Contextual Framework

The contextual framework is essentially the theoretical framework applied to Jeddah.

The questions are highly sensitive to the unique socio-cultural context of KSA, and therefore provide new insights into the strengths, weaknesses, and future possibilities of current thinking and practices surrounding subdivision development. The questions examine:

 how and why SR were adopted in KSA;

 current SR mechanisms used both nationally and by Jeddah Municipality;

 why legislation on SR has stagnated;

 residential land subdivision practice;

 main actors in the design, planning and development process;

 positive and negative impacts of current SR on Jeddah;

 frequency of subdivision plan use;

 challenges caused by the conventional development approach;

 output of current SR on the ground;

 availability of public services and facilities, their locations, implementation dates, accessibility, means of egress, traffic and safety, etc.;

 regulators’ opinions of current development regulations’ performance;

 regulators’ opinions of current land subdivision practices by developers;

 conventional development practices;

 methods used by developers to design, plan and develop subdivision plans;

 degree of attention to users’ needs and preferences paid by developers in the planning and design stages of subdivision plans;

 why conventional practices produce incomplete and fragmented infrastructure and public services;

 conventional developers’ opinions of current development regulations and approval process.

 residents’ awareness of current SR;

 residents’ opinions of subdivision developers;

 residents’ aspirations for their neighbourhoods, city and country;

 inclusion of citizens’ opinions in the development process;

 citizens’ residential preferences;

 how citizens’ residential preferences compare with current conditions;

 unconventional development practices;

 how unconventional development practices compare and contrast with conventional practices;

 unconventional developers’ views regarding aspects such as: the conventional pattern and their developers, SR, and approval process.

Thesis Structure

The second chapter has two sections: the first discusses land subdivision development, particularly in the North American context, and the main actors and their roles in the development of subdivision plans are identified and explained. The second discusses the conceptual framework of SR, including their definitions, purposes, positive impacts, components, and the process of land subdivision approval procedures.

Chapter 3 has also two sections; the first section outlines the Saudi model of SR, including SR content and its relationship with town planning. It also defines the subdivision approval process, the requirements and contents of SR, the general process of land subdivision development, and it identifies the main actors of this operation in the Saudi context. The second section critiques SR and LSP practices at international and local level. The international level demonstrates urban sprawl or deficient urban patterns of land subdivision developments. The local-level reviews work by a number of local Saudi scholars discussing the negative aspects of SR and its output in Saudi cities, highlighting gaps in their research. Later in this chapter, researcher discussed potential problems associated with policy transfer between different socio-economic-political-cultural contexts

Chapter One: Research Introduction

The second part of the thesis contains the analysis chapters (Chapters 4 to 10). Chapter 4 looks at various factors affecting the overall landscape of Jeddah, which in turn creates a variety of challenges for subdivision planning. Chapter 5 shows the impact of SR at the macro (city) level in Jeddah. Chapter 6 examines the role of Jeddah Municipality and their opinions (regulator's) of the SR and the manner of land subdivision development. Additionally the chapter discusses with a sample of conventional developers the quality of what is being produced and why, and what might be produced. Chapter 7 clarifies the impact of SR on Jeddah at a micro (district) level, and presents the output of subdivision this regulation in two districts. Chapter 8 depicts residents’ perceptions of their built environment in the two districts. Chapter 9 describes the inhabitants’ typological preferences in terms of form and manner for future residential development. Chapter 10 contains two parts: the first section presents four development projects of unconventional developers perceived as more desirable places to live by the current residents. The second offers arguments for these four unconventional developers regarding SR, regulators and conventional developers’

practices. Chapter 11 presents the thesis findings and recommendations, and also possible future studies.

Thesis Limitations

Several obstacles were faced in the preparation of this thesis. The limited availability of academic studies on SR caused some difficulty in developing a framework for analysis and appropriate data collection methods. Because the approach is largely new, the research demanded a broad survey of information. The breadth required increased the number of stakeholders considered in the development process. The wealth of information proved somewhat cumbersome in developing the thesis’s theoretical framework. Additionally, the depth of empirical research has been limited by the number of actors in the process of developing LSPs. The research was cumbersome in that it required data collection from Jeddah’s city officials and residents as well as the conventional and non-conventional developers. On the other hand, there were a number of other obstacles such as data entry, translation of data from Arabic to English, and use of computer programs. Another major limitation faced by the researcher was in data collection, as he failed to obtain the perceptions of female heads of households, because it was difficult to get female enumerators due to religious and cultural norms; hence, the researcher focused only on investigating male-headed households to perceive their

views on SR. Despite its obstacles, the current study can be taken as a model for other researchers in KSA and will serve as a useful planning reference for those unfamiliar with the subdivision development and urban planning processes of Jeddah and KSA more broadly.

Conclusion

In this chapter, the major themes of research investigation were discussed including the research aim, backgrounds, methodology, assurance on quality of data gathered by enumerators, thesis orientation, objectives, thesis structure and limitations.

CHAPTER TWO: CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF