Development of creative problem solving-based framework for site planning in hill areas

Abstract

The growing urbanization of hill towns results in an increasing demand for infrastructural facilities. Infrastructural facilities are generally planned without considering the effects of the surroundings as well as their effects on the sensitive ecosystem of hill areas. Site planning decisions are taken on the basis of judgment and experience of planners in the absence of a rational and quantitative framework for ensuring the sustainable development of hill areas. This scenario generates the need for an efficient site planning framework. Site planning is a creative problem solving (CPS) process. Hence, in the current study, the CPS-based framework is developed as follows. First, existing CPS-based frameworks for planning and designing are reviewed. Second, the framework is developed for site planning in hill areas. Third, the developed framework is validated through planning infrastructural facilities of an institutional campus on a site located in hill areas. The major strength of the developed framework includes three cycles, namely, understand, process, and implement. Site planning decisions are taken through the generation of alternate scenarios and their subsequent evaluation on the basis of impact on the sensitive ecosystem of hill areas.