A Responsive Approach for Designing Shared Urban Spaces in Tourist Villages

Abstract

Tourist villages are constructed as a means for reducing the stress caused by the rapid changes in modern life by providing a comfortable environment for users to integrate with. Nevertheless, many villages cannot achieve a satisfactory performance level due to the ignorance of urban designers of the relationship between humans and their environment and its impact on developing successful urban spaces. This paper aims to analyze and measure the impact of humanitarian needs on the spatial formation of shared urban spaces in three tourist villages on the Northern Coast in Egypt, as it is one of the significant areas that the government and the private sector focus on developing and considering as a domestic and international touristic area. Furthermore, the study uses different quantitative techniques to achieve its goals, such as spatial analysis and data analysis of user questionnaires using SPSS to measure the factors that affect each need. The study’s findings place special emphasis on the connection between spatial formation’s capacity for meeting and satisfying user needs. Moreover, the results highlight design criteria that contribute to creating responsive urban spaces and should be considered by urban designers to achieve the highest performance quality in these shared spaces and generate social sustainability.

1. Introduction

Urban spaces play a crucial role in achieving social sustainability, as they act as centers for social interaction and mediums for practicing various activities [1]. In addition, their spatial formation and the distribution of landscape elements constitute clear indicators of the cultural, economic, and social level of their users.

In the last decades of the nineteenth century, the rapid development and complex manifestation of modern life caused additional psychological pressures on humans. Accordingly, the private and governmental real estate sectors in several cities started to invest in specific types of projects with a distinctive nature that meet the special needs of people. Among the most prominent of these projects are the tourist villages, which spread significantly along the coastal cities and rely mostly on creating a comfortable environment for people to relieve the pressures of daily routine [2]. One of the main pillars that attract people to these villages is that they are associated with a high percentage of green open spaces, which vary from private property to semi-private or public (shared) spaces.

The shared spaces are public open spaces that are distributed across the village and surrounded by residential units. In addition, some contain more than one activity to fulfill various needs of users, such as kids’ playgrounds, swimming pools, and seating areas [3].

The main problem, as outlined in this study, is the failure of many tourist villages, despite the importance of shared open spaces, to achieve their goals due to the lack of certain components that encourage people to stay. Furthermore, some urban designers organize physical and landscape components without considering the psychological, sensory, and social needs of the users, which negatively affects the efficiency of these spaces and may cause undesired behaviors, such as abandoning or damaging the urban space due to its inability to meet their needs.

As a result, the primary objective of this research paper is to investigate the interrelationship between humans and shared open spaces. Furthermore, it aims to identify the basic spatial components and attributes that contribute to users’ psychological and social needs, since the success of these spaces is related to their ability to meet the diverse needs of their users [4].

The research further attempts to find an answer to some questions that clarify the relationship between human needs and the design of shared open spaces. The research questions are:

• Can the urban designer depend on the physical components of urban spaces without considering the psychological and sensory needs of their users?
• Do the needs of the target group affect the design and spatial formation of shared open space?
• What are the needs that must be considered in the design process of shared open spaces?
• What are the design criteria and considerations that have to be met in order to reach optimal design and promote the effectiveness of urban spaces?

2. Literature Review

2.1. Tourist Villages and Shared Urban Open Spaces

In 1993, Nuryanti defined the tourist village as a form of integration between attractions, accommodation, and support facilities that are present in a structure of a society that integrate with prevailing procedures and traditions [5]. The locations of these villages usually have some special characteristics that attract investors and governments to invest there, such as a natural and pristine environment, recreational purposes, personal development, etc.

In Egypt, the Northern Coast is one of the most attractive destinations for domestic and foreign tourism in summer due to its magnificent and picturesque beaches that spread along the coastal area in 157 villages (Figure 1).

People who seek a new form of living travel there to enjoy the natural environment and relieve the pressures and stress of daily working life. Moreover, these villages are not only considered vacation villages but also as second homes as the local owners spend their annual vacations in summer in their residential units. These villages consist of a group of owned or rented dwellings, along with a group of tourist services and recreational activities provided for the residential areas, enabling people to interact together [6] (Figure 2).

Various forms of urban spaces are found in these villages, such as the central area near the gates, transitional areas such as pedestrian pathways, parking spaces, coastal areas, and recreational spaces, the most important type among all. Consequently, numerous forms of shared urban spaces are developed based on the way the units are structured and linked together. These could appear as linear striped spaces (front or back) or as internal spaces (closed or semi-closed) (Figure 3), which provide a safe and secure place for people [7,8].

Shared open spaces play a significant role in the social life, health, and psychological life of people as they provide opportunities for residents to interact and communicate together [9] and accelerate the sense of belonging and individuality [10]. Urban open spaces are considered primary sources of livable and sustainable cities [11].

Moreover, residents can enjoy the natural environment, which creates psychological balance and a healthy life which directly reflects on their behavior and reactions. Furthermore, the importance of urban spaces is not limited to the human aspects only, but also to the environmental aspects, as they mitigate air pollution, lower the rate of diseases and epidemics, and improve public health for children [12,13]. The density of vegetation enhances the quality of air, as this absorbs carbon dioxide and releases oxygen, decreases temperature, reduces heat island effects, and minimizes noise pollution [14]. Accordingly, it is crucial to consider physical aspects as well as the humanitarian inputs in the design process at the early stages.

2.2. Social Sustainability and the Natural Environment

Social sustainability is one of the main pillars for the sustainable development of any place that relates humans with society. It focuses on the stability and continuity of the social environment over the long term [15]. Social sustainability is defined as meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Despite this significant role, studies in this domain are limited when they are compared with the other two pillars, namely, economic and environmental sustainability [16].

