write a phd proposal about the real estate developers and urban development

lable at ScienceDirect

Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211

Contents lists avai

Habitat International

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/habitatint

Impacts of large-scale residential projects on urban sustainability in Dammam Metropolitan Area, Saudi Arabia

Faez Saad Al-Shihri Department of Urban & Regional Planning, College of Architecture & Planning, University of Dammam, P.O. Box: 2397, Dammam, 31451, Saudi Arabia

a r t i c l e i n f o

Article history: Received 22 March 2016 Received in revised form 16 May 2016 Accepted 2 June 2016 Available online 10 June 2016

Keywords: Urbanization Residential development Urban sustainability Sprawl Dammam Metropolitan Area Saudi Arabia

E-mail address: [email protected].

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.habitatint.2016.06.001 0197-3975/© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

a b s t r a c t

Developing countries have been experiencing phenomenal urban growth within the last five decades, especially in urban areas. In fact, out of the anticipated 2.5 billion increase in world population by 2050, about 90% is expected to take place in just Asia and Africa. In Saudi Arabia, with urbanization rate of 83%, major cities are increasingly sprawling to carter for their increasing population. Dammam Metropolitan Area (DMA) is one of such cities that is witnessing the emergence of many large-scale residential development projects within the built-up areas and at the periphery. However, these projects have many implications on the sustainability of the built environmental. Based on review of official documents, maps and previous studies, this paper explores the nature, scale and unsustainable impacts of these projects. The present study found that there are 45 such projects covering about 32,807 ha of land in the study area, out of which about 11,740 hactares (or 35.8%) are infill into the Arabian Gulf. Other unsus- tainable features of these projects are exclusiveness, low density, single housing type and poor con- nectivity with the surroundings. The paper concludes with some recommendations towards sustainable urbanization in DMA.

© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

More than half of the World population are currently living in urban areas and the proportion is expected to reach two-third by 2050, and the majority of the global increase in urban population is expected to take place in developing countries (UN, 2014). By 2050, about 2.5 billion people will be added to the global population out of which about 90% is expected to take place in just Asian and Af- rican continents (UN, 2014 p. 2). In Saudi Arabia, with current of 30.77 million people (citizens and foreign residents), the propor- tion of urban dwellers is expected to reach 89% of the population from the current 83% (UN, 2014 p. 22). The number of people in urban areas in Saudi Arabia have been growing at the rate of about 6% annually, compared with the average national population growth rate of 2.6% (http://www.stats.gov.sa/en [18 March 2016]). According to Abubakar and Aina (2016), over half of the population of Saudi Arabia are living in just seven major cities of Riyadh, Jed- dah, Dammam, Makkah, Madinah, Buraydah and Hofuf-Mubarraz. Apart from natural population increase, other reasons for rapid population growth in these major cities is the concentration of

economic, industrial and administrative activities that provide many jobs opportunities and the presence of better health, educational and other basic services, which are increasingly attracting large domestic and foreign population (Abubakar, 2013).

As such, in order to carter for the growing population and due to the interest of real estate company in more land speculation and housing constructions (Aboukorin, 2011), large-scale housing pro- jects are continuously being planned and implemented in these cities. So far, there have been too little studies that explore the environmental or sustainability impacts of these projects. As such, the present study presents a quantitative analysis of the large-scale residential projects in DMA and their impacts on urban sustain- ability. The analysis is based on review of recent data from Saudi Ministry of Municipalities and Rural Affairs (MOMRA-KSA., 2008), and the Saudi Department of Statistics and other relevant agencies. Then the paper proposes some approaches to achieve sustainable urbanization in DMA. In the next section, literature review covers the concepts of sustainable cities and urbanization and the benefits of urban sustainability principles. Then section three explains the methodology of the study after which section five presents with results and discussion. The paper in section five offers some rec- ommendations on how to mitigate the unsustainable impacts of large-scale residential projects in DMA, and to prevent the

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211202

emergence of such large-scale projects in the future. The paper concludes in section six.

2. Literature review

Sustainable cities are urban areas that have been able to inte- grate social and economic development with environmental management and urban governance (UN, 2013; UN-Habitat,, 2009 2002). Paul James in his book, “Urban Sustainability in Theory and Practice”, proposes what he calls the “circles of sustainability” for assessing urban sustainability on four domains: a) Ecology, b) Economics, c) Culture, and d) Politics (James, 2015). The ecology domain refers to sustainable management of the environment: land uses, materials and energy, water and air, plants and animals, utilities and waste management. The economic domain on the other hand, entails production and resourcing, consumption, la- bour, technology and industrialization, wealth and distribution. While the book refers to social aspects under the cultural domain (including well-being, health, equity, identity), the politics domain underlines governance and organization; communication and accountability; representation and negotiation; dialogue and reconciliation (James, 2015).

Similarly, the UN-Habitat (2014) has identified five planning principles necessary to foster urban sustainability: (1) an efficient street network that encourage walkable neighbourhoods and reduce car dependency; (2) high density urban growth to alleviate urban sprawl and maximize land efficiency; (3) mixed land-use and functionally diversified urban environment to foster local employment, local production and local consumption; (4) social- mix, supporting socially equal and thriving communities in economically viable ways; and (5) limited land-use specialization, allowing economically and socially diversified communities (UN Habitat, 2014).

