Urban Contestation in Migrants’ Settings: Towards More Resilience Through Fluid Planning in Aachen, Germany

This paper explores how migrants’ communities shape and contest their urban spaces, focusing on Aachen. The primary objective of this research was to capture the cultural urban change in migrants’ settings. It further contributes to building an insight into the various urban typologies strengthened by migrants’ settings, which could have implications on the urban fabric of the city, thus adding value to socially inclusive development. Qualitative approaches in identifying a street taxonomy were adopted in this paper. An in-depth analysis encompassing narrations behind urban layouts, behavioral patterns, and typological distinctions was made to highlight the differences within the setting. Notably, a pivotal aspect of this study is the endeavor to underscore the constructive, yet frequently underappreciated contributions made by migrants to the dynamics and development of urban areas. Therefore, more attention shall be given to the urban layouts contributing to more socially cohesive communities in and around such settings. In doing so, this research makes a substantial contribution to the broader discourse surrounding urban resilience and the fluid planning strategies adopted by cities in response to evolving demographic landscapes.