Before discussion of users’ needs in shared urban spaces as their natural environment, it is essential to understand the relationship between social sustainability and the natural environment, since all the moral and physical components of the environment and design criteria influence achieving social sustainability [17]. Bramley et al. related two factors to identify social sustainability—social justice and the sustainability of communities. The first factor includes equal access and opportunities for all people to all services and activities, while the second factor deals with the various dimensions and needs of community members in urban spaces, such as social interaction, sense of belonging, stability, security, environmental quality, sense of happiness and joy, and participation in collective civic activities [18]. Ghahramanpouri et al. agree with previous study, but they underline four principles and factors that shape social sustainability—justice, adaptability, security, and inclusion or social interaction [19].

In compliance with the previous studies, it becomes obvious that the success of the urban designer in creating livable and responsive open space relies on his ability to boost the physical components of the open space to encourage social interaction and fulfill the various needs of the users and how far it can participate in the achievement of future social sustainability.

2.3. Relation between Humans and Their Environment

Polese and Stern indicate that social sustainability aims to boost the environmental connection and sociocultural desire of groups, encouraging social integration and improving the quality of life for all segments of the population [20]. Many studies have discussed the meaning and concept of need, where it was defined as a state of dissatisfaction due to the missing of something urgent. Meanwhile, it is the most powerful engine affecting life; progress must be graded on the ability of humans to upgrade in order to fulfil their needs. Furthermore, some other studies believe that human needs have a collective social nature, resulting from cooperation and interaction between a group of people within their surrounding environment [21,22]. As a result, urban spaces are the mediator through which interaction occurs. They are also the center of activity-related social, cultural, and psychological manifestations. Consequently, urban designers should understand the relation between a human and his environment and consider it a main priority to create a responsive environment taking into account the special nature of the users [23]. Maslow developed a theory of motivation which states that five categories of human needs dictate an individual’s behavior. These needs are physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and self-actualization needs (Figure 4).

These needs are categorized in terms of their nature into two types:

• Basic needs: These are physiological and functional needs or the primary requirements associated with inherent activities related to human survival, growth, health, and comfort for humans, such as hunger, thirst, etc., which are the lowest level.
• Supplementary and recreational (motivational) needs: These refer to psychological, social, and sensory needs related to self-realization and self-expression, which depend on the culture of a certain group of people. These needs start with security, safety, and stability needs and progress to self-realization and self-respect needs. This research paper will study motivational needs, which are divided into psychological and sensory needs, as well as social needs and functional needs.

2.4. Psychological and Sensory Needs in Shared Open Spaces in Tourist Villages

2.4.1. Integration with the Natural Environment

This need aims to promote the feeling of belonging to nature and getting close to it, as it affects human health and the ability to work and produce. In addition, this need reduces the feeling of stress, since these shared urban spaces are considered as small models of nature in which humans can enjoy its beauty [24]. The role of urban designers relies on their success in providing a pleasant contrast between closed and open through the connection between internal and external spaces. In addition, it is recommended to keep these spaces extended and open, especially if there are distinctive and influential natural elements which promote the sense of freedom and enrich the spatial quality [25].

2.4.2. Security and Safety

Safety is the sense of the remoteness of danger and unpredictability of its occurrence as a result of the availability of tight security precautions. Safety and security are two related and inseparable concepts. Consequently, urban designers should not only create a safe environment but also make it secure to provide confidence and psychological comfort to users [26]. Oscar Newman stated some factors to create defensible space, such as dividing open urban spaces into smaller areas to strengthen the connections between the combined units, so users of the space can recognize each other, and creating visual surveillance through spatial formation and landscape elements by avoiding the creation of closed areas [27,28].

2.4.3. Feeling of Distinction

One of the significant needs of high-social-standard users is the feeling of distinction. This usually appears in private ownership, where people pay more attention to the design of their urban spaces and add distinctive landscape elements that reflect their interest and social standards. However, when looking at groups of people that share a specific open urban space, it is obvious how they deal with and share their ideas and preferences in shaping and designing these semi-private urban spaces [29,30]. However, urban designers should consider an adequate distance between the units to secure a certain privacy level. In addition, a high degree of distinction could be achieved by increasing the green areas which appear in the form of gardens or golf courses. These elements usually enrich the visual experience of users.

2.5. Visual Needs in Shared Open Spaces in Tourist Villages

This is the sense that relates to the human feeling of aesthetic values in the surrounding urban context. This feeling varies from one person to another. It is expressed by the level of satisfaction or relative satisfaction of the feeling of pleasure and beauty, such as by overlooking natural scenes or distinguished aesthetic views. The sense of beauty is not achieved through beautiful scenery or artistic elements only, but also by considering design principles. The organization of landscape elements and the logical correlations among these elements create harmony, diversity, and harmonious integration to provide for the distinctive personality of the landscape [31,32]. These principles can be identified by achieving unity, scale, balance, rhythm, sequence, and consistency.

2.6. Social Needs in Shared Open Spaces in Tourist Villages

2.6.1. Social Interactions

People need to interact with each other and practice all the social activities, such as going out, playing, and talking. A shared open space is an ideal place for such activities, but this depends on the degree of interaction needed and appropriate environments for these interactions. Consequently, urban designers can contribute to activating social interactions through their design and the organization and appropriate selection of landscape elements to secure communication between users [33,34].

2.6.2. Privacy

Privacy means the ability to control social relations with others or creating a degree of isolation. There are two different types of privacy, visual and auditory privacy. Visual privacy relates to the creation of visual barriers that prevent a direct view to the ground floor without affecting the design of the space. This requires urban designers’ knowledge of the different characteristics of landscape elements which could be integrated together to create the required level of privacy [35]. As for auditory privacy, it is the provision of an appropriate sound environment for the physiological and psychological comfort of users so that they can carry out various activities without being disturbed by external noise [36]. Urban designers have to consider the required level of privacy to be able to control it through behavioral means related to urban space, such as human boundaries, or physical means associated with landscape elements, such as plants that are used as visual and auditory barriers.