Sustainable cities can only be achieved when the urbanization process is sustainable as well. Sustainable urbanization is a dy- namic process that aims at achieving better life quality in the urban environment for both present and future generations by addressing environmental, economic, social and governance concerns (James, 2015; Roy, 2009; Shene, 2011; Ziegler, 2009). This shows that the ultimate goal of sustainable urbanization is to achieve sustainable cities. Indeed, for cities to be sustainable the constituting districts and residential neighbourhoods must also be designed and managed based on the principles of sustainably. The concept of sustainable neighbourhood refers to a locality that is socially, environmentally and economically healthy, safe, well planned and built to last (UNESCO, 2014). Sustainable neighbourhoods are so- cially cohesive and diverse, have a mix of residential and economic activities, a diversity of housing types and employment opportu- nities, prioritize walking, cycling and transit, encourage energy efficiency and promote efficient use of resources (Abdellatif & Othman, 2006; City of Pickering, 2015). In order to foster sustain- able urban development, the following sustainability concepts should be highly considered.

2.1. Small-size subdivisions and balanced hierarchal structure

The relationship between settlement size and sustainability has been an issue of continuous debate during the last two decades. There is a growing opinion among urban theorists and pro- fessionals that large cities and urban developments of the Indus- trial Age are not appropriate in this Information Age. There is an argument that “bigger isn’t always better”, especially for the developing countries (Barista, 2015). Doxiadis (1965) argued that small-size developments provide shelter, employment and com- munity life of a quality that is not available in large developments

and that the first preserve human values which are gradually being lost in the latter. Other advantages of small-size communities lie in promoting pedestrian movement, the possibility of developing in them a sense of identity, a feeling of belonging and participation among usually homogenous residents, a corporate spirit and outlook covering the whole population, which could make gov- erning easier and encourage civic development initiatives (Camagnie, 2002; Dix, 1986; Speare & White, 1990). Along this line of argument, Doxiadis made three key recommendations in resi- dential development: creating small communities with human scale, keeping natural resources intact, minimizing motor mobility. From the environmental point of view, small communities have less concentration of pollutants and have an architectural scale that improves their esthetical values (Aboukorin, 2014).

Conversely, large settlements usually have higher per capita cost for maintaining clean water and safe removal of garbage, and air quality is difficult to maintain in high population areas. Indeed some large cities, such as Los Angeles, have difficulties dealing with air quality because air is often trapped (Camagnie, 2002; Speare & White, 1990; UNEP, 2007). Trafficproblems are also associated with large-scale development, as the size of residential development increases, so also traffic congestion and car parking problems in- crease. This is particularly true in Saudi Arabia where car ownership rate is very high with no, or a very limited, role of public trans- portation (Abubakar & Aina, 2016).

Many studies about residential preferences have consistently shown that people who live in large cities would prefer to live in small cities, towns or rural areas. However, most of those wishing to live in rural areas preferred them to be within 30 miles of a city of over 50,000 inhabitants (Fuguitt & Zuiches, 1975). What seems to be preferred is a relatively small scale for one’s immediate resi- dential surroundings, but, at the same time, with good accessibility to shopping, services, cultural and recreational opportunities associated with a metropolitan area (Aboukorin, 2014; Filion, Bunting, & Warriner, 1999; Speare & White, 1990). Recommend- ing small-size developments does not mean promoting low resi- dential densities.

2.2. High residential density: functional efficiency and combating sprawl

Many recent researches recommend high residential densities to achieve urban sustainability and argue that communities operate more efficiently when residents live in denser urban surroundings. Although higher densities tend to increase traffic congestion; communities of high densities tend to have greater transportation options and encourage the residents to adopt more active mobility modes: walking and bicycling (Berggren, 2014; Burge & Trosper, 2013). Moreover, high density is seen to prevent urban sprawl and promote sustainable urban extension and as such, it is regarded as a necessary tool to achieve land-use efficiency (Abubakar, 2013). In its recent publication, the UN Habitat recommended high pop- ulation density as one of the fundamental principles of sustainable neighbourhood planning (UN Habitat, 2014).

According to a Lincoln Institute of Land Policy report, cities in developing countries had an average built-up area density of 129 p/ ha in 2000 (Angel, Parent, Civco, & Blei, 2010). In fact, the UN Habitat (2014) recommends a minimum density of 150 p/ha for a sustainable neighbourhood, which is feasible albeit slightly above the average urban density in developing countries. The UN Habitat argues that high density has many benefits including: slowing down urban sprawl; reducing public service costs, car dependency and parking demand; increasing support for active mobility and public transportation; increasing energy efficiency and decreases pollution; and supporting social equity, better community services,

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211 203

and better public open space (UN Habitat, 2014). Although some people perceived a connection between high

density and social problems, such as crime, poverty and depression, the UN Habitat (2014) maintained that these perceptions are not valid as studies show no such correlation when factors such as income are accounted for. Thus, a properly designed high density neighbourhood could provide a safe and comfortable living envi- ronment. Thus, high density as a smart choice that has been placed at the core of sustainable urban planning principles.

2.3. Mixed land-use: functional sustainability

Mixed use zoning is generally linked to increased compact design. Mixed urban fabrics could contribute in saving energy needed for motorised means of transportation as it reduces the need to travel between the different parts of a city or a metropolitan area, since various activities and services are easily accessible. Thus, this type of urbanisation would potentially reduce the congestion in the city or the metropolitan major arteries (Smith, 2006). Also, mixed land-use would ideally create local jobs, promote the local economy, reduce urban fabric fragmentation and support mixed communities (UN Habitat 2014).

