Analysis of the effects of informal settlement on the sustainability of urban neighborhoods: The case study of Airport neighborhood in Yazd

Informal settlements, as a major social, economic, physical and management challenge, has inflicted many cities of the world, especially metropolitan cities of developing countries including Iran. Almost all the large cities in Iran are faced with this phenomenon and its adverse consequences. The purpose of this study was to investigate the status of informal settlements in the social, economic, physical and managerial dimensions of the Airport neighborhood in Yazd. The statistical population of this study included all the households living in this area, and the total sample size was 313 cases. The results showed that 50% of the respondents had been living in the neighborhood for less than two decades. Thus, the place is considered as a settler with a predominantly rural background. The status of the dimensions examined in the form of different items was not satisfactory. The results of the study indicate unstable conditions in the economic (38.5 score), moderate sustainability conditions in the social (50.7 score), moderate stability conditions in the physical and environmental (53.1 score), and the moderate stability condition in the managerial (48.3 score) dimensions. The overall stability of the above dimensions was also evaluated with a score of 47.7 on the average. The results of structural equation modeling showed an unsatisfactory state in the four dimensions of sustainability. Therefore, physical infrastructure, neighborhood interaction and solidarity, age group requirements, integrated management, and citizen participation should be taken seriously in upgrading and empowerment plans.