Available online at wwrw.sciencedirect.com ScienceDirect (UNOS UO ww else ver comoeatebulldens 3 Building and Environment 42 2007) 3418-3431 A qualitative evaluation of the after earthquake permanent housings in Turkey in terms of user satisfaction—K ocaeli, Gundogdu Permanent Housing model Nilufer Tas**, Nilay Cosgun®, Murat Tas “Department of Architecture, Faculty of Enginering and Architecture, Ula University, Gorule-Bursa 16059, Turkey “Deparment of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, Gebze Institue of Technology, Gebse-Kocaell $1400, Turkey Received 27 June 2006; resived in revised form 24 July 2006; acepted 1 September 2006 Abstract One of the most important works after an earthquake is the permanent housing practices. In these practices, in order to provide user satisfaction it is necessary to take the user need and the design criteria depending on it into consideration. Permanent housing must, above meeting the basic accommodation need, provide the psychologically, socially and economically damaged peoples various ‘expectations from the built environment where they wil ead their lives for a long time. This study aims to determine the problems that were come up against in use phase in Kocaeli Gundogdu Permanent Housing model, built after the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake and was chosen as the study field; and to get the results that could form data for the design and application of permanent housing that willbe needed to be made after a possible earthquake. Through this data, applications that will reduce the possible problems and increase user satisfaction and provide economic comfort to the users can be developed. (© 2006 Elsevier Lid, All rights reserved ‘Ke;words: Housing ned ater the earthquake: Permanent housing: 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake: User satisaction: Qualitative 1. Introduction Epicenter of the earthquake occurred on 17 August 1999 \with an intensity of 7.4 was on the North Anatolia Fault Line, 12km southeast of Izmit. One of the most important features of the Marmara Earthquake of 17 August was its covering a wide area. The earthquake affected an area of nearly 64,000km?, The cities of Istanbul, Kocaeli, Sakarya, Bolu, Bursa, Zonguldak, Eskischir, and Yalova were affected to a great extend. Loss of lives and properties were the biggest in Kocaeli, Sakarya and Yalova. 17,840 people were killed and 43,953 were injured. This carth= quake is among the big earthquakes causing the biggest numbers of casualty in the world (1. ‘According to the loss assessment state, the 17 August 1999 Marmara Quake damaged 244,383 buildings in total, 213,843 of which were housing and 30,540 were office “Corresponding author, Tel: +9024 4428139; fax: +902244828001 Email addres: silufertasauludag.odur (N. Tas (0360-15288-se front matter © 2006 Elsevier Lid, All rights reserved oi:0.1016), len. 2006.09.02 buildings. The number of housing and office buildings that were collapsed, seriously and moderately damaged was 154,511 [1]. The number of people directly affected by this state was explained to be around 1,500,000 [2]. Earthquake is a social destruction considering its results and it does not destroy only the buildings that form the physical environment. After an earthquake, social and economic ruins are experienced as well as the physical environmental ones. Physical environment, not being an independent variable, is the reflection of the sociocultural and socioeconomic structure of the society on the space. Accordingly, the major problem after an earthquake is to make the people whose psychological, social, and economic integrity were damaged along with the physical environ- ‘ment gain a new residential area with a similar integrity or ‘even on a more improved level. However, it is stated that users generally refuse a physical environment that is inconsistent with their own sociocultural and socioeco- nomic structures or transform them into a form suited to their own structure. For this reason, trying to form newN, Tas etal Buln and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481 sais physical environments disregarding the needs of the society and spending great amounts of money in the disaster area ‘may not always turn out satisfactory [3] The type of construction that forms the actual identity of the cities we live in is housing. Housings are also the most damaged construction types in quakes, Along with their physical and aesthetic features, housings constitute an environment for social life. To be able to constitute a high quality built environment, quality of the housing. gains importance. Particularly, researches conducted on mass housing applications show that some variables that are effective on the housing quality can constitute data for the design, Spatial and social dimensions of the housing surroundings are important in forming a socially dynamic environment in the mass housing areas. Furthermore, comfort conditions dependent on the physical environment variables are shown as important values in the rising of environmental satisfaction quality [4] There must not be any differences in terms of performance between permanent housings built after disaster and the ones built under normal conditions [5] However, after a disaster, while trying to provide the certain number of housings needed, not being able to supply the optimum quality in one or several stages of atlempt-planning-programming, design and construction owing to the restrictions depending on time, finance and other factors result in a set of problems that reflect to usage. Since there will be many families with various features taking shelter in the permanent housings and their environments, possible problems will directly affect the quality of life and comfort in the housing and its environment, Important criteria to affect the quality of life and comfort in the housing are physical, social, esthetic, economic, and technologie values. These values are considered critical in housings that are mass produced. ‘These can, as well as being able to affect each other favorably or adversely, can also determine the quality indicators (4) The density to be applied in the permanent housing area, quake survivor/user- outdoor space relation, position of the housing blocks relative to each other for visual comfort, dimensional features, plans and residence types, appearance of the housings, physical environment conditions are important in meeting the expectations of the users from different socioeconomic and sociocultural backgrounds. Carrying out assessments directed at the post use of permanent housings that evaluate social, economic, tech- nologic, and esthetic criteria as a whole and in interaction with cach other; collecting information concerning the value judgment of the quake survivors will enable the designer to produce solutions to the qualitative problems of the housing during the basic construction process. Accordingly, through a field study carried out in a permanent housing area that was constructed after the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake in Turkey, a study aiming to assess the housings in terms of user satisfaction was conducted. The aim of this study is to obtain results to guide designs and applications of the permanent housings that will be needed after a possible quake. 