This research addresses the problematization of the meaning of commercial districts. As viewed from the principles of urban design, a field of study located within urban semiotics, it analyzes sense of place and the ability to acquire it. Focusing on the case of commercial districts, this study conceptualizes the most recurrent urban design principles in commercial neighborhoods (vitality, memory and versatility), examining their relationship with the surrounding public space. Likewise, through a case study of three cities, the article examines the way in which the three main principles of urban design found in these places are materialized. Considering the important role that such principles play in relation to the public space adjacent to these neighborhoods, it is also shown that they are significant for the construction of the sense of belonging of the communities that inhabit and use them.