Spaces of Encounter: The Relationship Between Amenities and Visitor Diversity

Abstract

Urban experiences are shaped by daily activities that often extend beyond residential areas, leading to opportunities for encounters with people different from us in various contexts. Such encounters can subsequently influence attitudes towards those groups, which is critical in the diverse environments of modern cities. This study explores how neighbourhoods with varying types of amenities facilitate intergroup mixing among individuals of different income levels and migration backgrounds. Using data from OpenStreetMap to characterise neighbourhoods by their amenities and mobility patterns derived from mobile phone app data of 204,567 residents of Auckland, New Zealand, we quantify the relationship between intergroup mixing and the types of amenities, or more particularly ‘spaces of encounter’, that a neighbourhood offers. Our findings reveal distinct characteristics between spaces that promote income mixing versus those that foster migration background mixing. Spaces promoting income mixing tend to have more consumption-oriented amenities (such as bars and restaurants) and fewer shops, whereas spaces promoting mixing between migrants and locals feature more places of worship and fewer institutional settings. These insights underscore the important role that specific spaces of encounter might play within our neighbourhoods and thus carry implications for urban planning and policy aimed at enhancing social cohesion.