There is a wide range of studies that view mixed-use as a principle element to achieve neighbourhood sustainability (Evans & Foord, 2007). The UN-Habitat report entitled “A new strategy of sustainable neighbourhood planning” in 2014, is one of these studies. According to UN-Habitat report, mixed land-use policy aims to develop a range of compatible activities and land uses close together in appropriate locations and flexible enough to adapt over time to the changing market. However, mixed-use practice couldn’t be generalized, aspects of local context need to be taken into ac- count (Evans & Foord, 2007). Thus, for each project we have to ask ourselves what constitutes a sustainable mix, at what scale and which combination of activities (Evans & Foord, 2007).

Regarding the scale, mixed land-use policy can be applied at city, district, neighbourhood, block and building levels (UN Habitat, 2014). Regarding the combination of activities, compatibility of different land uses depends mainly on the noise and pollution levels; that should be kept to the minimum to protect the com- munity wellbeing and area liveability. Mixed land-use requires some combination of residential, commercial, light industrial, or other appropriate land-use. When different functions are mixed in one neighbourhood, economic and residential activities should be made compatible and well balanced by careful design and man- agement (UN Habitat, 2014). According to the UN-Habitat report, the suggested floor area distribution for a sustainable neighbour- hood is: 40e60% for economic use, 30e50% for residential use and 10% for public services. The set of recommended standards is a range to allow for flexibility so that different cities can adapt them to their own situations. Mixed land-use is an inherent part of the nature of cities and is a pillar of sustainable urban development (UN Habitat, 2014).

To take into consideration the local context, some key variables to be considered while planning a mixed-use project have been suggested. Such variables include the local socio-cultural context and the history and age of the area, existing local uses and activities their relation with other uses, site characteristics such as devel- opment grains and urban fabric density and layout, as well as local real-estate market dynamics: trends and regulations (Evans & Foord, 2007). Smith (2006) advises that it is indispensable to raise the awareness of the different actors of the benefits of mixed land-use in order to favour its successful implementation.

2.4. Social mix: social sustainability

Numerous researchers recommend social mix as a strategy to achieve sustainable residential environment. It aims to promote the cohesion and interaction between different social classes in the same community and to ensure accessibility to equitable urban opportunities by providing different housing types. Social mix is supposed to provide the basis for healthy social networks, which, in turn are the driving force of city life. In a mixed land-use neigh- bourhood, job opportunities are, theoretically, generated for resi- dents from different backgrounds and with different income levels. People live and work in the same neighbourhood and form a diverse social network (UN Habitat, 2014). Another positive effect of social mixing might be the aesthetic diversity due to the variety of housing types. This could avoid having a boring streetscape with similar types of housing. Achieving equality in opportunities among various social classes could be one of the positive effects of social mixing (Sarkissian, 1976).

Some researchers have argued that concentrating inhabitants from low income social class in the same neighbourhood have several negative effects. For example, concentrating unemployed residents in the same neighbourhood may encourage the in- dividuals to stay unemployed or to have casual work habits. In- dividuals might suffer from difficulty to access job market due to the lack of access to job networks. Moreover, the similarity in working habits and low income profile might encourage isolation of social groups in ghettos with all its negative aspects such as concentrated poverty and deviant behaviours, which could lead to increasing crime rates and other social problems (Manley, Van Ham, & Doherty, 2011; Wilson, 1991).

However, many researchers and policy makers question the benefits of social mixing and its efficiency in curing neighbourhood problems. They argue that people self-select themselves to live in neighbourhoods according to their income and services they can afford, and that a poor household will not become rich by mere living in rich neighbourhoods (Manley et al., 2011). Thus, it is not enough to provide different types of housing to implement social mix and to avoid social discrimination. People with high income, especially in middle-eastern cultures, would probably avoid living in neighbourhoods with low income neighbours. It is indispensable to consider local cultural aspects to come up with effective plan- ning policies, otherwise, concepts like the social mixing might not give the expected positive outcomes.

Theoretically, mixing social groups in the same neighbourhood might lead to ‘role-model effect’, when poor and delinquent youth imitate the behaviours of individuals of higher social class (Manley et al., 2011; Sarkissian, 1976). However, this positive effect cannot be guaranteed or generalized, as some researches showed that the effect is sometimes insignificant even in the case of very small communities (Allen, Camina, Casey, Coward, & Wood, 2005; Manley et al., 2011). Groups from different social backgrounds would rarely interact together. Thus, social mixing must be paired with real strategies to encourage interactions between different social groups. Otherwise, it could aggravate the social issues and new issues could emerge.

Although social mix is a socio-spatial concept that is difficult to analyse quantitatively, it is still possible to set a general numerical standard from the empirical evidence based on good practice. The UN-Habitat recommends 20e50% of the residential floor to be allocated to affordable housing, and that one single tenure type should not exceed 50% of the residential floor area (UN-Habitat, 2014). This recommendation has a wide range to enable urban planners and city management to follow the national or regional owned-to-rented ratio. In Europe for example, the percentage of public affordable housing in new housing developments is about

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211204

30% in Holland, 20% in Ireland, 25% in the UK (raised to 30e50% in London).

To ensure the smooth implementation of the above suggestions on achieving social mix, UN-Habitat recommends providing plots in different sizes and with different regulations, to increase the diversity of housing options. It also recommends investing in and improving public housing, promoting multi-level employment within the community, and working with private developers to increase public housing supply (UN Habitat, 2014). In addition, Sarkissian (1976) mentioned three questions that might help to achieve positive effects of social mix: “what is the unit that the mixers propose to mix? Which groups tolerate mix best? Under what conditions can people mix safely and happily?”