2. Study methodology First, a national and international literature research was, conducted and the theoretical framework of the subject was formed, 200 housing owners in Kocaeli Gundogdu Permanent Housing Region, chosen as study area, were interviewed face-to-face conducting a survey made up of 11 parts and 94 questions, With this study, information regarding environmental facilities and user satisfaction ‘with the housing, safety of the region and housings, and the modifications made during the using phase was obtained. The first and second parts of the survey include information describing the housing and user information, The third part questions satisfaction with social, physical and natural conditions and satisfaction with settlement under the heading of environmental facilities. The fourth part examines the rooms in the housing and relationship among rooms in terms of usefulness, position, and comfort. The fifth, sixth and seventh parts cover the modifications to the structure, fine structure and installa tion in the housing. Other parts question the safety of the area in terms of earthquake and fire and the gent satisfaction, Microsoft Excel Program was used in asses- sing the data obtained from 3. Housing need after the earthquake Sheltering works are handled in four stages depending oon the processes that are experienced: emergency shelter, temporary shelter, temporary housing, and permanent housing. Emergency shelter is usually established after a disaster at the instigation of individuals and households based on chance availability, convenience, proximity and perceived safety. Temporary shelter is often sought in the homes of friends and relatives, but mass care facilites are also used (6). If a temporary shelter to be established is considered to be used for a long period of time, then it is called a temporary housing, ‘They are the housings where optimum conditions are provided in which the quake survivors can carry on their everyday lives until they move in the permanent housings. Permanent housings, forming the last stage of sheltering after quake, are long term housings. They can be built in the earthquake area or somewhere else [7]. They constitute a significant part of the reconstruction stage. Architects and urban planners have important roles in this process because the action of meeting the basic shelter need after earthquake turns into an expectation of built environments that present the required surroundings for the people to regain their normal social habitat [8]. Permanent housings are to mect the psychologically, socially and economically damaged people's different expectations from the constructed3420 NN. Tas etal Building and Environment 42 (2007) 3418-3431 surroundings in which they will live for a long time as well ‘as meeting the basic shelter need. When permanent housings are compared with the housings constructed before the earthquake, there are no differences between them concerning performance, Cultur- al, social and natural features must be taken into account in both of them. Yet, the fact that permanent housings have to be produced in a certain period of time, in great numbers and in a variety of places adds a different dimension to the problem. This dimension is characterized as the unpredictability of production volume, time and place, vastness of the production volume and production period being restricted, and the expansion of production area [5] Permanent housing production afer quake is carried out, with various alternative approaches, These are: # Providing the user with a complete housing by the state or a welfare organization, ‘© Building unit housing for the user and allowing the user to develop it according to his needs in the course of time. © Organizing the users by providing educational aid and material provision and helping the individuals who build their houses themselves [5]. Among these alternatives, the most common one is the state's getting the whole housing built and giving it to the users by way of donation and debit [9]. In Turkey, in the production of permanent housings built after the 1999 Marmara Quake, the quake survivors were given complete permanent housings by the state and various relief organizations, associations and institutions. In ‘addition, individuals building their houses themselves were backed too. ‘When the housings built by the state in various countries ‘are examined, it can be seen that there is a big inconsistency between the built housings and the life style and expecta- tions of the users. The reason for this is explained to be the contradiction between the cultural context of the welfare organization and that of the user's. The urgency of the state afier the catastrophe prevents the welfare organiza tion from perceiving the local culture and getting an original synthesis, It is stated that the success rate of the after disaster housings is directly related to the planning ‘and preparation made by the involved organizations before the disaster [9]. ‘The procedure of making a building is carried out in a four-stage process. This process consists of attempt-plan- ning-scheduling, design, construction, and using. The first stage, attempt-planning-scheduling, starts with establish- ing the need for the building and involves the practice of planning and scheduling the building. In this stage, general decisions are made on the issues such as determining the space needs and performance requirements, selecting the place and finance program. In the second stage, design, general decisions on the quality and quantity of the solution are made and the project of the building to be constructed is obtained. The third stage, construction, is