Studies on Usage Patterns and Use Range of Neighborhood Parks: Focused on 'Regional Area Parks' in Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Parks are some of the most important spaces within a city and should be managed with practical standards and an efficient system. The current urban park systems however, have inflexible standards where parks are categorized by size alone. In this sense, this study focuses on (1) the provision of practical urban park management schemes and (2) suggestions regarding the adequate use range of parks using a set of empirical data. This study has (1) examined the problems of the current park management and supply system by which parks with varying attributes (such as size, characteristics, and usage) are considered and managed as a single hierarchy and has (2) investigated the use range of five parks in Seoul where the service area has not been clearly defined. Surveys were also conducted to gather information on park usage, and analyses were followed to verify if park usage had statistically significant differences by parks and hierarchy. The findings of this study identified that the current hierarchy of regional area parks includes both neighborhood parks and regional parks in the same manner. It is expected that the results of this study may be used in suggesting the problems of the current urban park management scheme as well as primary data to consider establishing practical policies.