Public Open Space on the Transforming Urban Waterfronts of Bahrain – The Case of Manama City Fuad Al Ansari Ph.D. Thesis Public Open Space on the Transforming Urban Waterfronts of Bahrain – The Case of Manama City by Fuad Al Ansari Ph.D. Thesis September 2009 Newcastle University School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape Abstract Public open space on the urban waterfront is a unique part of the urban setting of many waterside cities. Since the 1960s, more of these spaces are being provided in an attempt to bring more people to waterside areas. While some cities have been successful in striking a balance between their economic needs and the public‘s demand for access to the water, others have failed. During this process, the urban waterfront has become synonymous with the idea of public open space. In Bahrain, since the late 1920s, ‗decline‘ has become the predominant character of the relationship between urban centres and the water. Hasty urban, demographic and economic growth alongside extensive land reclamation and privatization processes has progressively changed the nature of the waterfront. Until the mid 1990s this process took place without sufficient consideration for the cultural and social values of the waterfronts of the Islands. The new millennium saw an even faster depletion of those spaces, which triggered public outcry. Currently, open spaces providing formal or authorized access to the water represent 3 to 8% of the Islands‘ shoreline. In reflection of this situation, this research investigates the physical and social nature of the urban waterfront in Bahrain in the context of the current urban growth and land reclamation processes. Theoretically, it uses a multilayered approach in exploring public open space on the urban waterfront. The empirical aspect is case specific, focusing on the Northern and Eastern waterfronts of Manama. This investigation, which is the first of its type in Bahrain, employs a case study method based on an overall qualitative approach. This enables the utilization of many tools, such as archival research, site survey, observation, and interviews, in investigating the physical and functional attributes of Manama‘s waterfront and the selected public open spaces. The study of this waterfront is able to answer questions related to its accessibility, ownership, water-dependent nature of its uses, and the availability of public open space on it. It also focuses on formal and informal types of waterfronts to answer questions related to how those spaces are publicly perceived and consumed and the processes that shape them. i Table of Contents CAHPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................... 1 1.1 Definition of the Problem .............................................................................................................. 1 1.2 Research Aim, Question & Objectives......................................................................................... 3 1.3 Research Methodology .................................................................................................................. 4 1.4 Structure of the Thesis .................................................................................................................. 5 CAHPTER 2: THE PUBLIC ON THE WATERFRONT .................................... 9 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 9 2.2 Definition of the Urban Waterfront ........................................................................................... 10 2.3 A History of Urbanity on the Waterside.................................................................................... 10 2.3.1 Early Encounters ...................................................................................................................... 11 2.3.2 Beyond Biological and Spiritual Dependency .......................................................................... 12 2.3.3 The Rise of Renaissance/Post–Medieval Waterfront ............................................................... 13 2.3.4 The Waterfront in the Age of the of the Industrial Revolution ................................................. 16 2.3.5 The Post-Industrial Waterfront ................................................................................................. 18 2.3.6 The Historic Waterfront in the Arab and Islamic City ............................................................. 19 2.4 The Urban Waterfront Phenomenon: Bringing the People back to the Water ..................... 23 2.4.1 The Phenomenon Worldwide ................................................................................................... 23 2.4.2 The Urban Waterfront on Reclaimed Land .............................................................................. 26 2.5 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 28 CAHPTER 3: UNDERSTANDING PUBLIC OPEN SPACE ON THE URBAN WATERFRONT: POTENTIALS AND CONSTRAINTS ........... 31 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 31 3.2 Definition and Roles of Public Open Space ............................................................................... 32 3.3 Formal and Informal Public Space ............................................................................................ 35 3.4 Attributes of Public Open Space on the Urban Waterfront .................................................... 36 3.4.1 Natural Locational Characteristics ........................................................................................... 38 3.4.1.1 Land and Water Forms.................................................................................................... 39 3.4.1.2 Nature of the Shoreline and the Water‘s Depth .............................................................. 40 3.4.1.3 Water Dynamics ............................................................................................................. 40 3.4.1.4 Water Quality .................................................................................................................. 41 3.4.1.5 Climate and Natural Phenomena..................................................................................... 41 3.4.2 Urban and Spatial Characteristics............................................................................................. 42 3.4.2.1 Urban Form ..................................................................................................................... 43 3.4.2.1.1 Urban Complexity ...................................................................................................... 43 3.4.2.1.2 Urban Continuity ........................................................................................................ 43 3.4.2.1.3 Integration with Water ............................................................................................... 44 3.4.2.2 Public Access to the Waterfront...................................................................................... 45 3.4.2.2.1 City-Waterfront Connectivity .................................................................................... 50 ii 3.4.2.2.2 Inter-Waterfront Zone Continuity .............................................................................. 53 3.4.2.2.3 Accessibility of the Water .......................................................................................... 53 3.4.3 Conservation, Identity and Distinctiveness, ............................................................................. 55 3.4.4 Building codes, Zoning and Land-use ...................................................................................... 58 3.4.4.1 Complexity of the Urban Waterfront .............................................................................. 58 3.4.4.2 Functional Connectivity, Continuity and Interdependency ............................................. 59 3.4.4.3 Functional Water-dependency ........................................................................................ 60 3.4.5 Actors‘ Characteristics, Jurisdictional Boundaries, & Legislative Issues ................................ 62 3.4.5.1 Waterfront Constituency ................................................................................................. 62 3.4.5.2 Ownership of the Waterfront .......................................................................................... 64 3.4.5.3 Land Ownership, Riparian Rights and Public Access Rights ......................................... 67 3.5 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 70 CAHPTER 4: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................... 67 4.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 67 4.2 Methodological Perspective ........................................................................................................ 68 4.2.1 Qualitative Approach ............................................................................................................... 68 4.2.2 The Case Study as a Method of Investigation .......................................................................... 70 4.3