3. Methodology

3.1. Study area

Dammam Metropolitan Area (DMA), the capital of the Eastern Province, has a total land area of 380,000 ha, and housing about 1.8 million inhabitants. It is the heart of Saudi oil production, which makes the economy and the physical development of DMA reliant heavily on mainly the petroleum industry. During the last three decades, DMA has experienced unprecedented rapid and massive urbanization, from three separated small fishing villages of Dam- mam, Khobar and Dhahran, to become the third largest metropolis in Saudi Arabia (Alhowaish, 2015). The Greater Dammam Region includes the DMA and the neighboring governorates of Qatif and Ras-Tanura (Fig. 1).

DMA is connected to other cities in the Kingdom and the outside world with King Fahd International Airport and King Abdulaziz Port seaport, located on the Arabian Gulf. Another port at nearby Ras Tanura is used exclusively for exporting petroleum products. DMA is also directly connected to the Kingdom of Bahrain by the 25 km long King Fahd Causeway and to Jubail Industrial City by 80 km highway. DMA is linked with Riyadh by a 400 km highway and railways and it is linked by a highway to the neighbouring states of Kuwait, UAE and Oman.

The population of DMA has increased from 0.365 million in- habitants in 1974 to 1.3 million in 1993, and to about 1.8 million in 2010 (Aboukorin & Al-Shihri, 2015). Based on the current regional growth rate of 3.0%, the population of DMA is expected to more than double in the next 25 years, reaching about 3.63 million in 2040, an increase of about 2 million people.

3.2. Methods

To explore the nature, scale and unsustainable impacts of large- scale residential development projects in DMA, the following three methods were utilized.

a) Desk study

The study starts with a broad desktop study to identify and compile relevant literature, plans maps and other relevant docu- ments about the subject and the study area. Then literature review of textbooks, articles, reports and websites was conducted. Con- cepts related to and elements of urban sustainability, impacts of large-scale residential development projects and ways of ensuring sustainable urbanization, among others were reviewed. Selected references, in hard and soft copies, were obtained from sources such as MOMRA, KSA, Saudi Central Department of Statistics and Information, UN-Habitat, and UN Population Division.

b) GIS analyses

This involves using ArcGIS software to map out the location and extent of the large-scale residential development projects in DMA. The current map of the study area, obtained from Google Earth Pro©, was imputed into the GIS-based land use map of DMA ob- tained from Dammam Municipality. The current map was geore- ferenced and then a polygon layer of the projects under study was developed.

c) Analyses and synthesis

Lastly, land use map and structure plan of DMA were used to compile the list and sizes of the approved large-scale residential projects (those around 200 ha), as well as those projects that are located on land reclaimed from the Gulf. Similarly layout plans of some of the projects were used for the analyses. Lastly, findings from the literature review and GIS analyses were synthesized and analysed. This involves analysing the extent to which the projects conforms to the UN-Habitat’s (2014) five principles required to foster urban sustainability: walkable neighbourhoods; (2) high density; (3) mixed land-use (4) social-mix, (5) limited land-use specialization.

4. Results and discussion

4.1. Large-scale residential projects in DMA

This study found that there are forty five proposed or ongoing large-scale residential developments in DMA covering about 32,807 ha of land (Table 1 and Fig. 2). They are considered large- scale because, except in the case of three projects, their sizes are more than 300 ha of land (average is 730 ha). These projects can be categorized into two:

(a) Suburban development built on low-price desert land at the outskirts of the metropolitan area and covering an area of about 21,067 ha or 64.2% of the total development.

(b) Infill development into the Arabian Gulf water, covering about 11,740 hactares or 35.8% of the total land area of the development

The rapid urbanization has driven the expansion of DMA much beyond the managing capacity of Dammam Urban Planning Department (DUPD). Thus, there were no strict regulations regarding the size of these subdivisions, residential density, and its environmental and traffic impacts. In many cases, many of these large-scale projects have been approved outside the urban limit, and in some cases into the gulf water (Fig. 3). The most important of these massive large-scale residential subdivisions are King Fahd suburban area (3613 ha), Al-Naseem (3339 ha), subdivision no.1156 (2440 ha) on the western suburb of DMA and Azizziah and the Half- Moon bay districts (3061 ha) built on lands reclaimed from the Arabian Gulf.

These large-scale residential subdivisions are located along the coast in the east, on the desert fringe, and along the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Countries) road in the western part of DMA. Because the built-up central area of DMA is high density, none of these large-scale residential projects is located there. However, there are two major high-rise public housing projects in the build-up area.

4.2. Unsustainable impacts of large-scale residential subdivisions in DMA

These massive residential subdivisions have started creating many environmental and urban sustainability problems. These problems, highlighted below, are expected to further worsen with

Fig. 1. Dammam metropolitan area (MOMRA-KSA., 2008).

Table 1 Size of large-scale residential subdivisions in DMA (compiled from MOMRA-KSA., 2008; Google Earth Pro©, 2016).

