Social use and meaning of neighbourhood public realm: lived experience of high-density community housing residents in Richmond, BC

This study explored the perceptions of community housing residents related to their social interactions and sense of belonging in the public and shared spaces of their building and neighbourhood in a master-planned complete community in Richmond, BC. To investigate this, I reviewed the existing planning and development documents of the case study and a resident survey and conducted a participatory and collaborative online geographical mapping exercise followed by semi-structured interviews with residents. This research found that values more than the built environment considerations of the plan and development impact the completeness of a neighbourhood and residents' choices in public and shared spaces for necessary, optional, and social activities, and their sense of neighbourhood belonging. These factors include rules of behavior and regulation, perceptions of fairness in socioeconomically mixed contexts, appeal based on cultural and lifestyle preferences, appeal based on social environment, and attachment to places and people over time.