the one in which the designed project is realized. The forth and the last stage, using, covers the longest period and the problems concerning the structure come out in this stage. Apart from these stages, cultural and environmental factors also affect the building formation process, Building is formed in a certain cultural environment Major cultural elements affecting the formation of building are information, technology and value systems that are possessed by the society as well as all the individuals and associations that carry out the procedures concerning the building. Information comprises of theoretical or informa- tory data, Technology, on the other hand, comprises of technical information. As to the value systems, they consist of preference criteria that help determine if the solutions are good or bad. Environment, another factor affecting the building process, means all the elements that ate irrelevant to the culture and involves the physical environment on the formation of building. Climate, topography, local compo- nents, ete are the natural environmental factors, whereas. ‘energy, artificial components, workforce, ete are artificial environmental factors [10]. The process of obtaining a building and the affecting factors are described with the diagram in Fig. 1. While environment factor affects each stage in the production process of a structure, culture factor (information, technology and values) not only affects the process, but is affected by every stage at the same time. With the complete proces, it will be possible to obtain a healthy production through bringing up the problems that come out depending on various factors Desires, needs, personality features that vary depending fon the individuals create differences in the perceived quality. However, there are some indispensable peculia- rities that all individuals need. Hence, standards are to be determined by considering the conditions of meeting the needs and desires sufficiently, obeying the cultural habits, ‘ete as well as the concerns for being economical and reaching the mean. Quality of life and environmental (artificial environment-natural environment) quality affect the quality of the space that is dwelled in. EVROWENT ee (Gomis —) (Beson —) Gerorcin) Gara —) (CO Dhnecmetl I I ) (¥ freemoceor } "ASSETS Fig. 1 Structure process (10,N, Tas etal Bulag and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481, 3021 Quality of environment is measured by, beyond the criteria such as physical comfort and safety, psychological and sociocultural meaning that environment has, From this aspect, design is to reflect special requirements and profile of the users. In the spatial organization, action variety and abundance can be provided through favorable physical conditions and characteristics such as spatial staging ranging from housing, housing group to residence scale, creating an individual identity and a group identity, belonging to the space and customizing the space on various levels. We can mention the quality of an interior organization as long as it meets the psychosocial requirements such as allowing the actions of the family members that they carry on either alone oF together, discrimination between the private interior space and public exterior space, keeping the balance between visibility and privacy. An individual's feel of belonging to the place s/he lives in, and feeling his own identity in it will increase the value of the housing to that person and thus the satisfaction with the housing [11] Itis possible to discuss the user quake survivor-housing, uuser/quake survivor-environment relationship within the building concept explained above. Physical, social, aes- thetic, technologic and economic variables that determine the qualities of the permanent housings are affected by perception and spatial behavior processes that take place in the user-environment interaction, and also by the char- acteristics of the users, housing standards, building ‘materials and construction systems. Evaluation of these criteria will provide feedback. It will be possible 10 determine new requirements for the planning and the spatial requirements in accordance with them, and to produce new designs and solutions, thus contributing to the development of alternative solutions in the user/quake survivor-housing, user/quake survivor-environment rela- tionship in a new permanent housing production process. 5. Permanent housing practices after the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake in Turkey ‘One of the biggest investments and projects in Turkey in recent years has been the practices of permanent housings. The state of emergency that was experienced after the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake brought the need for permanent housing in the foreground and 43,053 housings were built in various towns and areas (Table 1) (12) Permanent housings were built in Kocaeli and Adapazari in the new residential areas that were displayed in the Environment Organization Plans that was prepared by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement. In Bolu, Duzce and Istanbul, the areas determined to be suitable places and largely being expropriated were made into permanent housing areas [13]. Twenty six thousand one hundred and sisxty one permanent housings were built by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement, 14,462 by the Office of Ministry, Project Execution Unit, and 2250 by various institutions and they were distributed to the people entitled [12], Table 1 ‘Numerical distribution of the permanent housings built in earthquake areas (12) Provinee Number of housing units Kocaeli 176 Sakarya ens Duce ero Bow 14 Istanbul 310 Yalova sae Ceskerkoy 539 Total 4053 ‘The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement put out an open tender for the work of producing plans and projects for the after quake permanent housings and checking services to advisor firms relying on the Decree Law 574 of 01.09.1999, The duties of the adviser firms according to the contract are: © geological ground surveys, © preparing and applying the development plan for he new residential areas, 1 design services, ‘© project management services, ‘ construction controlling services, © digitizing the data (The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement Emergency Housings Project Tender Condi- tions and Contract), Project Execution Unit carried out the services of: ‘ residential area planning, # housing design, ‘ construction controlling for the production of perma- nent housing by giving them out to different adviser firms. Carrying out different corporate operations and different project preparing processes together led to different spatial comments and results [13]. 