District Area (ha) District Area (ha)

1 Eastern Shatia 411.6 24 Al Foursan, 478.2 2 Western Shatia 358.5 25 Al Shourok, 54.6 3 Al Naseem, Dammam 3339.0 26 West Dhahran 2151.8 4 Al Fanar, Khobar 414.2 27 Al-Tragi, Dhahran 363.6 5 King Faisal University Town 305.9 28 Al Sheail 192.0 6 Al Sodra e Dammam 581.5 29 Al Kour 122.1 7 Al Nouras, 721.9 30 Al Hamr, Khobar 325.9 8 Al Seif, 805.6 31 Ashbelaa, 315.7 9 Al Safa, Dammam 339.8 32 Al Taauyn, 325.9 10 Al Hossam, 353.0 33 Al Kozama, Azizia 383.0 11 Al Nahda, Dammam 305.2 34 Al Tahelia, 604.0 12 Al Mountza, Dammam 205.1 35 Behera, 189.6 13 Al Fordous, Dammam 136.7 36 Al Sawari - Azizia 671.7 14 Al Nozha, 388.0 37 Al Maha, 197.8 15 Al Fayhaa, Dammam 252.5 38 Sheraa, 664.3 16 Al Nour, Dammam 486.6 39 Al Ragaa, 409.0 17 Al Faisaliah 777.5 40 Al Amwag, 757.3 18 Al Manar, Dammam 1019.6 41 Al Kawthar, Azizia 500.6 19 Al Nada, 474.8 42 Al Lowalowaa, Azizia 765.0 20 Tebaa, 734.6 43 Al Morgane, Azizia 1070.4 21 King Fahd Suburb, Dammam 3613.0 44 Al Aqeq, Azizia 725.0 22 Airport, Dammam 1085.5 45 Outer districts, Dammam 4086.1 23 Al Amana, Dammam 343.2 Total 32,806.9

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211 205

Fig. 2. Large-scale residential subdivisions in DMA (based on maps from MOMRA-KSA., 2008 and Google Earth Pro).

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211206

population density getting higher in these subdivisions.

a) Unsustainable landfill into the Arabian Gulf water

Despite the fact that land-filling is one of the most disruptive activities to coastal and marine resources, reclamation of inter-tidal areas continues in DMA and on a large-scale. Land speculation in general and the premium prices available for seafront property in particular appear to be the key drivers behind the environmentally destructive land-filling that has devastated much of the coastline. By comparing DMA satellite images of 1982 and 2015, it is seen that land-filling during this period has covered an area of about 6832 ha in Arabian Gulf waters (Fig. 3 and Table 2). Moreover, there are other approved subdivision plans with a total area of about 4908 ha to be built on land reclaimed from the Gulf.

As Fig. 4 shows, this land infilling practice is severely deterio- rating the quality of marine environment along the coast. This area around Tarout Island was known as the main mangrove habitat in

the region. Due mainly to land-filling activities by the countries surrounding the Arabian Gulf, the quantity of fish caught from the Arabian Gulf declined from 26,000 tons in 1998e21,000 in 1999, and the problem is more acute for shrimps, declining from 6000 to 2000 tons from 1998 to 1999 (Ministry of Agriculture, KSA, 1999).

In many cases, landfilling for these large-scale projects extend deep into the gulf (about 8.0 km), which thus severely obstructs water circulation. In Tarut Island, for example, land infill has linked Tarut with the coast and prevented water circulation around the island (Fig. 4). In an effort to improve the environmental condition of this deteriorated area, the Municipality of Dammam tried to dig a canal to allow water circulation. But, as can be seen on the right image in Fig. 4, the environmental deterioration is getting worse.

The striking unsustainable feature of these large-scale de- velopments is their very low residential density of an average of 120 p/ha. Indeed three of these major subdivisions (King Fahd Suburb, Al-Naseem subdivision and Subdivision no. 1156) have overall population density of 64 persons per hectare, which is very

Fig. 3. Some completed and ongoing land-filling activities in DMA, 1982e2015 (Space Surveying Department, KSA 1982).

Table 2 Areas and distribution of current and expected land infill in DMA 1982e2015 (hectares) Aboukorin (2011) and MOMRA-KSA. (2008).

Dammam Qatif Total

Land infill during 1982ae2015b 3910 2922 6832 Expected land infill (approved subdivisions) 4500 408 4908 Total 8410 3330 11,740

a (Space Surveying Department, KSA, 1982). b (Digital Globe, 2003), Google Earth image, 2015.

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211 207

low compared with other districts in DMA that are about 180e250 p/ha, as well as other cities in developing countries. Moreover, this low density is rapidly declining as the rate of urban development is much faster than that of population increase. Over the three de- cades from 1972 to 2003, the population density of Dammam, decreased by 46% and if this trend continues, the density is ex- pected to continue to reach only 35 persons/ha by 2030 (MOMRA- KSA., 2008). Declining density means that DMA is suffering increasing urban sprawl, which is a serious urban problem in developing countries that goes against urban sustainability.

These massive residential subdivisions are low density mainly because of two main reasons. First, to attract the affluent people to these large developments built on low-price desert land on city outskirts, or to offer the affluent residents a good view of the water

body in the case of those developments on the land reclaimed from the Gulf water. Second, because of their large size, they take a long time to be fully developed, and thus remain at a very low level of density for a long period of time (Kotkin, 2013; SCMP., 2013). Low density residential developments are believed to be functionally and socially less sustainable than high density developments.

c) Exclusively residential uses with single housing type

Despite their huge size, these subdivisions are only for resi- dential purpose and serve no other purpose to the greater com- munity, such as economic activities and services for employment and public services. Those already developed turned out to be ‘commuter districts’, creating traffic jams at peak hours as large numbers of employees leave these districts and pour into the congested part of the metropolis. Moreover, some of the new large- scale subdivisions, especially those on the coast, are designed as gated communities, of a single type of housing, usually detached villas. This goes against sustainability principles, especially regarding achieving socially mixed and diversified communities.

