PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Mark Chidister TI - The Effect of Context on the Use of Urban Plazas AID - 10.3368/lj.5.2.115 DP - 1986 Sep 21 TA - Landscape Journal PG - 115--127 VI - 5 IP - 2 4099 - http://lj.uwpress.org/content/5/2/115.short 4100 - http://lj.uwpress.org/content/5/2/115.full AB - Low-use continues to be a problem in many urban plazas. In an attempt to explain why some plazas are used more than others, many previous studies have looked at the relationship between plaza design and use. While a relationship has been found between design and use in some of these studies, much of the variation in use is still unexplained. The study described in this paper was done to determine if the context in which the plaza is situated affected plaza use. The relationships between plaza use and plaza design, area population, and contextual characteristics were examined for five plazas in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. Study data showed that plaza use was strongly correlated with population and contextual characteristics, as well as with physical characteristics of the plaza. Specifically, large plazas, with more linear feet of seating, more trees, and close proximity to high worker populations, offices, restaurants and bars, and parking tended to be used more than other plazas in Minneapolis. While more extensive studies are needed to validate these findings, they suggest that the surroundings of future plazas may affect use as much or more than the design of the plazas. Further studies need to incorporate a more comprehensive measure of plaza use, consider detailed measures of micro-climate, refine the measurement of context, survey plaza users, and, more importantly, have non-users identify barriers to plaza use.