| Title |
The Causes and Characteristics of Housing Abandonment in an Inner-city Neighborhood - Focused on the Sungui-dong Area, Nam-gu, Incheon |
| Authors |
전영미(Jeon, Youngmee) ; 김세훈(Kim, Saehoon) |
| Keywords |
도시쇠퇴 ; 빈집 ; 구시가지 Urban Decline ; Housing Abandonment ; Inner-city Neighborhood |
| Abstract |
This study analyzes the causes and characteristics of housing abandonment at a micro level and draws implications for urban design in a declining inner-city neighborhood of Sungui-dong, Nam-gu, Incheon. This study creates a theoretical frame that explains a mechanism between urban decline and housing abandonment and identifies the spatial distribution pattern, characteristics and causality of housing abandonment, applying a qualitative method. Eighty abandoned houses in Sungui-dong are distributed intensively in the four clusters. The analysis shows that different physical conditions of each cluster serve as driving forces, which influence the pattern of housing abandonment. The cluster with a poor physical environment, such as narrow streets and small parcels, likely attracts redevelopment’s cancelation and entices concentration of socially-vulnerable populations, leading to proliferation of abandoned houses. Public area maintenance surrounding abandoned houses plays a decisive role in the further decline. Also, residents recognize the seriousness of housing abandonment differently, according to the social characteristics and their locations. In further studies, it is required to analyze urban spatial characteristics of housing abandonment at micro level, to prepare for a public area maintenance plan, and to identify residents’ recognition and behavior. |