Explaining the Performance Model of Rasht as the Creative City of Gastronomy for Urban Development Using Grounded Theory

Creative cities are considered a new model in urban planning to help the development of cities. In the meantime, one of the urban development opportunities raised by the UNESCO Creative Cities Network to use the potential in cities is gastronomy, which plays a role in the daily life of citizens as a cultural and creative activity. This research sought to analyze the performance of Rasht as the creative city of gastronomy with the aim of urban development and explaining a model for it. The research method was qualitative using grounded theory. The statistical sample size was obtained using the snowball sampling method and continued through interviews until data saturation and no new concept was obtained. Accordingly, 25 individuals participated in a semi-structured interview. 13 of them included city managers of Rasht, officials of the Creative City of Gastronomy project, urban area experts, tourism development specialists, university faculty members, restaurateurs and cooks, and 12 people included citizens of Rasht. From the collected information, the final model of the research was formed during the three steps of coding the Grounded theory (open, axial, and selective) and the conditions of the categories (causal, contextual, central phenomenon, intervention, inhibitory, strategies, consequence). Results showed that the category of "importance of planning and branding" is a causal condition, the category of "cultural and food values" is a contextual condition, the category of "actions in the field of creative city" is an intervention condition, and the category of "disorganization and indecisiveness of urban management in the direction of development" "Creative City of Gastronomy" is one of the conditions that hinder the Creative City of Gastronomy in Rasht and affect its performance. In general, the performance of the creative city of Rasht could be better. To improve the performance of this city, three strategies, "Education and participation of society and trades," "Realization of creative projects," and "Information and communication exchange management," were presented. By applying these strategies, the result of "Strengthening and all-round development of the creative gastronomy city" will be It happens that it consists of three basic categories: "increasing managers and creative and participatory citizens," "tourism development in the field of gastronomy" and "productivity of the local and urban economy." The results of the research help to understand the key components in the performance of the creative gastronomy city of Rasht by planners, officials, city managers, and citizens.
 
Extended Abstract
Introduction
By 2050, about 70% of the world's population is expected to live in cities. Climate change and rapid global urbanization are among the major challenges of the present era, which cause economic, social, and environmental problems. Therefore, the creative city as a new urban planning and development model can help create safe, resilient, and sustainable cities. Such cities are an arena for moving, concentrating, and directing human energy toward creativity. The idea of a creative city has become a new way to achieve city development. A creative city should be able to accept social groups with different cultures because a diverse population with different ideas and opinions increases the chance of creativity. In 2014, Rasht City was registered by UNESCO as the first creative gastronomy city of Iran in the network of creative cities of the world due to its rich food culture. More than 200 types of local foods exist; the variety of Rasht's special food products and the healthy food production process from the farm to the people's table are the main reasons for registering Rasht as a creative gastronomy city. However, considering the expression of the concepts of creative city and creative tourism by urban management and its wide use in the public discourse of managers, it is still considered one of the urban challenges. Considering the importance of the issue and the need to address it due to its impact on urban development, this research attempted to explain and examine the performance of the creative gastronomy city of Rasht for urban development in the form of a model.
Methodology
First, a semi-structured interview was conducted with three individuals to achieve the research goal using the grounded theory. Then, using the snowball method and with the interviewees' suggestions of the next people, the interview continued, and the required information and data were collected. In this research, the statistical sample size continued until data saturation, and no new concept was obtained through interviews. Based on that, 25 people participated in a semi-structured interview. 13 of them included city managers of Rasht, officials of the creative food city project, urban area experts, tourism development specialists, university faculty members, restaurateurs and cooks, and 12 people included citizens of Rasht city. After the completion of the interviews and after collecting the data required for the research, the coding stage started with the grounded theory method. The general purpose of data analysis in this method is to develop theory. Strauss and Corbin (1990) consider three types of open, axial, and selective coding methods needed to develop a grounded theory from the data.
Results and discussion
Through open coding, 103 concepts and identifiers were extracted. Next, 23 categories and eight main categories were obtained by categorizing similar concepts. The categories are related to each other through axial coding with a pattern. This research used the pattern model based on causal conditions, central phenomenon, contextual intervention, and prevention strategies and consequences. The categories were integrated into an overarching theory in the last coding stage (selective coding). The results of the research showed that the category of "importance of planning and branding" is a causal condition, the category of "cultural and food values" is a contextual condition, the category of "actions in the field of creative city" is an intervention condition, and the category of "disorganization and indecisiveness of urban management in the direction of development of the Creative City of Gastronomy" is one of the conditions that prevent the Creative City of Gastronomy in Rasht and affect its performance. In general, the performance of the Creative City of Rasht could be better. Three strategies have been proposed to improve the performance of this city: 'Education and participation of society and trades,' 'Implementation of Creative Projects,' and 'Management of Information and Communication Exchange.' Implementing these strategies will realize the outcome of 'Strengthening and Holistic Development of the Creative City of Gastronomy.' This outcome consists of three fundamental principles: 'Enhancing Creative and Participatory Managers and Citizens,' 'Developing Tourism in the Gastronomy Domain,' and 'Enhancing Local and Urban Economic Productivity.'
Conclusion
According to the obtained pattern, the city of Rasht is not in a favorable situation in terms of urban development. Results showed that the interested and influential groups do not have a strong connection with each other for the optimal performance of the creative city, and it is not possible to present their opinions and views to achieve joint planning. Notably, from the beginning, actions in the creative city area were carried out without planning. Moreover, the existence of disputes and political issues that also affect international communication, infrastructure problems in the city, and the lack of a scientific view of the city management on the concept of the creative city and its goals have made the city more undesirable. Evidence of the lack of facilitation for the participation of various individuals and groups, including creative citizens, restaurant owners, chefs, municipal authorities, etc., in Rasht suggests that citizens and individuals can impact the creative city's development. Although urban management has taken steps to develop Rasht as a creative city of gastronomy, findings indicated that these actions have not been sufficient, and in some cases, they have not achieved significant success. Considering the influence of contextual, spatial, interventionist, and inhibitory factors on strategies, it is essential to implement strategies to improve the performance of this city for the development of a Creative City.
Funding
There is no funding support.
Authors’ Contribution
Authors contributed equally to the conceptualization and writing of the article. All of the authors approved the content of the manuscript and agreed on all aspects of the work.
Conflict of Interest
Authors declared no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to all the persons for scientific consulting in this paper.