Land Use and Urban Growth in Chiang Mai: Lessons for More Effective Urban Development Management

Abstract

Sustainable cities require appropriate management of the urban environment and an understanding of the dynamics of urban growth. Unfortunately, local urban problems are poorly understood in developing countries and require major research, development, and evaluation efforts to identify effective approaches to problem solving and remedial policies. This chapter identifies several issues of urban development in Chiang Mai and suggests policy interventions to address these. It is argued that to ensure the sustainability of Chiang Mai, it is of fundamental importance to properly manage and control the urban growth of the city. In order to be able to do this, it is necessary to better understand factors, patterns, and consequences of the growth itself. This chapter begins by describing the forces and patterns of growth in Chiang Mai. This is followed by consideration of the consequences of growth regarding both physical and socio-economic dimensions. By assessing the way in which growth and its related problems are managed, the need for increasing the capacity of the local government in managing urban development is highlighted. The chapter concludes by presenting a number of policy recommendations for improving Chiang Mai’s capacity to manage its urban growth.