2.7. Functional Needs in Shared Open Spaces in Tourist Villages

2.7.1. Diversity of Activities

This means the public activities that users need to practice, and which attract them to go out, such as walking, strolling, playing, reading, and gathering to talk or eat. All of these activities need a place to practice them and certain requirements to ensure that they fit all user groups [37,38]. The existence of a logical sequence of movements, ease of access, the use of elements of suspense and excitement, and wide green areas contribute to the creation of secondary spaces within the public space [39,40]. The main role of urban designers is to provide a feeling of safety, privacy, and comfort in these areas to encourage people to go there as well as provide a range of areas that allow users to perform these activities [41,42,43], such as:

• Extended green areas that provide spaciousness and comfort to users looking at or going through them. These areas should be placed somewhere far from noise and disturbance.
• Kids’ play areas, where they can find all the entertainment activities they need and have fun. These areas must be secured and subject to the supervision of parents.
• Playground areas for adults should be located in faraway places and away from residential areas. These areas can be used for other purposes and activities during certain events.

2.7.2. Inclusiveness

This means that the urban space is designed to be suitable for all categories, especially people with disabilities, elderly people, and children. These groups of users are the most sensitive group to the defects of urban spaces, especially when their needs are not attainable, which makes them vulnerable to risk [44]. Therefore, urban designers must be aware of all these elements when they design the space and when they select and organize the landscape elements. Furthermore, they should consider the shortest ways to reach the places of activities and the availability of ramps and take into account their widths (not less than 1.2 m) and slope degree (not more than 5%).

2.7.3. Environmental (Climatic) Comfort

This need aims to provide climatic comfort to users so they can stay in the space throughout the day without being disturbed by climate changes [45]. Accordingly, urban designers must consider climate conditions and be aware of climate changes and their impact on the design of the urban space. They must determine the best locations in the urban space to ensure the highest efficiency through good climatic content [46,47].

Finalizing this stage in terms of explaining human needs, the researcher believes that it is one of the crucial criteria that must be taken into account in the design process. Nevertheless, it is the most complicated criterion, as it requires effort and additional time to study the social and cultural characteristics of the target group.

2.8. Design Criteria for Shared Urban Spaces and The Impact of Human Needs on Them

Many studies discuss the fundamental conditions and factors that affect the ability of urban spaces to attract people. The main reason is usually that these spaces are distinguished by their harmonious and integrated environment. Added to this is the distinction of their landscape elements with their tacit suitability to perform well and the ability to offer opportunities for users’ diversity and preferences [48]. Cooper studied urban spaces in the United States and reached the following conclusions [49,50]:

• The urban space should be prepared for the use of individuals and meet the needs of most groups without any conflict.
• The location of the urban space should be clear and easily accessible.
• The urban space should provide an aesthetic environment that brings the users closer to nature and promotes the emotional aspects of humans.
• The urban space should provide a sense of safety and security for its users.
• The urban space should have the furnishing elements necessary to support existing activities and be characterized by ease of maintenance.
• The urban space should provide a physiologically comfortable environment for users.
• The urban space should contain elements that respect the human scale so that users can interact with such spaces.

Furthermore, some key aspects must be achieved within the shared urban space, which greatly affect design criteria and require adequate adaptation. These key aspects can be summarized as follows [51,52,53]:

• Creating a place for people: The urban space should provide comfort, safety, and attractiveness. In addition, the design and the space’s components should suit the different needs of the target groups to achieve urban quality.
• Enriching the existing place: The new development of any urban space must be compatible with the nature of the existing context and environment. This will create a distinctive personality in the urban space and strengthen the sense of beauty and distinction.
• Connectivity: A good urban space is always distinguished by its clear features and easy access to all its parts, so the urban designer should be aware of how to clarify the space’s features and the design criteria for all components and pathways in terms of dimensions, sizes, and positions, thus providing comfort and ease in dealing with the urban space.
• Appropriate use of landscape elements: A balance must be achieved between softscape and hardscape elements and maximum utilization of natural resources. The urban designer must be aware of the resources and capabilities available and adapt the environment according to the users’ needs.
• Mixed uses: The space is attractive and motivating for the user when it has the ability to meet all the needs of users without any conflict. This requires a degree of diversity in uses and forms that suit the requirements of each group of people. The success of the urban space in the mixing process is measured by its ability to generate different interactions between users.
• Investment management: This means the ability of the urban space to be economically feasible, through understanding of market needs, available capabilities, and determinants of economic aspects. One of the important parts of the design process is to identify appropriate implementation mechanisms and consider them to reduce the cost of maintenance.
• Design for change: This means that the urban space is able to develop and communicate with the changeable and diverse variables of the users’ needs over time, and thus ensure achievement of the sustainable development of the urban space. In order to achieve this requirement, the urban designer should design a flexible and permeable urban space. In addition, the urban designer should be able to divide the urban space into smaller areas based on their different natures and functions.

Finally, the design criteria for urban spaces affect not only the design process but also the organization of the landscape elements, which are integrated with each other to improve the urban product and achieve functional sustainability.

3. Materials and Methods

3.1. Research Gap and Sample Site and Criteria Selection

The importance of this research study is represented in the crystallization of human design determinants with those of the physical urban space in an attempt to activate the role of each in the urban design process. Despite the efforts of the government and private sector in Egypt to develop the tourism sector and raise the quality of coastal cities as part of the new vision, some of these cities suffer from a low percentage of residents and low quality in urban spaces. The research seeks to narrow the gap between urban designers’ role in the design process and their ability to create a successful shared urban space, especially as urban designers in Egypt usually focus on the physical components of urban space without considering users’ needs and preferences, which affect the quality of the whole village. In addition, most of the studies in this region focus on the development of real estate, economic growth, environmental studies, and strategic plans without consideration of moral aspects.

The researcher has chosen the Northern Coast region as the area of study due to its importance as one of the main tourist sectors in Egypt, which has succeeded in attracting the real estate, urban development, and reconstruction movement. In addition, it has tourism and entertainment potential as it is considered a national resource that must be invested. Due to the numerous and diverse types of tourist villages on the Northern Coast, some common variables were unified among the selected case studies. Therefore, case studies were selected on the basis of location (Northwestern Coast region), ownership type (private tourist villages in which the decision-maker is the investor and is followed by a village owners’ association), area and building density (areas range from 50–80 acres with a building density of 20%), and social class (middle and upper-middle class).

