Assessing the Implications of Covid19 on the Management of Public Open Spaces : A case study of Nakuru City, Kenya

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Amid the COVID-19 crisis, we feel the sting of having lost our familiar, vibrant, social and lively public places. There is great uncertainty about how COVID-19 will impact future public space design, use and perceptions. This study, therefore, aimed at investigating the implications of Covid19 on the management of public open spaces in Nakuru City, Kenya.
Household questionnaires, key informants' interviews, field observation and conference meetings were used in data collection. The quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS together with Microsoft Excel and GIS for Nakuru City land uses and spatial implications of Covid19.
It was established that majority of the participants were male, youthful, with a secondary school level of education. They were also majorly self-employed and were relaxing in open spaces because urban parks in Kenya are attractive to the jobless and those in the informal sector. Consequently, 73.3% of the respondents were unsatisfied with the physical appearance of the open spaces, which are also insecure. Amid Covid19, 94% of the respondents were aware of the government measures for the mitigation of Covid19. However, 59% opposed it, as they impacted the source of their livelihoods (hawking, shoe shinning, photography, and public transport termini). Stay at home (50%) and social distancing (31%) were some of the mitigation measures that highly influenced the use of the public open spaces, as they led to the relocation of transport termini and markets, closure and limited access (33%) of the urban parks.
There have been efforts to decongest the city in the past; as a result, the County Government of Nakuru took advantage of the pandemic to decongest the city with minimal opposition as they enforce Covid19 measures. Therefore, urban public transport and informal business setups within Nakuru City were highly affected, through relocation of the bus terminal and small-scale traders' market outside the CBD.
This study, therefore, recommended that the Nakuru City embrace smart city governance, provide inclusive and sustainable urban parks and utilize transit-oriented development, as it has been established that the COVID-19 pandemic has not caused a significant change in the mobility behavior pattern of commuters who live within planned TOD areas.

국문 초록 (Abstract)

