Reading attributes of the urban space: a possible methodology for urban heritage

Abstract This article proposes the possibility of reading urban space through the methodology presented by Ewing and Clement (2013) in the book Measuring Urban Design. This methodology was applied to a section of the central area of the city of Laguna, State of Santa Catarina, an area listed by the National Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage in the 1980s due to its historical and cultural relevance. The methodology determines which public spaces in a city are more attractive to human presence compared to others and what the perceptible qualities of these spaces are, as well as how these qualities can be measured. Initial results indicate that the proposed methodology is suitable for identifying and measuring the perceptible qualities of the urban environment, both in urban heritage areas and in other areas.