3.2. Research Methodology and Questionnaire Design

The research study is divided into two main parts:

A. Theoretical part: The researcher relies on previous studies and literature reviews that discuss the main two components of the study. This part focuses on:

• Understanding fundamental urban design approaches and the related human role;
• Studying the different physical and moral needs of users;
• Highlighting the main design criteria and standards that must be adopted to reach an optimal design that satisfies the desires and preferences of the target group.

B. Practical application part: This part focuses on analyzing the shared open spaces in three coastal tourist villages to measure the success level of the urban designer in meeting humanitarian needs using design criteria, spatial formation, and landscape elements. In addition, it highlights the strengths and weaknesses of each design to be considered in future projects to produce responsive urban spaces. This part addresses the following:

• Studying the nature and components of tourist villages to clarify the nature of design and planning and to present the urban fabric followed;
• Measuring the extent to which human needs are met through design criteria, spatial formation, and landscape elements;
• Studying users’ impressions of the process of urban design of shared urban spaces.

Since the study aims to explore the impact of human needs on the design of shared spaces, it depends on the quantitative technique, which is more suitable for data analysis and evaluation of the achievement of users’ needs [54].

Furthermore, the study uses different tools to achieve its goals, such as site visits, site observation, interviews with the managers and workers, and spatial analysis, which was conducted to determine the physical attributes of shared urban spaces. In addition, a user questionnaire was distributed among the residents to measure the factors that affect each need [55].

The practical application part is divided into three sections:

First: Collecting data about the selected villages:

Data has been collected by:

• Site visits to the villages during the summer vacation from June till mid-September. The researcher visited the villages three times during the study.
• Interviews in the three villages with the village manager, the security manager, and employees in several departments (

  Table 1. Number of interviews conducted in each village.

  	Mina (3)	Marseilia Beach (2)	Palm Beach
  Administrative Director	1	1	1
  Security Manger	2	2	1
  Security	4	7	3
  Gardener	3	4	2
  Engineering Management Department	3	3	2

  ).

Through these interviews, an overview of the village and its occupancy rates were identified, in addition to the nature of the village’s visitors, residents, and types of landscape elements.

• A data collection form the researcher prepared was used to monitor all components of the village and the available elements, in addition to study of the fabrics used.

Second: Preparing users’ questionnaire:

A user questionnaire was prepared, and 200 questionnaires were distributed among the owners and residents of each village to be filled out. The questionnaire aims to measure the users’ satisfaction and the achievement level for human needs through the design criteria and spatial formation.

The questionnaire included several points:

• Users’ data, to determine the demographic characteristics of users in terms of age group, marital status, gender, and level of education.
• An evaluation table to measure the level of fulfilment of each need in the shared open spaces, where the users determine the availability and quality of the design criteria and its impact on their needs.
• An evaluation table to measure the impact of the spatial formation and landscape elements on humanitarian needs in order to find out the most important elements to fulfill the needs in future project development.

Third: Analysis and comparison of the questionnaire results:

A comparative study was conducted among the selected villages through analysis of the availability and quality of meeting humanitarian needs in each shared urban space in order to indicate their strengths and weaknesses and produce recommendations to be considered in the future projects. The researcher used SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) as a software program for analyzing the data, which was suitable to analyze and interpret large sets of numerical data from the survey results.

4. Results of User Demographic Characteristics and Site Investigation

In order to understand the nature of the residents and visitors, analysis of the demographic characteristics of the users was conducted. These characteristics are summarized as follows:

• Gender: The percentage of males in the sample reached 38%, while for females the percentage was higher, reaching 62%. This high percentage is attributed to the issue that most of the males spend their week days working in the home city leaving their wives with their kids. They usually spend the weekends in the tourist village with their families.
• Age group: The age group of the sample varied to show the impact on needs, especially those related to the diversity of activities and inclusiveness, and the percentage of the group aged between 18–25 years was 32%; that from 26–40 years was 39%; that from 41–60 years was 22%; and, finally, the percentage of those over 60 decreased to 7%, which is considered a very low percentage.
• Marital status: The sample’s marital status varied between single and widowed, and the percentages were as follows: single 19%, widowed 3%, in a relationship 11%, married 20%, married with children 47%. Observation of these percentages reveals that the highest percentages were for married couples with children, who mostly come for enjoying the summer vacation and having fun, followed by married couples and singles who travel for relaxation and recreation.

Moreover, the researcher describes the spatial formation, urban fabric, and arrangement of the shared spaces in these villages and their components in order to identify the potentials that enrich these villages and the challenges they face. The data collection part is summarized in the following table (

Table 2. Analysis of the three selected case studies.

