CONTEMPORARY PUBLIC SPACES IN THE CENTRAL RETAIL BELT : A CASE STUDY OF OUTDOOR AND INDOOR TYPOLOGY OF RETAIL SPACES IN ORCHARD ROAD

Abstract

This dissertation seeks to look at public spaces, specifically the pedestrian mall and the retail malls of Orchard Road. Outdoor spaces play an important role in daily urban life. However, as Hee puts it, “We live in a culture of commercialism and in the age of consumption-and it is not surprising that some of our better public spaces are dominated by commercial interests”. Therefore, retail spaces, functioning as today’s public spaces, have to readapt to meet the social demands of the space. The shopping street which is an outdoor space is dynamic compared to the static public spaces of shopping malls. The analysis will cover the positive aspects of the outdoor pedestrian mall against the negatives of the indoor public spaces of the retail mall. The purpose of this dissertation is to look at the positive aspects of the outdoor spaces against the negative aspects of indoor spaces to emphasize the important role of outdoor public spaces. It also attempts to analyze how retail malls earned its reputation as anti-urban and how retail malls, functioning as today’s public space can play a part as an important constituent of the city and urban experience.