Comfort of open public spaces: case study New Belgrade

Abstract

Open public spaces are very important for sustainable contemporary cities as important generators of users and activities. The concentration both of users and activities produces livability and vitality of districts and city (Hass-Klau, 1993; Jacobs, 1972; Whyte, 1988). Recent research has shown that the microclimate of open public spaces is important for intensity of use, as thermal conditions affect people’s behaviour and usage of outdoor spaces On the other hand, the comfort of open public spaces depend on urban design and its morphological characteristics. The outdoor thermal environment, is impacted by the surrounding surfaces and objects (Ichinose et al. 1999), materialization of ground surface (Lin et al. 2007), evaporation and evapotranspiration of plants (Robitu et al. 2006), shading by trees or constructed objects (Lin et al. 2010). However, rain, wind, hot weather can greatly influence the comfort of users of open public spaces. In the paper, Block 21 in New Belgrade has been analyzed, before and after transformation, using ENVI-met simulations and direct survey of citizens. Such analysis could help designers to create comfort urban place, which could increase the number of users throughout the year, with the focus on hot summer periods.