	Mina (3) Village	Marseilia Beach (2) Village	Palm Beach Village
Description	Mina (3) Village is located at kilometer 76.5 of the Alexandria–Matrouh Road, with an area of 63 acres. The village consists of 410 housing units that vary between villas, chalets, and residential units. The height of the units ranges between two and three floors. These units occupy 15% of the total area of the village. In addition, there are recreational areas such as swimming pools, social clubs and shops topped with a seating area, sport courts, kids’ play areas near the swimming pool, and open theatre areas	Marseilia Beach (2) Village is located at kilometer 72 of the Alexandria–Matrouh Road. Its area is 64.7 acres, where 12.94 acres are built-up areas divided into residential units, commercial area, the mosque, and the rest (51.76 acres) is divided among the shared open spaces between the units and includes swimming pools, parking areas, and a beach that extends for 250 m. The residential units constitute about 17% of the total area. The village consists of 463 housing units that vary between private palaces, villas, chalets, and apartments of different sizes. In addition, it has 26 swimming pools distributed among all the residential areas, a commercial area, kids’ play areas, recreational areas of multiple sizes between the units, and parking areas divided to serve each group separately	Palm Beach is located at kilometer 68 of the Alexandria–Matrouh Road. It includes residential areas of 32,7 acres and 1 acre for the services area, in addition to the beach, which extends for a distance of 500 m. The village consists of 220 housing units that vary between private palaces, duplex villas, chalets, and apartments. The heights of the buildings do not exceed two floors. This results in a low building density, as the proportion of buildings is approximately 12% of the total area of the village. The recreational area is placed on the border of the village near the main gate. It includes a social club, volleyball courts, commercial areas, and a cafeteria
The Village Design	The urban designer’s idea aims to create pleasant and comfortable environment for the owners, as he directed most of the units to face the sea (northwest direction). In addition, he created different levels to allow the visual access of a high percentage of the units to the sea as well as creating visual privacy.	The urban designer relied on providing a great opportunity for users to enjoy nature by adding water elements in all areas, mainly swimming pools scattered inside the village and between the units. Although he raised the level of the residential unit area, some units were not able to see the sea, especially the lower units.	The urban designer relied on providing the opportunity for the largest number of units to see the sea; in addition, he made a full separation between the residential and service areas, as most of the services were placed near the main gate, and this led to creation of calm residential areas
Urban Fabric	A U-shaped assembly was used, which helped create a small internal space in the middle of a group of units, in addition to the parking space, which is relatively far from these spaces. The urban designer created a central, open, shared space with a width of 75 m, extending over the entire length of the site, about 600 m. This contains most of the recreational activities that the owners need, and they can access the small spaces in the middle of the units and, through the stairs, the upper levels. This helped most of the units to enjoy the view of the sea.	The urban designer creates diversity in the urban fabric formation based on the units’ type, where he kept palaces in the first rows of the beach and away from other units to create privacy, and followed by linear clusters of villas parallel to the beach. Then, the area of chalets that appears as parallel rows to the beach which prevent the last row units from seeing the sea. As for the apartment area, the urban designer succeeded in providing privacy and a good orientation, as he used U-shaped grouping pattern, that allows units to look over as well as reduce the height of the ground level, which helps in providing a good view of the sea, especially for units located on the upper floors.	The urban designer used many urban fabric patterns to increase the chance for many units to see the sea. He used a staggered, pointed style when distributing palaces, then a linear grouping for the private chalets and villas. In addition, he made the small-sized apartments inclined at an angle, placed them in a sequential manner, raised their level to allow them to see the sea, and created a pedestrian pathway in the middle of these units to reach the beach.
Urban Space Formation	The shared space is considered a free open dynamic, which has an irregular shape. In addition, it is located as a central space with a monumental scale.	The shared space is a static open space with a primary regular shape. In addition, it is located as a central space between each group of units with a human scale.	The shared space is a static open space with a primary regular shape. In addition, it is located as a central space between each group of units with a human scale.
Urban Space Components	Urban Space Floor: The urban designer relied on green covers for the space’s floor formation, and they were interspersed with pathways of hard tiles that can endure high density and corrosion	Urban Space Floor: The urban designer combined green covers and concrete floors, which were designed naturally, giving the users the feeling that they are made of natural materials, such as rocks and stones.	Urban Space Floor: The urban designer relied on green covers and decorative concrete paving in shaping the floor and dividing the group of spaces, while the rest were defined by hard concrete floors that resist corrosion
	Urban Space Walls: The urban space is open, as it is not surrounded by landscape elements. Meanwhile, its formation as a central space in the middle of the buildings makes it appear closed through the surrounding buildings.	Urban Space Walls: The space is considered semi-closed, as it is surrounded by short walls that were used as barriers. These were in the form of tree trunks and piled stones, providing a natural form. The wall did not prevent people from enjoying seeing the space while they were sitting inside the units.	Urban Space Walls: The space is considered open as there were no elements used as walls, but it was surrounded by the units overlooking it. Thus, the idea of visual openness was realized inside it, since its proportion is considered medium.
	Urban Space Ceiling: The urban space is not covered but was left open to the sky, except for the areas of the pergolas, which were shaded, as well as the movable umbrellas that were placed at the swimming pools.	Urban Space Ceiling: The space is not covered but was left open to the sky. There were fixed umbrellas on the edges of all the small spaces, in addition to movable umbrellas that were placed at the swimming pools.	Urban Space Ceiling: The space is not covered but was left open to the sky. There were some movable large umbrellas to create shaded spaces.

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5. Discussion of Humanitarian Needs within the Shared Open Space

Based on the responses to the questionnaire, the researcher analyzed the results and indicated the mean average of each need and the impacts of spatial formation, design criteria, and the organization of landscape elements to fulfill these needs. The following part will demonstrate the capacity of each space to meet the different needs.

5.1. Psychological and Sensory Needs

5.1.1. Integration with the Natural Environment

Marseilia Beach (2) and Mina (3) achieved high rates of fulfilling users’ needs to integrate with the natural environment (Figure 5), as the urban designer succeeded in providing a set of elements that strengthen the internal feelings of users. Both urban designers relied on design criteria and landscape elements in the design of these shared open spaces, such as:

• The scale of the shared open space is relatively medium in Marseilia Beach (2) Village, while it is relatively large in Mina (3) Village. Both scales strengthen the sense of visual openness and support the feeling of continuity of internal spaces with external ones, especially for the ground floor units, where Marseilia Beach (2) reaches 32%, followed by Mina 2 at 27%.
• The availability, diversity, and good distribution of landscape elements inside the shared open spaces, in addition to the fact that many of these elements were natural or made from natural materials, such as:
  • The availability of various types of seasonal plants, which vary with the change of seasons and have cheerful colors. This factor was achieved at 29% in Mina (3) and at 30% in Marseilia Beach (2).
  • A fountain was placed as a focal point inside the space in Mina (3) Village, which is made of natural materials such as stones and wood (Figure 6).
  • In Marseilia Beach (2) Village, although the urban designer used concrete paving, he covered them with natural colors and elements that gave a sense of being natural (Figure 7). Furthermore, he shaped the fences and the borders of the space in the forms of tree trunks. The average percentages for the diversity of landscape elements and their characteristics were 30% for the softscape elements and 28% for the others.

