Public space: The contribution of the Covid-19 pandemic to the privatisation of public life.

Abstract

In light of a longstanding inseparable relationship between urban planning and public health, this paper explores the contribution of coronavirus (Covid-19) in the privatisation of public life in public spaces, today and in future. Public life is the primary ingredient of public space through which it attracts and retains people. However, public life continues to be privatised due internal forces such as the state, content and location of the public spaces themselves and external factors such as the modernist movement and the virtual space. While responsible authorities are grappling unsuccessfully to deal with privatisation, a new threat known as coronavirus (COVID-19) has emerged with even worse effects on public life. This is a result of its strict requirements for physical distancing and lockdowns where people are expected to stay at home in order to flatten the curve for new infections. The research is undertaken through a critical literature review. The paper is anticipated to contribute towards new ways of understanding the public space-public health interface and subsequently set a springboard towards rethinking the social public space. In light of infectious diseases and in particular Covid-19, the paper will conclude by interlacing together the drivers of public space privatisation into a comprehensive model that will stand as a basis to the understanding and improvement of urban public life.