Similar to many new residential developments, these large- scale developments are mono-functional. This is against sustain- ability principles that promote mixed uses that could create local jobs; promote the local economy; reduce car dependency; encourage active mobility; reduce landscape fragmentation;

Fig. 4. Environmental Impacts of massive land infill around Tarut island.

b) Extremely low density leading to sprawl

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211208

provide closer public services and support mixed communities. When new subdivision include commerce, business and other ac- tivities they tend to be self-contained thus residents do not need to go as often to the greater community.

Similarly, because of their location on the outskirts of the city, these residential developments are usually planned for the high income social class. Despite the debate in the literature concerning the efficiency of the social mixing in terms of sustainability, single type of housing, the villa, is being proposed. This would not create sustainable residential environment that promote cohesion and interaction between different social classes in the same commu- nity. According to a 2015 survey of housing preference based on socio-economic characteristics of DMA residents, about 74 per cent of respondents indicated that they can only afford living in apart- ments, while only 26 per cent prefer living in villas (Aljarbua, Alghamdy, Alsharkh, Bafjaish, & Almutairi, 2015). These results highly coincide with Dammam Urban Observatory survey results that indicated that 90% of houses in DMA are villas (Dammam Urban Observatory, 2015).

d) “Cities within the city” - structural deformation

Due to the large size of most of these residential developments, they can be considered as mini cities within a city. For example, the King Fahd Suburb subdivision (3613 ha), Al-Naseem (3339 ha) and Subdivision 1156 (2440 ha), are expected to house very large populations of about 230,000, 213,000 and 156,000 respectively. These population sizes are very much beyond any planning or sustainability standards for neighbourhood size (5000e8000 in- habitants) or district size (20,000e30000 inhabitants). It is even larger than several Saudi cities. Therefore, these large-scale projects represent the so called “cities within the city” and are likely going to physically disrupt the metropolitan structure and to alter the long

established balance between DMA’s districts and neighbourhoods. Also, they are expected to exert considerable pressure on the sur- rounding urban environment, infrastructure, and public services.

Moreover, the expected problems of these large-scale de- velopments are much beyond the management capacity of Dam- mam municipality and its planning department. While most of the city units are small, of an area around 100e250 ha, these large-scale developments that are averagely 730 ha (seven of them are over 1000 ha) are beginning to seriously deform the hierarchal structure of 3e5 neighborhoods under a district and districts under a sector. This is because these subdivisions are planned as single entities, without any hierarchal structure of neighbourhoods and residential sites. This adversely affects the ability of these developments to create a sense of neighbourhood in a socially sustainable residential environment. It also adversely affects the efficient provision of educational and health services in these and could aggravate traffic flow and safety inside these developments and at their few exit points.

Similarly, these large-scale residential projects along the coast have deprived the residents of the central area of DMA the benefit of viewing and enjoying the site of the Gulf water. More impor- tantly, despite DMA being on the Arabian Gulf coast, it has a very short and narrow public sea-front, as these large-scale projects are private properties without any public beach. This is makes this projects socially unsustainable.

Another unsustainability feature of these residential projects is their poor and limited connectivity with the surrounding areas (Fig. 5). As marked with arrows in Fig. 5, the entries/exits to these areas would eventually result in high traffic congestion at these points and in the surrounding neighbourhoods. Also, the location of these large-scale residential subdivisions along the eastern and western edges of the metropolis has locked and confined its central area, thus creating urban edges and visual barriers. This is expected

Fig. 5. Large-scale residential developments with limited connectivity with surrounding road network.

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211 209

to further deteriorate the urban environment of this area, as it is highly populated and houses most of the commercial and admin- istration services.

5. Recommendations towards sustainable urbanization in DMA

Based on the above analysis of the unsustainable features of the ongoing and completed large-scale residential projects in DMA, and taking into account the reviewed UN-Habitat’s five principles necessary to foster sustainable urban development (UN-Habitat 2014), the following key recommendations could help towards sustainable urbanization in DMA:

a) Small-size subdivisions and balanced hierarchal structure

Instead of large-scale residential subdivisions of an area up to 3000 ha and housing about 300,000 persons, this paper recom- mends dividing the approved, but not yet developed subdivisions, into a number of neighbourhoods of about 8000e10,000 popula- tion size. This is to avoid traffic congestion at the centres of these large scale subdivisions and at their limited exit points. Each of the proposed neighbourhood should be self-sufficient and properly connected to the main roads of DMA. To prevent further structural deformation, the area of any new subdivision should not exceed 100e150 ha. This is to ensure efficient management, limited envi- ronmental and traffic impacts, and to prevent conflict with other sections of DMA, especially the city centre.

b) High residential density e functional efficiency and combating sprawl

For DMA, where the overall density is low (only 64 persons/ha in 2003) and further declining, expected to reach only 35 persons/ha

by 2030, due to proposed very low density developments (Aboukorin, 2011), it is necessary to increase the density up to the UN-Habitat’s recommended density of 150 p/ha. To do so entails revising planning regulations in DMA to minimize the percentage of the two-story villa-type housing. Currently about 90 per cent of the undeveloped residential area in DMA is villa-type housing. This recommendation is especially important as this type of housing does not suit the socio-economic characteristics of the community, where about 80 per cent of the population cannot afford such type of housing (Dammam Urban Observatory, 2015). This requires no more urban expansion in the next 10 years. In addition, and in order to help in combating sprawl, taxes must be imposed on vacant lands within the urban limit, and on unoccupied housing units.