• As for Palm Beach village, despite the appropriate scale and size of the shared space, it appears weak, due to the lack of necessary standards and ingredients that strengthen an individual’s internal sense of being within the natural environment, which is caused by the lack of landscape elements with special natures (13%). In addition, the space does not present any variation in the landscape element (10%), since the urban designer has only covered the space with a green cover (Figure 8) and solid concrete floors that provide stagnation and boredom.

5.1.2. Security and Safety

Although two villages (Mina (3) and Marseilia Beach (2)) were able to meet the security and safety need (Figure 9), each has its own ingredients and capabilities in providing this feeling. In Mina (3) Village, the large size and scale of the shared open space affected users’ sense of security, but the urban designer tried to strengthen this sense by avoiding visual blocking (24%) or closed spaces (27%) and kept borders only for defining the space, whereas the edges were open and clear. Moreover, trees and palms appeared as aesthetic elements in or near the middle of the space (26%). The lighting units appeared as basic elements in the space (31%) and promoted the feeling of safety as the space became lit during day and night. In addition, the lighting units were well distributed, as short lights (90 cm) were used on the pedestrian pathways and long columns of heights up to 3 m were used inside the space to provide the highest area of illumination. Furthermore, the urban designer added higher levels to differentiate between the residential area and the shared space, providing opportunity for units to look over the shared space (Figure 10)

On the other side, the shape and scale of the shared space in Marseilia Beach (2) played a vital role in strengthening the internal feelings through the appropriate distribution of plants (25%) and the avoidance of any grouping of them and the overlook of all units on the shared open space (32%) (Figure 11). All of these design considerations promote the feeling of security and safety for users and the shared space appeared completely exposed. In addition, sufficient lighting units (28%) were added in all the small spaces and were well distributed to avoid dark spots inside the space. Another important consideration was the location of the space; it was designed at a higher level than street level (27%), so it became safe for kids to stay inside it without being exposed to any danger or risk. Furthermore, the urban designer succeeded in both villages in separating the shared space from the streets with vehicles; this helped in eliminate any concern or fear of accidents.

In Palm Beach Village, some factors were achieved with high percentages, and this enabled the village to provide safety to users, such as the clarity of the edges and borders of the shared space (27%), which provides security against theft (Figure 12). In addition to the absence of closed areas and the visual openness of the space (27%), the urban designer also succeeded in providing the feeling of security from accidents, as he located the space away from the parking area (27%) and higher than the streets in the village. However, the space lacked some factors to help strengthen the sense of safety, such as having insufficient lighting units (17%), which led to the existence of some dark areas, as well as a lack of soft tiling in the kids’ area (13%) to avoid injuries if kids fall while playing.

5.2. Visual Needs

The sense of beauty depends on the visual characteristics of the landscape elements and the presence of relationships among these elements and with the environment. In addition, there are other factors to consider, such as the presence of rhythm, diversity of elements within unity, and consistency and balance of the shared spaces with their content, which affect the human sense of beauty. All of these ingredients appeared clearly in the shared space in the Mina (3) and Marseilia Beach (2) villages (Figure 13), as the urban designers in Mina (3) and Marseilia Beach (2) were able to use a variety of landscape elements, such as trees, shrubs, and green covers (31% in Mina (3) and 30% in Marseilia (2)), which were placed in a distinct pattern, preserving the unity within the space and creating balance in the design and distribution of the elements. Furthermore, the shared space was divided into a smaller group of spaces, each with a different style of formation, boosting diversity of vision when walking inside the space (26%). Nevertheless, the urban designer unified the colors of the landscape elements that shaped the space.

In Marseilia Beach (2), the urban designer added attractive elements inside the space through two aesthetic focal points (28%) by arranging the palms and surrounding them with a variety of colored flowers in the form of a star and adding central lighting units to it that light up at night (27%) and make users feel joy and enjoy staying in the shared open space (Figure 14).

For Palm Beach Village, due to the lack of landscape elements, reliance on the green cover only, and placing of some trees randomly (17%), users could not feel the beauty of the space.

5.3. Social Needs

5.3.1. Social Interaction

The huge size and scale of the shared open space at Mina (3) and the different levels of this space and the residential area weaken the ability of the space to promote the social interaction need and friendships between users (Figure 15). In addition, it affects the feeling of belonging, as the shared open space is extended along the village, which makes it public, not belonging to a certain group of users. Consequently, they do not have any authority to organize or develop it according to their opinions and tastes. As a responsive approach, to enhance the suitability of the shared open space, the urban designer added some auxiliary landscape elements and considered design criteria that help create diversity and different patterns of interaction (29%).

The urban designer in Mina (3) used some elements and considerations to strengthen social interaction between users. These considerations can be summarized as follows:

• Dividing the space into smaller and varied spaces (25%) that serve the different activities of users.
• Providing seating in multiple styles (29%) that allow users to sit collectively or sit alone.
• Availability of shaded areas such as pergolas; however, they were not sufficient in such a huge space.
• Connecting all noisy activities, such as playgrounds, the commercial area, and the swimming pool, in same area and locating them at the beginning of the shared space and far from the residential areas.
• Presence of central areas along the shared space in various forms, which provide good opportunities for social interactions between users.

As for Marseilia Beach (2), the idea of dividing the shared space into small-sized spaces (30%) was appropriate to achieve acquaintance between groups sharing the same urban space and help in creating friendship between them. Nevertheless, the urban designer relied only on moving umbrellas and chairs around the pool (Figure 16) and this is not sufficient for the number of users.

Despite the small scale of the shared space in Palm Beach Village, the lack of different factors weakened social interactions among the users, such as insufficient seating (19%) and lighting units (14%), and led to the abandoning of the shared space at night. Moreover, the youth prefer to go to activities and commercial areas or playgrounds to enjoy their time at night. These areas are far from the residential areas.

