59
SETTLEMENT NETWORK, SETTLEMENTS AND HOUSING POLICY
SETTLEMENT NETWORK, SETTLEMENTS
AND HOUSING POLICY
5
The settlement network is the material
visage of human society. The network is
the result of human activity, as well as a
major condition for economys effective-
ness and quality of life. Most of mans life
is implemented in settlements. It is there
that he works, lives, relaxes and maintains
social, economic and political contacts.
Housing is a key component of settlements.
Providing an
adequate dwelling for every
citizen is a life necessity and a basic hu-
man right.
5.1. Settlement network
The settlement network of the Repub-
lic of Bulgaria has been taking shape in
the course of millennia under the impact
of geographic, economic, cultural, politi-
cal and other factors. Modern Bulgarian
towns and villages bear traces of Thracian
and Slav settlements, of ancient Greek and
Roman towns, of settlements dating from
the time of Ottoman domination, of the in-
dustrialization of recent years.
The layers
upon layers of cultures determine the di-
versity of settlements composition, their
unique nature and their affiliation to Eu-
ropean civilization.
The towns and villages have a charac-
teristic that is essential for countries in a
transition period.
This is their inertia and
stability that oppose the changing nature
of social life. That is why the issue of the
settlement network, its state, changes and
development prospects is very relevant for
Bulgaria, since in the last decades the coun-
try has undergone and continues to imple-
ment complex and rapid social and eco-
nomic changes.
Although differing in size, settlements
are more or less evenly distributed through-
out the country. What is unevenly distrib-
uted is the population in them. As a result
of the intensive urbanization and migra-
tion, within several decades the majority
of people flooded the towns.
The villages
have been depopulated, and the smallest
of them are dying out.
Against the background of the rela-
tively even location of small towns and vil-
lages throughout the country, the uneven
distribution of big towns and cities stands
out. Large parts of the countrys territory
are far away from servicing city centers. In
1994, 43.9 per cent of the countrys popu-
lation lived in 24 cities and towns.
This change has disturbed the disper-
sion point structure of the settlement net-
work that has been historically determined.
The big towns tend to increase in territory
and form gravitation fields around them-
selves. A new type of settlement formations
- agglomerations - has taken shape. Many
of these formations nuclei are areas where
many people, production funds and activi-
ties are focused. They generate environ-
mental problems and coincide with burn-
ing environmental points - the regions of
Varna-Devnya, Burgas-Kameno, Dimit-
Settlement types and their population (1956-1994)
1956
1980
1994
Bulgarias population
7 613 709
8 876 600
8 427 400
Rural population
5 057 638
3 330 600
2 711 500
Urban population
2 556 071
5 546 000
5 715 900
Degree of urbanization
33.6%
62.5%
67.8%
Number of settlements
5 903
5 368
5 336
Number of towns
112
221
238
Number of villages
5 791
5 147
5 098
Table 5.1.
Bulgaria gets urban
within the lifetime of a
generation
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT ! BULGARIA 1996
60
rovgrad, Plovdiv-Assenovgrad, Pleven-
Dolna Mitropoliya, and Vidin-Dounavtsi.
Parallel with the formation of urban
agglomerations and their avalanching prob-
lems, the problems of peripheral areas that
are sparsely populated and underdeveloped
have become more acute. These regions
have further deteriorated in the transition
years. The already few industrial enter-
prises
in them were closed down, as were
the cooperative and state farms, and a
lengthy process of restituting the agricul-
tural land began.
Another specific feature of Bulgarias
settlement network is its development along
three main urbanization axes:
- Major settlements of national rel-
evance, that are of a key importance for
the countrys territory. They are located
alongside the national and international
transport corridors;
- Settlements of regional relevance,
located alongside regional transport routes;
- Settlements situated alongside trans-
port routes of local importance.
Depending on the level of their devel-
opment the agglomerations are divided into
already formed, such in a process of for-
mation, and yet-to-be-developed ones.
According to a survey of the National Cen-
ter of territorial development and housing
policy, the already formed agglomerations
number 13 and include 651 settlements and
47.5 per cent of the countrys population.
The agglomerations that are in a process
of formation comprise 330 settlements and
9.4 per cent of the population.
The latest
trends in the development
of the settlement structure were reflected
in the Law on the administrative and terri-
torial structure of the Republic of Bulgaria
(1995).
5.2. Settlement development
The period after World War Two wit-
nessed sizeable work on settlement plan-
ning and construction. Many towns and
villages have developed well-structured
central areas, have expanded and improved
their residential areas, have built industrial
areas. Nearly all towns boasted downtown
and out-of-town gardens and parks.
The towns territorial growth and
changes in their structure are mostly due
to the establishment and growth of their
industrial territories, and the establishment
of industrial areas. Given the lack of a land
market and real land price because of its
nationalization, large areas of arable land
around the towns had been allotted for the
needs of the nascent industry. In towns with
a population above 100,000, the industrial
area usually exceeds the residential one.
The correlation ranges from 1:1 (Shoumen)
to 1:1.67 in favor of the industrial areas
(Bourgas). In smaller towns with a popu-
lation of 30,000 to 100,000 the correlation
ranges from 1:0.6 to 1:1.3. But for some
towns it has higher values - 1:1.5 (Gabrovo)
and 1:1.65 (Kyustendil). In small towns with
a population of less than 30,000 industrial
zones cover smaller areas and the correla-
tion is within the 1:1 range.
The terrains allocated for industrial
and warehouse areas proved ineffective
because of technologically outdated pro-
ductions that consumed much energy and
resources. They also consumed land, power
and water, while at the same time gener-
Possibilities for improving the settlement network
essary to more effectively uti-
lize the international transport
routes that pass through Bul-
garia for the further develop-
ment
of the linear-agglomera-
tion settlement network model.
A better usage of national, re-
gional and local transport
routes for developing the settle-
ment network is also possible.
Box 5.1.
The current state of the settle-
ment network requires priority
development of small and
middle-size towns for the best
possible utilization of the avail-
able material and human re-
sources, more even develop-
ment of the entire countrys ter-
ritory and enlivening of the re-
gions that lag behind. It is nec-