Urban form and social interaction : municipal wet markets and their surroundings : case study in Hong Kong and Singapore

Abstract

Municipal wet markets not only ensure food provision in citiesbutalso arefrequently used as public spaces inpeople’s daily life, especially in Asia. In Hong Kong, the municipal market buildingcombinesa range of mixed-use.Itis a catalyst for social interaction, and related interaction activities are derived from the useofdiversity.However, most of current researchesfocuson the study of social interactions within the market building itself and ignore the characteristics of thesurroundingurban settings. Thisstudy adoptsan urban morphology perspective, using theliterature review to identify urban dimensions related to social interaction. A case study research strategy is used to selectcontrastedurban formssurroundingmunicipalmarkets in two high-density tropical cities, Hong Kongand Singapore. Thisstudy shows that single and system of pedestrianized streets and public open spacesnearthe municipal market foster higherlevel of social activities independently of density and diversity which are remarkably highin Hong Kong. Itprovidesurban designrecommendations for fostering social interaction in the proximity ofmixed-usemunicipal wetmarketsand similar mixed-use programmein high-density tropical cities.