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An urban regeneration-placemaking strategy for the Qatar National Museum and Souq Waqif’s transit-oriented development in Doha, State of Qatar
Journal of Urban Regeneration and Renewal,
16
(2),
182-206
(2023)
Abstract
In the past 20 years, the State of Qatar has undergone rapid urban growth. Doha, the capital city, has capitalised on large-scale urban and infrastructural projects to strengthen and diversify its economy. The transport system, however, has largely relied on private vehicles, resulting in the need for a new public transit system: the Doha Metro. The recent construction of the metro system is opening up new avenues for the urban regeneration of transit towns as compact, liveable and sustainable neighbourhoods. Due to its historic and cultural significance, the Souq Waqif and the Qatar National Museum (QNM) neighbourhoods have been selected as a case study for this paper to explore and define a strategy for placemaking, based on a sustainable transit-oriented development (TOD) model. The research design is structured in four stages: 1) reviewing the literature about TODs and urbanisation in Qatar; 2) collecting oral and visual data from municipal authorities through structured interviews, site visits and site observations; 3) analysing the collected data and identifying the assessment tools to be adopted; and 4) implementing a novel masterplan focusing on public transit systems as a catalyst for sustainable urban transformation and placemaking. The findings contribute to proposing context-driven design strategies to enhance the liveability of the investigated TODs and to extend their application to other potential transit hubs in metropolitan Doha and in the Middle East.
Keywords: TOD; transit corridor; liveability; urban regeneration masterplan
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Raffaello Furlan holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees from IUAV University in Venice (Italy), and a PhD in Architecture from Griffith University in Brisbane (Australia). He has held visiting and permanent positions in Australia (University of Queensland and Griffith University in Brisbane), UAE (Canadian University of Dubai) and Qatar (Qatar University). He has been teaching Art History, History of Architecture, Project Management, Urban Design, Architecture Design and Interior Design. His areas of interest include Vernacular Architecture, Architecture and Urban Sociology, project management, art history. A member of the Board of Architects in Italy and Australia, he has 20 years’ professional experience, split between design management, project management and supervision roles, with some highly respected companies, six years of which were in Italy, 10 years in Australia, and four years in Middle East.
Khalida Lifam Marthya holds a Bachelor’s degree in architecture from University of Kerala, India, and a Master’s in urban planning and design from Qatar University. She is currently a Research Assistant at Qatar University.
Labeeb Ali Ellath holds a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Visvesvaraya Technological University, India, and a Master’s in urban planning and design from Qatar University. He has work experience of three years in the construction field in Doha, State of Qatar.
Maha Esmat holds a Bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Khartoum, Sudan, and a Master’s in urban planning and design from Qatar university. She has worked as Teaching Assistant at the University of Khartoum and has two years of work experience in urban renewal and rehabilitation projects.
Rashid Al-Matwi is an Assistant Professor of architecture and urban design in the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning, Qatar University. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in architecture from the Southern California Institute of Architecture, and a PhD in urban and regional development from Cairo University. Prior to joining Qatar University, Rashid had a long career in the public and private sectors. He has worked at Qatar Development Bank, where he was Secretary of the Board and Consultant. Before that he worked as Senior Adviser for the renowned architecture company AS&P (Albert Speer & Partner). In addition, he worked in the Urban Planning Department of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs & Agriculture in Qatar, where he held several regulatory and managerial roles such as the Head of Project Planning, Design Control, Quality Control and Architectural and Municipal Projects. He has worked in and supervised many public and private architectural and urban planning projects.