6. A qualitative evaluation of Kocaeli Gundogdu Permanent Housing Kogacli, Gundogdu Permanent Housing Scitlement was determined as the study area in this study. The facts that the area is the third largest permanent housing arca of the region; that the housings have been in use for nearly 5 years and are mostly dwelled on; and that the housings were produced by three different organizational structures we effective on this decision, 6.1. Location and description of the region Kocaeli, in the Northwest of Turkey in Marmara Region, is the third biggest city of the region with a302 population of nearly 1,200,000, Having a large population due to intensive migration in the past two decades because of the rapid industrialization in the area, Kocaeli has a ‘major part in the country’s economy, In the 17 August 1999 Marmara Earthquake, a total of 121,023 housings were damaged most of which were reinforced concrete. Of these, 35,180 were collapsed and severely damaged; 40,757 ‘were moderately and 40.086 were slightly damaged [14] 17,766 permanent housings were built in 16 areas in Kocaeli. 9602 were built by using the credit taken out from the World Bank, 656 by various institutions and governor- ships, 7518 by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement (Table 2. Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area, the area of study, is the largest planned area in Kocaeli. It is situated on an area of about 2,500,000 square kilometers and nearly 3.5km away from the city center. The housings in the zone ‘were built by the State and relief organizations. ‘There are 4626 unit housings in Gundogdu Permanent Housing Region (Fig. 2). 1806 of these were built by The Ministry of Public Works and Seitlement; 2820 by the World Bank; 200 by private enterprise (Turkish Textile Industry Employer's Union). The housings in the region were built in the tunnel framework system and are heated with natural gas kombi boiler system. ‘The housings that were built by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement and the private sector consist of 99m?, three rooms and one lounge. The ‘ones built by the World Bank consist of nearly 70-80m?, ‘wo rooms and one lounge. The straw polls, carried out by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement, revealed that quake survivors do not wish to live in housings higher than three stories [15 ‘Table 2 N. Payot al / Bulding and Bnvirenment 42 (2007) 3618-8481 For this reason, housings were designed as ground floor +2 Ievels and ground floor+3 levels in the area (Fig. 3). In Kocaeli Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area general settlement project, housing blocks were located in a Way that they form city blocks (urban blocks) and are independent from each other (detached) and there are spaces left in the ‘near surroundings of the blocks for green areas. There are spaces left for reinforcement areas (commerce, religious foundations, town hall, school (nursery school, primary school, secondary school) street market, green areas, children playgrounds, social-caltural facility areas). As to the housing blocks, they were organized as 2 or 4 flats on each story. In all housing plans passage to the kitchen, living room, toilet, closet-pantry room are from the entrance hall, passage to the bedrooms and the bathroom are from the corridor which can also be used as the night hall. The entrance hall is relatively larger than the corridor in order for the entrance and exit to be easier. There is a balcony connected to the kitchen in all the housing plans. There is generally a basement in the housing blocks. Janitor room/flat, refuge, technical services (fuel storage, boiler room, power pancl room), storehouses of the housings were designed on this floor. Average size of the interiors of the housing types are approximately as follows: living room 18-23 m’, parents’ bedroom 11-14m’, Ist room 101m’, 2nd room 8.5-10m’, kitchen 8m’, bathroom Sm°, we 2m”, closet-pantry 1.5m*, entrance hall 3.5-5.5m°, corridor 4-6m*, balcony 3-3.5m? (Figs. 446), 6.2, Survey Considering the number of housings in the area, examination and surveys were carried out in 200 housings, [Numerical dstebuion ofthe permaneat housings builtin the province of Koss 14 Province Project aren Tosttations| Donations ‘The Ministry of Public World Bank Total ‘Works and Settlement Kocaeli ‘Gundosault) 20) 1606 1106 Gundogdu) 2820 2820 Bence 92 2 Donge! 708 108 Korekoy 204 208 Ununeiic as ds Yavact 180 180 Derinee 300 Sekerpnar 58 ss Degirendere a 4 Hisareyn 10 ra10 Siriakoy 3568 3568 Yenikoy 20 na0 Karamuse! 586 ereke 90 Himtepe 498 498 Total 656 1518 9602 umsN, Tas etal Bulle and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481, 303 Fig. 2 Setlement plan of Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area Fig. 3. Viewing of Gundogda Permanent Housing 75 of which in the housing area constructed by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement, 75 in the area constructed by the World Bank, and 50 in the area constructed by private sector. The positions of the housings ‘as basement, split level, and top floor were taken into consideration and a balanced distribution was made. ‘The ‘obtained data are presented in the graphics. 62.1, Demographical and socioeconomic data ‘According to the data obtained form the study made in Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area, it was determined that 35% of the survey participants come from families of four members, 26% from families of three members, 24% from families of two members and others from families of 1, 5, 6, and 7 members; and that 39% of the participants are of the age group between 20 and 40, Tt was also determined that 51% of the survey participants have had primary, 28% secondary, 18% higher education and that 31% of them are occupied as workers, civil servants or self-employers. In 61% of the housings the number of employed per housing is 1 and the same percentage applies to the number of dwellers with a low income (less than 1,000 YTL= 6608), 6.2.2, Environmental facilities The level of satisfaction with the environmental facilities in Gundogdu permanent housing region is discussed in three groups as follows: ¢ residential satisfaction, « satisfaction with social conditions, satisfaction