scholarly journals UNDERSTANDING URBAN DISASTER RESILIENCE THROUGH A MORPHOLOGICAL APPROACH: A CASE STUDY OF SETTLEMENT UPGRADING AND FLOOD RESPONSE IN BANGKOK

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 22-30
Author(s):  
Pamela Sitko ◽  
Avar Almuhktar
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Capital City ◽  
Disaster Resilience ◽  
Social Governance ◽  
Urban Disaster ◽  
Key Dimensions

A city can be difficult to analyse. However, approaches such as urban morphology (the study of urban form) can assist with understanding what the city is by reflecting how urban form is influenced by interdependent social, governance and economic factors that contribute to building resilience. To illustrate how urban morphology can be used as an approach for understanding disaster resilience in cities, a case study of informal settlement upgrading impacted by a flood in Bangkok, Thailand is presented. A study of the Bang Bua Canal in Thailand’s capital city is used throughout the paper to demonstrate how disaster resilience can be analysed by using four morphological layers. The paper identifies key dimensions of resilience within each morphological layer. The dimensions highlight patterns of social, governance and economic influence on the built environment. Generalisable lessons from using morphology as an approach for understanding disaster resilience include: that resilience can be a way of building upon the existing capacities of low-income neighbourhoods; the concept is a positive when it helps neighbourhoods ‘bounce forward’ and that, crucially, resilience can act as a bridge between development and disasters. Key words: disaster, resilience, urban morphology, Bangkok, upgrading

scholarly journals Extending the concept of the morphological frame: a case study of Tangshan old military airport

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Feng Song ◽  
Rongxi Peng ◽  
Zijiao Zhang ◽  
Yixi Li
Keyword(s):  
Urban Form ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Morphological Transformation ◽  
Ground Plan ◽  
Plan Analysis ◽  
Peking University ◽  
Social Use ◽  
The Impact

Extending the concept of the morphological frame: a case study of Tangshan old military airport Rongxi Peng, Zijiao Zhang, Yixi Li, Feng Song* College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University. 100871 Beijing E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]*(corresponding author)Telephone Number: +86 132-6990-0350, +86 139-1013-6101* Keywords: China, morphological frame, three-dimensional view, airport Conference topics and scale: Urban form and social use of space/ City transformations/ Stages in territorial configuration   The concept of the morphological frame is important in urban morphology, but it has been discussed much less than other critical concepts, such as the fringe belt and the fixation line.  Passing its features on as inherited outlines, the morphological frame contains not only the linear fixation line, but also ground plan and three-dimensional aspects.  In this research, the linear, ground plan, and three-dimensional morphological frame of Tangshan old military airport during the expansion of the city after the removal of the airport is identified.  The former boundary roads of the airport exert obvious influences on the division of plots.  The former arterial roads also function as a linear morphological frame.  In relation to the ground plan, property rights and plots containing important buildings have an impact on the consequent town plan.  The distinct feature of the morphological frame of the airport is its three-dimensional constraint, i.e. the vertical clearance requirement, which restricted the height of surrounding buildings.  The impact of this institutional limit can last a very long time owing to the high cost of demolishing the old surrounding buildings or adding extra storeys even if the limit ceased to exist with the removal of the airport.  Based on this case study, this paper refines and extends the connotation of the concept of the morphological frame and further discusses the relationship between function and form.   References Conzen, M. P. (2009) ‘How cities internalize their former urban fringes: a cross-cultural comparison’, Urban Morphology 13(1), 29. Conzen, M. R. G. (1969) Alnwick, Northumberland: a study in town-plan analysis (Institute of British Geographers, London). Lin, Y., De Meulder, B. and Wang, S. (2011) ‘From village to metropolis: a case of morphological transformation in Guangzhou, China’, Urban Morphology 15(1), 5-20. Whitehand, J. W. R. (2001) ‘British urban morphology: the Conzenion tradition’, Urban Morphology 5(2), 103-109. Whitehand, J. W. R., Conzen, M. P. and Gu, K. (2016) ‘Plan analysis of historical cities: a Sino-European comparison’, Urban Morphology 20(2), 139-158.