c) Mixed land-use, not just residential

In DMA, these large-scale residential projects are mainly resi- dential with very limited mixing with commercial and office uses. Economic activities in most of these large-scale subdivisions are just about 15e20 per cent of total area. These economic activities are usually grouped in a single location at the edge of the site or along the main roads, leaving the whole district without economic activities. In order to improve sustainability in these districts, the paper recommends revising the plans of those yet to build layout designs as well as the planning and building regulations to increase the floor area percentage of economic activities up to the UN- Habitat’s recommended 40 to 60 per cent.

d) Social mix: housing for different income levels in each neighborhood

In DMA, lack of social mix between high and low income classes is the most obvious feature of unsustainability. According to Dammam Urban Observatory (2015), about 90 per cent of the area

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211210

of approved and not yet developed residential subdivisions in DMA is allocated for a single type of housing, which is the villa type, although, there is an acute shortage of affordable apartment housing that is highly needed by about 80% DMA residents. Thus, the social mix approach of different housing types is necessary not only for achieving urban sustainability but also to ensure housing provision meet the economic characteristics of the local population. More specifically, the paper suggests that for some of the yet to build large-scale residential projects and for any new subdivision to be approved, housing type must be low percentage of villas and higher percentage of apartments (e.g. 30:70 respectively), given that apartments meet the residents0 housing preference of the majority of DMA residents, according to their income levels. This will allow social-mix of low and high income residents in each neighbourhood.

6. Conclusion

Based on the above analyses, the paper concludes that large- scale residential developments in DMA do not properly adhere to sustainability principles, and thus, a number environmental and urban problems have arisen. From environmental point of view, as some of these subdivisions are built on sites resulting from land reclamation on the Gulf water, this action severely deteriorated the marine environment. In order to minimize these unsustainable impacts, strict prohibition of further land reclamation on the Arabian Gulf should be completely imposed. The shoreline of DMA must be accurately delineated and officially approved, and any further development beyond that line must not be approved. Future urban expansion should be directed to desert areas on the west.

Large-size developments usually create large-scale environ- mental impacts, and put immense pressure on existing infra- structure, services and road network. Also, it creates severe deformation in city structure; and thus they alter the existing functional balance between city components. As the size of a resi- dential development or subdivision gets bigger, it loses the sense of neighbourhood, and its management becomes more complicated. The paper recommends that any new large-scale subdivision in DMA must be divided into a number of manageable, compact, and pedestrian-friendly districts, and must be balanced with other districts in the city. Thus, their size should not exceed the average size of districts in the city. Each of these districts must be internally divided to a number of self-contained neighbourhoods.

In order to favour successful planning and implementation of small-size, mixed-use, compact, socially-mixed projects, it is indispensable to educate developers, stakeholders and the popu- lation in general by raising their awareness of the benefits of sus- tainable urbanization. Similarly, public participation sessions could help in customizing the mixed-use strategies to the community needs. Future research should assess other impacts of large scale subdivisions such as energy and water demand and traffic congestion.

References

Abdellatif, M. A., & Othman, A. E. (2006). Improving the sustainability of low- income housing projects: The case of residential buildings in musafafah com- mercial city, Abu Dhabi. Emitates Journal for Engineering Research, 11(2), 47e58.

Aboukorin, A. (2011). Impacts of rapid urbanisation in the Arab world: The case of Dammam metropolitan area, Saudi Arabia. In 5th Int’l conference and workshop on built environment in developing countries. Malaysia: Universiti Sains.

Aboukorin, A. (2014). Small-size urban settlements e a proposed approach for managing the urban future in developing countries of increasing technological capabilitiesethe case of Egypt. Ain Shams Engineering Journal, 5, 377e390.

Aboukorin, A., & Al-Shihri, F. (2015). Rapid urbanization and sustainability in Saudi Arabia: The case of Dammam Metropolitan Area. Journal of Sustainable

Development, 8(9). Abubakar, I. R. (2013). Role of higher institutions of learning in promoting smart

growth in developing countries: University of Dammam as a case study. In Proceedings of the 8th international forum on knowledge assets dynamics: “Smart Growth: Organizations, cities and communities,” Zagreb, Croatia (pp. 591e608).

Abubakar, I. R., & Aina, Y. A. (2016). Achieving sustainable cities in Saudi Arabia: Juggling the competing urbanization challenges. In U. G. Benna, & S. B. Garba (Eds.), Population growth and rapid urbanization in the developing world. Her- shey, PA: IGI Global.

Alhowaish, A. K. (2015). Eighty years of urban growth and socioeconomic trends in Dammam Metropolitan Area, Saudi Arabia. Habitat International, 50(5), 90e98.

Aljarbua, A., Alghamdy, Z., Alsharkh, M., Bafjaish, A., & Almutairi, A. (2015). Housing Preference Survey. Dammam, Saudi Arabia: Unpublished Peport, Post-Graduate Planning Workshop. University of Dammam.

Allen, C., Camina, M., Casey, R., Coward, S., & Wood, M. (2005). Mixed Tenure, Twenty Years on e nothing out of the ordinary. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Angel, S., Parent, J., Civco, D. L., & Blei, A. M. (2010). Atlas of Urban Expansion, Section 1: A Global Sample of 120 Cities, 1990-2000. http://www.lincolninst.edu/ subcenters/atlas-urban-expansion (12 Dec. 2015).

Barista, D. (2015, May 27). Tactical urbanism: Why bigger isn’t always better in urban revitalization. http://www.bdcnetwork.com/blog/tactical-urbanism-why- bigger-isn%E2%80%99t-always-better-urban-revitalization#sthash (11 Dec. 2015).

