A Method to Identify Gated Communities in Istanbul, Gokturk Neighborhood

Abstract

Göktürk, is a suburban neighborhood taking place on the urban fringe of İstanbul. This neighborhood existed as a rural settlement until the 1980s, however, it has been exposed to rural-to-urban transformation in parallel with the socioeconomic transformations in Türkiye. Since the beginning of the 2000s, gated communities (GCs) have been the primary housing settlement type in Göktürk. In this context, the research has aimed to propose a methodology to determine a local typology reflecting the unique attributes of suburban GCs. Research methodology has adopted the features of Grant and Mittelsteadt (2004) as having a comprehensive point of view on GCs. GC samples are chosen considering a set of social, morphological, and spatial qualities they provide. The building coverage ratio (BCR) of GCs and the current market value of GC properties are distinctive and correlated indicators for recreational qualities that emphasize a typology of GCs. As a result, GCs are defined through the recreation possibilities offered by open spaces in GCs, therefore, the typology of GCs in Göktürk determined as non-leisure, shared leisure, and semi-private leisure. Moreover, the residents’ social characteristics in GCs in Göktürk have changed from upper income level to upper-middle income level, in a chronological view between the years of 1997-2022. Besides, urban tissue in Göktürk has turned out to be a settlement with fewer areas of open spaces. Although the proposed methodology has developed a pragmatic approach to analyzing suburban GCs, further research on central or peripheral-located GCs may contribute to the development of a theoretical framework.