scholarly journals High rises and low-quality shelter: rental housing dynamics in Mathare Valley, Nairobi

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 481-502
Author(s):  
Baraka Mwau ◽  
Alice Sverdlik
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Rental Housing ◽  
Housing Markets ◽  
Single Room ◽  
Rental Markets ◽  
Central Pillar ◽  
Shelter Delivery

Informal rental housing remains a hidden – yet central – pillar of low-cost shelter markets across the global South. The large informal settlement of Mathare Valley illustrates Nairobi’s rapidly changing informal rental housing markets, with the ongoing rise of tenements alongside metal shacks. Informal single-room rental units (shacks and tenements) already house most Nairobi residents in low-quality but highly profitable shelter. This case study describes how multiple exclusions can shape access to rental housing and examines the politics of shelter delivery. We underscore the importance of private rental markets and offer recommendations for inclusive, multi-pronged interventions combining support for rental housing, land governance and infrastructure delivery. Through a better understanding of the myriad actors and dynamics of informal rental housing, it may be possible to develop strategies that serve low-income tenants for whom renting is often the only viable option.

scholarly journals Urban form and vacant shops: can one explain the other? – a case study in Portugal

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Saraiva ◽  
Teresa Sá Marques ◽  
Paulo Pinho
Keyword(s):  
Urban Form ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Economic Market ◽  
New Developments ◽  
Morphological Variables ◽  
The City

Shopping is much more than a wealth-generator in post-modern societies; it is intrinsically linked with the way people experience the city and an indivisible part of their day-to-day social experiences. Consequently, the literature has gradually recognized that commercial geographies are not just a consequence of economic market logics. It has been proven that there is a relationship between store-types and urban morphology, and that commerce is an important catalyst for urban regeneration and revitalization. Thus, the urban form can also be a cause for the lack of success of a shop. The amount of vacant shops has been signaled as an important problem in urban areas, affecting the structure and the identity of neighborhoods, and reflects the negative effects of the economic-crisis. Strategies to overcome this problem are usually economically-oriented and fail to capitalize on the new-found relationships between store-success and urban morphology. Thus this research wishes to test whether there are indeed correlations between specific morphological features and the existence of vacant shops, and consequently to propose how changes in the urban environment can contribute to overcome, and even prevent, such cases. The geographical distribution of vacant shops in a sample of Portuguese cities was set against morphological variables such as building age or centrality in the network (Space Syntax). Positive association was found, for example, between new developments and vacant shops, questioning the need for more store space in certain areas; and, particularly outside central neighborhoods, between open shops and high ‘choice’ (rather than high ‘integration’) axes.

How to evaluate densification? Case study of Lourdes neighborhood, Santiago, Chile

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Rocio Urbina
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Spatial Configuration ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Densification Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Determining Factors ◽  
Urban Analysis