Berggren, C. (2014, April 17). Urban Density and Sustainability. http://www. sustainablecitiescollective.com/planningphotographycom/241696/urban- density-and-sustainability (22 Dec. 2015).

Burge, G., & Trosper, T. (2013, Sept. 25). A strategy to combat urban sprawl and fund local services. http://okpolicy.org/strategy-combat-urban-sprawl-guest-post- greg-burge-trey-trosper (24 Dec. 2015).

Camagnie, R. (2002). Urban mobility and urban form: The social and environmental costs of different patterns of urban expansion. Ecological Economics, 40, 199e216.

City of Pickering. (2015). Sustainable Neighborhoods. Retrieved Dec. 20, 2015, from City of Pickering https://www.pickering.ca/en/living/ sustainableneighbourhoods.asp.

Dammam Urban Observatory. (2015). Socio-Economic & Urban Indicators of Dam- mam Metropolitan Report. Dammam: Dammam Amana.

Dix, G. (1986). Small cities in the world system. Habitat International, 10(1/2), 273e282.

Doxiadis, C. (1965). The Role of Small Cities, A lecture delivered at the Sixty-Fifth Annual Commencement Ceremony of Northern Michigan University. www. doxiadis.org (22 Dec. 2015).

Digital Globe. (2003). Quick Bird Satellite Image for Dammam Metropolitan Area. Digital Globe.

Evans, G., & Foord, J. (2007). The generation of diversity: Mixed-use and urban sustainability. In Urban sustainability through environmental Design: Approaches to time-people-place responsive urban spaces. Abingdon. United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis.

Filion, P., Bunting, T., & Warriner, K. (1999). Urban studies. The Entrenchment of Urban Dispersion: Residential Preferences and Location Patterns in the Dispersed City, 36(8), 1317e1347.

Fuguitt, G., & Zuiches, J. (1975). Residential preferences and population distribution. Demography, 12, 491e504.

Google Earth Pro. (2016). Google Earth Online. Saudi Arabia. googleearthonline. blogspot.com.

James, P. (2015). Urban Sustainability In Theory And Practice. Circles of sustainability. London, United Kingdom: Routledge.

Kotkin, J. (2013, Apr. 16). Megacities And The Density Delusion: Why More People Doesn’t Equal More Wealth. http://www.forbes.com/sites/joelkotkin/2013/04/ 16/megacities-and-the-density-delusion/ (23 Dec. 2015).

Manley, D., Van Ham, M., & Doherty, J. (2011). Social Mixing as a Cure for Negative Neighbourhood Effects: Evidence Based Policy or Urban Myth? Bonn, Germany: IZA.

Ministry of Agriculture, KSA. (1999). Fishing Statistics in the Kingdom. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Ministry of Agriculture.

MOMRA-KSA. (2008). Local and Action Area Plans for Cities of Dammam Metropolitan and Governorates of Qatif and Ras-Tanura. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Ministry of Municipality and Rural Affairs.

Roy, M. (2009). Planning for sustainable urbanization in fast growing cities: Miti- gation and adaptation issues addressed in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Habitat Inter- national, 33(3), 276e286.

Sarkissian, W. (1976). The idea of social mix in town planning. Historical Review. Urban Studies, 13, 231e246.

SCMP. (2013, March 14). Town Planning e Population Density Planning of New Town Developments. Retrieved Dec. 23, 2015, from ecyyiu https://ecyyiu.wordpress. com/2013/03/15/town-planning-population-density-planning-of-new-town- developments/.

Shene, L.-Y. (2011). The application of urban sustainability indicators: A comparison between various practices. Habitat International, 35(1), 17e29.

Smith, P. C. (2006). Zoning for Mixed Uses. Retrieved 2016, from American Planning Association, PAS QuickNotes, No. 6 https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/ view/40769726/zoning-for-mixed-uses-american-planning-association/3.

Space Surveying Department, KSA. (1982). Saudi Aerial Images. Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resource.

Speare, A. J., & White, M. (1990). Optimal City Size and Population Density for the 21st

F.S. Al-Shihri / Habitat International 56 (2016) 201e211 211

Century. Retrieved Dec. 22, 2015, from Negative Population Growth http:// www.npg.org/forum_series/optimal_city_size.htm.

UN. (2013). World Economic and Social Survey 2013. New York: United Nations. UN. (2014). World Urbanization Prospects: The 2014 Revision, Highlights (ST/ESA/

SER.A/352). Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. UN Habitat. (2014). Urban Planning Discussion Note 3. A New Strategy of Sustainable

Neighbourhood Planning: Five Principles. http://unhabitat.org/wp-content/ uploads/2014/05/5-Principles_web.pdf (15 December 2015).

UN-Habitat. (2002). Sustainable urbanization: achieving Agenda 21. The United Na- tions Human Settlements Programme.

UN-Habitat. (2009). Planning Sustainable Cities: Policy Direction. Global Report on

Human Settlements 2009, Abridge Edition. London: Earthscan. UNESCO. (2014). Effective governance, policymaking and planning for sustainable

urbanization. UN. Economic and Social Council. UNEP. (2007). GEO-4: “Global Environment Outlook 4”. United Nations Environment

Programme. Wilson, W. J. (1991). Another look at the truly disadvantaged. Political Science

Quarterly, 106, 639e656. Ziegler, E. (2009). The case for megapolitan growth management in the twenty-first

century: Regional urban planning and sustainable development in the USA. International Journal of Law in the Built Environment, 1(2), 105e129.