Addressing the Challenges in the Development and Management of Public Spaces in Contemporary Cities

Dear Colleagues,

Public space is an integral part of urban life in towns and cities. Successful public spaces are designed, developed, and managed in such a way that they are accessible and can attract a range of uses and activities, providing an opportunity for socialisation among the users. Despite their significance as a “common social platform”, the quality of public spaces appears to be deteriorating in contemporary cities against the backdrop of the radical transformation in the post-war era, characterised by the decline of the public realm. Scholars argue that public spaces have been treated as a residual space in contemporary cities and have received the lowest priority in the urban development process. At the same time, the management of public spaces has emerged as another key issue of urban development in contemporary cities, as the quality of public spaces has been significantly influenced by the changing model and degree of their management.

This Special Issue aims to contribute to the ongoing debate on the challenges posed by the changing nature of the development and management of public spaces in contemporary cities. We invite papers (both original research and review articles) that will look into the nuanced aspects of these challenges by either engaging in theoretical discourses or presenting empirical evidence. Submissions to the Special Issue are expected to critically examine a range of issues pertaining to the provision and use of public spaces and offer important insights into approaches to public space development and management in the changing urban context of contemporary cities. Some suggested topics may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Governance and management of public spaces;
• Urban sprawl, public space, and place quality;
• Urban–rural space sharing;
• Public space and placemaking;
• Contemporary urban form and its impact on the design and use of public space;
• Current changes in the provision and use of public spaces in traditional urban areas;
• Privately owned public spaces;
• The rise of third places;
• Social interaction in public spaces;
• The rise of ICT and the changing nature of public spaces.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Rajjan Chitrakar
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Urban Science is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• public space
• public realm
• public space management
• provision and use of public spaces
• publicness
• accessibility to public spaces
• control of public spaces
• loss of public spaces
• third places
• contemporary cities