Parameters of People's Satisfaction Towards Streets in Nablus City, The Case of Rafidia Street

Each environment contains distinctive physical objects that characterize its unique personality. The same prevails for the street built environment; it has different parameters that contribute its physical character and quality characteristics, which determine its significance. This study attempts to understand and interpret the contents of the built environment of the street in one of the streets of Nablus City, which has been attractive for handling various activities as well as containing various elements. The main aim of this study is to define the different parameters that represent the built environment of the street that may affect and influence people's satisfaction towards their street. In order to understand the complexity of the subject, the study examines parameters featuring the built environment of the street, the technical parameters and the quality parameters. The research approach has been both qualitative and quantitative, and from discussing the technical parameters and how it influence the quality parameters of the street environment. The methods used to collect information include: personal observations, semi-structured interviews, questionnaires and computer analysis using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). For on in-depth investigation, a case study street was chosen namely Rafidia Street in Nablus City. The study starts by analyzing the existing contents of the physical built environment of this street. Then it examines the potentials, problems and expectations of the case study. People add to the study their expectations as a way of measuring the level of satisfaction of the built environment of Rafidia Street. The study reveals that people's behaviors, in addition to the elements and/or activities are much related to the quality of the street built environment. In addition, the study concludes the importance of having a distinguished street environment in design and planning process and most of all on people's lives. It also provides feedback about the existing conditions of the streets of the city in order to translate the insights gained into practical solutions.