5.3.2. Privacy

Privacy (both auditory and visual) was achieved within the shared open spaces of Mina (3) Village and Marseilia Beach (2) Village (Figure 17). As for Mina (3), the design and spatial formation of the space were appropriate to secure a level of privacy, since the urban designer grouped the noisy areas close to each other and at the borders of the space (19%), followed by areas of calming activities (Figure 18) in which the users can enjoy calmness and tranquility inside and the possibility of sitting and reading under the pergolas.

Moreover, some sources of noise, such as vehicles, were placed far away from the residential area, thus auditory privacy was achieved. As for visual privacy, the shared space was designed at a level lower than that of the residential area (23%). Consequently, the owners of the lower units are protected from prying eyes and have the freedom to sit and enjoy the space without being disturbed by passers-by.

In Marseilia Beach (2), the urban designer succeeded in providing an appropriate level of privacy within the shared open space, as it was at a lower level than that of the residential area (29%). In addition, the urban designer did not overdo the difference in level as in Mina (3), which provided privacy without depriving the owners of the lower units. Furthermore, the design of the street network was also suitable for creating a quiet environment, as the main streets were placed at the borders and away from the shared space (23%), while the parking areas were adjacent to it but at a lower level. Thus, the feeling of visual privacy increased, while auditory privacy was medium due to the presence of the swimming pool area in the middle of the shared open space.

In Palm Beach Village, the owners were not able to achieve visual privacy, as there was no separation between the private properties and shared spaces, except for short fences and plants (Figure 19). However, these do not prevent intruding eyes from seeing the lower units.

5.4. Functional Needs

5.4.1. Diversity of Activities

The idea of dividing up the large size of the shared open space in Mina (3) Village into smaller ones had a significant effect on providing various activities that matched the needs of the target group, as it reached 27% and enhanced the quality of the space. Moreover, the urban designer succeeded in distributing these activities appropriately along the shared space (25%) in order to attract users to go out and enjoy practicing several activities (Figure 20). The shared space was divided based on the level of noise produced, as it starts with the commercial areas and the upper terrace roof, which includes seating areas through which the entire space can be seen. In addition, the urban designer added a theater and playgrounds on the side of the commercial area and adjacent to the swimming pool with the water parks and kids’ play area (Figure 21). This area is followed by another area with a quiet, aesthetic nature, inside which a group of seats and pergolas are available (23%), encouraging users, especially the elderly, to stay there to read and enjoy nature. Despite all of these activities, there are insufficient areas for kids near the residential areas nor any space for parental surveillance.

In Marseilia Beach (2) village, the shared space includes mixed activities that fit the target users, such as the swimming pool area and green areas adjacent to it for relaxation. As for youth activities such as playgrounds, they did not exist in the shared open space, but they were located near the borders of the village, as the urban designer aimed to provide full separation between noisy activities and quiet activities. Furthermore, the kids’ area was located beside the beach (23%), with mostly movable and temporary light structures that could be dismantled and installed anywhere.

Although there is a similarity between Marseilia Beach (2) and Palm Beach in the way they both deal with the swimming pool area as a central space for the activities and adjacent areas around it, the urban designer in Palm Beach did not provide the shared space with necessary landscape elements (16%), such as seating, shaded areas, and a kids’ play area. Accordingly, users were not encouraged to stay in the shared space, especially as the youth activities were added to the social club.

5.4.2. Inclusiveness

The design of the shared open space in Mina (3) Village has considered some factors for the elderly and people with special needs (Figure 22), as it defines their areas far away from noisy activities (25%). In addition, the urban designer considered the width of the pathways (22%) and the finishing texture used (24%), which facilitate the movement of wheelchairs. Despite the presence of stairs and ramps needed for the elderly and users with disabilities to facilitate movement within the space, the ramp was located at the beginning of the shared space, which makes it hard for users to reach it easily. In addition, the ramps were insufficient when compared with the size of the shared open space (18%).

For Marseilia Beach (2), the urban designer has succeeded in designing a suitable space for people with special needs and the elderly, since the size of the space was suitable (human scale is considered), as well as its location, which is near to the residential units. In addition, ramps were added around the space with suitable inclinations, and finishing material (the texture is medium and non-slip) that matches their use. Moreover, the presence of fixed umbrellas provides a good opportunity for the elderly to stay in the shared space and enjoy the beauty of nature or reading in silence.

Despite the availability of paving elements in Palm Beach Village with suitable finishing materials (27%) and width (25%) for the needs of the elderly and people with special needs, it was hard to use the space due to the lack of ramps, as in Marseilia Beach (2), and users needed to access the space from its beginning (19%).

5.4.3. Environmental (Climatic) Comfort

The shared open space in Mina (3) Village appeared semi-closed, as it is surrounded by buildings from three sides, while the urban designer left the sea side open to the north side, which is considered the direction of the prevailing wind (26%). Moreover, the shared space contains different water elements that help moisturize the air and reduce its temperature as it passes through the beach pool, followed by the central fountain and finally the swimming pool, with the water activities at the beginning of the shared space. Furthermore, plants are spread on the different levels of the shared space; therefore, when the wind passes, it becomes laden with the fragrant scent of flowers (17%) (Figure 23).

The spatial formation and planning of shared spaces in Marseilia Beach (2) led to the achievement of physiological comfort within it, as the orientations of the shared spaces are directed towards the desired winds and the direction of the sea (30%). In addition, the proportions of these shared spaces were suitable for the movement of the wind, which passes over humidifying elements such as the swimming pool.

Despite the success of the urban designer in Palm Beach in orienting the shared spaces towards the desired winds and achieving good proportions in designing the space, the lack of landscape elements affects the feeling of comfort, especially during the hot season, and decreases the quality of the space, as these elements play a significant role in controlling the temperature and humidity through the gradation of plant elements (9%) and the availability of shaded areas (10%).

