Elsevier
Published by
Keywords
Rural Development Planning on the Outskirts of the City
; Urban Design
; Strategic Management
; Paşaköy-Köyiçi
Introduction
Located at the heart of daily life, the neighborhood is an important settlement unit that forms the organizational backbone, first in its own focus and then in the city as a whole, with its unique values. With the enactment of Law No. 6360 in 2012, the legal status of villages in Istanbul Province was abolished, and they were transformed into neighborhoods within the districts in which they are located. With the additional article added to the current zoning law, the decision on whether or not to preserve the rural area status of villages with a population of less than 5000 is left to the decision of the metropolitan municipal councils in the cities where they are located (11).
With the aforementioned law, the adjacent area (jurisdiction area) boundary of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality was accepted as the Istanbul Provincial boundary. Thus, Paşaköy, of which Paşaköy Köyiçi Location, the subject of this study, is a part, became a neighborhood in the Sancaktepe District. The transfer of authority from the Governorship-Local Administration to the Metropolitan Municipality and its affiliated District Municipality has led to disruptions in the provision of services to rural areas and confusion among citizens. It is defined in the legislation that neighborhoods that will maintain their rural characteristics can gain the title of rural neighborhood (30). Although the rural neighborhood application is considered a solution to the problems of the rural area, in practice, it is perceived as a regulation made to support the villagers economically (15).
The scattered and isolated nature of rural settlements, the inadequate provision of physical and social infrastructure services, the failure to overcome challenges related to geographical structure and climatic conditions, and the inadequacy and uneven distribution of capital should be considered as the reasons for the failure of plans in Türkiye to achieve economic development and reduce regional imbalances. These are considered among the fundamental problems that fuel underdevelopment and cause the failure of rural development initiatives. In addition, the weakness in communication management, which determines social capital, is thought to be an important reason for the development problem (23).
Rural development approaches are included in legal documents at the national and regional levels. Rural development is included in the goals and policies of the Eleventh Development Plan (2019-2023) under the heading "livable cities, sustainable environment". It is stated that the Rural Infrastructure Support Project (Kırsal Altyapıyı Destekleme Projesi/KIRDES) will be implemented in metropolitan provinces (17).
Rural areas hold a significant place in the country in terms of size, economic data, and local characteristics. Rural settlements stand out in many regions today with their unique features, form, and cultural richness (16). The architecture, spatial characteristics, and texture of cities, the creation of urban identity, and the implementation of unique design decisions aimed at preserving and developing their unique riches are increasingly important globally(2).
The pressure of globalization, the problems arising from the increased population density in city centers, the habit of working remotely during the pandemic, and subsequently hybrid working opportunities have made the tendency to live in rural areas a matter of personal prestige for middle and upper income groups (8). This interest is also triggering changes in socio-economic, cultural, administrative, and spatial elements in rural areas. Thus, the attractiveness of rural areas is increasing in terms of culinary arts, cultural destinations, architecture and urban fabric, natural and artificial landscape areas, tourism, accommodation, and other service sectors (7).