Sprawl of Babol city and structural-functional changes of the surrounding villages-Case study: Siakalamahaleh Village

Sprawl is one of the forms of expansion that has entered the literature of urban management and planning in the last half-century. Some Iranian cities have experienced this kind of expansion at a rapid pace. Babol is one of the medium-sized cities of Iran. The aim of this study is understand the pattern of the expansion of this city from 1957 to 2017 and its effect on the structural and functional changes of villages around and the Siakolamahaleh village. The statistical population of this research is the city of Babol and Siakolamahaleh village. The period of this research is from 1957 to 2017. Data gathering were done via documentary and field work technique. Data analysis demand application of GIS in order to analyze the rate, direction, and form of Babol sprawl between 1957- 2017. This is further followed by application of Holdren model regarding computation of degree of sprawl in Babol. Calculating the distribution of this city using the Holdren model shows that over the entire period from 1957 to 2017, approximately 74% of the city's horizontal growth has been driven by population growth and 26% of it has been affected by dispersion. This trend has led to the integration of villages around the city. This dispersion is connected linearly in the north and south along the axes and separated by a physical alteration of its peripheral settlements. The village of Siakolamahaleh is one of the most important villages in this area.