코로나19 위기 속에서 우리는 친숙하고 활기차며 사회적이고 생기 넘치는 공공 장소를 잃어버리는 쓰라린 경험을 했다. 코로나19가 미래의 공공 공간 설계와 사용 및 인식에 어떤 영향을 미칠지는 매우 불분명한 상태다. 따라서 본 연구는 케냐 나쿠루 시의 공공 개방 공간의 관리에 코로나19가 미친 영향을 조사하는 것을 목표로 했다.
가구 설문지, 주요 정보원 인터뷰, 현장 관찰, 회의 등의 방법으로 데이터를 수집했다. 나쿠루 시의 토지 이용과 코로나19의 공간적 영향을 밝히기 위해 마이크로소프트 엑셀, 지리정보시스템(GIS)과 함께SPSS를 이용해 정량적 데이터를 분석했다.
참가자 대다수는 중등학교 수준의 교육을 받은 젊은 남성들이었다. 또한 참가자는 주로 자영업자였으며, 도시 공원과 같이 실업자와 비공식 부문(informal sector)에 종사하는 사람들에게도 열려 있는 개방 공간에서 휴식을 취하는 이들이었다. 설문 결과, 응답자의 73.3%가 안전하지 않은 개방 공간의 물리적 외관에 만족하지 못했다. 코로나19가 한창일 때 응답자의 94%가 정부의 규제 조치는 코로나19 완화를 위한 것임을 인식했음에도, 이 중 59%는 이러한 조치는 생계 수단(매사냥, 구두닦이, 사진 촬영, 대중교통 터미널)에 영향을 미친다는 이유로 반대했다. 집에 머물기(50%)와 사회적 거리두기(31%)는 대중교통 터미널 및 시장의 이전과 도시 공원의 폐쇄 및 접근 제한(33%)으로 이어지면서 공공 개방 공간의 이용에 크게 영향을 미쳤다.
이전부터 나쿠루 시 정부는 도시의 혼잡을 줄이려는 노력을 해왔는데, 코로나19로 인한 규제 조치는 반대를 최소화하면서 도시 혼잡을 완화하는 유용한 수단이 되었다. 버스 터미널과 소규모 상인을 CBD 외곽으로 이전시킴으로써 도시 대중교통과 비공식 상점을 나쿠루 시에 설치하는 것이 어려워졌다.
계획된 대중교통 지향형 개발(TOD: transit-oriented development) 지역 내에 거주하는 통근자의 이동 행동 패턴이 코로나19 대유행의 영향을 크게 받지 않은 것으로 확인되었기 때문에, 본 연구는 스마트 시티 거버넌스(smart city governance)를 수용해 포괄적이고 지속가능한 도시 공원을 제공하고 TOD를 활용할 것을 나쿠루 시 당국에 권고했다.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
• 1.1 Background 1
• 1.2 Problem Statement 3
• 1.3 Research Objectives 6
• 1.4 Research Scope 6
• 1.5 Significance of the Research 8
• CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 9
• 2.1 Concepts of Public Open Spaces 9
• 2.2 Historical Development 10
• 2.2.1 Types & Characteristics of Open Public Spaces 12
• 2.3 Public Open Spaces in Kenya 14
• 2.3.1 Institutional, Legal and Policy Framework in Public Open Spaces 16
• 2.4 Factors Influencing Use of Urban Public Open Spaces. 20
• 2.5 Public Open Spaces management during Covid19 Pandemic 21
• 2.6 Case Studies of Implications of Covid19 Pandemic on Public Open Spaces 24
• 2.6.1 Case Study 1: Effects of the COVID-19 on the use and perceptions of urban green space in six countries in Europe. 24
• 2.6.2 Case Study 2: COVID-19 Impacts on Cycling, 20192020 26
• 2.6.3 Case Study 3: COVID-19 Impacts on Land Use 28
• 2.6.4 Applicability of the Issues of the Case Studies 28
• 2.7 Conceptual Framework 30
• CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 32
• 3.1 Introduction 32
• 3.2 Research design 32
• 3.3 Data Sources 33
• 3.4 Data Collection Methods and Techniques 34
• 3.4.1 Analysis of Document 34
• 3.4.2 Observation 34
• 3.4.3 Questionnaires Administration 34
• 3.4.4 Interviews 35
• 3.4.5 Photography 35
• 3.4.6 Mapping 35
• 3.4.7 Focused Group Discussion 36
• 3.5 Population and Sampling 36
• 3.5.1 Sampling Frame 36
• 3.5.2 Sample Size 37
• 3.5.3 Sampling 38
• 3.5.4 The key informants 40
• 3.5.5 Data Analysis 41
• 3.5.6 Data Presentation 41
• 3.5.7 Ethical Consideration 42
• 3.5.8 Limitations of the Study 42
• CHAPTER FOUR: BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY AREA 44
• 4.1 Overview 44
• 4.2 Background of Nakuru City 44
• 4.3 Demographic Characteristics 49
• 4.4 Climatic Conditions 49
• 4.4 Land Use Analysis 50
• 4.4.1 Residential Land Use 51
• 4.4.2 Commercial Land Use 52
• 4.4.4 Educational Land Use 52
• 4.4.5 Recreational Land Use 52
• 4.4.6 Public Purpose Land Use 52
• 4.5 Public Open Spaces in the Study Area 53
• 4.5.1 Lions Garden 54
• 4.5.2 Nakuru Main Bus Terminus 54
• 4.5.3 Afraha Stadium Annex 54
• 4.5.4 Mburu Gichua Road 55
• CHAPTER FIVE: RESULTS AND ANALYSIS 56
• 5.0 Overview 56
• 5.1 Respondents Basic information 56
• 5.1.1 Gender of the Respondents 58
• 5.1.2 Age of the Respondents 58
• 5.1.3 Level of Education 59
• 5.1.4 Level of Income of the Respondents 60
• 5.1.5 Employment Status of the Respondents 60
• 5.1.6 Distance from Central Business to Place of Residence 61
• 5.1.7 Mode of Transport to the City CBD to Place of Residence 61
• 5.2 Public Open Spaces 62
• 5.2.1 Connection between Environment and Society 62
• 5.2.2 Awareness on the Existence of Public Open Spaces 64
• 5.2.3 Uses of the Public Open Spaces in Nakuru City 65
• 5.2.4 Level of Satisfaction on the Public Open Spaces 66
• 5.2.5 The Users' Safety in the Public Open Spaces 67
• 5.3 Physical and Environmental Characteristics of the Public Open Spaces 69
• 5.4 Impacts of Covid19 on the Public Open Spaces 71
• 5.4.1 Government Restriction on the Use of Public Open Spaces on the Wake of Covid19 71
• 5.4.2 Mitigation Measures that were implemented that influenced your Use of Public Open Spaces 73
• 5.4.3 The Changes on the Use of Open Public Spaces during Covid19 77
• 5.4.4 Relocation 78
• 5.4.5 Natural Environment Elements 83
• 5.4.6 Challenges Faced on the Implementation of the Mitigation Measures 83
• CHAPTER SIX: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 85
• 6.0 Conclusion 85
• 6.1 Recommendations 87
• 6.1.1 Inclusivity in decision making through Smart City Governance 87
• 6.1.2 Inclusive, sustainable city park 88
• 6.1.3 Transit Oriented Development 88
• 6.2 Recommendations for future studies 89
• REFERENCES 90
• APPENDICES 96
• Appendix I: Household Questionnaire 96
• Appendix II: Key Informant, County Physical Planner 102
• Appendix III: Key Informant, City Manager 104
• Appendix IV: Key Informant, County Environment officer 106
• Appendix V: Key Informant, Public Transporter Operators' Chairman or representative 108
• Appendix VI: Public Open Space Checklist 110
• Appendix VII: Focused Group Discussion 112
• 국문 초록 114
• ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 116