Commons and public spaces

Abstract

In the contemporary city, beside public and private spaces there is a third type of spaces: the common places. This are spaces which are maintained and managed by people from the surrounding community. Such examples are community gardens and common allotments, and other open (or closed) spaces where people meet and work together. Urban commons have a long history in Italian cities since the Middle Ages, where they were then mainly represented by untutored fields and grasslands. Modern town planning decided both a specific use and owner for every space, but in the cities there survive wastelands where people can experience the "self-building" of place and in this way express themselves, growing things, taking care of a common ground and building a community. There are many examples in Rome and other cities all over the world (some case will be presented in the session). This allotments and gardens, because of the self building of the people and the openness, have all the characteristics of user friendly spaces: as their use was never identified, people here have more freedom for use, only being sure nothing will be destroyed or damaged by them and respecting the common rules. The active existence of these common spaces, while the most are occupied, is tied to the wealth and the good disposition of either the private owners and the public institution holding ownership of the space. The importance of this places for the city and its community should be recognized by the planners, who should find ways of both improving and protecting them.