Participation in urban renewal projects in Iran: An initial review of Mashhad, Shiraz and Tehran

This paper considers participation and collaboration in urban renewal projects in three cities in Iran. Based on this initial research we will make suggestions for future urban regeneration studies. Goal 11 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development defines sustainable cities and human settlements and highlights the need for citizen participation and inclusion in planning (United Nations General Assembly, 2015). Urban planning in Iran can be traced back to ancient times, for example to 2700 BC in the city of Shoush, and reached its peak during the period of the Safavid Empire (1502-1736) with the construction of roads, mosques, bazaars and public buildings (Rasoolimanesh, Jaafar and Badarulzaman, 2013). Today, in Iranian urban planning, the past and the present vie for dominance and although some efforts are being made towards preserving the cultural heritage, centrally planned modernisation continues to dominate and contemporary urban planning and management suffer from a lack of participation from stakeholders, residents and private organisations as Bahrainy and Aminzadah (2007) found: In Iran, large cities such as Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Shiraz, and Tabriz, the decision-making and implementation of urban projects are not typically consultative.