with physical and natural conditions. In each group, the options “quite satisfied, satisfied, hesitant, not satisfied, and not satisfied at all” were interrogated for the listed sub-conditions. It was discovered that residential satisfaction, involving the sub-conditions of pavements, width of streets, safety perception, residence aesthetics, aesthetics of the housing, living in the housing, and living in the residence is high. ‘The lowest level of satisfaction in this group was observed. safety perception with a rate of 46% (Graph 1). While evaluating the housing quality, it is necessary to consider social and cultural conditions as well. Feeling 10 be a city-dweller, being able to establish relationship with the city and take part in the life depends on these conditions, According to the data obtained from the interrogation of satisfaction with social conditions, it was revealed that in general, dwellers are pleased with the district. The survey participants consider the residentialLN. Tarot ab / Bulding and Breionment 42 (2007) 3618-8431 1 — : GROUND FLOOR PLAN Fig. 4. Example of Gundogd Permanent Housing type plan with two rooms ‘unc ROOM Tones NN UVIN@ROOM ance eaLcowy ‘GROUND FLOOR PLAN Fig, $, Example of Gundogdu Permanent Housing type plan with three rooms,N, Tas etal Bully and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481 305 rr Graph 1. Level of user satisfaction about general residential arca in Gundogdu Permanent Housings ‘area to be satisfactory in terms of easement of access to the city center, educational buildings, religious buildings, sanitary buildings, and public transportation. However, they stated that they are not satisfied with the region in terms of trade opportunities, sociocultural facilities, public buildings (banks, etc.), and safety (Graph 2). Regarding user average age, @ large percentage of the population of the area consists of young people, which makes these kinds of activities particularly important. The time (o be spent in the housing and near surroundings is the most important means of reinforcing social relationships and the feeling of the state of belonging [16] The levels of physical and natural opportunities are important for the users to relax psychologically. It is understood that the survey participants are mostly happy with the sub-conditions listed below the title satisfaction, with the physical and natural conditions (density of the building, location of the buildings, contribution of the3026 N. Payot ab j Balding and Brvianment 42 (2007) 3618-8481 Graph 2. Level of satisfaction with social conditions in Gundopdy Permanent Housings. Graph 3. Level of satisfaction with the physical order of buildings to the vicinity relationships, green areas, relation between buildings and nature, walking paths, urban furniture, appearance of the buildings, garden organization, parking lot, environmental cleanliness, land- scape, strect lighting, level, drinking water) ‘The highest dissatisfaction is over urban furniture with a rate of 30% and garden organization with a rate of 28% (Graph 3) 62.3. Planning of the housings For the domestic chores to be done without interruption or difficulty, it is necessary that the housings are well planned enough. When interrogated in terms of planning, Gundogdu Permanent Housings proved to be satisfactory with a satisfaction rate of 83% throughout the region. The nd natural conditions in Gundagdu Permanent Housings. ‘Table 3 Te level of satisfe blocks jon with the plans of Gundogdu Permanent Howsing Housing Private The Ministry of al plans Public Works and satisfttion Setvement (%) ) Saisfed 95 2 7 8 Dissatisied 5 6 B 7 level of satisfaction with the plans of the housings is 82% in the buildings built by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement and 77% in the buildings built by The World Bank (Table 3).N, Tas etal Bully and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481, 3a Satisfaction with the housing plans was interrogated in detail in terms of convenience of the spaces in the housing, relationship among the spaces, location and the comfort conditions of the housing. The level of satisfaction with the housings in terms of convenience ranges from 44% to 75% fon the basis of the sub-conditions (housing size, overall convenience, convenience of the rooms, storage room, laundry drying facilities, suitability to improving) enclos- ing). The housings are found unsatisfactory in terms of suitability to improving/enclosing, one of the sub-condi- tions (Graph 4). The level of satisfaction with storing- cellar, laundry drying facilites and suitability to improv- ingjenclosing is low in the housings by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement. As to the housings by The World Bank, level of satisfaction with size, the number of bedrooms and bathroom and toilet spaces is low. Regard- ing the housings by private enterprise, the level of satisfaction with these is nearly 100%. Tt was discovered that survey participants are 80% satisfied with the buildings in terms of the relation among rooms, Level of satisfuction with the position of balconies is very low in the housings by private enterprise. Level of satisfaction with the housings in terms of comfort is lower compared with the conditions presented above. Nearly 40% of the participants stated that they are not pleased particularly in terms of inner noise control. Furthermore, nearly 43% of those living on the top floor are not happy with the roof insulation (Graph 5), 6.24, Modifications made in the housings Modificationsyimprovements that have been made and. wished/eonsidered to be made by the users in the Gundogdu Permanent Housings were interrogated in three groups as follows: structural modifications/improvements (knocking down walls, erecting extra walls, enclosing balconies, extend- ing the balcony into the place), ‘© modifications/improvements in the fine work (flooring and wall covering, window and door millwork, vitreous rents, roof works), © modificationsjimprovements in the installing sys- tems (plumbing system, electrical installation, heating system), ‘And the reasons for the alterations that have been made or are wished/considered were searched. With the study, it was found out that 13% of the survey participants have enclosed the balcony, 12% have extended. the balcony into the kitchen and 34% wish tof consider making this alteration for the purpose of expanding the room and saving space. Nearly 40% of the survey participants stated that they wish to/ consider pulling down a wall for the purpose of uniting various interior places of the housing. ‘Maintenance-repair work has been done on the exterior walls of 55% of the Gundogdu Permanent Housings in order to take measures against water and damp. In almost every room of the housings, floor coverings were replaced. to the rates up to 20% and $0% stated that they consider making modifications on it. Up to 30% have made ‘modifications on wall covering and up to 35% consider doing so. The reasons for the practiced or considered modifications on the flooring and wall covering are mostly the materials, lack of workmanship and aesthetics, or wasied Orato’ undecided Wdutntid Woot wall ased 20% 70% com som 40% 208 20% 10% ow. riches Graph 4, Level of saisfaction wih the convenience of space in Gundors Pe stroo oil nslosing the nurber of bedrooms a neat Housings.ss N. Pay etal / Bulding and Environment 42 (2007) 3618-8431 [anos atnfied satiated Glundecided Wdlsatistied not at all sailafied level of sun privacy ofthe home ‘external noise beat of summer heat of winter Graph 5. Level of satisfaction with comfort conditions in Gundogdu Permanent Housings. Nearly 70% of the front doors have been replaced or need replacing. The major reason for this replacement is safely, The rate of millwork replacements resulting from the lack of the quality of material and workmanship are relatively higher in the housings built by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement. The rate of replacing the vitreous elements in the kitchens, bathrooms, and toilets of the buildings is also high. Particularly, the rate of alterations in the bathrooms. and toilets is nearly 30%. The wish to do so is nearly 45%. The alterations/desire for alterations in the bathrooms and toilets are also the result of the lack of material and ‘workmanship quality and aesthetics It was determined that the rate of alterations that have been made or are desired is $2% for the humidity isolation and 41% for the thermal isolation. 35% of the other roof building elements have been replaced or are desired to do so, It was ascertained that, overall, plumbing systems and clectrical installments in the buildings are satisfactory, yet residents are not pleased with the heating system: thus, heater elements have been replaced in 36% of the housings and 22% of the users want to replace it Survey participants residing in the housings built by The World Bank are more satisfied with the wiring and plumbing systems. The buildings with the lowest satisfaction rate in terms of installation systems are the housings built by The Ministry of Public Works and Settlement terete cern, PL O% 10% 20H 30% AOR SOK DE TH KOS Graph 6, Survey partisipanis’ safety perception of Gundogs Permanent Housings 625. Safety In order to maintain livability in the housing and its surroundings, it is important that people’s lives and possessions are not under great risks [17]. Survey partici- pants’ safety perception was interrogated in terms of earthquake, fire and other disasters. Data obtained from this interrogation reveals that 66% of the participants find the residence safe from earthquake, while the safety perception of fire is 46%, Safety evaluation of the housings in terms of quake, fire, and other disasters reveals that 60% of the survey participants find the buildings quake safe. However, the rate of participants that find the housings safe in terms of fire is 33% (Graph 6)N, Tas etal Bulag and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481 3029 unhappy 2% on cloud nine happy Ta Graph 7. Level of general satsfiction with living in Gundogda Permanent Housings ‘Nearly 60% of the survey participants are of the opinion that there is not a common area to gather in case of a possible quake in the residence area and that the overall accessibility to the residence is not satisfactory. To the question if there are any installations that could cause secondary disasters after a possible earthquake (natural gas ‘or oil pipe line, energy transmission line, industrial plants that could cause chemical, nuclear or biological leakage, filling station, dam or stream posing the danger of flood, tc) in the near surrounding of the residence, 85% of the survey participants gave the answer ‘no’. ‘The results of the survey show that there are not any facilities for the disabled in the residence arca and in the buildings in Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area, and that 90% of the participants are not pleased with this state Furthermore, robbery and aggression cases occur very often in the area and the residents express considerable concern for this matter, 75% of the survey participants stated that they are happy about living in the area, and 60% consider their present housings (o be better than their former homes (Graph 7). 6.3. Evaluation of the data from the survey Being a well planned residence area, Gundogdu Perma- nent Housing Area provides a high level of satisfaction in terms of settlement and physical-natural conditions. The lack of sociocultural and commercial opportunities and the low level of satisfaction with urban furniture and garden ‘arrangement are due to the fact that it is a yet developing ‘area, An organization is particularly required in order to improve the quality of the surroundings and to maintain it. It was observed that environmental design has been completed in all parts. The fact that users have no parking trouble although there are not any parking lots is thanks to the fact that there are many free fields and parking on the sides of the roads is possible, There are not any walking paths in the area, yet pavements are wide enough to compensate for this deficiency, thus alfecting the level of satisfaction favorably. Users found the interior relationship favorable, How- ever, level of satisfaction with the two-room housing types is generally low as there is no storage room and living room is 18m? even though the size of the other rooms are approximately the same as the other housings and they have two rooms. Furthermore, as the bathroom and the toilet were designed to be in the same room, the level of satisfaction with these is low. Users think that the number and place of the balcony is unsatisfactory as each housing has only one balcony. ‘The level of satisfaction with the inner noise control in the housings is low, This is thought to be a result of the character of the construction system. As the construction system is tunnel framework and most possibly the buildings