(Title of the Thesis)*

Moving a Market: Impacts of Heritage Nomination on a Local Community. A Case Study of Delal Khaneh in Iraqi Kurdistan by Rojan Mohammadi A thesis presented to the University of Waterloo in fulfillment of the thesis requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in Planning Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2014 ©Rojan Mohammadi 2014 AUTHOR'S DECLARATION I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. Rojan Mohammadi ii ABSTRACT The process of globalization has become a common factor in evolving cities in many developing countries. In Kurdistan Region, Northern Iraq, current urban redevelopment plans not only involve design features imported from elsewhere, but also substantially affect urban land use. The primary goal of the regional government is to transform Erbil, Kurdistan’s capital city, into a leading city in terms of attracting foreign investments and tourists. To achieve this, Kurdistan Regional Government is leaning towards urban transformation as the solution. The city is striving to achieve a global status and in doing so, it is inevitably involved in the process of displacement. This study explores neoliberal urban transformation process within Erbil’s historic city centre and its impacts on the local residents, which has resulted in the demolition of an old bazaar and the displacement of its merchants who were relocated into a new shopping mall. In order to achieve its objectives, this study employed in-depth interviews with relocated merchants from Delal Khaneh bazaar to Nishtiman Mall and key informants in the planning and redevelopment field, as well as personal field observation. The findings indicate that the displacement of merchants had both social and economic impacts. The lack of amenities and failure to apply appropriate design standards in the new mall, Nishtiman, are two other implementation failures that the findings reveal. The demolition of the old bazaar and the relocation of its merchants to the new mall illustrate a new form of spatial fix, where the poor are purged from the city centres, a neoliberal ideology that tries to conceal urban poverty. Based on the findings, this study proposes recommendations to Kurdistan’s Regional Government and to the city of Erbil to clarify and redefine their planning objectives and iii implementation. As well, the concept of public participation is reconsidered while the adaptation of urban design guidelines and thorough market assessment are proposed. This study contributes to the literature on the redevelopment of historic city centres, the development of shopping malls at city centres and the adaptation of neoliberal goals for cities in developing countries. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My deep gratitude goes to my advisor, Dr. Laura Johnson for her guidance throughout this study. I am more than grateful for her valuable feedbacks and inputs to this research. I would thank her for being generous with her time and her conscientious input in reading and editing my writings. I would like to thank Dr. Luna Khirfan, my committee member, for her valuable advice, comments and references she suggested. Many thanks go to my Reader Dr. Sanjay Nepal for his insightful comments. My appreciation extends to Erbil governorate, Ministry of Municipality, Director of Archeological Department, Mr. Kanan Mufti, and French & Lebanese University’s president, Dr. Mohammed Sedigh Khoshnaw, for their cooperation and support. I am grateful to Dr. Fereydon Rahmani and Mr. Sertip for the considerable amount of time each spent with me during the fieldwork in Erbil. Thanks go to the interviewees who agreed to participate in this research study. Their hospitality and stimulating dialogue allowed for in-depth data and findings. I thank my family for their continual love, everlasting encouragement and constant support. This thesis research would not have been possible without their help. Lastly, I must thank my best friend, Ola, for her support, mutual motivation and confidence she has given to me. Her words of inspiration and unfailing love have been a great source of endurance to me. v DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my mother, whose unconditional love and care is the source of my strength to accomplish this long but rewarding journey. It is also dedicated to my beloved niece, Lawin. She is a source of inspiration in completion of this thesis. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS AUTHOR'S DECLARATION ...................................................................................................................... ii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................................. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................................................... v DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................................. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................................ vii LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................................................ x 1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Background .......................................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research Question and Objectives ...................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Research Significance .......................................................................................................................... 5 1.4 Research Methods................................................................................................................................ 6 1.5 Thesis Structure ................................................................................................................................... 6 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ....................................................................................................................... 8 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 8 2.2 The Concept of Globalization ............................................................................................................ 10 2.2.1 The Emergence of World Cities and Global Cities ................................................................ 12 2.2.2 Globalized Dubai .................................................................................................................... 14 2.3 Neoliberalism..................................................................................................................................... 17 2.3.1 Urban Transformation ............................................................................................................ 21 2.3.2 Urban Transformation in the 21st Century ............................................................................. 26 2.3.3 Culture-led Regeneration ........................................................................................................ 27 2.4 The Concept of Displacement ........................................................................................................... 31 2.4.1 Bazaars.................................................................................................................................... 32 2.4.2 The Significance of Bazaars in the Middle East ..................................................................... 33 2.4.3 Shopping Malls in the Middle East ........................................................................................ 35 2.4.4 Gentrification .......................................................................................................................... 37 2.5 Tourism and Heritage Tourism .......................................................................................................... 40 2.5.1 Heritage and World Heritage .................................................................................................. 42 2.5.2 The Economic Use of Heritage ............................................................................................... 45 2.5.3 Heritage Tourism and Authenticity ........................................................................................ 47 2.5.4 World Heritage – the Contention between the Global and Local Meanings of Heritage ....... 50 2.6 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 52 3 RESEARCH METHODS ..................................................................................................................... 54 3.1 Research Approach ............................................................................................................................ 54 3.2 Research Design and

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