Sense of Place... What?

So noted urbanist Joel Kotkin tells us that the inner ring suburbs that will be successful will provide inhabitants with a strong sense of place. Sense of place?” What? After a quick google search, I found that Wikipedia has a “Sense of place” entry. I am not a big fan of Wikipedia, but for something like this, it will probably do. So what does the great Wiki have to say on the matter?

“Places said to have a strong ‘sense of place’ have a strong identity and character that is deeply felt by local inhabitants and by many visitors.” “It is often used in relation to those characteristics that make a place special or unique, as well as to those that foster a sense of authentic human attachment and belonging.“

“Places that lack a ‘sense of place’ are sometimes referred to as ‘placeless’ or ‘inauthentic.’ Placeless landscapes are those that have no special relationship to the places in which they are located—they could be anywhere.”
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sense_of_place

So what creates a sense of place? Certainly, great public spaces can really help. Plaza De Mayor in Madrid, Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps in Rome, Times Square in New York, Grant Park in Chicago, Leicester square in London are all public spaces that provide an unparalleled sense of place. At the end of the day however, what makes these places so great is that they attract people. There are a lot of physically beautiful places on earth that don’t attract people, and I bet many of them would not be considered places with a great “sense of place.” So the ability to attract people is very important. But they are also all places that are authentic. If you reread the above, authenticity is a term that seems central to placemaking. So if I had to define it, I would say that having a sense of place first and foremost means that a place attracts and fosters social energy. To do that requires access and authenticity. But authenticity is such a nebulous term. I guess that needs to be the next stop.