PHASES OF PLANNING & PRINCIPLES OF PLANNING

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (A&TP-B)
By:
RAVINDAR KUMAR
Assistant Professor
Department of Architecture and Planning
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Karachi

LECTURE NO: 14 – 15
TOPIC: PHASES OF PLANNING & PRINCIPLES OF PLANNING

1. INTRODUCTION:
It is a grave reality that planning is a process of continuous efforts to address increasing number of problems over the period of time. A planner desires to address these problems with a vision for the future. This vision of a planner required a flexibility of ideas which could incorporate the changing needs of the society. However to begin from the beginning there involved some preconceived principles of panning which could help him in decision making and development of a hierarchy or phases though which planning is carried out in an appropriate manner.

2. PRINCIPLES OF PLANNING:
A planner can be defined as “An artist of rationality with reference to human activity”. It means whatever a planner decides must be reasonable & logical.

• Thus the basic principle of planning is the logic and local explanation of all the actions taken & decisions made.
• Secondly the process of planning the human environment requires an ability to analyze and comprehend existing situation in the contact of physical, Social, Economic & Political realities. Therefore second basic principle of planning is the analysis & interpretation of current scenario with the acquired skills & intellect to plan for future.
• Thirdly by definition the concept of planning can be defined as “Pre thinking & pre arranging things before an event takes place so as a good result can be achieved.” Thus the principles of planning vary with each context and author who defines principles of planning.

• According to “G.K. Hiraskar”, the main principles of planning may be summarized in three words i.e. Health, convenience and beauty.
• From “Health” he meant promotion & creation of healthy environment for both rich & poor to live work or relax. This will be possible when use of land may be made appropriate or the division of land for various uses & zones may be made appropriate.
• From convenience he meant, fulfillment of various needs of the community such as, Social, Economic, Cultural, Public (Utilities).
• From beauty he meant, to pressure the individuality of town and aesthetics in the design of all physical elements in the city.
• Similarly, “Abir Bandy Opadhyay” defines that principles of planning may vary with each definition of planning established by an author. Every new book of planning offers at least one new variation in the definition of planning.
• Thus the principles of planning are fluid in nature & vary as per time & space and people who established them logically & rationally.
• In current time, “The planners established the principles of planning from four major directions” i.e. through quantitative techniques, aesthetic considerations, political behavioral imperatives and social welfare concerns. In each context the principles of planning differs & show its own rational.
• The quantitative techniques means, physical design at city scale and at many other scales by use of mathematical models, electronic days processing, systems analysis & more scientific under pining to formulate public policy.
• Aesthetic consideration means the principles of design applied to the physical open spaces, buildings & activities or more appropriately it can be descried that, aesthetic principles of planning includes.

i) Design by government of an entire city.
ii) Control of key facades of the city like the major arteries & boulevard.
iii) Design of publicly owned properties like public buildings parks & highways.
iv) Rebuilding of deteriorated areas through measure like urban renewal, beautification & acquisition of open space.

• Political / Behavioral imperatives means that planners are not aloof from policies and are attached with local government and planning commissions ^ they seek to implant their plans. Thus the principles of planning from this view point establish a link of “Power Structure” of community, professionals and public institutions to implant public proposals. Thus citizen participation is the basic principle of planning to develop workable program for physical development in any context.
• The social welfare concerns means establishing such principles of planning in which not only the physical improvement occurs but it should also address the issue of social inequality, economic inequality, poverty, discrimination, lack of education and physical deterioration of urban poor and low-income group.
• Conclusively if one summarize the principles of planning it would be evident that, different rational gives impetus to planning principles and it is problem specific, time specific location specific, community specific, institutions specific and based on the decision markers & sate holders of the society for which planning is to be carried out.

3. PHASES OF PLANNING:
The phases of planning can also be defined as the planning process. The planning process requires a logical sequence of interrelated facts on which an argument or scheme is formulated, tested & proved.
• “In 1947 Town & Country Planning Act of UK defines an approach of planning which was based on three logical steps or phases i.e. Survey, Analysis and Plan” . It results in a static, inflexible “once & for all time” Master plan with provision of five yearly review. However its process was incapable of incorporating changing events.
• The basic reason behind which was the process of beginning till end. Where as planning is such discipline of knowledge which is never ending due to changing circumstances and dynamic contexts which required planning processes to be continuative in nature.
• It should not present a final definite panacea, however it should be able to for see, guide & influence the change.
• Planning is concerned about future. Therefore planning process must take, a long term perspective of short term occurrences and it should have an adaptability to review, modify and apply.
• The aim of planning is not specify the nature size & conditions to come in future but rather planning needs to establish a procedure or frame work which can manipulate the future events in desired direction.
• To achieve this objective it is necessary to clarify the major aims of the project or in other words, what are the desire social, economic political and physical directions.
• These aims & objective of plans will provide a standard through which the performance of a plan can be judged & alternative plans can be developed.
• As the planning process need a continuity, adaptability and revision therefore planning decisions shall be flexible ad requires a cyclic process.
• This cyclic process can be demonstrated by some interrelated steps which can be termed as planning process or phases of planning.

4. SEVEN STEPS OF PLANNING PROCESS:
There are various opinions regarding the nature and number of steps involved in planning process. However, according to “John RatCliffe” there are seven steps of planning process or the planning process can be outlined in seven phases.

PHASE – 1:
The first phase of planning process is surveying & mapping of the context & its appraisal. It means to identify the individuals, organizations, institutions, stake holders and activities of any context in which planning might function to redress any imbalance & anomaly of that context.

PHASE – 2:
The second phase of planning process is to formulate broad based community goals, which reflects over all demands and desires of the community at large. Or to test the political temperature and the criteria through which the plan shall be assessed. For example, “to provide better standard of housing throughout the local authority area” or “to ensure that adequate open spaces shall be provided to the community at the walking distance. Form these broad goals tactical decisions can be made.

PHASE – 3:
The third phase of planning process is the identification of objective which is more precise to achieve community goals. For example to achieve better standard of housing one requires a policy of rehabilitation or redevelopment or combination of both. This can be dome through public or private sector development or through joint venture. The establishment of community goals & objectives requires an extensive consultative process & public private partnership to develop priorities of the society i.e. to develop more schools or install new sewerage system.

PHASE – 4:
The phase fourth of planning process is to develop possible alternatives, which means the established goals & objective shall be examined and complied and course of action shall be developed. There are might be more than one course of actions which are constrained by financial, legal social and political ground realities. In this phase of planning all the components of solution to each objective which can fulfill a goal may be analyzed & tested. In this way the potential policies are formulated and alternative strategies are established.

PHASE – 5:
The phase five of planning process is evaluation of all the course of actions with a comparative analysis & measurement. In this phase some strategies will be eliminated immediately due to physical, social, economic or political reasons. Where as other strategies may require detailed analysis such as cost benefit analysis, financial appraisal and goal achievement matrix or SWOT analysis. This evaluation will assess & test the performance of each strategy or policy with respect to each objective & goal of plan.

PHASE – 6:
The sixth phase of planning process is implementation of chosen plan. This implementation phase has two major effects. One is the positive action on behalf of planning authority and other is stimulation of private sector enterprise through public sector efforts. In this phase a large amount of control and regulation over development takes place where private sector is supported and informal sector is restricted.

PHASE – 7:
Seventh phase of planning process is the Monitoring & review. Because once the plan is operational it is an abject need to scrutinize the plan with continuous surveillance regarding its working & impacts it generates. In this monitoring stage; the performance of policies is judged through its effectiveness and efficiency. However it may also address the changing circumstance and the adjustments in the plan accordingly. For example in original plan it was indicated that in first five years population growth shall be 100000 and the physical expansion shall take place accordingly. However after 2 years the growth of population has increase many fold than it requires adjustments to provide all the developments proportionately. Thus a careful and continuous monitoring becomes a regular feature of planning process and there shall be given permission in plan for additional planning. Especially it become a major issue in planning process that a change in political power occurs at local or national level which changes the whole scenario of the plan, because the over all goals & objective may have changed. Thus such kind of ever changing factors makes the planning process an endless cycle with dynamic and ever changing situations.

5. CONCLUSION:
Conclusively the planning process can be summarized in a series of phases and steps such as:

• Preliminary Study (Contextual Appraisal).
• Formulation of Goals (Public Participation / Views of People).
• Identification of Objectives (Public Demand & Details of Policy & Plan).
• Preparation of Alternative Strategies (Various Courses of Actions).
• Evaluation (Strategy for enforcement by Considering the Physical, Social, Economic & Political Realities).
• Implementation (Public Private Partnerships, Regulation and Control over Development).
• Monitoring & Review (Redefining Goals & Objectives with Changing Socio-Political Situations).

• Apart from aforementioned process it must be remembered that planning is no more a traditional landuse planning or physical planning. The old paradigm has been shifted now and become more concerned with Physical, Social, Economic & Political ground realties. Especially a Sustainability dimension is further added in the planning process.

• Therefore no planning process is ultimate and no plan is final because no matter how much sophisticated techniques are applied in any planning process it will always be an issue of debate dialogue & discussion on goals & objectives of plan which are fluid in nature.

• Furthermore; one has to analyze the local context and the manner in which planning of city is carried out in the past because in some contexts the planning is not considered as a process of improving the city but merely an attempt to have personal gains for decision makers in terms of physical, social, economic and political prosperity.

• Thus; a planner needs to be clever enough to foresee, predict, interpret and address the changes and transformations that took place in his / her context and appropriately accommodate the changing scenario to implement his / her visions into reality.

REFERENCES:
1. Seeley. J., “What is Planning: Definition & Strategy”, Journal of the American Institute of Planners, May 1964.
2. G.K. Hiraskar is the author of the book, “Fundamentals of Town Planning,” 1993, Published by Dhanpat Rai & Sons, 1682, Nai Sarak, Delhi – 110006, India.
3. Abir Bandy Opadhyay is the author of Book, “Text Book of Town Planning”, January 2000, Published by Arunbha Sen, Books and Allied (P) Ltd. 8/1 Chintamoni Das Lane, Calcutta 700009 India.
4. William I. Goodman & Eric. C. Freund, “Principles & Practice of Urban Planning”, 1968; Published by the International City Managers’ Association, 1140 Connecticut Avenue, N. W. Washington D.C. 20036, USA.
5. John RatCliffe, “An Introduction to Town & Country Planning”, 1947, Published by Hutchinson & Co (Publishers) Ltd. 3 Fitzroy Square, London WI, United Kingdom.

NEED AND SCOPE OF COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (A&TP-B)
By:
RAVINDAR KUMAR
Assistant Professor
Department of Architecture and Planning
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Karachi

LECTURE NO: 13
TOPIC: NEED AND SCOPE OF COMPREHENSIVE PLAN

INTRODUCTION:
It is a grave reality that planning is a process. Throughout the evolution of mankind different tools develops for the planning of cities & towns. These tools may be physical, social, economic or technical. The comprehensive plan is basically a tool for growth and development guidance of the city. Town planning broadened in the late 1960s beyond a purely physical orientation. In its modern form, town planning is an ongoing process that concerns not only on physical design but also social, economic, and political policy issues.

As a fabric of human organization, a city is a complex weave. On one level it consists of the arrangement of neighbourhoods, industry, and commerce according to aesthetic and functional standards and the provision of public services for them. On another, perhaps more important, level it also comprises:

• The background, education, work, and aspirations of its residents;
• The general functioning of the economic system to which they belong, as well as their positions in and rewards from that system; and
• Their ability to make or influence the policy decisions that affect their daily lives.
  
  Viewed from this perspective, town planning requires more than a narrow specialist who can develop and implement a physical plan. More general skills and activities are also needed. They include:
  
• The collection and analysis of data about the city and its population;
• Research into the need for and availability of social services;
• The development, evaluation, coordination, and administration of programmes and timetables to supply these services;
• Programmes for economic and housing development and redevelopment—not only planning, but also packaging, financing, and carrying out the development, establishing public and private partnerships, and so forth; and
• Effective use of political activity and citizen participation to influence the character of and give support to development programmes.
  
  THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
  The basic town-planning document is a comprehensive plan that is adopted and maintained with regular revisions. The plan receives its day-to-day expression in a series of legal documents—town planning controls, subdivision regulations, and building and housing codes—that establish standards of land use and quality of construction.
  
  THE NEED AND SCOPE OF COMPREHENSIVE PLAN:
  The need and scope of comprehensive plan varies context to context. However; in generic terms it serves many purposes:
• It brings together the analyses of the social, economic, and physical characteristics (such as the distribution of population, industry, businesses, open spaces, and publicly built facilities) that led to the plan;
• It examines special problems and opportunities within the city and establishes community-development objectives;
• It coordinates land development with transport, water supply, schools, and other facilities;
• It proposes ways to accomplish these coordinated objectives over time;
• It relates the plan to its impact on public revenues and expenditures; and
• It proposes regulations, policies, and programmes to implement the plan.
  
• Thus; the comprehensive plan is the guide to making daily development decisions in terms of their long-range consequences. In this respect town planning controls, subdivision regulations, and building and housing codes are the actual terms of reference for a comprehensive plan.
  
  TOWN PLANNING CONTROLS:
  Land is allocated and private activities are coordinated with public facilities by means of zoning ordinances and subdivision regulations. A planning regulation or zoning ordinance governs how the land may be used and the size, type, and number of structures that may be built on the land. All land within a city is divided into districts, or zones. In these districts certain land uses are allowed by right, and general restrictions on building height, bulk, and use are specified. The regulations carry out the land allocations recommended in the comprehensive plan. Specific locations are given for different types of residences, industries, and businesses. Specific numbers are given for allowable heights of buildings, coverage of a lot, and density. Allowable land uses are specified for each area, including special conditions such as required off-street parking. Most regulations are termed “matter-of-right”; if the specified requirements are met a permit will be given. Other regulations provide general standards with considerable flexibility in the mixture of building uses or the building design. These require more extensive review before approval.
  
  SUBDIVISION REGULATIONS:
  The conversion of raw land (construction on previously undeveloped land) is controlled by subdivision regulations and by site-plan review. These ordinances establish standards of land development by regulating such features as roadway width, drainage requirements, traffic circulation, and lot sizes. Subdivision regulations and site-plan review guide orderly development, protect prospective and current residents from poorly designed buildings or business districts, and ensure that most of the costs of land conversion are borne by those who will benefit from the development, that is, by the developer and the future residents.
  
  BUILDING AND HOUSING CODES:
  Building and housing codes govern the quality and safety of construction of new buildings, as well as subsequent maintenance. In most instances, the codes specify the materials to be used, their minimum quality, and the building components necessary in a structure that is suitable for human occupancy.
  
  
  SOCIAL, ECONOMIC, AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY:
  Although the physical appearance and functioning of the city are the traditional focus of town planning, the city's population and economic resources are an important concern. Thus, contemporary town planning continues to focus on physical design, but also addresses the many long-range social and economic decisions that must be made. A city has social needs and economic capital. The city government acts as a purchasing agent for many services needed by residents and businesses—for example, education, water supply, police and fire protection, and recreation. The quality, character, and efficiency of these services require planning to fit needs and desires with funding, with technological change, and with objectives for physical development.
  
  Town planning, moreover, should be concerned with providing decent housing (and minimal economic aid) to residents who cannot afford this basic amenity. When local housing is deficient and economic resources permit its upgrading, the town planning department may survey housing conditions and coordinate funding to finance its development and rehabilitation. The city's economic development and redevelopment also fall within the scope of town planning. Economic development plans make use of a mixture of incentives, technical assistance, and marketing to create jobs, establish new industry and business, help existing enterprises to flourish, rehabilitate what is salvageable, and redevelop what cannot be saved. Economic development, however, must go beyond the enterprise and the facility to reach the workers. In a rapidly evolving technological environment with frequent global shifts in trade relations, skilled workers need new skills and unskilled people need some skills. Job training is a necessary part of development strategy, especially for the city's poor and unemployed citizens.
  
  Capital improvement programming is the budgeting tool used by planners to schedule the construction and financing of public works. Capital projects—such as road improvements, street lighting, public parking facilities, and purchase of land for open spaces—must be sorted out and assigned priorities. A programme prepared each year sets the priorities for the next five to six years on projects needed to implement the comprehensive plan and replace the worn out infrastructure. In rapidly growing regions, town planners are constantly faced with public facilities that have become inadequate for future development.
  
  In declining areas, economic redevelopment is of prime concern. Before any new capital improvements are scheduled, the condition and viability of the neighbourhood must be assessed and strategies for remedy must be adopted. Some declining neighbourhoods require vigorous public development; others should be left to available private development.
  
  The urban-renewal movement of the 1940s was insensitive to the cyclical ebbs and flows of city neighbourhoods. From the 1940s through the 1960s it was believed that if an economic function such as business or industry failed, all that was needed was to crop out the “decay” and clear the land for reuse. In many instances the redevelopment never appeared. The multiple forces that affect neighbourhood changes were ignored or improperly analysed. Town planners now understand that regional, interregional, national, and international economic forces affect a city.
  They also realize that the effectiveness of plans to bring about a city's continued economic viability depends on the correct analysis and interpretation of these forces. These are the lessons of the shifts in suburban, non-metropolitan, and interregional economic patterns that took place in the 1960s and 1970s.
  
  Town planners today are becoming ever more involved with environmental concerns. Environmental planning coordinates development to meet objectives for clean air and water; removal of toxic and other wastes; recycling of resources; energy conservation; protection of wetlands, beaches, hillsides, farmlands, forests, and floodplains; and preservation of wildlife, natural reserves, and rivers. Historic preservation strives to keep important buildings and places as part of the permanent environment and uses them to finance the maintenance costs.
  
  Although town planners may report to mayors, city managers, or other officials, their true clients are the people and businesses of the city. Their plans must reflect the interests and priorities of these two groups, and the programmes that are implemented must, at the same time, help the city survive and maintain the quality of life that these groups desire. Political astuteness is required in order to ensure that neighbourhood programmes and priorities will be properly perceived by local and state officials and will stand a chance for implementation.
  
  THE FUTURE OF CITIES AND TOWN PLANNING
  Town planning in the last decades of the 20th century is becoming increasingly involved in setting or executing policy about public services and with delivering these services. Since it is apparent that resources are limited and that global events affect the future of each community, town planning must be done within a framework of national and international planning for mutually sustainable development.
  
  The capital infrastructures of many older cities need replacement. Public schools and city hospitals are a shadow of formerly dominant city institutions. For half a century the public was mesmerized by the outer reaches of metropolitan areas. The force of this attraction has been so strong that when travel distances to jobs in the city centre became excessive, companies moved and took the jobs to the suburbs. In the late 20th century, however, the newest generation of adults—younger than most city residents, more mobile, frequently childless, and enjoying greater freedom in their living relationships—has become enamoured of city life. Cities are responding by directing public services and capital improvements towards upgrading the quality of life in those areas that have unique attractions for this new population.
  
  In this setting, different groups of city residents have become more sophisticated in pursuing their special interests. They are better informed, understand laws and procedures have greater political skills, and are more militant and persistent. They have learned that planning brings order to change and, thus, they want to influence the planning. In turn, town planners are attempting to balance the demands of competing interests into a dynamic community consensus sufficient to allow decisions to be made. Also, reaction against central planning and in favour of private development in the 1980s and 1990s has led to ambitious experiments in the curtailment of planning controls, sometimes—as in London's Docklands redevelopment—with mixed results.
  
  CONCLUSION:
  In the future, town planning will continue to work under conditions of scarce urban economic resources and will constantly be faced with competing priorities—of neighbourhoods, interest groups, businesses, and residents.

URBAN ECOLOGY

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (A&TP-B)

By:

RAVINDAR KUMAR

Assistant Professor

Department of Architecture and Planning

NED University of Engineering and Technology Karachi

LECTURE NO: 12
TOPIC: URBAN ECOLOGY

INTRODUCTION:
The theme of current lecture is urban ecology. The phrase urban ecology is composed of two entirely different terms i.e. urban and ecology. The one way to understand this theme is to look at both the terms individually and then try to establish a relationship between them. Whereas; the other way to comprehend this phrase is to define it with an earlier established definition and identify its application in town planning. In the following a detailed description of this theme is given.

WHAT IS URBAN?
The term urban means town or a city; whereas; “A city is an agglomerate social organism containing a population of at least 20,000 (UN definition), in a relative density that packages a critical population mass necessary for spawning a variety of value systems, lifestyles, and power constellations. Cities are particularly receptive to, and instrumental in, creating innovation and change. With this capacity for change is introduced various kinds of dysfunctional effects, including cultural, sociological, economic, psychological, and spiritual.”[1]

WHAT IS ECOLOGY?
The term ecology means balance in nature; it is the study of ecosystems. Ecology is derived from the GREEK word "eko" used for household and understanding “logos” meaning an understanding of the "household of life."[2]

Ecology is a synthetic & systemic study of an organism or a species and its surroundings: the basic unit of study is an ecological system or the interdependent populations in any place as they impact the ecosystems which they occupy, use, or visit.[3]

In both history & natural history, ecology is the study of how organisms depend on one another and their surroundings.[4]

URBAN + ECOLOGY:
If the terms urban and ecology combined together it would mean a town or city where living organisms, species of flora and fauna, communities of human beings, and survive together with interdependency and individualism within their surroundings. In other words the urban context where all kinds of people, plants, birds, and beasts exist together must live in harmony because they are interdependent and their survival with one another in cohesiveness can be termed as urban ecology.