At the end of the analytical part, the researcher measured the average of the total factors affecting each need in the three selected villages and summarized this in the following chart. It was clear that Mina (3) and Marseilia Beach (2) satisfied most of the needs (Figure 24). However, the factors that affect them in fulfilling these needs are different from one village to another.

Furthermore, it was crucial to indicate the effective impacts of the formation of space (spatial formation), landscape elements, and design considerations (criteria) in the selected villages, which contribute to fulfilling humanitarian needs (

Table 3. The impact levels of spatial formation, landscape elements, and design criteria on human needs.

		Mina (3)	Marseilia Beach (2)	Palm Beach
Integration With Nature	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Safety and Security	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Sense of Beauty	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Social Interaction	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Privacy	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Diversify the activities	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Inclusiveness	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria
Environmental Comfort	Spatial Formation
	Landscape Elements
	Design Criteria

).

6. Conclusions

Urban open spaces are considered one of the most crucial pillars of the urban development of coastal tourist villages and act as significant attracting elements for humans and residents of these villages. Shared open spaces are considered centers for social interaction and the medium for several activities. Moreover, they contribute to consolidation of the mutual interactive relationship between individuals and their surrounding environment. Accordingly, understanding the relationship between users’ needs and the quality of urban spaces is vital in regenerating and improving the public realm, and, concomitantly, the lives of the local community. Furthermore, the elderly and people with disabilities are considered the group most affected by the defects and weaknesses of urban open spaces, due to their inability to move and enjoy all the components of these shared open spaces.

The analytical part of the study shows an overview of the different attributes and the impact of the design criteria of the three assessed shared open spaces on humanitarian needs. With various levels of achievement within each set of attributes, this study identifies key challenges and problems that could lead to determining possible opportunities for future projects to generate social sustainability. These basic considerations control the design process for public and shared open spaces in tourist villages. Accordingly, urban designers must be aware of them to achieve the highest efficiency of these urban open spaces and promote their abilities to accommodate all human needs. These considerations mean the principles of design formation (shape, proportions, scale, regularity) as well as landscape elements (softscape and hardscape) that facilitate the process of achieving the design standards necessary to meet human needs.

The considerations drawn from the applied study that must be taken into account when designing urban spaces and ensuring their effectiveness in fulfilling human needs can be summarized as follows:

• The size of the urban open space affects the individual’s sense of belonging and their ability to integrate with nature. A medium size is the best, which has a length-to-width ratio of 1:2. In addition, the height of the surrounding units and the human scale should be taken into consideration. Moreover, the use of various natural elements in shaping and forming shared open spaces can produce psychological comfort for users.
• Users’ feeling of safety and security is affected by several factors; the most important factor is the size and location of the shared open space; its size should not exceed the ratio 1:2, and its location should be exposed and overlooked by the largest number of units. Moreover, the availability of necessary lighting units and consideration of their types and specifications when distributing them will promote the feeling of safety for users. Another essential factor and design criterion that should be taken into account when designing kids’ play areas is full separation between roads with vehicles and these special areas so parents will feel safe to leave their kids inside the urban space.
• Users’ sense of beauty is affected by their perception of the space and, therefore, the visual characteristics of urban spaces, such as unity, rhythm, balance, and diversity. Urban designers should be aware of the physical characteristics of the landscape elements and be able to anticipate different design principles to boost the efficiency of these shared spaces.
• Social interaction between users depends on the availability of gathering areas and the diversity of seating types and the way they are distributed in the shared open spaces to suit the different desires of users to interact. Moreover, sufficient shading elements must be available during the day with lighting units at night to encourage users to stay in these shared open spaces.
• Good distribution of the various activities inside these shared open spaces helps in achieving the required level of privacy. This could be accomplished by grouping activities with a noisy nature away from relaxation areas or separating them by using fences and adding sound-dispersing elements such as fountains or dense trees.
• The diversity of activity patterns and the existence of areas for practicing them are crucial functional needs. Consequently, urban designers must be aware of various types of activities during the design process to provide appropriate environment with a diversity of arrangements or possible modifications to meet the future needs of users.
• Urban designers need to be more considerate of the needs of the elderly and people with disabilities by providing horizontal movements such as ramps and considering their slope (not exceeding 5%), and the finishing material must have a rough or anti-slip texture. Moreover, the locations of their activities should be clear and easy to access through the shortest route with the least distance. A possibility is separating the movement pathways of the disabled and the elderly from other pathways so that they can move freely without fear of colliding with pedestrians.

Moreover, climatic studies should be done before designing these urban spaces at early stages, to facilitate and provide appropriate distributions of activities and landscape elements to ensure the highest efficiency. It is considered the best direction for a space on the Northern Coast to face towards the sea to enjoy the northwest winds. Plant elements with fragrant scents can also be provided.

This study proves that users’ experiences and needs can be promoted when the urban designer utilizes spatial attributes of the urban environment that have been neglected or insufficient in urban spaces. One of the main limitations is that the results indicate landscape elements and design criteria that are deemed as essential for a specific type of tourist village where the residents consider them second homes and spend a long time there. Meanwhile, these physical attributes might be different when it is measured for another type of tourist prototype, like in coastal resorts where most of the users are foreigners and stay for short periods. Another limitation of this study is that it demonstrates user-centered urban interventions and developments and focuses on a certain social class of users and their attributes towards a better understanding of the urban scale; however, these attributes and interventions could be different when measured for other social classes.

Finally, the research discussed one approach for creating a responsive environment; however, some other factors could affect the quality of coastal areas, and it would be recommended to have more studies on them for better future opportunities. These studies could be summarized as:

• Studying the economic dimensions of landscape design in the design process of urban open spaces and the impact of value engineering on cost reduction without compromising quality.
• Studying the environmental performance of urban spaces in coastal tourist villages and the impact of the planning patterns and systems on them.
• Studying the environmental effects of construction materials within coastal tourist villages.