You may be concerned about blending public and private spaces in your next project. The common spaces within an urban apartment community or downtown hotel are usually within close proximity to private spaces, with few barriers between them.
Creating a successful community amenity space that people actually want to use isn’t easy. It becomes all the more difficult when the space is surrounded by private units. While it’s clear that there are many potential problems caused by the conflict between private and public spaces, it is often less clear how to prevent them. When these issues go unaddressed they lead to high levels of tenant dissatisfaction and turnover. By improving the relationship between private and public spaces you demonstrate to your tenants that you value them.
Continue reading to discover effective methods to help you achieve the right balance between public and private spaces.
Blend Public and Private Spaces
The overall success of your project is directly impacted by how well the design functions. Complaints from tenants caused by the poor relationship between their private units and the common amenity spaces lead to high turnover. It’s a situation that, once in place, is difficult to remedy.
That’s why it is so important to consider the balance between public and private spaces early on in the design stages of a project. By implementing the following suggestions, you can greatly minimize the conflict between shared and private spaces and enhance the experience in each.
Distance unit patio doors from the main amenity space.
Keep patio doors at a comfortable distance from common areas as often as possible. Doing so can help avoid the awkward situation of exiting a private unit and immediately being in close contact with other people. It’s uncomfortable to enter an occupied space, feeling like you’re disrupting the activity and all eyes are on you.
An effective strategy is to arrange the floor plans such that the private unit patios are recessed into the building, rather than protruding out beyond the rest of the building envelope. When patios are stacked (as they typically are) the deck surface will block much of the view of the patio doors on the upper levels. It also allows for more space at the ground or podium level for a privacy buffer. Enlarged patios at this level also contribute to a greater distance between common areas and private unit patio doors.
Organize each common area by use.
The organization of common areas has an impact on how separated they feel from private units. Organize amenities with the more active uses along the fringes of stationary hangout zones. In terms of comfort within your private unit, there is a massive difference between a walkway outside with the occasional passerby and a grilling station or fire pit where people gather and socialize right next to your private space.
Use screens and enclosures within the common area.
Interior common areas have the benefit of being separated from private units by solid walls, ceilings, and floors. Outdoor common areas, on the other hand, are closely connected to private spaces by way of windows and patios. This creates a need to replicate the privacy afforded by the interior building layout. Vertical screens and overhead structures can do much to enhance the experience of users in both common and private spaces.
Vertical screens benefit the ground floor or podium level units the most, where conflict between common and private space is the greatest. They can be positioned to screen views or indicate where gatherings should take place in the common area. Even shorter barriers, such as raised planters or seat walls, can do much to delineate space and create a feeling of physical separation and privacy.
Beyond providing shade, overhead structures provide the comfort of refuge to common space users. They alleviate the awkwardness caused by the “fish bowl” effect of having multiple floors of units looking down at you while spending time in outdoor common areas. Even implied overhead structures, such as string lights, make a big difference. They provide a more human scale to the space while turning the attention away from private units and toward the immediate outdoor experience.
Emphasize views and create focal features.
If your outdoor space has visual access beyond the building envelope, orient the focus of the space toward those views. So long as it’s not completely surrounded by private units, you can focus the attention of the users away from private units and toward mountain views or the city skyline. Even the simple day-to-day traffic of the adjacent street could provide an interesting view.
Another key way to pull attention away from private units is to include focal features in your outdoor space. Murals, sculptures, water features, and follies can all captivate users of outdoor space as they instinctively orient themselves toward the feature.
Introduce background noise.
When you eat at a restaurant or shop at the grocery store, there is often soft music playing in the background. Music helps patrons feel comfortable, encourages them to stay longer and even fosters social connections. Imagine how awkward it is when you can hear another table’s entire conversation in a quiet restaurant. The same goes for your outdoor amenity spaces.
While it may be impractical or inappropriate to play music in some spaces, other forms of background noise can go a long way to improve the conflict between shared and private spaces. It will also enhance the experience of multiple user groups occupying the same shared space by filtering sounds within the common area.
Perhaps the best form of background noise in an outdoor setting is a water feature. The constant, calming sound of water falling can drown out peripheral conversations and generate a relaxing atmosphere conducive to the enjoyment of outdoor space.
Use vegetation to separate space.
Vegetation is the go-to move for separating outdoor spaces. Planting areas create both vertical buffering and horizontal distance between shared amenities and private units.
Vegetative buffers are a key piece of any successful outdoor space. Plants have benefits beyond structure; they cool the air, provide visual interest, and restore the mind. But, when it comes to urban apartments and hotels they aren’t used nearly enough. Too often vegetation gets relegated to the role of “foundation plantings” with the main purpose to conceal portions of the building, rather than to function as part of the space’s design.
Use plants to organize common areas and to create more privacy within shared outdoor spaces. The more greenery you add, the more comfortable a space becomes and the higher quality the experience. Vegetation is a useful tool as it can provide comfort while maintaining visibility for safety and security.
Minimizing Conflict Between Private and Shared Spaces
Despite the difficulties, it is possible to form a harmonious relationship between interior private units and shared outdoor space. Experiment with concepts outlined above to discover the best case scenarios for user experience.