The future of informal pathways: Reinforcing the identity of public space in hilltowns

This thesis is an exploration of the cultural characteristics and urban identity of residential neighbourhoods of Shillong, a hilltown settlement in the north east region of India. The rapid pace of unplanned urbanization trends in the hill stations of India has resulted in the degradation of the quality of public space networks of hill stations which are of primary importance to the structure and quality of the urban environment. The present scenario of development in hill stations have resulted in extreme pressures in the built environment such as problems related to congestion, overcrowding, pollution and inadequate infrastructure which has resulted in a change in their morphology. Urban identity is a concept which entails a certain quality of life for the urban residents and can be used as a tool for maintaining quality of life in the face of rapid urbanization. Form, activity and meanings are the aspects which contribute to sense of place and it is these aspects which contribute to identity of a place. Due to change in building typology from the low-rise bungalow typology to the midrise apartment buildings which now graze the skyline of the neighbourhood this shift has seen a neglect in the urban infrastructure (movement networks) which provide accessibility as well as behave as a public realm. This neglect has been noticed in the rise of unsafe neighbourhood streets. This thesis aims to identify aspects of the urban environment, both tangible(physical) and intangible (mental and social), which contributes to the making of urban identity. It aims to provide a strategy, based on the qualities of urban identity, for one of the oldest townships of Shillong city which had seen a gradual decline in the quality of the network of public space structure which exists in the neighbourhood in order to bring back life to the network of public spaces in order to make them safe and also provide a better living environment for the residents. Drawing on such understandings the aim is to create a design strategy which aims at recreating these informal pedestrian streets as the social and public realm of the city.Architecture, Urbanism and Building Science