Urban Planning and Design in Times of Fast-moving Events in Jordan

Abstract: Experience of planning and urban design in Jordan is a distinguished experience. It adopts the two methods for planning; starting from the lowest levels up to strategic planning. The first way used to study the natural growth of the past. And then try to impose the past on the future; here, building plans depend on information. A second approach assumes that future has its own privacy, it may, or may not, begins from the past. Jordan is in a region which is full of tension, surprises, and hastened events. Therefore, it is difficult here to approach extrapolation in planning; because, planning in this case depends on studying past. It is also difficult to approach conclusions, which depends on the theories and pilot-tests. Thus, planners and designers in a country like Jordan must be ready to deal with all unexpected events. The research aims to study the trends in urban growth in cities that are next to areas of tension. It touches social, political, physical sciences and economics. It tries to study trends in planning in the current reality of the Middle East, which is filled with tension and fast-moving events; therefore, the research approaches both inductive and deductive methods. At the end, this research comes up with some recommendations based on heightening advantages. At the end, the paper explains the impact of the politics on sudden urban growth, demographic explosion and society as a whole. It tries to touch the impact of strategic planning on urban sprawl. It shows different problems that are facing urban planning in Jordan, and explains threats that obstacle proper planning. It highlights the importance of seizing opportunities, to propose suitable planning. The paper assumes a group of research theses. It studies and explains them with the help of images, forms, maps, and charts.