A Rhythmanalysis of the macro driving forces affecting sustainablility of hidden face of the city: A case study of Zanjan’s worn-out urban fabric

Spatial construction of cities as an onion; although looks simple from outside, is literally beguiling because it is of many layers; if each layer is examined separately, we would lose the whole in entirety. In the study of the spatial construction of worn-out fabric and its content (sustainability status), its causes and factors should not be viewed only from one angle. Viewed hence, the present study is an attempt to understand the macro driving forces rhythms affecting the present construction of worn out fabric of Zanjan city, and to examine the degree to which such rhythms have an effect on the current status of the same area. To these ends, using library study and field observation (interview with heads of households  residing the fabric (491 people) and experts (30 people)), the data were collected and then analyzed using ArcGIS and LISREL software. The results showed that macroeconomic structural factors with a significance coefficient of 9.99 and an impact factor of 0.92explain, to a greater extent, the spatial construction of the worn-out fabric of Zanjan. In other words, a centralized and state-oriented economic structure, oil economy and its impact on the spatial transformations of the city, and spatial allocation of financial resources in a homogeneous manner have managed to exert the greatest impact factor on the spatial construction of the present worn-out fabric of Zanjan city. Also, macro-physical factors occupy the second level of influence and explain the multi-layered spatial construction of Zanjan’s worn-out urban fabric. Renovation of the first shell of the building blocks at the edge of the main thoroughfares has ended in relying on commercial spaces. Width of passages and incentive approvals for renovation of old fabric have provided the possibility of high-rise construction and an increase in buildings’ height, culminating in the development of new "spatial envelopes" in stark contrast to the second and third layers of the fabric.