Public Outdoor Room
. . . the common land in Main Gateways, Accessible Green, Small Public Squares, Common Land, Pedestrian Street, Paths and Goals needs at least some place where hanging out and being “out” in public become possible. For this purpose it is necessary to distinguish one part of the common land and to define it with a little more elaboration. Also, if none of the larger patterns exist yet, this pattern can act as a nucleus, and help them to crystallize around it.
Problem:
There are very few spots along the streets of modern towns and neighborhoods where people can hang out, comfortably, for hours at a time.
Background & Research: Not Included on the site—Go read the book!
Solution:
In every neighborhood and work community, make a piece of the common land into an outdoor room—a partly enclosed place, with some roof, columns, without walls, perhaps with a trellis; place it beside an important path and within view of many homes and workshops.
Usage:
Place the outdoor room where several paths are tangent to it, like any other common area—Common Areas at the Heart; in the bulge of a path—Path Shape; or around a square—Activity Pockets; use surrounding Building Edge to define part of it; build it like any smaller outdoor room, with columns, and half-trellised roofs—Outdoor Room; perhaps put an open courtyard next to it—Courtyards Which Live, an Arcades around the edge, or other simple cover—Canvas Roofs, and seats for casual sitting—Stair Seats, Seat Spots . . .
pg. 348