Tracking Morphological Agencies in the Alienated Fringe Belt Plots of Istanbul

Fringe belts, founded on the peripheries of the city and thereafter being embedded in urbanized areas, can transform in time. They may either modify without losing the fringe belt character or alienate by being absorbed in residential or commercial growth. Especially in large cities with strong and rapid dynamics of change, the concept of fringe belt alienation can be a focal node for monitoring the transformations. Besides the morphological aspects, it is significant to examine the agencies that play roles behind these transformations. This paper intends to make contributions to the fringe belt literature in terms of morphological agencies by analyzing the alienated fringe belt plots in Istanbul that has the characteristics of both an ancient historical city and a megacity of today. The research deals with three major subjects: Istanbul’s fringe belt development, alienated fringe belt plots by morphology, configuration and property, and agencies involved in the alienation processes. Firstly, inner, middle, and outer fringe belts of Istanbul are identified. Their formation phases are observed to put forth a typical narrative of Istanbul’s urban development. Then, alienated fringe belt plots are analyzed with four case studies. The plot development cycles are examined to reveal the relationship between the plot and the building in each case. This examination addresses the phases of the formation and the first cycle of plot development. Second cycles are observed as the result of the transformations both in form and utilization. Finally, morphological agency networks of the cases are displayed by elaborating the active agents in transformation phases. They are categorized into five groups and analyzed by a network analysis. The motivations behind the agent behavior which reflect the periodization of urban development in Istanbul are also unveiled in this paper.