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Exploring public
perception of urban identity: The case of Ankara, Turkey
M. E. Baris*, L. Uckac and A. Uslu
Ankara University Faculty of Agriculture, Department of
Landscape Architecture, 06110 Diskapi, Ankara-Turkey.
*Corresponding author. E-mail:
baris@agri.ankara.edu.tr . Tel.: +90312 5961520.
Fax: +90312 3176467.
Accepted 23 July, 2009 |
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Urban
spaces play an important role in the processes of formation,
change and reproduction of urban identity. Under present day
conditions where the identities of cities are rapidly
deteriorating and vanishing, the importance of urban design
which is a means of designing the urban spaces and their
physical and social aspects is ever growing. The aims of
this research are to find out the elements constituting
urban identity by determining with what elements the
inhabitants of Ankara Kecioren define the city in which they
live and particularly their own living environment; to show
the changes in urban identity and its elements in the course
of time and to investigate the role of urban design in these
changes. In this study, it has been concluded that urban
design is one of the most important factors effecting urban
identity both physically and socially; that urban design
must be taken up with an approach where public interest
dominates so that it can have positive effects on urban
identity and that one of the most important reasons of the
change in the identity of Kecioren is the urban design made
there.
Key
words:
Urban, urban identity, urban design, public perception,
Kecioren, Ankara. |
