Urban morphology and social attachment: A Comparative analysis of a traditional and conventional Suburban neighborhood in case of Yeka and Lideta sub-city in Addis Ababa.

Abstract

A neighborhood’s social attachment is a central element of city design and practice; however social values are neglected by planners and other professionals in many urban centers. Ethiopia has embedded on urban planning initiatives at the early. To this end, Addis Ababa has taken a lead role in ensuring sustained urban growth through preparing urban schemes at different levels that promote social sustainability. One of the principles emphasized in all plans is promoting and maintaining a social attachment in settlements. It is not clear how this principle is translated into urban morphology in a traditional and conventional settlement. This study carried out a comparative analysis of two types of settlements, namely traditional (Lideta sub-city woreda 8) and conventional (Yeka sub-city woreda 13) to determine the nature and extent of how urban morphology in relation to social attachment. The sites were selected purposively based on the principle of traditional and conventional stratification.  To measure the effect of urban morphology on social attachment, a random sample of residents in these two neighborhood sites was surveyed. All in all, several of the research findings support the hypothesis that urban morphology, characterized by two distinct land development patterns, affects both the physical and social realms of social attachment for neighborhood residents. The neighborhood residents were characterized by elements of traditional urbanism with a greater social attachment than those in the neighborhood characterized by a conventional urban development pattern.