Evaluation of the Efficiency of Urban Development Plans for the City of Tripoli

Abstract

This research examines the spatial development plans of Tripoli from its inception to the current phase of actual urban planning, encompassing its first phase (1968-1988) and its second phase (1980-2000). The study aims to define the nature and stages of the city's urban growth, both temporally and spatially, the policies implemented, and the extent to which this planning contributed to achieving a balance between the city's growth and its demographic needs. The researcher employed the historical method to trace the city's growth stages from its inception until the end of the second-generation plan. The descriptive method was used to describe the planning phenomenon and its phases, while the analytical method was used to study and evaluate the first and second-generation plans, identifying their positive achievements and highlighting the shortcomings of each planning period. The study concludes with several key findings, most notably that the city has undergone several planning phases that formed its initial core and determined its current growth trajectory. These phases began with the old city, progressed through the colonial city, and culminated in the modern city, which represents the beginning of urban planning. The two planning phases of the modern city, however, have not been entirely successful in regulating land use and guiding development. Containing the city’s growth spatially and demographically is a result of the administrative, demographic, political and economic obstacles that the planning process faced, which prevented it from achieving its goals.