WHAT IS URBAN ECOLOGY?
‘Urban Ecology’ is the study of the relationships between organisms, including humans, and the particular opportunities for, and challenges to, their survival presented by cities.[5]

‘Urban Ecology’ is the study of biodiversity in areas that are densely populated by humans.[6]

‘Urban Ecology’ is the subfield of ecology which deals with the interaction of plants, animals and humans with each other and with their environment in urban or urbanizing settings.[7]

SIGNIFICANCE OF URBAN ECOLOGY:[8]
Analysis of urban settings in the context of ecosystem ecology (looking at the cycling of matter and the flow of energy through the ecosystem) hopes to result in healthier, better managed communities. Studying the factors which allow wild plants and animals to survive (and sometimes thrive) in built environments can also create more livable spaces.

Urban ecology also involves the study of the effects of urban development patterns on ecological conditions. Emphasis is also placed on planning communities with environmentally sustainable methods via design and building materials in order to promote a healthy and biodiverse urban ecosystem. Interactions between non-living factors, such as sunlight or water, and biological factors, such as plants and microbes, take place in all environments, including cities. By concentrating humans and the resources they consume, metropolitan areas alter soil drainage, water flow, and light availability.

Urban ecologists think of how architecture, such as sidewalks and rooftops, impacts the way rainwater is received and transported and the way garbage dumps and sewage plants centralize waste products. Some species of animals have been able to survive or thrive in a non-natural urban setting. These include rats, Feral Pigeons, and cockroaches.

INSTITUTIONS FOR URBAN ECOLOGY:
The afforementioned description clearly spell out what urban ecology means and how it is related to urban context? There are various institutions related to urban ecology that is working at their local context across the globe. These institutions had developed their own urban models and projects to deal with their urban ecology. Furthermore; they also developed different methodologies of work and instruments to deal with growing problems in their urban ecology. As in our local context of Karachi we (Third Year Civil Engineering Students) have started an attempt for making our city a sustainable one through research; similarly internationally there are various institutions who have initiated their own local attempts for an urban ecology.

Few of them included here for the reference of students to surf these websites and learn:

• Urban Ecology Agency of Barcelona
• Baltimore Ecosystem Study
• Central Arizona - Phoenix LTER
• ARCUE Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology
• Urban Ecology Center in Milwaukee, WI
• Urban Ecology Research Laboratory at the University of Washington
• Urban Ecology Institute (Newton, MA)
• Center for Urban Restoration Ecology
• BioCity@UniSA research centre

REFERENCES:

[1]
http://www.missionstrategy.org/missionstrategy/Ministries/UrbanNazarene/UrbanCourse/Session1b/Definitions/tabid/264/Default.aspx
[2] http://web.rollins.edu/~jsiry/ADVANCED%20VOCABULARY.htm
[3] http://web.rollins.edu/~jsiry/Ecology.html
[4] http://web.rollins.edu/~jsiry/Ecology.html#ecology
[5] http://www.solutions-site.org/reference/glossary.htm
[6] http://quizlet.com/print/193792/
[7] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_ecology
[8] Ibid

CIVIC SURVEY

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (A&TP-B)
By:
RAVINDAR KUMAR
Assistant Professor
Department of Architecture and Planning
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Karachi

LECTURE NO: 11
TOPIC: CIVIC SURVEY

1. INTRODUCTION:
There are variety of survey & mapping techniques to be learned by a civil engineer. Though; some of these survey and mapping techniques are already known to a civil engineer. However it is necessary to understand how different authors explained these techniques, because the survey & mapping techniques are always subject to refinement during the course of development & planning. Therefore let us look at different authors how they perceived the issue of survey & mapping.

2. DESCRIPTION OF SURVEYS BY JOHN RATCLIFFE:
At first let us discuss what Mr. John RatCliffe, defined about survey preparation & techniques of analysis in his book “An Introduction to Town & country planning”. He says that; “In order understand the society, for which planning is to be done, to identify the nexus of needs & problems, to have comprehensive understanding of city elements & their effect upon each other, to formulate policies & choose between them or adjust them in practice; a town planner must be equipped with variety of tools & techniques. Because the planning is based upon knowledge; the knowledge depends upon information & information depends upon survey. Now the survey of many components from the built and natural environment is the main concern in this respect”. Here the big question is that, what are those many components for which the survey is required? According to Mr. RatCliffe; at first we survey about physical characteristics, then utilities, then population, then employment, then housing, then shopping, then education, then leisure & recreation, then movement & management, & finally for evaluation. In this way he defined eleven types of surveys. Now the big question is that, what are the available sources of information to carry out these surveys? Ideally the first hand information should be collected by specifically designed survey forms related to specific problems in a precise time. However due to ever existing constraints of time & money this is not always possible.

So what do we do in such situation?
In that case the researchers, the student concerned with thesis or project work are usually compelled to depend on existing sources of information. The existing sources of information are mostly, published statistics by the government institutions. There are also other information database such as individual researches & surveys carried out by some non governmental institutions. Now the information sources are various, such as each state department & ministry has the facts & figures. Then there is census of population, housing statistics. The department of trade & industry will have census of distribution & census of production.

Then there are different library sources, currently there is internet. Then there are professional journals & researches, business & economic reviews. Then there are different resource centers available such as Urban Resource Center (URC) in Karachi. Finally there are some international institutions which keep the records and statistics of major countries and their urban centers. These include United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Band for Development, Asian Development Bank & other United Nation institutions.

2. DESCRIPTION OF SURVEYS, BY G.K. HIRASKAR:
Mr. G K Hiraskar defined in his book Town planning that; “Survey means collection of data & information through site visit & personal observations.” Similarly there is a principle developed by Sir Patrick Geddes (one of the pioneer of modern town planning) that “always survey before plan”. The survey leads us to information or knowledge which is used by all planners to prepare a mind map of the region before drawing a plan of town. The collected data & information through survey is analyzed & presented in the form maps, charts, tables & models. At present there emerged digital maps, aerial photography & computerized models of surveys which have enhanced the understanding of planners with accurate information of the site. However there are certain ground realities which can only be understood through personal site visit by the planners. This survey of site before planning is also known as “diagnosis before the treatment” or diagnosis approach of planners that lead them to make correct decisions about the city.

Types of Survey:
Mr. G. K. Hiraskar also classified surveys in four broad types.
i) Towner city survey
ii) Regional survey
iii) National survey
iv) Civic survey

Town Surveys:
These surveys are conducted to prepare a base map for the Town planning scheme. Basically these surveys are of three types; i.e.
i) Physical survey
ii) Social survey and
iii) Economic survey

Physical survey:
These are conducted in two ways i.e. through land survey and aerial survey. In physical survey four types of information or data are collected.
i) Natural Features survey i.e. location in respect to existing towns & region, topography & soil conditions, climatology etc.
ii) Land Use survey i.e. use of land for residential, commercial, or social purposes, public & semi public spaces, open spaces, transportation networks, agriculture, water elements, vacant lands & other uses.
iii) Building Conditions survey i.e. buildings are in very good, good, poor, or in bad condition?
iv) Communications survey i.e. highways, roads and its network & railway junctions and its network, availability of parking facilities in the city, origin & destination (O&D) survey, accidents survey; and future trends of traffic surveys etc.

