Suitable Site Selection for Urban Parks and Green Spaces Development Based on MCE and AHP Approach

The purpose of this research is to identify and select suitable sites for developing urban parks and green spaces. So that people in different areas of the city have suitable and convenient access to these areas.

In this research, site selection was used to determine suitable areas for developing urban parks in Gorgan city in Golestan province through a multi-criteria evaluation method and AHP approach. At first, effective criteria in site selection for the development the urban parks were identified by reviewing the previous studies and experts’ opinions. After that, the selected factors were weighed using the AHP method. Then, suitable zones for developing urban parks were identified using the ZLS command based on the area of zones and the value of the land area. The final zones were determined among these high-proportion zones in the next step, with field investigation and ownership review.

The results of weighting showed slope, barren lands, and proximity to residential areas by gaining weights of 0.2515, 0.1929 and 0.0757, respectively, had the highest weight and have the highest importance for identifying new areas for developing urban parks in the next step, the criteria were evaluated through WLC method, and the suitability map were prepared for developing urban parks.

Results showed that 32.19 hectares of the study area are suitable for establishing urban parks. The results of the present study, identifying and presenting suitable areas for developing urban parks and green spaces in Gorgan city, could help managers and decision-makers in this sector in providing green space and improving the people's quality of life and welfare.