Dissertation_Dr Faisal Almubarak

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for married employees and approximately 160 apartment units for unmarried employees.
New Riyadh included public buildings such as a municipal hall, a library, fire station,
schools, markets and recreation and health facilities (Figure 6.11,6.12).
The al Malaz development signaled a departure from the old laissez-faire attitude and
heralded a new era of government intervention in the housing market as a major supplier,
financier and subsidizer. The villas were sold to government officials at long-term loans.
The al-Malaz planners followed the gridiron network with a hierarchical street network
comprising a 180 foot wide highway bifurcating the new suburb, major roads of 100 feet,
collector streets of 60 feet and service passageways of 30-45 feet. This network fed
residential blocks of 150 by 300 feet which were subdivided into rectangular lots of 25 feet
deep with lengths varying from 25,75, to 110 feet. Due to its complexity and scale, the
Al-Malaz project can be considered as the major attempt to coordinate the allocation of
several urban elements in space, with special attention to the overall urban system. As
such, unlike the laying of gridiron residential annexes in the Eastern Province's towns, the
Al-Malaz model was characterized by its diversified functional elements which were built to
enhance Riyadh's centrality in the nation and boost its administrative capabilities (Figure
6.11). This intervention was to culminate in the massive housing programs yet to be
introduced in the mid-1970s, with the establishment of the Real Estate Development Fund
(REDF). By the end of the 1950s, Riyadh boasted a population of 300,000, and covered
an area of about 100 square kilometers as opposed to the original 100-acre 'heart of Arabia'
(Figure 6.12).
3. Urban Reconstruction at the Historical Core
The core had its share of King Saud's zeal for reform and he committed himself to the
task of remodeling that part of the capital. Increases in population and government ushered
unprecedented economic growth in the historical core. Both catapulted demand for
consumer goods which caused the expansion of a modern downtown area, and the sorting
by location of some economic activities hitherto unbeknown to the traditional population.
Economic growth also resulted in the development of some fairly distinctive residential
districts reflecting a sociospatial stratification of a modern urban society, though with a
great deal of spatial intermingling still extant.
The traditional fabric was the first to suffer from rapid change. The historical clay