Social survey:
These are of three kinds, i.e. I) Population II) Housing and III) Community Facilities
i) Population: Trends in population growth for last 50 years, present population characteristics, future population growth by considering survival, urban Migration & development of new industries. Demographic survey i.e. classification of population & town density.
ii) Housing: Housing stock, per annum need, current housing conditions, accommodation density, building height, material use & tenancy status, rented or owned.
iii) Community facilities: Education, health & recreation

Economic survey:
Occupational conditions, survey of industries, survey of commerce, financial position of local authorities, utility services.

Regional survey:
The larger scale surveys carried out in different town & villages to obtain general information about their physical, economic & social conditions is termed as regional survey. These regional investigations are carried out to develop whole region in a coherent manner. These include regional transport, highways & regional water supply system.

National survey:
This survey is conducted at national level which includes different regions. This survey is conducted to obtain information about, natural resources, potential for locating industries, fixing railways alignment, hydroelectric works etc.

Civic survey or Socio-Economic survey:
This is local level small scale survey conducted for redevelopment scheme, slum improvement scheme and master plan development. The socio-economic survey is the foundation stone of planning structure. Because it is the detailed house to house survey which helps a town planner to diagnose the core problems & issues to develop its remedies through planning. There are eleven types of aspect covered in socio-economic survey.
i) Physical Features:
ii) Communication:
iii) Traffic Problems:
iv) Open Spaces:
v) Industrial Survey:
vi) Housing Survey:
vii) Population:
viii) Health Conditions:
ix) Landscape Survey:
x) Land-cultivation:
xi) Public Services:

The socioeconomic survey is the key survey and foundation stone of Town Planning, in which a Town is divided into union councils or wards & blocks, and then each block further subdivided into streets and each street has number of houses. This survey is conducted through a survey Performa or questionnaire. The sample Performa for socioeconomic survey is as follows:

THE SAMPLE PERFORMA FOR SOCIOECONOMIC SURVEY

i) Surveyor’s name: ____________
ii) Supervisor’s name:___________
iii) Ward number: _____________
iv) Block number: _____________
v) Street number: ____________
vi) Unit number: _____________
vii) Date of survey: ___________

There are five issues addressed in a socio-economic survey:

i) Housing condition:

House Number: _____________
Address: __________________

House Conditions:

Poor _________

Good _________

Very Good _____

Number of Floors: ___________
Age of house: _______________
Plot area: __________________
Tenancy Status:

Rented ______

Owned ______

Rent per month ________

ii) Family Structure:

Total family members: __ Male __ Female __
Literacy of Male & Female: _____________
Marital status: ______________________
School going children __________

College going children __________
Age groups:

5 & below____

5-10 _______

10-25 ______

25-50 ______

50 & above ___

iii) Economic characteristics:

Total number of Earning Members _____

Occupations _______________

Monthly Income_____________

Expenditure ________________

Savings ___________________

Mode of Transport ___________

iv) Community Facilities:

Nurseries ______

Primary Schools _______

Secondary Schools _______

College ______

Shopping Center _________

Park and Open Space _________

Club Theaters _________
Religious Building _________

Post Office _________

Police Station _________

Dispensary ___________

Clinic ___________

Hospital _________

Any Other _________
(In each category find out the Distance from Residence)

v) Utility Services:

Water Supply _____

Electricity _____

Gas _____

Telephone _____

Water Closet ______

(In each category find out the type of connection as Legal, Illegal, Private, Public etc)

Remarks: ____________________

___________________________

LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (B)

By

RAVINDAR KUMAR
Assistant Professor
Department of Architecture and Planning
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Karachi

LECTURE NO. 10
TOPIC: LEGAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE PROBLEMS

Introduction:
In order to comprehend the legal and administrative problems in town planning at first it is important to understand the terms ‘Legal’ and ‘Administrative’. The term legal mean “established by or founded upon law or official or accepted rules”[1]. Thus; legal problems in town planning must be either related to law or official accepted rules of town planning. Here the question arises that in what context the legal problems may be addressed? Because legal problems in town planning; may vary in each context and urban setting. Similarly the term administrative mean “of or relating to or responsible for administration”[2]. Therefore; administrative problems in town planning must be related to administration of a town. Now; in order to understand the legal and administrative problems in town planning one must have a thorough understanding about the Law and Administration of a town. On the other hand the knowledge about urban problems may also be the way to learn legal and administrative problems in an urban context.

What is a Law?
Law is a system of rules, usually enforced through a set of institutions. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as the foremost social mediator in relations between people. Law governs a wide variety of social activities. All legal systems deal with similar issues and behaviors, but each country categorizes and identifies its legal standards and principals in different ways. A common distinction is that between "public law" (a term related closely to the state, and including constitutional, administrative and criminal law), and "private law" (which covers contract and property). In civil law systems, contract fall under a general law of obligations, while trusts law is dealt with international conventions. Law spreads far beyond the core subjects into virtually every area of life. Three categories are of importance here i.e. Law and society, Law and commerce, Law and regulation. Law and society include Labour law, Civil rights and Human rights law, Immigration and nationality law, Social security law and Family law. Law and commerce include Commercial law, Admiralty law and the Law of the Sea, Company law and Intellectual property law. Law and regulation include Tax law, Banking law, Competition law, Consumer law and Environmental law. Regulation deals with the provision of public services and utilities. Especially since privatisation became popular private companies doing the jobs previously controlled by government; energy, gas telecomm and water are regulated industries.[3]

What is an Administration?
The term administration, as used in the context of government, differs according to jurisdiction.[4] In business, administration consists of the performance or management of business operations and thus the making or implementing of major decisions. Administration can be defined as the universal process of organizing people and resources efficiently so as to direct activities toward common goals and objectives.[5]

What is Public Administration?
Public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of branches of government policy. The pursuit of the public good by enhancing civil society and social justice is the ultimate goal of the field.[6]

What are Urban Problems? [7]
Urban problems remain similar worldwide. The United Nations Development Programme announced on 28 July 1997 that unemployment remains the world's number one urban problem, according to a survey of mayors of cities from around the world.

The purposes of the survey was to identify issues and severity of urban problems, to identify areas where cities are experiencing some successes, and to establish a baseline for future more systematized surveys to help the United Nations better understand trends, needs and opportunities.

More than half of the world's population now lives in cities and towns rather than in rural areas. Urban problems and their solutions, therefore, now on top the world's agenda.

The UNDP survey of 14 categories of problems and the percentages of mayors identifying them as "severe" are as follows:

1. Unemployment-----------------------------52.0%
2. Insufficient solid waste disposal -------------42.0%
3. Urban poverty------------------------------41.6%
4. Inadequate housing stock-------------------33.8%
5. Insufficient solid waste collection------------30.9%
6. Inadequate water/sanitation facilities-------28.4%
7. Inadequate public transportation------------26.2%
8. Traffic congestion----------------------------22.3%
9. Poor health services--------------------------21.5%
10. Insufficient civil society participation----------20.9%
11. Inadequate education services----------------18.9%
12. Air pollution----------------------------------17.4%
13. Urban violence/crime/personal safety--------13.5%
14. Discrimination (women. ethnic, poor)---------6.8%

Significantly, 70 percent of the responding mayors who rank unemployment a severe problem also rank urban poverty as severe. All problems stem from poverty. Thus, development programmes should be financed to lessen unemployment and hence to urge people to work a bit harder. The education sector should be highlighted to make people understand problems related to modernisation and everything related to illiteracy. Urban problems stem from rural-to-urban migration. The best way to work with the large number of new comers is to have them share the burden of leadership by taking part in providing services.

