published_or_final_version / History / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Urban Planning and Design / Master / Master of Urban Design

The study on urban morphology has been widely developed in Western countries especially in Europe and America after the mid-20th century. The urban morphology of a place has a corollary of the urban form which encompasses urban planning, building fabric and land utilization pattern. The evolutionary process of urban morphology, otherwise known as urban form or urban landscape, appears to be unique in many other countries, including East Asia. However, there has been little attention paid with systematic method on the study of Chinese cities adopting this cross-disciplinary approach. This study attempts to investigate the urban morphology of Guangzhou by looking into the interrelationship between urban fabric and building typology, as well as their changing pattern in the historical context. Guangzhou was the Chinese city where the first large-scale urban re-structuring attempt was made by the Nationalist Government to transform it from a pre-modern, walled city into a modern metropolis in the early twentieth century. The complexities and dynamics associated with the growth of the city are valuable information for reviewing the theories and improving our level of understanding on urban morphology. Based on the review of literature, a theoretical framework, urban form as an outcome of the urbanization process with an emphasis on building typology and urban fabric, was established in this thesis. Within the framework, the concepts and methods of morphological analysis are adopted to analyze the physical aspects of the city at both micro and macro scales. By examining the transformation of the traditional residential building types, five selected prototypes are investigated and their corresponding evolutionary process as components of urban fabric is analyzed. Morphological analysis on urban fabric was made through the comparison on four urban districts of similar background in order to find out the distinctive characteristics for them. On a macroscopic scale, the urban fabric has undergone a transformation in relation to the building use pattern and their forms. Three models in relation to the urban blocks of study in Guangzhou have been established as a reference and consideration when carrying out urban design and planning activities in future. The first model is the linear development of building transformation in urban blocks and the effect simultaneously infiltrating into inner layer parallel to streets. The factor of whether or not the cases which are within the ancient walled city is not a matter in respect of transformation. The second model is the fringe development infiltrating to the core whereas the fringe albeit becoming intact cannot protect the inner core from occurring transformation. The last model is the corner development of urban blocks which has become an increasingly common phenomenon, revealing the significant value to a paradigm of the transformation process. / published_or_final_version / Architecture / Master / Master of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / abstract / Architecture / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / abstract / Architecture / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Urban Planning / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

A just city is what urban planning should be fighting for. In Chinese cities, however, spatial justice has been seriously overlooked in many aspects of urban development. Using the theoretical framework devised with spatial justice theories, urban power structure, and the theories and practices of urban renewal and housing for migrants in developed countries, this dissertation has evaluated the impacts of urban planning and urban policies on the housing for migrant workers. A case study of the redevelopment project of Liede Village in Guangzhou has been conducted to illustrate the scenario. Findings show that the policies and planning have brought together the government, the market, and the village, making them the core of the growth coalition, and marginalizing the migrant workers in the situation of the redevelopment of urban villages in Guangzhou. This alliance, aiming for growth, has helped commoditize the space reproduced during the process. The commoditization of land and housing is driving up the value of the properties. Migrant workers with limited income and rural Hukou status can only move to other villages. While Guangzhou is planning to redevelop nearly all the urban villages within the city core, migrant workers have to migrate to places where is far from the city center to seek for affordable housing, completing a migration pattern from the city center to the edge. It is concluded that the spatial injustice in the problem of the urban villages in Guangzhou has not been solved with the redevelopment. In contrast, it is exacerbated by urban planning and urban policies. A more inclusive, peopleoriented planning approach as well as other institutional changes is required for promoting spatial justice in Chinese cities. / published_or_final_version / Urban Planning and Design / Master / Master of Science in Urban Planning

Chinese cities have been experiencing significant growth and profound socioeconomic transition since late 1970’s. Reform and development on institution arrangement for land, which is one of the basic production elements, have been the core issue for the strategies of establishing market economy and urbanization. Land banking was a mechanism initiated in western European cities for directing urban development in early 1900’s. Under this mechanism land is resumed by public authorized organizations and will be held for future use to implement public land use policies. Some Chinese cities began their own land banking operation in the 1990’s. After nearly 20 years of introduction of land banking mechanism to China most of the cities and counties are now practicing this mechanism in their land management and supply framework. This study attempts to explore land banking mechanism and its effects on urban development comprehensively in lights of theories of new institutional economics and urban spatial structure applying the diachronic public policy analytical framework. Guangzhou, the third largest city and the first city to practice land banking mechanism, is taken as the study area. Spatial data for land supply records since introduction of land banking mechanism are collected and processed with GIS software. Archives in Guangzhou Construction Archive covering the land development and planning administration in Guangzhou were studied to facilitate in-depth understanding of the mechanism. Related statistics data, regulations, planning proposals, internal reports and were obtained to facilitate this study. Review on evolution of land banking mechanism in China and comparison of related regulations at state and local levels argue that the introduction of land banking mechanism into China has lead to institutional changes in the land development process by integrating western experience and local characteristics. Applying empirical transaction costs analysis on institutional models of major land supply mechanisms in China, this research illustrated that land banking mechanism has resulted in re-distribution of transaction costs of the land supply process, which reduces the transaction costs from the perspective land use right (LUR) users. However, for a specific case of land supply, overall transaction costs would increase under land banking mechanism compared to other land supply mechanisms. Exploration on data collected through GIS analysis illustrated that land banking mechanism strengthens city government’s capacity to instruct changes in both macro level urban form and micro level built environment. Analysis on statistics data and budgetary reports of Guangzhou Municipal Government demonstrates that with land banking mechanism gains of LUR conveyance are providing supplement income for the city government, which is approximately 30% of the traditional tax-based fiscal income. Financing values of Guangzhou city’s land bank are developed by land banking loans and establishment of the urban development financing platform. Supplement fiscal income and financing values of land banking greatly improve local governments’ leading role in urbanization process mainly through investment on urban infrastructures. Case study on evolution of Liede village under land banking mechanism illustrates that different land development process and changes of urban form have also lead to rearrangement of socio spatial structure such as significant changes in residential spatial changes. / published_or_final_version / Urban Planning and Design / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

Leung Ka U Eve. / "Architecture Department, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Master of Architecture Programme 2007-2008, design report." / Thesis Abstract: --- p.5 / Chapter Part I: --- Research --- p.7 / Background Research --- p.8 / The Need of China to Develop Sustainable Citites --- p.14 / Energy --- p.14 / Food Security --- p.14 / Towards sustainable urban design --- p.16 / Case Study I: New England Quarter --- p.16 / Case Study II: Vauban --- p.18 / Summary of Case Studies --- p.20 / Chapter Part II: --- p.23 / Design Application --- p.23 / Site Analysis --- p.24 / Site Context and design development --- p.26 / Design variation of combined networks --- p.30 / Final Presentation --- p.32

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Urban Planning and Environmental Management / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy