مطالب

Neighbourhood in many Nigerian cities had been designed without proper consideration of design principles, which invariably affect the residents’ quality of life. This s tudy assessed the experts' and residents’ perception of design correlates of neighbourhood quality in the urban area of Ibadan. Data were obtained from both primary and secondary sources. A ques tionnaire survey and direct observations were used to acquire the primary data. A sys tematic sampling technique was used to select one of every 5th building after the firs t house had been selected randomly. Data collected were analysed using percentages, Correlation, and Multiple Regression. The results revealed that the majority of 87.9% residents s trongly agree that the building lines were s trictly followed. The majority of 86.7% s trongly agree that the practice of enclosure of space and gating is common in their area. The results of experts’ assessment of Design Characteris tics Indices (DCI) indicated that Alalubosa GRA was adjudged to be very good with DCI of 4.09, followed by Kolapo Ishola with 3.58 DCI. The Multiple Regression Analysis results showed that design characteris tics were related significantly with neighbourhood quality (p < 0.05). The result indicates F–value of 1.026E5 and P–value of 0.000a. Furthermore, the results of Pearson’s Correlation Co-efficient revealed s trong and significant correlations between neighbourhood quality and the design factor at either p < 0.01 or p < 0.05significant levels. The need to consider significant design factors that comprised: variability, tidiness image/milieu, territoriality, connectivity, consis tency, legibility and density among others by Planners and Architects in planning and designing adequate neighbourhood as important. 

The appearance of Square in Northwest Iran, as a traditional element of the city, did not have a certain definition in the urban planning due to its structural disruption in the spatial fabric as well as its chaotic present in the manifestation of its identity. On the other hand, since the concept of the square in this area does not match to the similar models existing in the central plateau of Iran including the characteristics of being enclosed and architectural integrity, most researchers have assumed that the irregularity of the form in the squares of northwest Iran is because of gradual growth, lack of spatial desirability, and performance without a predesigned plan. This descriptive-analytic research studies the effect of climate on the formation of the structural layout of "Saheb Abad" Square as a case study. In this way, a specified framework would be suggested, and a fixed sustainable urban pattern would be achieved regarding the form of a square in modern urbanism in this region. According to the findings of this study, the disintegrated layout of the square in Northwest Iran is not only because of its structural weakness, but it was in certain parallels with environmental and natural conditions. It is obvious that the investigation of this innovation could lead to sustainable development in modern urban constructions.