Interaction with the urban development, sprawl and the rural areas in Canakkale

Urban sprawl, which can be referred to as uncontrolled development of city, destroys natural resources, transform rural areas and causes an increase in urban infrastructure costs, transportation demands and durations. This uncontrolled growth is thought to stem from such factors as rapid population growth, industrialization, life style, insufficient planning and land management. In this study, spatial development of anakkale, which is not under high population pressure and is a small and medium-scale city, is analyzed and the reasons underlying urban sprawl are addressed. The study is based on three spatial analyses. The first one analyses the construction plans and urban development process during 1949-2016 through the Geographical Information Systems. The second one contains establishment of areas around the city suitable for settlement. The third one determines the development areas that may be defined as urban sprawl or leapfrog development in current situation. Rural-urban interaction and changing of rural areas were analyzed physically in areas where urban sprawl is more distinct. In the city, which gained an education and tourism-oriented growth dynamic after 1990, a speculative environment which was also supported by public investments was created. This speculative environment takes rural areas in the perimeters of cities, which are considered as cheap land stock, under construction pressure. The anakkale example is important in that it shows how determinative public investments and location choice decisions are in spatial development of small and medium-sized cities. In addition, growth expectation in the city appears to increase speculation on rural areas and accordingly sprawl.