4.5 How Public Squares can Boost building performance

4.5 HOW PUBLIC SQUARES CAN BOOST BUILDING PERFORMANCE :

Successful public spaces aren’t just good for the community -- they're also good for business. If creatively shaped and managed, underutilized plazas, courtyards, lobbies, or public meeting rooms can contribute directly to the economic bottom line of a building -- and increase its customer satisfaction.

Attract and retain tenants

• An attractive and well-used plaza or public space makes a building more marketable and competitive, drawing in tenants and pushing rents upwards. • Tenants often view a public space -- one that is well-managed and offers food and/or events -- as an amenity, thus has the knock-on effect of improving customer satisfaction. • A successful plaza can raise the value of a building, just as landscaping and other amenities can do for a private home.

Generate revenue

• Public space in and around a building can directly generate revenue. For example, lobby space can be leased to a vendor or food-service provider; while interior or exterior reception areas and other public spaces can be rented for events such as weddings, parties, and conferences. When they are well-managed, food or other vendors on a public plaza can serve as a key amenity -- and a steady source of revenue.

Increase tenant and employee satisfaction

• Building employees and visitors take pleasure using an active and beautiful civic space adjacent to the building where they work, come to do business, or relax. • Tenants can use an attractive space can help recruit and retain employees. • An actively managed, well-programmed civic space adds favourably to the image of the building's tenants, owner, and management

Keep construction on-time and on-budget

• Designing or renovating a building with active use of public space in mind can lower construction costs. Ornate monuments and elaborate landscape designs can be expensive and are less important to successful civic spaces than building in the kind of flexibility that allows for a variety of uses and programming. For example, sitwalls can serve as a street buffer/perimeter security element. Using this less-is-more approach can results in lower fees and more effective internal costs.