were not insulated against sound, passing of the sound through rooms is on a disturbing level. However, the level of satisfaction is high in terms of noise coming from outside. This is because the residence area is quiet. ‘The fact that most of those living on the top floors have complaints about the roofs implies that roof work was not, performed with enough care and that there is no insulation, House alteration is a common practice in Turkey [18]. However, as the construction system is tunne! framework, practices like pulling down walls cannot be followed. For his reason, the level of satisfaction in terms of housings’ being suited to be developed extended is low. One of the reasons for the collapse of the buildings in the earthquake of 17 August 1999 is the interventions made to the bearer system, Users’ desire forjidea of pulling down walls means that the warning results of the quake was either not taken ‘or has been forgotten. The practice of enclosing the balcony or extending it into the room due to the insufficiency of space is a common practice. ‘The fact that practices of prevention against water and dampness on the exteriors are common shows that the required insulation practices were not performed in the construction stage. Since there are gaps in the exterior walls, between the insulation material and the wall because of defect due to workmanship, water, air, and animals like insects and rats come through the walls into the housing. ‘Thus, an alteration was made in exterior walls of housing. blocks. In addition, it was ascertained that the overall issatisfaction with the heating system results from the fact, that radiator materials are not good quality and that their dimensions are not proportional to the size of the place. ‘When the reasons for making improvements) modifica- tions in the housings were explicated, it was realized that the level of satisfaction with the quality of the building ‘materials and workmanship is low. This results form fast construction, and not giving enough care when selecting the material and labor. While Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area is a new and phinned residential area, it is considered a great deficiency hat there is no consideration shown for the disabled. The problems with public security in the area and resulting low level of safety perception is considered to be due to the ‘quietness of the area and that a required security system3400 N. Pay etal j Balding and Bnvianment 42 (2007) 3618-8481 hhas yet not been settled completely. For this reason, replacing the entry door is a common practice. The implications that there is not a general field togather in during @ possible earthquake show that the quake survivors have been provided with access to accommoda- tion, yet no awareness-raising work has been performed on what to do in a possible quake. Although survey participants have various matters of discontent, most are content to live in the residence area and the housings. Since the residents, having lost their ‘homes after the earthquake, especially those that have low= income, are primarily concerned abut having a home, they stated that they are happy that they are provided with it, 7. Conclusion In Kocaeli-Gundogdu Permanent Housing Area, the ‘overall satisfaction level is high in spite of the fact that the ‘optimum conditions required in a residency and housing Ihave yet not been settled and that user satisfaction is low in some aspects. It is safe to say that this is due to the fact that the studied residence area mects the expectations of the users to a large extend andjor that the expectations of the users are on a minimum level. It has been observed that the level of satisfaction is high on the whole due to the fact that the need for accommodation and safe housings becomes of prior importance for the quake survivors who were psychologically, socially and economically damaged in the earthquake and that these expectations have been met. In order to prevent the unpleasant image that could appear on the exteriors of the housing blocks owing to the very common practices of enclosing the balcony /extending the balcony into the room, rooms must be designed more in number and/or larger andjor storage room must be considered in the planning stage in future projects. It will be suitable that the housing blocks consist of 2-3 levels, each with four flats at the most, and the flats are designed as to be at least 100m? big and have at least three rooms, apart from the lounge, at least one balcony, a bathroom, a separate toilet and a storing facility. A free scope for activity for the disabled must also be considered and solutions that allow meeting their needs without restraining their freedom must be developed in the housings and other buildings in the existing housing areas and the ones to be designed. Control and supervision in the construction stage is important so as not to experience disturbing problems in the permanent housings while in use. To be able to prevent the Faults likely to take place due to the poor workmanship and material quality, it is necessary to determine the standards in the design and project stage and to constitute effective supervision systems in the process of construction. The fact that the duration for scheming is rather short (architecture, mechanical group, static, electricity) in the planning stage affects workmanship and the quality of ‘material. Constructional drawings that are prepared in ing stage must be accurately detailed with scales 2, 1/5, and so on and information must be given ‘on how to apply the material. Low grade, less durable ‘materials must not be preferred in order to dectease the cost, building materials that conform to the building standards of the country (TSE (Turkish Standards Institu- tion) for Turkey). During the construction stage, the tender Tor the realization of the structure must be allocated to the competent contractor and subcontractor that will do it at the best possible rate instead of the lowest contractor, subcontractor. Specifications must be prepared on the materials to be used. Commitments of the contractor and subcontractors must be definitely defined. Satisfactory and. efficient professional inspecting services will directly affect, the workmanship and the quality of the materia The housings in Kocacli-Gundogdu Permanent Housing ‘Area were fast designed and applied; however, the fact that the social facilities, public buildings, commercial buildings and cultural structures have still