Strategic Planning for The Creation and Development of Livable Underground Spaces in Hot and Dry Climates (Case Study: Zahedan)

Today, due to the growing urbanization process affected by the industrial revolution and the capitalist system, most cities in developing countries face many challenges, including unbalanced physical growth, poverty growth, worn-out urban fabric, traffic problems, declining quality of life indicators, and environmental pollution. These factors in practice have led to instability and reduced livability of these cities. In recent decades, planners and city managers have proposed various solutions and policies to reduce these challenges, including the use of subsurface spaces (such as subway stations) as an innovative strategy, an emerging concept.The purpose of this study is to provide strategies for achieving livable underground spaces. The data collection method of this research is based on documental method and social survey. So, at first review articles were derived from a couple of significant databases including Scopus, Web of Science Core Collection, and Google Scholar, ensuring high quality and inclusiveness of search results. Also a questionnaire was used in the second step. On the other hand, a combination of SWOT-ANP models has been used.The results of 19 indicators as factors affecting the biomass of subsurface spaces in hot and dry climate are presented in 5 groups including functional factors (flexibility, all-inclusiveness, efficiency and diversity, safety and security, walkability, Easy accessibility), perceptual (sensory richness, readability), environment (cleanliness, climate comfort), physical (human scale, continuity, enclosure) and social (vitality, belonging to place, sociability, attention to human needs). The results of structural equations show that the aggressive strategy for the city of Zahedan has scored.