United States:
Although, worldwide, urban violence/crime/personal safety is not ranked high among the survey's 14 categories of problems, crime is ranked severe by mayors in the United States. They say "Our biggest challenge is fighting the crime that has been caused as a result of illegal drug trafficking. Our efforts to strengthen the police department and involve neighborhoods and citizens in addressing their local problems have helped make a real difference in safety levels and decision-making processes. Success in addressing jobs, tax base growth, and road improvement and partnerships, has helped to improve the economic future of community and the quality of life of each resident." On the other hand, Canada's Mayer considers unemployment and air pollution as his city's severe problems and describes "Urban success in the new millennium will hinge on providing cities with the legislative and fiscal capacity to deal with the challenges they are facing. Cities need to forge new partnerships with senior governments to address population growth and employment, the provision of hard infrastructure and social services, and appropriate governance structures." The diversity of major problems identified among North American cities is further illustrated by the mayors of Mexico who rates traffic congestion and inadequate housing as his city's most severe problems, attributable to rural-to-urban migration, whereas insufficient solid waste disposal as that city's most severe problem.

Latin America
Illustrative of the prominence of unemployment as a severe problem in Latin America is the response of the mayor of Leon, Nicaragua. According to Leon's mayor, "Currently the municipality is facing a truly economic crisis where more than 23% of the population is experiencing extreme poverty and more than 70% of the economically active population is unemployed -- implying a clear tendency for the deterioration of health and education as well as an increase in illiteracy." Similarly, unemployment is reported to be the most severe problem of Argentina's and Ecuador's cities. Besides unemployment, the most serious problems reported for Cordoba, Argentina are traffic congestion and air pollution.

Europe
A few European mayors consider unemployment a severe problem. Traffic congestion is also cited as a serious problem. Few European cities mark urban poverty as a problem. However, Europe's cities appear to be experiencing problems related to modernization and technology. They write: "We are transforming a typical fordist town into a modern, European town. That is a slow and difficult long-term process that needs time and the participation of the whole city system. The risk of such urban transformation is to forget large parts of the population. We do not want that -- we are working to bring together development and solidarity. Relating technological to environmental concerns, Cologne's Mayor writes: "The success in establishing modern technology enterprises (e.g. media, bio- and genetic technology, environmental technologies) shows that there is a possibility for economic progress without interfering with environmental interests, for reconciling economy and ecology."

Africa
Many African mayors note the interrelatedness of unemployment and poverty, rural-to-urban migration, and the consequent negative impact on services. "The most serious problems in our city are interrelated; urban unemployment causes poverty, and because of such poverty, people are not capable of paying for services such as health and education." Similarly, Mayor of Uganda cites "the collapse of industries" as causing "urban poverty arising from unemployment." Also, the mayor of Zimbabwe laments the "low levels of industrial development leading to unemployment and poverty." Mayor of Nairobi Kenya comments: "Due to population influx into the city, adequate provision of services -- such as housing, schools, medical, water, sewerage, roads, etc. -- is a nightmare." Some African mayors’ link unemployment to problems related to idle youth. Thus, Mayor of Bobo-Dioulasso writes: "Bobo-Dioulasso was a cleaner town in the past. Young men of Bobo-Dioulasso spend most of their time drinking tea. They don't want to work." Mayor of Banjuk Gambia adds: "Problems of drug use and rural-urban migration among our youth have increased considerably as a result of the persistent drought and unemployment, consequently causing enormous strain on the already stretched resources of the city." The city of Dakar Senegal, is undertaking a program to employ youth to improve the city. Thus, Mayor claims: "In the face of the distressing sight which is sometimes found in the city, Operation 'Be clean and make clean' has enabled the municipality to put to work all the young people, grouped in association to clean up the city of Dakar. Other than the creation of employment, this experience has the benefit of: developing a sense of citizenship, enabling participation in the management of the city, and fighting against exclusion and poverty."

Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East
The mayors of both Damascus Syria and Nicosia Cyprus rank inadequate public transportation as their most serious problem. Damascus Mayor cites "all kinds of pollution" as a major problem. Nicosia's mayor adds that "Nicosia remains the only divided city in the world." The mayor of Turkey's fifth largest city, Bursa comments that its most serious problems (housing, infrastructure, employment, etc.) derive from immigration from eastern Anatolia, Bulgaria, former Yugoslavia, and Albania. The mayors of both Rafah and Gaza in Palestine claim that the lack of infrastructure is their most serious problem, especially inadequate water/sanitation facilities and sewage systems. Gaza's mayor also emphasizes inadequate housing, whereas Rafah's mayor emphasizes not enough paved roads, as other serious problems.

Asia and Pacific
The city of Wuhan China has given high priority to solid waste collection and disposal as city's most severe problems. Same is the case of the cities of Baroda and Guntur in India, Nagoya of Japan, Kathmandu of Nepal, and Suva of Fiji. Suva's Mayor explains: "The Fiji land tenure system has made it very difficult for our finding an alternative site for our solid waste disposal." Mayor of Kawasaki Japan cites an "aging society and declining birth rate" as that city's most serious problem. "The sudden arrival of the aging society is a serious problem facing the whole of Japan," he comments. "It is predicted that Kawasaki's population over 65 years will double by the year 2010." Accordingly, "we must concentrate on building facilities providing care for the elderly, and find sources of workers." Likewise, Nagoya's Mayor Lists as City's number one problem as "Preparation of a care system for a rapidly aging society." Mayor of Pusan Korea claims that traffic congestion and clean water are his city's most serious problems. The mayor of Kathmandu Nepal, also cite water supply as their most serious problems and explains: "The demand for drinking water has been increasing due to the increased population and rapid urban growth. At present, the total water supply per day from ground and surface systems in the valley is limited to 60 million litres per day whereas the demand is 114 million litres per day."

KARACHI[8]
The Karachi Development Authority has categorized the critical problems of Karachi as:

1. Poor environmental conditions in slums and Katchi Abadis;
2. An abnormal increase in population leading to quick urbanization;
3. Health hazards owing to lack of proper water supply, sewerage, and storm water drainage;
4. Pollution owing to industrial wastes;
5. A defective transport system and consequent vehicle-created air pollution;
6. The destruction of historical heritage and green areas;
7. A haphazard location of some industries;
8. A disparity in densities of different areas in the city;
9. Congestion of roads and the downtown area causing, noise and pollution;
10. A defective refuse collection and disposal system;
11. Pollution in coastal waters causing harm to marine life; and
12. Pollution caused by light and electronics.
    

Other issues may also be added, such as a disregard for architectural heritage, faceless blocks of commercial and residential buildings, and the conversion of amenity plots into speculative housing. Urban planning and development in Karachi suffer from many problems, some of which are listed below.

