A morphological history of urban centers in Qingdao

Abstract

This study applies space syntax methodology and investigates the centrality process of four centers in Qingdao, China, which grow from old settlements during successive phases of urban growth. The aim is to increase the understanding of how urban form can generate and sustain centers as well as embed them in, or distinguish them from their context that has been built up in a rather complex geographic region. Results reveal the development of these centers and the associated different scales of accessibility are related to both pre-urban road network of the city and the local grid conditions of those settlements from which a center has grown. The overall condition of the city frames the global structure of the city and renders those settlements with potentials for movement-engaged activities. The local grid structure set by metric and topo-geometric properties influences the actual concentration patterns of social economic activities and determines the range and strength of a center in the city. The study suggests that the morphological structure of the city may be historical in nature, in the sense that old settlements are not simply “absorbed” by urban growth, but can sustain or even function as a center given proper spatial environment.