Explaining a different kind of informal space production in Baneh border County; capital accumulation and poverty deepening

Today, a different kind of informal space production in urban and regional scales has caused urban sprawl, increase in population and physical growth of rural settlements which are close to cities, and the growth of some corridors on a regional scale. Creating a free commercial space for informal cross-border trades, the growth of informal space by the officials and governmental authorities, high volume of trade-based tourism and the growth of capital in the urban areas in the shadow of the existing poor economy are the main reasons for the emergence of high demand for accommodation in urban and rural settlements in Baneh county. So the housing and urban sprawl has trespassed the planning system at a rapid pace. This leads to the growth of construction in the form of informal settlements. The purpose of this research is to present a new typology that describes these informal settlements and addresses the role of officials and governmental authorities in creating these informal spaces in the border town of Baneh. The research’s fondest hope is to be a practical study, and its method is descriptive-analytical. To achieve the objectives of the research, field surveys and studies have been conducted in the city and the peripheral region. On the regional scale, the location and number of second homes were identified in three corridors as macro level of informal settlements in Baneh County. The second level of informal settlements was identified by questionnaire distributed among the villages as supplementary material to the field survey. This was conducted in a buffer of a two kilometer radius from the city of Baneh. The population data of villages were collected through library researches and by referring to data provided the health center of Baneh County. The third layer of informal settlements in Baneh County was identified through field survey and documentary method to delineate the customary range of accommodation in Baneh. In doing so, also the Delphi Method was employed. The results of the present study show that the informal settlements can be classified into three layers with respect to spatial scale (informal construction of second homes in regional corridors, urban sprawl and physical growth in rural areas around the city, and the expansion of informal settlements in the city). These layers can be classified into two poles regarding their nature: the poor and the rich informal settlements. The consequences of informal cross-border economy and trade have led to the growth in activities and increase in the border residents’ income. But some setbacks such as the lack of proper and timely managements and flexible planning and the presence of factors and agents that have created informal residential spaces have led to emerging of new spatial consequences in accommodation system and the growth of the city and peripheral region of Baneh. Thus, it is pivotal that these factors and agents be considered more than ever in order to make the growth of the city and peripheral region proceed in a proper manner.