1. A lack of evaluation of previous planning attempts—Planning initiatives often start anew without adequately evaluating possible merits of past plans.
2. The incapability of the planning authorities to execute the plan—Planning in Karachi has been under the auspices of Karachi Development Authority (KDA), which does not possess any legal or administrative control on the nineteen other land development agencies of the city. Thus the capacity of Karachi Development Authority to execute the plans has been constrained.
3. The absence of political mandate for the planning process—Planning processes have usually been under the direction of the donors or UN agencies, without enjoying the political mandate necessary for keeping open the possibility of ad hoc adjustments.
4. Technical shortcomings in the planning process—Assumptions used in planning have often been drawn from inadequate sample surveys and obsolete physical data. Even today, Karachi does not have a comprehensive mapping base usually required for all kinds of planning and development exercises. Adding to the lack of information is the fact that data gathered by the Defense institutions are not accessible by the public.
5. The planning authority is usually not the financing agency of the exercise—this fact has made it nearly impossible for planning agencies to execute the various components according to the outlined framework.

Conclusion:
Karachi is in chaos, but it is inhabited not only by the prophets of doom and the merchants of gloom. There are those who care, who have—even if only in their own small way—achieved results that need appraisal, evaluation, and even propagation. Hope for the future lies in these informal efforts. In this city globally known for continued strife and turmoil, the informal sector has indeed managed to keep it alive and thriving. Even with its ever-increasing population and heterogeneous mix, the city has shown great resilience and strength to not only survive but to actually evolve its own alternate culture. Without informal initiatives, this would have been impossible to achieve.

References:
[1] http://www.google.com.pk/search?hl=en&q=define%3A+legal&meta=
[2] http://www.google.com.pk/search?hl=en&q=define%3Aadministrative&meta=
[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law (must read)
[4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administration_(government)
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administration_(business)
[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_administration
[7] http://mirror.undp.org/magnet/icg97/SURVEY.HTM
[8] http://www.megacitiesproject.org/network_karachi.asp

ECONOMIC RESOURCES

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (B)

By

RAVINDAR KUMAR
Assistant Professor
Department of Architecture and Planning
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Karachi

LECTURE NO. 09
TOPIC: ECONOMIC RESOURCES

Introduction:
The phrase ‘Economic Resources’ means “the natural, human and capital resources that are used to produce goods and services. It is also called factors of production.”[1] In economics, factors of production (or productive inputs) are the resources employed to produce goods and services.[2] They are generally land, labor, and capital; the three groups of resources that are used to make all goods and services.[3]

The definition of economic resources as mentioned above clearly spell out that the theme economic resources is directly related to production of goods and services. In relation to production three questions are very important. What to produce? How to produce? For whom to produce? In addition it is also important to understand that why goods and resources are related to town planning and how land labour and capital are the significant elements of town planning? Whereas; it may need a further explanation regarding economics as well as urban economics so as to understand the details about economic resources, and its significance in Town Planning. Let’s try to answer all these questions in the following:

Natural, Human and Capital resources:
Materials or energy from the environment used for human needs are natural resources.[4] Human resources; is a term with which many organizations describe the combination of traditionally administrative personnel functions with performance, Employee Relations and resource planning.[5] It is the collective capabilities, experiences, potential and commitment of the organization’s board, management team, staff, and volunteers.[6] The objective of human resources is to maximize the return on investment from the organization's human capital and minimize financial risk. Capital resources are the things produced and used to produce other goods and services.[7]

Goods and Services:
In economics, economic output is divided into physical goods and intangible services. Consumption of goods and services is assumed to produce utility. We satisfy our needs and wants by buying goods and services. Goods are items you can see and touch, such as a book, a pen, a folder etc. Services are provided for you by other people, such as; doctor, dentist, haircut and eating out at restaurants.[8] Or in other words, things that are produced by a country's economy examples of goods include food; clothing, machines, and new roads, examples of services include those of doctors, teachers, merchants, tourist agents, construction workers, and government officials.[9]

What is Economics?
Economics is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics aims to explain how economies work and how economic agents interact. Economic analysis is applied throughout society, in business and finance but also in crime, education, the family, health, law, politics, religion, social institutions, war, science and research. Microeconomics looks at interactions through individual markets, given scarcity and government regulation. The theory considers aggregates of quantity demanded by buyers and quantity supplied by sellers at each possible price per unit. It weaves these together to describe how the market may reach equilibrium as to price and quantity or respond to market changes over time. This is broadly termed demand-and-supply analysis. In microeconomics, production is the conversion of inputs into outputs. It is an economic process that uses resources to create a commodity that is suitable for exchange. Some economists define production broadly as all economic activity other than consumption. Public finance is the field of economics that deals with budgeting the revenues and expenditures of a public sector entity, usually government.[10] Thus; the field of economics mainly determines every policy that a government makes for development or town planning.

What is Urban Economics?[11]
Urban Economics is broadly the economic study of urban areas. As such, it involves using the tools of economics to analyze urban issues such as crime, education, public transit, housing, and local government finance. More narrowly, it is a branch of microeconomics that studies urban spatial structure and the location of households and firms. Urban economics focuses on these spatial relationships to understand the economic motivations underlying the formation, functioning, and development of cities. Urban economics is rooted in the ‘location theories’ [12] that began the process of spatial economic analysis. Economics is the study of the allocation of scarce resources, and as all economic phenomena take place within a geographical space, urban economics focuses of the allocation of resources across space in relation to urban areas.[13]

Other branches of economics ignore the spatial aspects of decision making but urban economics focuses not only on the location decisions of firms, but also of cities themselves as cities themselves represent centers of economic activity.[14] Many spatial economic topics can be analyzed within either an urban or regional economics framework as some economic phenomena primarily affect localized urban areas while others are felt over much larger regional areas.[15]

Urban economics is divided into six related themes:

• Market forces in the development of cities,
• Land use within cities,
• Urban transportation,
• Urban problems and public policy,
• Housing and public policy, and
• Local government expenditures and taxes.[16]

Market Forces in the Development of Cities
Market forces in the development of cities relates to how the location decision of firms and households causes the development of cities. The nature and behavior of markets depends somewhat on their locations therefore market performance partly depends on geography.[17] If a firm locates in a geographically isolated region, their market performance will be different than a firm located in a concentrated region. The location decisions of both firms and households create cities that differ in size and economic structure. When industries cluster, like in the Silicon Valley in California, they create urban areas with dominant firms and distinct economies. By looking at location decisions of firms and households, the urban economist is able to address why cities develop where they do, why some cities are large and others small, what causes economic growth and decline, and how local governments affect urban growth.[18] Because urban economics is concerned with asking questions about the nature and workings of the economy of a city, models and techniques developed within the field are primarily designed to analyze phenomena that are confined within the limits of a single city.[19]

Land Use within Metropolitan Areas
Looking at land use within metropolitan areas, the urban economist seeks to analyze the spatial organization of activities within cities. In attempts to explain observed patterns of land use, the urban economist examines the intra-city location choices of firms and households. Considering the spatial organization of activities within cities, urban economics addresses questions in terms of what determines the price of land and why those prices vary across space, the economic forces that caused the spread of employment from the central core of cities outward, identifying land-use controls, such as zoning, and interpreting how such controls affect the urban economy.[20]

Economic Policy in Urban Areas
Economic policy is often implemented at the urban level thus economic policy is often tied to urban policy.[21] Urban problems and public policy tie into urban economics as the theme relates urban problems, such as poverty or crime, to economics by seeking to answer questions with economic guidance. For example, does the tendency for the poor to live close to one another make them even poorer?[22]

Urban Transportation and Urban Economics
Urban transportation is a theme of urban economics because it affects land-use patterns as transportation affects the relative accessibility of different sites. Issues that tie urban transportation to urban economics include the deficit that most transit authorities have, and efficiency questions about proposed transportation developments such as light-rail.[23]

Housing and Public Policy
Housing and public policy relate to urban economics as housing is a unique type of commodity. Because housing is immobile, when a household chooses a dwelling, it is also choosing a location. Urban economists analyze the location choices of households in conjunction with the market effects of housing policies.[24]

Government Expenditures and Taxes in Urban Economics
The final theme of local government expenditures and taxes relates to urban economics as it analyzes the efficiency of the fragmented local governments presiding in metropolitan areas.[25]

Conclusion:
Conclusively for any town planning three questions as mentions above are very important. What to produce? How to produce? For whom to produce? The answer to these questions is the key factor to understand the whole dynamics of economic resources in town planning. Because the answer clearly lead us to appropriate use of economic resources.

