Abstract
The objectives of this paper are (a) to incorporate vegetation cover into quantitative techniques for identifying and classifying urban landscape types, (b) to implement a methodology to analyse the urban landscape units of three zones in the Mediterranean coastal area and (c) to design a methodology that could be extrapolated to other urban spaces with a similar type and spatial scale. To achieve the objectives, the urban landscape units are characterized in three Mediterranean coastal municipalities in the south of Spain, in the province of Málaga: Benalmádena, Marbella and Manilva. The characterization is based on some of the most representative variables of the urban morphology, such as construction density, road density and building height, also incorporating the presence of vegetation cover, both arboreal and herbaceous and shrub. Data were obtained from the Spanish Cadastral (urban morphology variables) and through remote sensing techniques (vegetation), spatial analysis tools and multivariate analysis were implemented to obtain the characterization and spatial delimitation of the urban typologies. As a result, six clusters are recognized with predominant urban landscape typologies. The proposed procedure is a useful tool to segment the city following landscape criteria, as well as to assess the changes experienced in urban spaces.
Highlights
The urban form is the physical configuration of elements that make up cities, which is the result of demographic processes, and socioeconomic and politico-cultural developments over time and space
The results generated with the complete methodological procedure were analysed, including the contribution of high and low cover, estimated by remote sensing to the delimitation of urban landscape units
The presence of vegetation is a perceptual variable, but it plays an important role in the value and functionality of the city. It improves air quality [48], regulates rainwater [49] and urban microclimate [50], and establishes links with nature [51], in addition to other beneficial aspects, such as the use of trees to increase the privacy of dwellings, an aspect highly valued in the luxury real estate segment or the reduction of insolation in private and public spaces and the thermal regulation of the environment, especially in Mediterranean areas
Summary
The urban form is the physical configuration of elements that make up cities (land use patterns, population density and construction, infrastructure and equipment, transport and communication networks), which is the result of demographic processes, and socioeconomic and politico-cultural developments over time and space. The first studies that analysed the forms of urban growth were mainly developed in the United States and in the United Kingdom in the 1960s and 1970s In these countries, suburban expansion occurred across the board in the surroundings of the cities. Suburban expansion occurred across the board in the surroundings of the cities Among those studies, the morphogenetic methodology by Conzen [2], the Buchanan report [3], and the studies carried out by Berry can be identified as the most significant [4]. The morphogenetic methodology by Conzen [2], the Buchanan report [3], and the studies carried out by Berry can be identified as the most significant [4] These studies became more complex over time in their attempt to characterize the attributes of the expansion zones: the so-called suburban zones. As a consequence of these new forms of urban growth, the classification of urban landscape units must be adjusted to their increased complexity
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