not been completed although the area has been in use for 5 years is a great defect for the area, Moreover, facilities and open spaces are in apart areas and there is no permanence in pedestrian access. Dwellers of the permanent housing arca that is away from the existing city center need places to shop to for staple food, cleaning, and various household require- ‘ments daily and weekly; street markets, cultural places, social facilities (barber, haircutting saloon, etc.), public utility units where they ean pay for the bills (communica~ tion, water, electricity, etc.). Such facilities are important for the dwellers of the permanent housing area to integrate both within themselves and with the existing city center. ‘Thus, when the housings come into use, the above facilities must come into service simultaneously, There must be indoor and outdoor sports halls, youth centers for sports activities with which children and young people, leading, users of the common open spaces, can spend their time ‘outside the housings. In the green area planning, designs should be made in a way that they will allow people to be alone when they desire and contact with other people socially when they desire, In spite of the fact that not all the ‘open spaces need to be used, a green or flowery garden design that satisfy people visually is also important [4] A housing estate administration must be formed on an urban block scale or a smaller one that consists of 4-5 housing blocks. Resolutions over the housing and the near environment (street furnishings, gardening, etc.) can be adopted and implemented, both with the participation of the users. Improving the social interaction among the quake survivors will contribute to their psychological well being. In order to be prepared for the results of an earthquake, it is necessary to develop strategies through extensive planning and organization in regions with a serious quake hazard. Duly and faultless practices after the quake depend, ‘on the preparations made beforehand, Il is necessary 10 consider the risk of an carthguake at all times and to determine the criteria to be considered in case of a stateN, Tas etal Bullng and Bretromment 42 (2007) 3418-8481 381 that will cause the need for housings on a local scale by ‘means of nationwide works. Especially in Turkey, which is under high earthquake hazard, concerned departments, local governments and universities should work in colla- boration to develop urban transformation projects for the urban areas that were developed in an unplanned, disorganized and unsupervised manner and to produce new urban areas, The level to which the permanent housings and their environment can meet the users’ social, cultural and psychological needs is an indicator of the housing quality. tis necessary to form environments which can meet the needs of safety (protection against anxiety and complexity, stability, health, ete.) respectability (statue, prestige, find- ing acceptance, etc.) as well as the basic needs such as sheltering and aliment, In order to provide user satisfaction in the housings to be built after the earthquake, the physical (topographical and ecological structure of the hhabitat, number and size of the rooms in the housing), social (respect and love oriented determined relationships with the people and places including the home and its environment, cultural level), aesthetic (order, symmetry, surrounding, system and structure), economic (individual ‘and regional income level and sources of income) and technologie (practical building systems, building materials) variables on a local scale must be valued as component parts and housings must be produced accordingly. Acknowledgement I would like to thank Hamide Dilek and Fatma Uzungungor, who collected the data on the survey. References [i] Office of the Prime Minister, Crisis Managsment Cente, quakes 1999'Gn Turkish) [2] The Ministry of Public Works and Setlement, Emergency Manage ment General Directorate damage report of 14.12.2000 (in Tutksh), (5) Peblivah S, Ataman O. Problems regarding emergency housing Architecture 1977431 (in Turkish), arth (4) Ditgeroglu Y, Aydin 8, Pulat G. Quality problem in mass housing Office ofthe prime minister, housing development administration, iousing Resetrches Filet 19966 195 (in Turkish). [5] Sey ¥. Setlement and housing ia earthquake repions. Farhquake sal housing symposium, Ankara: Mess Publications; 1999. p, 62-53, (in Turkish). (6 Wu JY. Lindell MK, Housing reconstruction after wo major carthquakes: the 1998 northridge earthquake in the united states and the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan. Disasters 2006-281) oo (1 Fema: A housing recovery strategy for & new Madrid exethguake, Draft report ofthe housing recovery working group: 1998, p. 2-3. [S) Lagorio HJ. Earthguakes, an archite's guide to nonstvetural seismic hazards, New Yerk: A Wilej-Interscicnce Pubication, Wiley; 1990. p. 213, [9] Sey ¥, Tapan M. Report on accommodation and temporary housing afer earthquake, The Minisry of Public Works and Settlement. Emergency Management General Directorate. Ankara, 1987 Ga Turkish). (10) Pukar M. An establishment for earthquake damage on structures. A Search for solutions to the Earthquake problems of Turkey in the light of Lrzincan and Dinar expenences. TUBITAK Earthquake Symposium. Ankara; 1996. p29 (a Turkish). (11) Ginaydin D. Unit housings fleibiity research in terms of the felation between stisfuction and design in the housing. Institute of [Natural Sciences Publications, (in Turis). [12] The Ministry of Public Works and Seilement Emergency Manage rent General Directorate, Reoiving Information Result Paps of 18 ‘psi 206 (in Turkish. (13) Erten G. What is the place of quake housings in our design and planning culture? Architecture. TMMOB Chamber of Architects General Publication 2003:309:4 (in Turkish). [14] TR Kocaeli Governorship, Directorate of Public Works and Settlement, work report of June 2003 (in Turks, [15] Hakyemer A. Leaving documents to history on the permanent quake housings. Architecture. TMMOB Chamber of Architects General Publication 2003:309:36 (in Turkish). [16] Zable K. Housing fom the viewpoint of user. Housing problems of others. Habitat II preliminary conference. Compilation by Emine Kom; 1996, p38 (in Turkish [07] Habitat 1. Turkish natural report and action plan. United Nations people settlements conference Habitat Tl, Istanbul, 1996. p. 33 (in "Turkish, [18] Fsia , Cosgun N. 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