Unitec architecture senior lecturer Matthew Bradbury said the key to creating public spaces was to give the public things they could not get at home. Getting people into public spaces has always been more of a challenge in New Zealand because people tend to have spacious houses and gardens. "But I think as we become more urban and we're living in smaller spaces, public spaces are becoming more important," Bradbury said. Along with the tangible qualities, public spaces can also serve an intangible purpose. "It's important we still have public spaces for coming together as a city or as a country.

Source: Stuff October 27, 2016 05:52 UTC