use than on improving ornamental vegetation and accessories.

Keywords: open space; use; community; outdoor activity; Overseas Chinese Town of Shenzhen (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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