Coexistence of Urban Nightlife Activities with Residential Areas: A Mixed-Use Neighborhood Case from Denizli, Türkiye

Since the relationship between work and leisure has been reorganized as an outcome of postmodern everyday life, the nighttime has been a brightened subject for the local development agenda and revitalization policies of decayed urban centers. Even though the night activities accompanied by the leisure and entertainment industry have been prioritized to meet the increasing demand, their amalgamation with residential uses tends to lead to contradictory consequences, and the preservation of residents’ quality of life needs tailored policies. Departing from the conflictive demands on urban nightscape, this study aims to reveal the satisfaction of entrepreneurs and residents coexisting in a neighborhood. To show the social, spatial, and temporal impacts of the extension of nocturnal activities, empirical research was conducted at the neighborhood level in Denizli, Türkiye, data from 50 firms through snowball sampling were gathered through in-depth interviews and questionnaires, and a sample of 140 households were selected through stratified random sampling. For the analytical procedure, in addition to the descriptive statistics indicating business and household profiles, satisfaction levels with doing night business and residing in the neighborhood were inquired. Findings suggested that entertainment enterprises tended to cluster in newly developed areas to benefit from the proximity advantages to customers and support the expansion of central districts, and residents showed high satisfaction levels from the vitality ignited by night activities. Also, residents’ overall satisfaction was found to be associated with the economic effects of nightlife and their attachment to the neighborhood. A policy frame is presented for socially sustainable nighttime activities targeting potential investors and decision makers and for preventing the old core’s decay.