Urban Regeneration and Social Segregation: The Case of İstanbul1

Abstract: Despite some of its negative consequences, urbanization is seen as an indicator for development and, thus, has been widely supported in Turkey. In recent years, as the migration to urban areas has slowed down, some more comprehensive steps have been taken to solve urban problems, particularly inadequate housing supply and squatter housing areas. In this respect, urban regeneration is presented as a panacea for the solution of many urban problems and the renewal of cities. Yet, social, cultural and historical aspects of city life are often ignored. Since 2005, many urban regeneration projects have been carried out one after another in many cities in Turkey. This process seems to have exclusive and disintegrative consequences as the displacement of the poor and marginal groups in large cities has shown. After a conceptual and theoretical introduction, this paper critically reviews recent urban regeneration projects and the experience and struggle of some urban residents in Turkey, particularly in the studied neighborhoods in İstanbul. Besides, the dynamics of segregation and exclusion involved in the process of urban regeneration project implementation in the studied communities are analyzed