Transforming unitary habitats to multi-habitats in the Ladkrabang District of Bangkok Metropolitan Area

Urbanization in outer city areas leads to conversion of agricultural land and formation of new urban settlements among agricultural communities. This can create adverse impacts on agricultural ecosystem as well as the traditional unitary habitats. This paper reveals the outcomes of three decades of planning interventions in an outer district of Bangkok and the transformation of habitats. It shows that a unitary habitat can be transformed to a multi-habitat while creating symbiotic relationships between agricultural and non-agricultural functions through planning interventions. The paper recognizes the change in focus and of successive planning interventions as the main factor responsible for this symbiotic relationship. Although this is an unexpected outcome of the planning interventions, the paper argues that progressive change of focus of plans can be a planning strategy to form multi-habitats and thereby plural societies. Moreover, it argues that such a planning intervention can counteract against the current trend of building unitary habitats by real estate developers which lead to segregate the urban society according to a new set of social classes based on economic strength.