Urban planning: Fès has a new development plan

This plan, which covers an area of 13,000 hectares, required, according to Abdelkader Ben Bassou, regional inspector of Housing and Urban Planning of Fès-Boulemane, 2 years of studies, field surveys, and consultations between the contracting design office and the various services and administrations concerned to be finalised. It aims to meet four main objectives. The first consists of positioning Fès as a regional capital by equipping it with structural facilities (sports complex, conference centre, city of arts and crafts), strengthening its metropolitan functions (new university campus, Technopark, administrative city), and further supporting investment in tourism, knowledge, and new technologies.

The second objective relates to the protection of sensitive sites, the hydraulic network, risk management, particularly in flood-prone areas and steep slopes, and the strengthening of the city's green network by reserving an area of 2,000 hectares for it. This network, occupying 12% of the urbanised space of the Fès agglomeration, should include a hydrographic network composed of the Oued Fès, Oued Mahraz, and Oued Lhamer, two green corridors to the east of the Wislane valley and to the west of Fès and its tributaries, as well as a peripheral green belt that should contain extensions and ensure the transition with the suburbs and the peri-urban space.

The other objectives of this development plan concern, moreover, responding to the demand for social housing through the reduction of deficits and unsanitary housing and improving access to housing and basic services, as well as controlling urbanisation by containing extensions, enhancing brownfield sites, developing polycentrism, and strengthening the unity of the city. Furthermore, Mr Ben Bassou states that this new plan plans to strengthen the road network through more efficient public transport, notably by relying on a hierarchical road scheme and using the railway line as a public transport line. In addition, the requalification and restructuring of certain zones are also included in this plan. Thus, besides the restructuring and requalification of the northern districts, including notably the upgrading of the Jnanates, Sahrij Gnaoua, and Aouinat Hajjaj sectors, controlled changes in urban fabrics are planned. This involves the gradual transfer of industrial activities from the city to the Ras El Ma industrial zone, which should constitute the true industrial hub of the agglomeration in the long term, as well as the conversion of the Doukkarat industrial zone into an entertainment and office zone, and also a city dedicated to arts, crafts, and hospitality.

That said, this new development plan is strongly contested by the civil society of the city of Fès. Thus, several associations have stepped up to the plate, demanding a revision of the said document. This is the case of the "Regional Forum for Environmental Initiatives" association, whose president, Abdelhay Raiss, strongly criticises its content. "This new development plan was designed without taking into consideration the well-being of the city's inhabitants, particularly in terms of green spaces. Indeed, because of unreasonable urban extension, the green network included in the new plan is limited to the extremities of the city. That said, the various districts of the city find themselves devoid of green spaces.

In addition, this plan has also failed to provide for public gardens and parks for children," he specified. He adds that "according to international standards, each inhabitant must benefit from at least 10 m2 of green space. Fès is very far from the mark with only 2 m2/inhabitant. Consequently, this absence of green spaces will have a very negative impact on the well-being of the Fassis by depriving them of fresh air and opportunities for their children's development". It should be noted that the new development plan currently submitted for public inquiry has recorded some 1,173 requests and objections.

Guidelines of the master plan of the Urban Agency of Fès

According to Abdelkader Ben Bassou, regional inspector of Housing and Urban Planning, the new development plan for Fès was designed by taking into consideration the guidelines of the master plan of the Urban Agency of Fès, still valid until 2015. These guidelines concern notably the opening of the Zouagha plain to urbanisation, the integration of Sahrij Gnaoua into regulated urbanisation, the adoption of a connection system in the form of a ring road ensuring the connection of the different entities of the city, the strengthening of the city's penetrating axes (west, south, and east), the densification of the urban fabric of the new city with the creation of a system of secondary centres in the extension zones opened to urbanisation, as well as the extension of the urban perimeter to 10,000 hectares by integrating the spaces of the neighbouring rural communes under urbanisation pressure.

LE MATIN

Provider / Source : actu-maroc.com