ABSTRACT
We have already seen that Italian planning in Tripoli immediately after 1912 did not derive from grandiose visions of long-term growth or prestige, focusing instead on cost-conscious solutions to pressing problems. The original plan’s essential premises – shaping the new quarters’ rapid growth, and intervening in the walled city as little as possible – did not change much over time, even when new masterplans drawn up in 1931-1933 and 1936-1937 added small-scale measures corresponding to the emerging theories of segregation and zoning discussed in Chapter 6. At the same time, Tripoli continued to grow quickly. The census of 1912 had counted a total population of 72,130 (excluding the military);2 by the late 1930s, Italian estimates approximated 100,000 people.3 The city had also acquired a newly distinctive character by then, boasting recognizable landmarks: the renovated Castle with its vast adjoining piazza, various prominent buildings, the oasis, and the waterfront. One further measure of the city’s growth and rising commercial activity is that the Tripoli Trade Fair eventually attracted up to 30,000 daily visitors.4
