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Physical Planning Policies on Lagos Island and Their Effects on Urban Morphology

Received: 5 March 2020     Accepted: 10 June 2020     Published: 28 June 2020
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Abstract

Physical planning is perhaps the strongest tool in the development of the urban form. It is the visible limb of the state that is used to direct and control development. In Lagos State, physical planning is used more in ‘development control” rather than “development planning”. It also comes into use in the many instances of urban renewal. The rapid urbanization witnessed by Lagos State brought about a sprawl on the whole of Lagos Island. The combination of rapid urbanization, physical planning policies and the cultural heritage of the area have evolved a cocktail of highly diverse styles in the buildings and metropolitan form within the same continuum. This research examines the physical planning policies on Lagos Island over a twenty-year period (1995-2015) and their direct effects on the evolution of the city while trying to control development. The research is qualitative and assessment is based on literature, government records, field interviews, digital photographs and satellite images of the city. The study concluded that the physical planning policies were contingent, responding to issues within successive prompts in time. No holistic policies were put in place to address far reaching issues like a sustainable urban design model to be pursued over time. There is no blueprint for the development of the city. The policies only addressed “growth and development” without prescribed limits. It a classic case of organic development with ineffective controls. The end result is chaotic and needs to be addressed.

Published in Urban and Regional Planning (Volume 5, Issue 2)
DOI 10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13
Page(s) 50-60
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Architecture, Congestion, Development Control, Market City, Public Spaces, Urban Form, Urban Renewal

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Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Folahan Anthony Adenaike, Akunnaya Pearl Opoko, Roseline Abidemi Kosoko. (2020). Physical Planning Policies on Lagos Island and Their Effects on Urban Morphology. Urban and Regional Planning, 5(2), 50-60. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13

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    ACS Style

    Folahan Anthony Adenaike; Akunnaya Pearl Opoko; Roseline Abidemi Kosoko. Physical Planning Policies on Lagos Island and Their Effects on Urban Morphology. Urban Reg. Plan. 2020, 5(2), 50-60. doi: 10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13

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    AMA Style

    Folahan Anthony Adenaike, Akunnaya Pearl Opoko, Roseline Abidemi Kosoko. Physical Planning Policies on Lagos Island and Their Effects on Urban Morphology. Urban Reg Plan. 2020;5(2):50-60. doi: 10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13

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  • @article{10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13,
      author = {Folahan Anthony Adenaike and Akunnaya Pearl Opoko and Roseline Abidemi Kosoko},
      title = {Physical Planning Policies on Lagos Island and Their Effects on Urban Morphology},
      journal = {Urban and Regional Planning},
      volume = {5},
      number = {2},
      pages = {50-60},
      doi = {10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.urp.20200502.13},
      abstract = {Physical planning is perhaps the strongest tool in the development of the urban form. It is the visible limb of the state that is used to direct and control development. In Lagos State, physical planning is used more in ‘development control” rather than “development planning”. It also comes into use in the many instances of urban renewal. The rapid urbanization witnessed by Lagos State brought about a sprawl on the whole of Lagos Island. The combination of rapid urbanization, physical planning policies and the cultural heritage of the area have evolved a cocktail of highly diverse styles in the buildings and metropolitan form within the same continuum. This research examines the physical planning policies on Lagos Island over a twenty-year period (1995-2015) and their direct effects on the evolution of the city while trying to control development. The research is qualitative and assessment is based on literature, government records, field interviews, digital photographs and satellite images of the city. The study concluded that the physical planning policies were contingent, responding to issues within successive prompts in time. No holistic policies were put in place to address far reaching issues like a sustainable urban design model to be pursued over time. There is no blueprint for the development of the city. The policies only addressed “growth and development” without prescribed limits. It a classic case of organic development with ineffective controls. The end result is chaotic and needs to be addressed.},
     year = {2020}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Physical Planning Policies on Lagos Island and Their Effects on Urban Morphology
    AU  - Folahan Anthony Adenaike
    AU  - Akunnaya Pearl Opoko
    AU  - Roseline Abidemi Kosoko
    Y1  - 2020/06/28
    PY  - 2020
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13
    DO  - 10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13
    T2  - Urban and Regional Planning
    JF  - Urban and Regional Planning
    JO  - Urban and Regional Planning
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    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2575-1697
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.urp.20200502.13
    AB  - Physical planning is perhaps the strongest tool in the development of the urban form. It is the visible limb of the state that is used to direct and control development. In Lagos State, physical planning is used more in ‘development control” rather than “development planning”. It also comes into use in the many instances of urban renewal. The rapid urbanization witnessed by Lagos State brought about a sprawl on the whole of Lagos Island. The combination of rapid urbanization, physical planning policies and the cultural heritage of the area have evolved a cocktail of highly diverse styles in the buildings and metropolitan form within the same continuum. This research examines the physical planning policies on Lagos Island over a twenty-year period (1995-2015) and their direct effects on the evolution of the city while trying to control development. The research is qualitative and assessment is based on literature, government records, field interviews, digital photographs and satellite images of the city. The study concluded that the physical planning policies were contingent, responding to issues within successive prompts in time. No holistic policies were put in place to address far reaching issues like a sustainable urban design model to be pursued over time. There is no blueprint for the development of the city. The policies only addressed “growth and development” without prescribed limits. It a classic case of organic development with ineffective controls. The end result is chaotic and needs to be addressed.
    VL  - 5
    IS  - 2
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Architectural Technology, Lagos State Polytechnic, Ikorodu, Nigeria

  • Department of Architecture, College of Science and Technology, Covenant University, Otta, Nigeria

  • Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Lagos State Polytechnic, Ikorodu, Nigeria

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