Purpose This study aims to question the fact that density has been considered only as an instrument of calculation to be used on regulation mechanisms, without taking into consideration other variables related to density. The paper proposes a framework consisting of four determining factors for urban analysis that have to be considered before starting a densification process: connectivity and permeability of network, mixture of uses, relation to urban morphology and public spaces for each district. The methodological analysis was carried out for the case of the district of Gruta de Lourdes, Quinta Normal, located in northwest Santiago, which has started a densification process the recent years. Design/methodology/approach The present discussion aims to obtain objective parameters to determine if urban development allows livability and a balanced relationship with actual urban form and diversity. There appear to be four determining factors of urban analysis: connectivity and network permeability, the mixture of uses, public spaces and urban form development. The district of Gruta de Lourdes will be used to delve into these parameters to place the debate around density in objective terms. To look in depth at each of the criteria for evaluating densification processes, various methods were selected for quantifying the observed variables: to evaluate connectivity and integration of a neighborhood with the rest of the city, the spatial configuration analysis “Space Syntax” will be used; to evaluate mix of uses, mixed-use index, or ratio of non-residential use will be used; urban morphology, plot size, housing density (dw/ha), lot coverage and floor area ratio will be used; public spaces, the percentage dedicated to each of these in m2/inhab. Findings The results allow us to conclude that it is necessary to plan densification processes via an analysis that promotes connectivity, mixture of uses, urban morphology and the available public spaces to understand density as a multivariable phenomenon. In addition, we conclude that the case study district, Gruta de Lourdes, can withstand greater demand for housing as long as the context is taken into account. A possible option to asset the densification potential could be the “infill” strategy, which aims to be a type of intervention that does not change the structure of the neighborhood as new buildings are positioned among existing ones, maintaining the form of the streets and the structure of plot divisions. Originality/value The value of the paper is to contribute to the discussion on how to renovate central areas in Latin American cities looking at variables such as connectivity, mixture of uses, urban morphology and public spaces, which are directly related to density. Moreover, the paper contributes to discuss new ways to analyze and measure densification, toward planning a district’s renovation. In addition, the quantitative methodological approach to the densification processes gives a new understanding of how to determine density. Finally, the paper reveals an opportunity to rethink the inner city toward new approaches to renovation developments.

scholarly journals The urban form in the city of Tulcán, Carchi - Ecuador

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yolanda María Tapia ◽  
Adolfo Vigil-de-Insausti ◽  
María Dolores Montaño
Keyword(s):  
Green Infrastructure ◽  
Urban Form ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Capital City ◽  
Internal Space ◽  
Urban Structure ◽  
Environmental Resources ◽  
North West ◽  
The City

Yolanda Tapia¹, Adolfo Vigil de Insausti¹, María Dolores Montaño ² ¹ Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Valencia, UPV. Camino de Vera, s/n. 46022 Valencia, ²Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador, PUCE. Av. 12 de Octubre 1076, Vicente Ramón Roca, Quito, Ecuador E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] Keywords: Tulcán, Ecuador, urban, landscape, history Conference topics and scale: The Urban Form, “City and territory in the globalization age”   Tulcán, located north in Ecuador is the capital of the province of Carchi. It is a city especially commercial and agricultural whose urban morphology responds to historical, environmental and administrative circumstances, that is how, since 1851, the date on which the “cantonization” takes place begins the formation of the capital city with an urban structure formed in checkerboard that welcomes the traditional nucleus of the typical city of the ecuatorian highlands. With the development of this city, isolated neighborhoods are born out of the original urban fabric that expand in the territory, following the main road connections, eventually to fill the internal space with a morphology of contrasts, as each neighborhood or new occupations are structured individually without thinking of a city of integral formation. The longitudinal growth of the city was marked from its beginning by the river Bobo to the north-west and the river Tajamar to the south-east that keep the city within natural limits, which also provide certain environmental and landscape benefits, however in the the last few decades the city has had a significant growth that threatens an unattended and constantly expanding periphery to these environmental resources. We are facing a heterogeneous city, with problems and possibilities and attending to the idea that the city is an unfinished work, integral and sustainable urban regeneration is the basis for a reordering and a new urban approach. It is therefore proposed to study three strategic lines: the existing city, its internal circuits of connection and the adjacent nature. Establishing initial uses in the city, to occupy the predominant urban void and thus to activate the pubic space. Restructure mobility, which will strengthen the use of new peripheral road infrastructures to reduce motorized circuits in the interior, thus promoting the use of bicycles and the creation of pedestrian routes. Finally, environmental resources will again have the value of landscape and ecological wealth producing around the city a green infrastructure that contains growth and is the link of this with the countryside. References Beery, B. (1975) ‘Consecuencias humanas de la urbanización’, Madrid: Pirámide Hernández, A. (2001) ‘La ciudad estructurada’, en Boletín CF+S 15 Calidad de vida urbana: variedad, cohesión y medio ambiente. (http://habitat.aq.upm.es/boletin/n15/aaher.html) Huertas Nadal, D. (2012) ‘I making Heterotopías, laboratorio de estrategias urbanas’, Vitoria: Universidad Francisco Vitoria Lopez de Lucio, R. (2007) ‘Construir ciudad en la periferia’, Madrid: ETS Arquitectura (UPM) Urbanística y ordenación del territorio Solá-Morales, M. (1997) ‘Las formas del crecimiento urbano’, Barcelona:Universitat Politécnica de Catalunya

