Changing public space

cafés. The members of the consortium have deliberately kept events, restaurants, and cafés out
of the underpass, fearing they would attract loitering youths as well as undesired activities at
night. But they also found it inappropriate to mix business and pleasure – in this case, shops
and restaurants – as these are different spheres of activity (Bergenhenegouwen & Van Weesep,
2003). In contrast to the low rating on the other themed dimensions, the Beurstraverse has a
high intensity on ‘fun shopping’. This refers to the large number of luxury shops, among these
many renowned fashion stores, jewellers, and cosmetics chains.
How can the outcome of Figure 7.1 be explained? Because it is located in the middle of the
city centre and forms a linkage between two shopping precincts, the Beurstraverse has to deal
with large pedestrian flows (as described in Section 6.2.3, more than 81,700 visitors per hour on
Saturdays). The shops in the Beurstraverse are of high quality, which might attract undesired
shoplifters. The shops are closed in the evening, leaving the Beurstraverse relatively unattended.
It is privately owned, which enables an increase in regulation in addition to the regular local
ordinance to deal with these problems. Rotterdam has to deal with relatively high crime rates.
Although the municipal safety index (based on an annual survey among 13,000 residents) shows
that the city has become safer in the last years (Van Rhee et al., 2005; Gemeente Rotterdam,
2007c), Rotterdam still had the lowest position in a 2007 safety ranking of the 50 largest Dutch
cities (Marlet & Van Woerkens, 2007). Security measures to improve safety in the Beurstraverse
thus seem inevitable. The same arguments (i.e., central location, large pedestrian flows, high
crime rates) also apply to the Schouwburgplein, but do not lead to a high level of security.
The research by Van Aalst and Ennen (2002) has shown that safety at night is in fact a feature
the Schouwburgplein scores well on. This can be explained by the presence of the theatre and
cinema, which mostly draw visitors in the evening; in contrast to the Beurstraverse, which is
underused after the shops close. The Schouwburgplein has been consciously redeveloped to
enhance a cultural cluster (see Section 6.2.1). This is not only expressed in the construction of
the new cinema, but also in the organisation and facilitation of events. The Schouwburgplein
particularly scores well on these issues, turning it into a themed public space. In this respect, the
Schouwburgplein’s diagram can be regarded as an intended outcome of the 1985 municipal policy
to create a cultural cluster.
7.3 Fear and fantasy in Dordrecht
We have created similar diagrams to illustrate the intensity of fear and fantasy in the public
spaces of Dordrecht. Figure 7.2 depicts that the Grote Markt and Statenplein show great contrast
in their ratings on the six different dimensions. The Grote Markt is an example of a city square
that cannot easily be categorised as a secured or themed space. It has no benches and the area
cannot be closed off by means of fences (although part of its space is only accessible when paying
parking fees). Therefore, the square rates medium on ‘restraints on loitering’. With respect to the
other five dimensions, the Grote Markt has low intensities. There is no camera surveillance and
only the regular local ordinance is applicable to the area. There is only one small sidewalk café
on the Grote Markt and events are rare, mostly to prevent noise nuisance for the local residents.
There are two shops (i.e., a video and discount store), but these constitute less than 50 per cent of
total surrounding property, which mostly consist of housing. This percentage used to be higher,
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