Regeneration of Urban Riverside's Worn-Out Textures (Case Study: Urban worn-out textures of the Abshuran Riverside in Kermanshah)

Introduction

Worn-out structures are nowadays one of the most important challenges facing cities, and finding a way to improve their quality of life requires an integrated and comprehensive approach. Lack of paying attention to environmental considerations and attitudes in urban planning and simplification of natural patterns in the urban context, including rivers, will cause changes in their development processes and serious damage to their natural systems. Some of the inter-city riverside spaces are spaces where the old texture of cities is usually formed next to them. Such spaces have capacities that can become a beautiful urban landscape. Finding a solution to improve the quality of life in urban issues requires an integrated and comprehensive approach to a balanced and comprehensive approach to deal with various socio-economic and physical problems in these urban areas. Advancing such an approach is not compatible with the current administrative structures in Iran and often faces serious challenges. Another point that should be considered is that uncontrolled and unplanned physical development in recent decades has limited the ecological capacity and capability of natural ecosystems and has imposed harmful impacts on environment, such as air, water, soil and natural environmental degradation. Naturalness around the city, etc. has been one of its consequences. Lack of paying attention to environmental considerations and attitudes in urban planning and simplification of natural patterns in the urban context, such as valleys, rivers, forest edges and shores, leads to changes in their development and shaping processes and finally causes serious damage to their natural systems. Due to non-generality of such spaces in stabilization of urban life system, it is necessary to pay a special attention to these areas and efforts should be made to develop different scientific principles and rules for them. Some of the spaces in inter-city riversides are spaces, where the old texture of cities is usually formed next to them. Such spaces have the capacity to become a beautiful urban landscape. Kermanshah city is one of the cities that have these natural decorative elements, but have been neglected. One of these rivers is the Abshuran River, which lack of paying attention to it in recent decades has caused several social and environmental problems for its residents.



Methodology

The present study was a descriptive-analytical study. Field and documentary (library) study methods were used to collect data. Data collection tools also included questionnaire, interview, observation and note taking, database, Internet and satellite networks (Google Earth). A systematic random sampling method was used in this study. Factor analysis method in Spss software was used to analyze the data.



Results and Discussion

In the present study, 4 neighborhoods alongside the Abshuran River were examined. They were classified into three levels of very weak, weak and moderate in terms of regeneration of worn-out tissue. Using factor analysis method, 13 indicators were reduced to 4 factors (management, identity-meaning, economic and cultural-social). In total, 4 factors accounted for 70.118% of the aggregated variance, which is a good percentage for factor analysis and studied variables. In terms of management factor (Factor 1), each of the 4 neighborhoods of Chal Darvishan, Topkhaneh, Feyz Abad and BaqNey are in an unfavorable status, but the status is slightly different in terms of identity-meaning factor. Chal Darvishan and Feyz Abad neighborhoods with a little difference and Topkhaneh neighborhood are in an unfavorable status, because they are part of the old and central neighborhoods of Kermanshah. The study areas have a similar and somewhat unfavorable status in terms of the fourth factor (socio-cultural) as well as economic factor.



Conclusion

Lack of paying attention to rivers and poor management of riverside spaces have turned these vital and valuable elements and their surrounding areas into one of the most dysfunctional areas in cities, which usually face great environmental and social challenges. Additionally, their role and economic opportunities for citizens in general have been neglected. In recent decades, serious and valuable efforts have been made on management of some cities of Iran to organize and rehabilitate urban rivers and these efforts have re-considered the river as a natural and constructive heritage of life of cities, and have resulted in avoiding measures such as covering rivers and removing them from the list of natural and public spaces of city. Examining the study area in the present study reflects the fact that it has faced several problems due to negligence of officials and people and under the influence of urban growth and development over the years, etc. and its surrounding environment has been also affected and caused dissatisfaction among residents and citizens. The results show that ranking of studied neighborhoods area are Baq Ney, Feyz Aabad, Topkhaneh and Chal Darvishan, respectively. However, the important point is that none of the neighborhoods are in good status and integrated and comprehensive planning is required in this regard.