Regenerating cultural quarters in Pakistan: The case study of Lahore

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Tezin Türü: Yüksek Lisans

Tezin Yürütüldüğü Kurum: Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi, Mimarlık Fakültesi, Şehir ve Bölge Planlama Bölümü, Türkiye

Tezin Onay Tarihi: 2022

Tezin Dili: İngilizce

Öğrenci: Harmain Riaz

Danışman: Zübeyde Müge Akkar Ercan

Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu

Özet:

The cities across the world face a constant problem of depletion every passing day, often caused by several factors, including environmental degradation, migration and population rise, deteriorating infrastructure, lack of resources or economic and social changes, striking at different magnitudes. These problems, if addressed properly through planned schemes could result in saving tons of financial and building resources for the municipalities directing the cities. New and modern cities are now being critically planned to address these problems, however, historical cities that grew organically through time face a larger impact of these lifestyle-degrading factors. The field of Urban Regeneration (UR) sheds light on such cases and provides solutions for historically acclaimed neighborhoods of a city to be revitalized in a planned manner by establishing Cultural Quarters (CQs). Taking inspiration from John Montgomery's work on CQs, studying the examples of Temple Bar in Dublin and Rasht Grand Bazaar in Iran, this study unfolds the international and regional prospects of CQs. Pouring the basis on literature, this thesis analyzes it over the historical city of Lahore, Pakistan. Lahore, described as the city of gardens and Paris of the East, holds an immense amount of significance when it comes to the cultural identity of Pakistan and the whole sub-continent region. However, the city has significantly lost its aura owing to urban sprawl, greater number of migrations, and poor urban planning. Focusing on the historical city center of Lahore, this research examines the potentials and problems regarding physical form, activities and meanings of the place through mapping exercises, interviews, and surveys for turning it into a planned Cultural Quarter before the potential truly depletes. Finally, it suggests the UR planning and design strategies for the historical center to become a cultural quarter of Lahore.