Pavement cafes as the activity zone in the social life of neighborhood centres

Farahani, Leila Mahmoudi and David Beynon

APA
Mahmoudi Farahani, L., & Beynon, D. (2015, January). Pavement cafes as the activity zone in the social life of neighbourhood centres. In ASA2015: Living and learning: research for a better built environment: Proceedings of the 49th International conference of the Architectural Science Association (pp. 193-202). University of Melbourne.

Abstract
This paper reports the findings from a research project that examines the relationship between urban design and the physical environment, and aspects of social and communal life in suburbs. Australian suburbs are perceived to be lacking in vitality and sociability. To address this, three suburban commercial streets were selected for investigation. Through documents and maps of the residents’ activities and behaviour, this study aims to identify the popular zones of activity and investigate the physical characteristics that encourage a sociable atmosphere in activity zones. The observation of activities in the three streets has been registered in tables relative to the date and time of occurrence. According to the behavioural mappings, the zones of activity are mostly shaped around pavement cafes and popular everyday food stores. Since more than half the activities have been observed to be initiated from the pavement cafes, this paper will investigate how the physical qualities of commercial streets such as the width of the pavements, personalization, soft edges and greenery have contributed to the pavement café culture in the selected neighbourhood centres.

Main finding
This paper investigate how the physical qualities of commercial streets such as the width of the pavements, personalization, soft edges and greenery have contributed to the pavement café culture in the selected neighbourhood centres. A strong correlation is find reagarding the width of the sidewalk or front yard The personalization or defining the boundaries of the dining area through physical elements such as panels and shades is also a critical factor in the popularity of pavement cafes. And finally, a facade with permeability and transparency is another physical quality that may affect the success of outdoor dining.

Description of method used in the article

Verdict
Of practical use

Organising categories

Activity
Gathering/Socializing Sitting/Relaxing
Method
Field Observations
Discipline
Urban Design
Physical types
Cafés/Restaurants Sidewalks
Geographic locations