This study focuses on the revaluation of inner cities. The position of inner cities in urban and regional structures is under pressure. Competition by malls and the separation of functions add to this process. Public spaces in the inner city are fragmented. It is imperative to develop a comprehensive vision with the quality of the inner city at its centre. This to be sure of an equal or better quality of the inner city in the future. The design of public spaces has the ability to steer or seduce people. Seducing to explore the unknown and to take missed opportunities, if they are present. This study aims to make a contribution to the revaluation of inner cities. This is done by means of; a literature study; an analysis of the problems inner cities face regarding readability and resistance to the passing of time; identifying tools that could solve the problems inner cities face regarding readability and collecting these tools in a toolbox; and by testing the findings in a design. For this study, the structure and the users of and the elements in the inner city have been defined differently than is normally the case in the literature on this topic. To make the city interesting for everyone, a prime goal especially for the inner city, the city must have something to offer each user perspective, the passer-by, the visitor and the resident. The boundaries between these groups arent strict, but are meant to be an inspiration. The difference between these groups depends on the different uses the groups have for the public spaces and the differences in knowledge about the system of public spaces. Everybody uses and looks at the city in a different way. This segmentation allows the designer to look at the city unhindered by hierarchy. The inner city itself is made up of joints. A joint is a point, line or area. The precise form depends on the scale on which the user makes use of the inner city, but it mostly depends on the perspective of the user. Together these joints make up a system. Seduction by means of the public space does not merely cover the movement of users from joint to joint, but also covers the possibility to switch between user perspectives. The seduction can only be achieved if the public spaces have an inherent quality. Quality of public spaces is defined as public spaces being readable and resistant to the passing of time. The composition of the built-up area and the public space (together with the functions present) define the resistance to time. The analysis shows this to be specific to a location. To aid the design of readable public spaces, a toolbox has been developed. The toolbox contains various tools that assist in designing a joint. The fact that resistance to time is specific to a location, means that no tools regarding this problem have been added tot the toolbox. Designing a joint is linked to a certain system and a certain location. Analysing a joint yield demands specific to a location. The toolbox offers several possibilities to design a readable joint. A number of possible tools correspond with a combination of user perspective and the type of joint. From here on, it is up to the designer to make a choice what tools will be employed in the design, and how. Employing the tools isnt enough though, this has to be done in a way that is well thought through and that corresponds to the situation. Next to the conceptual ingredients and actual spatial means, a designers vision and the situational context also contribute to close a citys system by designing the joints. Rotterdam has been chosen as the location for the analysis and the testing of the toolbox in a design. Rotterdam, by way of its history as a harbour and the World War 2 bombings, is an interesting location. Changing policies and (sometimes unavoidable) choices have led to an inner city with heart that changed position numerous times. Therefore, it does not come as a surprise that the analysis and the historical research have shown that Rotterdam finds it hard to create a readable and lively inner city. Walking out of Rotterdam Central Station, the route to the city centre isnt obvious. The koopgoot can be found, but once you exit it, the next step is unclear. The ambitions of Rotterdam to develop an insightful city and to revive it in some way, cant do without a good design for the public spaces, obviously. The location for the design is the result of the analysis of the readability and the resistance to the passing of time for Rotterdams inner city. This analysis showed that the system of the inner city lacks a joint, making the next step from there unclear and leaving missed opportunities. This is the part of the Westblaak near the Binnenwegplein. Using the toolbox and the findings from the historical and the literary research, this location has been reconnected to Rotterdams system of joints in the design. The evaluation of the toolbox showed that some adjustments were needed to increase its potential. Specifically, this study utilises a new view of users in relation to public space. The central themes are, on the hand the consequences of a design for public space for the usage and the experiences of users, and on the other hand the consequences of the users view for his usage of public space. It would be interesting to reinforce and expand on this theory in the future. This could be done by interviewing users with different perspectives and expanding the research to other cities.