scholarly journals Towards Informal Planning: Mapping the Evolution of Spontaneous Settlements in Time.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maddalena Iovene ◽  
Graciela Fernandéz De Córdova ◽  
Ombretta Romice ◽  
Sergio Porta
Keyword(s):  
Urban Form ◽  
Complex Adaptive System ◽  
Informal Settlement ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Aerial Photographs ◽  
Urban Systems ◽  
Reference List ◽  
Urban Structure ◽  
Scale Reading ◽  
Modern Cities

Maddalena Iovene¹, Graciela Fernandéz De Córdova2, Ombretta Romice¹, Sergio Porta¹ ¹Urban Design Studies Unit (UDSU). Department of Architecture. University of Strathclyde. 75 Montrose Street, Glasgow, G11XJ, UK. 2Centro de Investigación de la Arquitectura y la Ciudad (CIAC), Departamento de Arquitectura, PUCP. Av. Universitaria 1801, 32 San Miguel, Lima, Peru. E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],  [email protected] Keywords (3-5): Informal Settlement, Peru, Lima, Model of Change, Urban Morphology Conference topics and scale: Reading and Regenerating the Informal City   Cities are the largest complex adaptive system in human culture and have always been changing in time according to largely unplanned patterns of development. Though urban morphology has typically addressed studies of form in cities, with emphasis on historical cases, diachronic comparative studies are still relatively rare, especially those based on quantitative analysis. As a result, we are still far from laying the ground for a comprehensive understanding of the urban form’s model of change. However, developing such understanding is extremely relevant as the cross-scale interlink between the spatial and social-economic dynamics in cities are increasingly recognized to play a major role in the complex functioning of urban systems and quality of life. We study the urban form of San Pedro de Ate, an informal settlement in Lima, Peru, along its entire cycle of development over the last seventy years. Our study, conducted through a four-months on-site field research, is based on the idea that informal settlements would change according to patterns similar to those of pre-modern cities, though at a much faster pace of growth, yet giving the opportunity to observe the evolution of an urban organism in a limited time span. To do so we first digitalize aerial photographs of five different time periods (from 1944 to 2013), to then conduct a typo-morphological analysis at five scales: a) unit, b) building, c) plot, d) block, and e) settlement (comprehensive of public spaces and street network). We identify and classify patterns of change in the settlement’s urban structure using recognised literature on pre-modern cities, thus supporting our original hypothesis. We then suggest a unitary model of analysis that we name Temporal Settlement Matrix (TSM).   Reference List Caniggia, G., & Maffei, G. L. (2008). Lettura dell’edilizia di base (Vol. 215). Alinea Editrice. Conzen, M. R. G. (1958). The growth and character of Whitby. A Survey of Whitby and the Surrounding Area, 49–89. Hernández, F., Kellett, P. W., & Allen, L. K. (2010). Rethinking the informal city: critical perspectives from Latin America (Vol. 11). Berghahn Books. Kropf, K. (2009). Aspects of urban form. Urban Morphology, 13(2), 105–120. Muratori, S. (1960). Studi per una operante storia urbana di Venezia. Palladio, 1959, 1–113. 22. Porta, S., Romice, O., Maxwell, J. A., Russell, P., & Baird, D. (2014). Alterations in scale: patterns of change in main street networks across time and space. Urban Studies, 51(16), 3383–3400. Watson, V. (2009). “The planned city sweeps the poor away…”: Urban planning and 21st century urbanisation. Progress in Planning, 72(3), 151–193. Whitehand, J. W. R. (2001). Changing suburban landscapes at the microscale. Tijdschrift Voor Economische En Sociale Geografie, 92(2), 164–184.

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