References:

[1] http://www.google.com.pk/url?sa=X&start=0&oi=define&q=http://www.thinkport.org/cff247fc-95fb-4f15-9d14-3194417d16de.asset&usg=AFQjCNHx7NIsNid6DGbHTVcAulxDdr1e7Q
[2] http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/477991/theory-of-production
[3] Sullivan Arthur, Steven M. Sheffrin (2003) Economics: Principles in action. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458: Pearson Prentice Hall. pp. 4 ISBN 0-13-063085-3 http://www.pearsonschool.com/index.cfm?locator=PSZ3R9&PMDbSiteId=2781&PMDbSolutionId=6724&PMDbCategoryId=&PMDbProgramId=12881&level=4
[4] http://www.google.com.pk/url?sa=X&start=4&oi=define&q=http://www.deq.state.va.us/kids/library/wstmanvo.html&usg=AFQjCNG2lwacryszDZ5-VbwuhKRiJ_VeYQ
[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_resources
[6] http://www.google.com.pk/url?sa=X&start=5&oi=define&q=http://www.vodium.com/vs_data/dlfbi/definitions.doc&usg=AFQjCNF3x1pNIuJiJ8ZplbqZLRg2uFCbcg
[7] http://www.google.com.pk/url?sa=X&start=2&oi=define&q=http://www.auburn.edu/~owensse/PowerPoint_Definitions.htm&usg=AFQjCNG8tAND3rL3_w-A7VwZOcwxqkBuwA
[8] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goods_and_services
[9]www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/TLSF/theme_c/mod13/www.worldbank.org/depweb/english/modules/glossary.htm
[10] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economics
[11] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_economics
[12] Roberta Capello and Peter Nijkamp, Ed (2004) Urban Dynamics and Growth: Advances in Urban Economics. Elsvier Inc.
[13] Richard J. Arnott and Daniel P. McMillan, Ed (2006) ‘A Companion to Urban Economics’ Blackwell Publishing ISBN 1405106298
[14] O'Sullivan, Arthur (2003) ‘Urban Economics’ Boston, Mass: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. ISBN 0-07-248784-4
[15] McCann, Philip (2001) ‘Urban and Regional Economics’ Oxford University Press
[16] O'Sullivan, Arthur (2003) ‘Urban Economics’ Boston, Mass: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. ISBN 0-07-248784-4
[17] McCann, Philip (2001) ‘Urban and Regional Economics’ Oxford University Press
[18] O'Sullivan, Arthur (2003) ‘Urban Economics’ Boston, Mass: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. ISBN 0-07-248784-4
[19] McCann, Philip (2001) ‘Urban and Regional Economics’ Oxford University Press
[20] O'Sullivan, Arthur (2003) ‘Urban Economics’ Boston, Mass: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. ISBN 0-07-248784-4
[21] McCann, Philip (2001) ‘Urban and Regional Economics’ Oxford University Press
[22] O'Sullivan, Arthur (2003) ‘Urban Economics’ Boston, Mass: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. ISBN 0-07-248784-4
[23] Ibid
[24] Ibid
[25] Ibid

ASSIGNMENT: MY STREET MY NEIGHBOURHOOD

AR-309: ARCHITECTURE AND TOWN PLANNING (B)

By

RAVINDAR KUMAR
Assistant Professor
Department of Architecture and Planning
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Karachi

INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT

TOPIC: ASSIGNMENT: MY STREET MY NEIGHBOURHOOD

1. Introduction:
A Street is a public thoroughfare in the built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A neighbourhood or neighborhood is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town or union council. Neighbourhoods are often social communities with considerable face-to-face interaction among members.

2. Objective:
The objective of this assignment is to document the physical, social and economic characteristics and activities of the streets and neighbourhoods of our urban context of Karachi.

3. Reason for this assignment:
Some of the students in class are left alone and not a part of any group. They wanted to do an individual assignment instead of doing group work and feel that they can not clearly spell out their abilities and intellect in the group assignment. Therefore for those students who are not working with any group this individual assignment is designed so as they may individually do it in their own personal capacity.

4. Methodology:
The assignment "My Street My Neighbourhood" is very simple where a student will document the physical, social and economic conditions of his own neighbourhood. The methodology of this assignment is very easy for anyone who can draw a plan i.e. a base map and make its overlays showing physical social and economic activities in his street and neighbourhood through photographs and comments.

Step # 1: At first one has to locate his/her neighbourhood through free online available Google earth map and then save its picture and identify the boundary of his/her neighbourhood.

Step # 2: Draw or trace a base map of your neighbourhood showing all four streets around your house or appartment as well as other buildings surrounding your house. Mark or highlight your house / appartment in Red and all other buildings in light brown colour.

Step # 3: Visit all the four streets and take pictures of your neighbourhood showing the streets and buildings from any corner so as maximum view can be established. The pictures may also be taken to show the physical conditions of streets and problems in it such as water and sewerage overflow, garbage disposal, electricity, telephone, and cable wires etc Similarly document social and economic conditions such as people sitting and interacting in your street or the commercial enterprises shops in the neighbourhood, Fruit and Vegetable carts, beggars, eunuchs etc Thus; a whole day activity may be photographed.

Step # 4: Make maps overlays i.e. first a base map showing the boundary of the neighbourhood and your house / appartment in red highlight with name of streets and neighbourhood. Second map overlay showing the physical conditions and your observed problems with highlighting their location with different colours and legends. Third map overlay showing the social activities in your street with their identified space/location highlighted with different colours and legends. Fourth map overlay showing the economic activities in your street with their identified space/location highlighted with different colours and legends. Map overlay showing the Master Plan of proposed improvements in your neighbourhood.

Step # 5: Make report writing about an Introduction of your neighbourhood; it’s Location with map, observed Problems and identified issues with pictures on A-4 size paper, Reasons for those problems as observed or discussed with any elder of the neighbourhood, and proposed Recommendations for Improvements with a Master Plan. Complete the report with a Title page on A-4 Size paper and Maps maximum on A-3 Size paper. Ring bind the report and submit.

5. Submission and Deadlines:

The deadlines for each step are as follows:

Step 1: 27th February 2010
Step 2: 6th March 2010
Step 3: 20th March 2010
Step 4: 17th April 2010
Step 5: 1st May 2010