The role of successful public spaces in historic centres. Insights from social media data

Abstract

This study contributes to the existing knowledge on the aspects that are commonly found in socially preferred public spaces. Specifically, it provides a thematic characterisation of specific factors that may play a critical role in their success. User-generated data is used for identifying, characterising, and comparing the most successful public spaces in the historic centres of four cities in the central Spanish Mediterranean Arc. Data from Google Places, Foursquare, Twitter and Instagram are used to infer insights on the offer and demand of economic and urban activity; the spatiotemporal presence of people; and the collective urban image of the plazas and their surrounding areas (500 m isodistance from the plazas' accesses). The results suggest that the success of public plazas nowadays is strongly associated to: (1) the functional complexity of buildings located at the intersections of streets leading into the plazas; (2) having other landmarks or venues of interest and/or clustered activities within 3–5-minutes walking distance from the plazas; (3) good connectivity to other neighbourhoods (2–3-minutes walking distance) with provision of good pedestrian infrastructure; and, (4) the importance of hosting local festivities and celebrations which generate a sense of community and belonging.