Abstract:
Land suitability analysis has growing importance in identifying suitable land resource for some specific uses. Due to the dynamic urban growth trends, city administrators and planners are faced with difficulties in supplying suitable urban residential housing. Therefore identification of potential sites for residential development in urban areas is one of the critical issues of planning. As a result the study dealing to determine potential Suitable Sites for future residential housing Development in Jimma town by using GIS and Multi-Criteria Evaluation technique. Thus the main objective of the study was assessing the current site selection practice and identifying the main criteria for residential housing development, generating suitability map and evaluating proposed residential housing development. To accomplish the task the study uses both primary and secondary data sources like expert interview, literature and Geospatial data (landsat 8OLI-TIRS of 2019, DEM, Structural plan and cadastral survey data). ERDAS imagine, ArcGIS and QGIS software was used to accomplish the analysis. The internal factors that cast a shadow image on the quality of the current residential housing development plan preparation were the experience and skill gap of the plan preparation team that caused for the proposal of existing wetland site for residential land, existing industrial area for settlement and proposing residential area on slope greater than 250 rise. The finding of the study illustrated that about 4097.59 ha (38.78%), 1208.2 ha (11.43%), 1021.28 ha (9.67%), 1420.66 ha (13.44%), 1571 ha (14.87%), 1247.96 (11.81%) of the total urban landscape of the study area is Restricted, unsuitable, less suitable, moderately suitable, suitable and highly suitable respectively for future urban residential housing development respectively. Five potential sites were identified for future residential housing development having suitability class of highly suitable, suitable and moderately suitable in Southern, South eastern, western, North western and North Eastern part. The analysis obtained from the evaluation of proposed residential site by municipality with the final suitability map of this study reveals that; 19.03%, 9.32%, 11.96%, 17.85% 19.11% and 22.74% of the proposed residential housing development proposed on Restricted, unsuitable, less suitable, Moderately suitable, suitable and highly suitable respectively. Hence, the municipality should revise the proposed residential housing development and in order to better spatial urban land use planning and supplying safe and comfortable land for urban residential housing development for urban resident the way of planning should be shifted from the previous rudimentary subdivision layouts to GIS-MCE and AHP technology.
