Characteristics of effective neighborhoods in land acquisition and promotion of social and neighborhood relations to achieve democratic urban planning (Case study: Mashhad)

When cities become the property of the municipality or the government, people do not feel a sense of belonging and responsibility as tenants of the city. For this reason, the municipality has to bear the cost of running and managing the city. The costs of managing and maintaining these collections are often met in the worst possible way. But if people feel belonging and start building places, they will accept the cost and responsibility of running the city. To test this hypothesis, the current study aimed to assess the reasons and contexts for this spirit by examining the views of people who are best prepared to manage and administer the city. The study method was descriptive and analytical. The required data were collected from a sample of 383 households in 13 urban neighborhoods of Mashhad. These data were analyzed using Spearman, regression, Friedman and ANOVA correlation coefficients. The results showed that the people who are most prepared to participate in the city administration process live in certain neighborhoods. In these neighborhoods, the perceptual-semantic, social, managerial-policy, physical and economic dimensions have suitable conditions. The prioritization of the relevant dimensions shows that the sense of belonging and ownership of the place has played a much greater role than the physical and managerial actions of the neighborhoods. Therefore, the best driver for the participation and presence of the people in the administration of the city is its administration by the people and with the help of the government.